Sasha The Welding Girl (2nd Ed) Barrio Guy Too!

[Andi Little]

Duly ordered one of each - looking forward to them. Along with the deckhands (sorry for mentioning it)

Cheers Michael ...

Andi.

[FichtenFoo]

Should only be 2 weeks before the 1/35 DH's are done. The 1/24 might be that as well, but I'll have to check. Really sorry for the delay on those. Needed to make sure they're perfect!

[Andi Little]

Oh Dear! ... I barely dare ask this?

Firstly ... I have my Sacha and Barrio guy - came this morning, and I was particularly chuffed to have them. Got myself all sorted out so I could really focus on the grand opening of the box - all went well.
And then I actually took them out and into the light for the first time. Honest to goodness first thought was "Oh, they're not as big as I thought they would be"? Idly checked the box - yep' definitely 1/24 it says.
Went on to have a good groke, and was most impressed with the sculpting and casting. Great animation and very true to the publicity image and material ... but I just couldn't get past the fact that they appeared so small??
Anyhoo, brought them up to the hobby room and noticed a couple of 1/24 figures that were left on the shelf and offered them up to each other - their heights were similar, although it made Barrio guy look more effete than tough, but mainly their heads were simply just too small. Without trying to be over critical and hurtful they look for all the world like "pinheads".
Sacha at a statuesque 5'10"  but her head is barely two thirds the size it should be and she looks overly thin. Barrio, well he's barely six foot with a tiny little head, makes him look more like a dancer than a product of the mean streets.
I've took the most snatched of pic's, and to be honest they don't look as bad as described - but in person you can see the differences because of the available third dimension.

So, do I have a smaller scale packed by mistake - or are these just overly "graphesized" to fit into the comic book genre.
I was hoping that they would sit in, and with, the more "normal" figures such as the Tamiya campus set or the Mechanics??



Again not wishing to be confrontational - or even overtly critical - but these both feel just - well: - small.

[FichtenFoo]

Hi Andi,

No those are correct. I used a scale calculator to get the height but did not compare that to other figures on the market.

This is actually an interesting discussion and I welcome the input... See, I think the opposite... IMO, the figures you're displaying them with look overly comical with weird proportions and their heads, hands, and feet are oversized. Almost like an old Anime style. Both Sasha and Barrio were designed by the same guy so there's that style thing going on, but from what I've seen, older hand-sculpted figures tend to not have the realistic proportions. I think they're done that way to make up for their smaller scale and to either help the painter or original sculptor. The guy next to Barrio's hat coupled with Barrio's foot-gates throws off the image, but I see what you're saying with Sasha. Funny... most people just complain about her lack of clothing of all things (as a welder).

I think in this case it might be a stylistic thing, but as more producers turn to 3D for producing figures, you're going to see the proportions start to be more realistic, more detailed and less comical. (unless intended) In 3D there's more ability than in clay to resize and reshape models to look "correct" before printing. Something tells me this is going to be an issue as the old-way meets the new and a middle ground will need to be found. 3D printing is still too expensive to make multiple prints to test proportions for new small producers like myself.

I just googled the Campus set and indeed, their heads look oddly large to me. More so the men than the women, but the details and proportions still seem somewhat stylized to me.

As for them matching the box art... I colorized the 3D renders so what you see on the box is exactly what was printed for the production master. I get a black and white render, then add colored filters/textures over that to do the art.

It seems like this might be a minor problem with only Jose's stuff though. I just checked Sasha and Barrio against the Deckhands (sculpted by Rishi) and a secret 1/24 production project (by a 3rd sculptor) to be announced/released at Euromilitaire this week. They seem larger and more in line with what you want.

The guys at Firefly ordered a bunch of Barrio and loved him as did their painters who were fighting over who got to work on him I'm told. A painted version will be on display there... from the pic I saw, it looks great!

If any of you go to Euromilitaire this weekend, check out the Firefly booth for our joint release! I won't be there, but the new figures+ we designed/produced for them will be!

[Andi Little]

Michael.......

Thanks for taking the previous as it was meant - more an observation than a criticism. And I can empathise with how stressful it might be to put yourself "out there". Nothing worse than sticking ones head above the parapet - I refuse to do it anymore.

Re' the previous posts. I agree those particular figures aren't the best, but they were just lying on the shelf at the time, the two "cartoon style" are manga characters that come with a Gunze Fiat 500 kit: whilst the seated figure with cap is a now quite old attempt of mine own to sculpt a figure.
So, nothing to recommend excellence there then. But, being an ex-lecturer in the Fine Arts, working extensively within the life studies programmes and also remaining a practising painter (I must be bloody brilliant because I'm starving in a garret here) I do have a bit of an understanding of proportion and biomechanics (the sticky-leaky bendy-breaky bits).
I don't want to get bogged down in any kind of a "what is or isn't right or wrong" as these figures are very impressive as stand alone items and really will be quite impressive finished with an appropriate "paint job".
But, also as an observation I must say they do fall a long way from natural Human proportions and I believe one might be wise to take this into account if choosing them for anything less than a fantasy dioramic purpose.

I'm really hoping this doesn't come across as critical of anything other than perhaps their intended roles?


Regards the "Deckhands" ... for more natural proportions the "little" guy really should be about 7.5 heads tall, and the "Tall" guy no more than 8.5 heads tall - I'd be curious to know how they fall within those measurements. (The head measurement is probably the most universally accepted form as a ball park figure - a bit like my 1mm = 1 inch ... so a bit of wiggle room then!).

I'm sure everyone else will have some ideas and notions - might be an opportunity to find any available middle ground?

[Carlo]

Michael -
I just received my own "Sasha", and have to agree with Andi.
The proportions fall well outside the norm, even for a 5'-10" tall
female in outstanding physical condition. The sculpt and details
are wonderful, but she can't "play" alongside my other 1:24 figures.

Also, I sent you a personal email through your website "Contact" tab.
Carlo

[FichtenFoo]

Carlo: I don't have an email from you. When did you send it?

[Carlo]

Michael -
I sent it yesterday, from your website "Contact" page.
I can compose it again if necessary, if I can remember it.
Carlo

[FichtenFoo]

Weird... didn't get it. I just tested the contact form though and it works okay.

[marc_reusser]

I find this a very interesting discussion....and the points that both Andi and Michael made very valid. I agree with Andi, that these are stylized and definitely more "purpose oriented"...but I think that was pretty obvious from the design and artwork. I also agree with Micheal that a good bit of this is as an issue between old and new technology/approaches.

To me these are the most beautifuly detailed 1/24 figures I have seen on the market (despite their possible proportion issues).....most any and all 1/24 figures I have ever seen thus far are all clumsy, blobby, detail-less and most often mishapen (or at least serious parts of them out of scale). IMO, part of this issue is this being used to the old school figures has defined in the minds eye of 1/24 guys, what a 1/24 figure should look like.....thus making figures like these from Micheal seem "off" more than they actually are.....as Micheal said...there is likely a middle-ground.

One must also note these figures were not intended to be RR population specific...so those doing 1/24 RRing, must also realise, thet these will stand out in their populus of existing figures, and thus may appear a bit "off"....but then so does Arnold Schwarzenegger and Gwynith Paltrow when standing half dressed amongs the general population.

[Ray Dunakin]

I was going to post something very thoughtful and insightful, but then Marc mentioned Gwynith Paltrow standing half-dressed, and all other thoughts fled my mind.   

[1-32]

I think the problem is calling the figures a specific scale people have a expectation that they will fit in. Why not just call them 75mm[3 inches] for example- no problem.
regards kim