Model Kit Review: Bandai 1/12 C-3PO

BACKGROUND

We seem to be made to suffer! It's our lot in life.

See-Threepio, the fussy protocol droid, that along with his counterpart R2-D2, served as the audience's introduction the the Star Wars galaxy in 1977. Fluent in over six million forms of communication, Threepio comes to find himself in the service of the Lars family on the planet Tatooine before following Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Artoo aboard the Millennium Falcon to rescue Princess Leia and the Galaxy from the evil Empire. Ever serving as the foil to Artoo's jokes, Anthony Daniels' Threepio became one of the best known robots in cinema history!

Model Kit Review: Bandai 1/12 R2-D2 & R5-D4

BACKGROUND

You're a feisty little one!

R2-D2, the plucky little astromech droid, along with his counterpart C-3PO, is undoubtedly one of the most important characters in the Star Wars saga. Played by the British actor Kenny Baker and voiced by legendary sound designer Ben Burtt, R2-D2 played a defining role in the Rebel Alliance during the Galactic Civil War. From helping to destroy the first Death Star, accompanying Luke on his Jedi training on Dagobah, aiding Chewbacca, Leia, and Lando during their escape from Cloud City, and once again saving Luke, Han, and Leia from the clutches of the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt, Artoo cemented his status as one of the most famous robots in cinema history.

First Impressions: Bandai 1/72 X-wing

Along with the 1/12 Darth Vader I wrote about previously, Bandai has also released 1/72 scale offerings of the X-wing and TIE/x1 Advanced. Having built both the Fine Molds versions of these models, I was eager to get one built to compare it to the Fine Molds model.

Overall, it's a very nice kit with a couple of cool features and a few "interesting" design choices. The thing I really like is the droid socket behind the cockpit. Unlike the Fine Molds version, a fully assembled astromech droid slides into the socket, instead of just the dome. You remove the butt plate and slide the power generator trench back and out comes the droid. It also comes with two droid bodies so you can build both an R2 and R5 series droid. The detail is really crisp and quite impressive. Also, the S-foils lock together better than the Fine Molds version making it easier to display the craft in a landed position.

As mentioned by other people around the Web, the addition of the red panels is kind of pointless and adds unneeded complexity. The fuselage goes together sort of like a Lego kit with various small pieces plugged into various openings. The finished product looks fine, but I prefer Fine Molds method of keeping the fuselage in two main pieces to eliminate most seam lines. That being said, there are some gaps where a few of the pieces meet and I've had issues with the laser cannons staying on the wingtips, but this will be solved by gluing the kit (which I intend to do). 


Lastly, I took a handful of comparison shots of the two X-wings next to each other:

Model Kit Review: Bandai 1/12 Darth Vader

BACKGROUND

 There is no denying that Darth Vader is one of cinema's most iconic villains: cloaked in black, face hidden behind a sinister mask, and armed with an powerful knowledge of the Force and piloting skill matched by no one, this Dark Lord of the Sith will stop at nothing to bring the enemies of the Empire to justice.

His unforgettable appearance was designed by the legendary conceptual artist Ralph MacQuairre, though the mask was originally designed to only be used as a spacesuit and was not part of the normal costume for the character. Luckily, it was decided to make his mask/suit part of the character and his terrible visage was forever cemented in to cinema history!

THE KIT

This is one of three new offerings from the Japanese company Bandai after they assumed the Star Wars license from Fine Molds following the sale of Lucasfilm to The Walt Disney Company in 2012 to the tune of over $4 billion. Bandai is best know for making Gundam model kits and is well known within the modeling community for producing kits the "Bandai Way": intricate (sometimes over) engineering, multicolor molding, and snap together assembly. The question is, how does that translate to the world of Star Wars?

The kit comes on six sprues molded mainly in black (for obvious reasons!), with the pieces having either a high gloss or satin finish, depending on where the piece goes on the finished model. There is also a clear red piece for the lightsaber blade and a dark gunmetal piece for his shoulder armor. The kit is also supplied with a base resembling the floor of the Death Star and both waterslide decals and stickers to use on the kit. The detail on the pieces is fantastic with fine casting on the padded parts of his armor and sharp detail on the mask and chest. The cape may be the only weak part of the kit as it is solid plastic, making it unable to flow like a real cape. However, it is molded in several pieces so hopefully that will make up for an apparent lack of movement. This kit can be built with absolutely no painting, but should the modeler choose to add paint, Bandai has give a short color call out on in the building instructions.

THE VERDICT

Even without having built this kit, it definitely appears to be a solid addition to any Star Wars modeler's collection. This kit would look great built straight out of the box, but an experienced modeler could have a field day making the small improvements needed to this kit to make it truly worth of the Dark Lord of the Sith!

Model Kit Review: Pegasus Hobbies 1/1400 N.S.E.A. Protector

BACKGROUND

Never give up, never surrender!

 Released in 1999, the movie Galaxy Quest follows the adventures of the washed up cast of the eponymous television show almost 20 years after its cancellation. Scraping by making a living at fan conventions and store grand openings, they are whisked in to space by their on screen commander and de facto lead, Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen), after a group of aliens enlist his help when they mistake him for the character he played on the show, Cmdr. Peter Quincy Taggart. The aliens, known as Thermians, while gifted in science and engineering, have no concept of fiction and believe that the cast and the show are historical documents, basing their entire society on the show. When the cast quickly is over their heads, they rely on the help of a small group of superfans with intricate knowledge of the show. The product was a brilliant satire on Star Trek and scifi fandom at large and the movie quickly became a cult classic.

Guided by the television show, the Thermians build a working version of Cmdr. Taggart's ship, the NTE-3120 N.S.E.A Protector, copying it exactly how it appears on screen. An Evolution-class heavy cruiser, the Protector serves as the flagship of the National Space Exploration Administration and is the most powerful starship built by humanity. Though built for the peaceful exploration of space, the Protector is host to a vast array of powerful weapons, inculding resonance cannon batteries, quantum rockets, pulse catapults, and it's primary weapon: a blue particle cannon.

THE KIT

 This 1/1400 scale kit comes with four sprues containing the wings, command deck, and the hull molded in grey styrene. Also supplied is one sprue cast in clear blue that are used in the engines; a nice touch for those who are looking to light the kit. The kit also comes with a Galaxy Quest logo base.

When making this model, Pegasus was given access to the three studio models produced by Industrial Light & Magic; in fact, one model used to hang in the ILM model making studio offices until they closed their doors in 2011. This kit is the same size as the model used in the movie during scenes showing the "classic" TV show, technically making it a studio scale model. However, the details were based off the larger models used in the movie making it a fine looking model. The paint scheme is rather simple, consisting of mostly white and light greys, but a seeing the close ups of the ship in the movie reveals a nice Aztec pattern on the hull. Recreating it should add a little bit of visual interest.

VERDICT

Overall, this kit is definitely a solid buy! This would make an excellent addition to the display cabinet of any science fiction fan. If the adventurous modeler was in the mood to add lights, there is also a photo etch set available from ParaGrafix that has some nice grilles to add to the engines.

Model Kit Review: Fine Molds 1/72 Slave I

BACKGROUND

Slave I is easily one of the most iconic ships from the original Star Wars trilogy. The personal starship of the enigmatic bounty hunter Boba Fett, it first appeared in The Empire Strikes Back where Fett used it to track Han Solo to Cloud City on the planet Bespin.

The ship began its life as a Kuat Systems Engineering Firespray-31 patrol and attack craft before being stolen by the bounty hunter Jango Fett. After his death during the Battle of Geonosis, the craft was passed to his son, Boba, who would use it to great effect during his career as one of the most notorious bounty hunters in the galaxy. While in possession of the Fett's, the craft was given numerous upgrades to its engines, avionics, and weapon systems. The upgrades to its engines gave it sublight speeds rivaling that of the BTL Y-wing starfighter, an impressive feat for a ship this large, while the upgrades to the sensors and jamming array made the ship invisible to other starship sensors, allowing Fett to easily slip into the most secured areas. Most importantly, the weapon system was expanded to allow the ship to equip proton torpedoes, concussion missiles, Void-7 seismic charges, and an ion cannon in addition to the standard heavy blaster cannons: an impressive amount of firepower contained in one ship.

THE KIT

This kit was the seventh entry into Fine Molds outstanding line of Star Wars model kits and their second large ship model kit, after their impressive Millennium Falcon kit. Like the majority of other kits in this range, Slave I is finely molded in a light grey styrene and nearly devoid of flash or mold lines. Injector pin marks are only on areas that will not be visible when the model is complete, meaning almost no filling and sanding is needed. The only major seam on this kit runs down the middle of the hull where the two halves are joined; filler is a must to eliminate the seam. Luckily, there are few panel lines in this area so sanding them down shouldn't prove much of a problem, especially if you are careful. This is a large kit: there are ten sprues, including the one that contains a stand for the model to be displayed in its upright flying position. Also included are two Boba Fett miniatures: a seated one for the cockpit and a standing one to attach to the base. There is also one small decal sheet that contains the small yellow, white, and burgundy markings found on the ship. The kit is also supplied with extensive color-printed painting guide, a nice touch considering most of the time spent completing this model will be used replicating the complicated color scheme. Since this was a first production kit, it also came with a limited edition Han Solo frozen in carbonite cast in white metal. This addition will no doubt look great positioned next to Boba on the display base!

VERDICT

I think it goes without saying that Fine Molds hit this one out of the park. Between the superb engineering and the intricate details, this kit is outstanding. It is a kit truly worthy of the most feared bounty hunter in the Galaxy!

Model Kit Review: Fine Molds 1/48 Snowspeeder (Modified Incom T-47Airspeeder)

BACKGROUND

The Incom T-47 airspeeder was an atmospheric craft originally designed for industrial cargo handling. The craft came in to prominence during the Galactic Civil War when it was heavily modified for cold weather by the Rebel Alliance for use on the ice planet Hoth. Although the T-47 had been armed with Ap/11 laser cannons, Rogue Squadron found these proved ineffective against the heavily armored Imperial AT-AT walkers while defending Echo Base during the Battle of Hoth. Luke Skywalker, flying as Rogue Leader, instructed his squadron to use the harpoon and tow-cables on the T-47 to target the vulnerable legs of the Imperial walkers. This proved effective in disabling the massive AT-ATs and giving the Rebel fleet time to evacuate the installation.

THE KIT

This wonderful Fine Molds kit is one of their three 1/48 scale releases and the only one not represented in another scale. It's a good thing too, because even at 1/48 scale, this model is tiny: the hull measures less than 4" long. However, like all Fine Molds kits, the diminutive size of this model doesn't mean there is a loss of detail. All of the panel lines and greebles are crisply reproduced by Fine Molds with their usual attention to detail.

The kit comes with five sprues: four molded in grey styrene and one clear sprue. The canopy is a two part construction with the clear pieces housed underneath the canopy frame. This gives the modeler the option of leaving the clear pieces out of the canopy to accurately represent the filming model. Two Rebel pilots are also included for the finely detailed cockpit. Another neat feature is the option to model the air brakes in an open position to give the effect of the craft in flight. It's a nice touch that can lend itself well to using the model in a dynamic display or diorama. The kit is also supplied with a decal sheet featuring both the orange and grey markings seen in The Empire Strikes Back. Just as in the other Rebel Alliance model kits, these decals reproduce the chipped paint that the filming miniatures had. Like all Fine Molds Star Wars kits, this model is also supplied with a display base.

 VERDICT

This is another wonderful kit by Fine Molds! The model well molded, easy to assemble, and accurate all the way down to the placement of the paint scratches on the decals. It is a shame that they no longer carry the Star Wars license, I would have loved to see them tackle some of the underrepresented subjects in the Star Wars Universe (I'm looking at you, B-wing...). This kit should prove to be another fun build and I look forward to getting started on it.

For those interested, I purchased this kit from Dragon USA Online. They are one of the only places that currently sells this kit anywhere near the original retail price. Most other online retailers are selling it for $60+ or no longer offer it. If you are looking to add it to your model collection, now would be a good time before it is no longer available.

Model Kit Review: Skyhook Models Planet Express Ship

Let me begin by saying this... I am a huge Futurama fan and have been since the series first aired in 1999. I think it was a mix of a few things that led to my love of this show: it has the classic Matt Groening style, I absolutely love science fiction, and the show debuted in the waning years of my Simpsons addiction. All of this made a winning combination.

A couple of years ago, when I first started modeling Warhammer figures, I found out that there was a model of the Planet Express Ship available... or at least it was. It had recently gone out of production so there was little chance that I would be able to get a hold of one. Then I found out it was coming back in to production: now would be my chance! So of course, I didn't buy one. Well, that all changed last week when I finally decided it was time to bring one home!

This kit is made by Skyhook Models, a garage resin company that specializes in underrepresented science fiction topics. The model is ten pieces (including the huge base), cast in a hard white resin and is free of any major casting flaws; nothing outside of standard resin cleanup will be needed on the parts. You also get a frosted acrylic bead for the gun turret, a small section of 0.31mm wire for the cannon, and two ALPS printed decals for the tail fin.

The real question is: how accurate is the kit? Well, it isn't that accurate compared to the "real" one. The fuselage is much too narrow in the middle and the nose is too pointy. However, these are all things I knew when I bought the model. Being pretty much the only model of this awesome spaceship available (outside of a near $400 model made by a prop builder from Atlanta), I am more than willing to accept the flaws in this kit. The only real issues with the kit is that the molding that runs around the fuselage doesn't wrap around the rear of the ship like it is supposed to. That isn't too much of a problem as the the engine mount takes up most of the space in the rear. However, I will probably have to sculpt some more molding out of Milliput to complete it. My other issue is the door on the starboard side; it is severely lacking detail. I will probably scratch built one out of plasticard to replace it and add the ladder on the hull with some brass rod. I will probably end up scratch building the the gun for the turret as well.

All and all, this is a fantastic kit of an awesome subject. Despite the flaws with the kit, it is well worth it's $59 (shipping included!) price tag.