Bottle and Cappy

You never know what threats you might face in the ruins of post-apocalyptic Nuka World, including deranged robots Bottle and Cappy. From mascots to murderers! 
 

Around the Sun Once More

Happy Birthday once again to Squishy McMonkey, my wee jellybean. 

Straight Outta Vault 33

Here's the protagonist of the Fallout TV show, Lucy MacLean. As with many Fallout miniatures, Lucy is covered in tiny, tiny details that I find a real bear to paint. The most I can say is that she looks okay from a distance. 
 

Agatha Plumb

She's plumb determined to keep the varmints from killing her chickens. 
 

Betrayer of Humanity

Another former citizen of the Twelve Colonies, but this time a nefarious one. 
 

Ragtag Fugitive Fleet Leader

For once, a small human figure turns out well. I'm happy with the skin texture, the hair, the costume colours, etc. Huzzah! 
 

The Sinister Scheme of Hugo Drax

I found a second Hugo Drax figure, this time complete with hands and blueprint. I think he turned out better than the first. 
 

An Eye to the Inner Ear

For the last several days, I've been wondering what happens to the three little bones of the inner ear when we die. Sure, the hammer, anvil, and stirrup--or the malles, incus, and stapes--will stay in place for a while as the body decomposes. But when the tissues of the skull dissolve, do the inner ear bones somehow stay attached to the skull? Or do they fall into the gaping cavity of the skull to rattle around unto eternity? If you pick up a human skull and shake it, will you hear the inner ear bones bouncing like dice in a cup? 

I'd like to ask my doctor the next time I see her, but we have a new one and I'm afraid of the impression the question might leave. 
 

Tommy Gunnerson

 

A Head in the Game

I had fun with this one. After painting Leatherface in simple shades of tan and white, I added a severed head to the base and copious blood to the floor, chainsaw, and Leatherface's outfit. Macabre, but it's the season for this sort of thing. 
 

Floria the Courtesan

Face and hair aren`t bad, skin is smoother than usual, corset is okay. Painting the skirt metallic gold was probably a mistake. 
 

A Posse of Two

 

Double Draw Down

 

Ambush at Sunset Cliff

 

Needs Work

Things to fix:

1. Paint spill on right foot
2. Paint spill on flask
3. Skullcap should be brighter
4. Fix drybrushed buttons
5. Paint underbite white
6. Paint spill on skull
7. Drybrush shoes
8. Ink pants

 

Interstate 10 Back Cover Copy

Years ago, Jeff wrote about the time his Uncle Thad mailed him a copy of the hard-to-find pulp novel Interstate 10. The book's cover art is as madcap as the novel itself is purported to be, and at the time I wondered if the back cover blurb might be as crazy as the ones found on the works of Howard Rheingold. Alas, Jeff's blog post didn't include a photo of the back cover, so I took it upon myself to write my own version. Jeff never told me how close I came to matching the real copy for Interstate 10, so I figure enough years have passed that he won't mind if I share it here. 

FREEWAYS ABLAZE!

First came BILLY JACK...! 

Then DIRTY HARRY...! 

Now comes the toughest, slickest urban vigilante with or without a badge…`

JAKE CALIFORNIA…! In his first bloody-knuckled road rampage of hot wheels and hard justice. 

Once he rode supercycles through flaming hoops and leapt from crashing cars for Hollywood’s big-budget spectaculars. But then came that mysterious note in the Classifieds: “WANTED – TEST DRIVER. Daytona Beach to New York via Interstate 10 in one-of-a-kind set of wheels. Serious inquiries only.” 

With stunt work drying up and his stash of dough drying up even faster, Jake takes the job and sets out on the most blistering, red-hot romantic road trip ever, juggling the washed-up love for his old flame with the chance of all-new, all-intriguing encounters with an exotic Oriental flower who’s as quick with a blade as Jake is behind a steering wheel. And this time the steering wheel belongs to OS-CAR*, a souped-up VW Beetle with a lust for the road and street justice rivaling Jake’s own lusty passions. Herbie has nothing on OS-CAR! 

Lose yourself in Jake California’s world – a world of simmering blacktop mirages, sudden death meted out by gorillas with guns, kinky action between the sheets and in back seats – and where every mile offers new thrills…and new dangers. 

*OPerating System--CAR

The Ghoul

Here's the Fallout: Wasteland Warfare version of The Ghoul, played by Walton Goggins in the Fallout television show. For once, I'm completely happy with a face; it's just as gruesome and mottled as Goggins' makeup. 

Octopussy and Hugo Drax

It strikes me that with few exceptions (Blofeld, Jaws) not many of Bond's villains recurred, mostly because they were killed in their first appearance. I would have liked to see Doctor No or Octopussy, or example, return to vex Bond again. 

What about the paint jobs? Well . . . I'm still having trouble with skin, as you can see. But for the first time I managed to apply eye makeup to a figure, and she also has pretty good hair and eyebrows. Too much lipstick, but it's less evident to the naked eye. 

Drax, well, I was going for Earth tones and I guess I achieved that, but his outfit looks rather muddy. 
 

Xenia Onatopp

She loves her work, and I'm pretty happy with the green shades of her outfit. 
 

Occult Science Squad Sacrificial Lamb

Imagine going to Antarctica in search of the Old Ones and other horrors armed with nothing but a flashbulb. 
 

Ape Officers

 

Some More Visitors

The Visitors said they came in peace. They really came for our water--and for us, as food! 
 

The Inevitable Compleat Star Trek Do-Over

1. Human civilization is likely to reach a level of technological maturity such that creative individuals will be capable of using generative AI and other software tools to create brand new episodes of Star Trek independently. 
2. Given the number of Star Trek fans obsessed with canon, some number of Star Trek fans will re-create selected episodes of the show(s), changing them only to correct continuity errors. 
3. A subset of these creative, technologically savvy Star Trek fans will be obsessed enough with visual continuity that they will redo visual effects and create virtual sets, costumes, props, and actors such that shows originally produced during different decades of the 20th and 21st centuries will be completely recreated so that shows produced decades apart but set within the same fictional time period (for example, Star Trek and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) will be remade to be completely visually consistent, from exterior starship shots to costume designs to actor appearances.  
4. Given the rate of advances in computing power and generative AI capabilities, we can expect to see a Compleat Star Trek free of continuity errors before the end of the 21st century, extending from prequel Star Trek: Enterprise to the upcoming Star Trek: Starfleet Academy and all the shows in between (and forthcoming). 
   

The question of whether or not this is a good thing is left as an exercise to the reader. 

Manta Ray 5 Submarine

My whites are getting better, but producing even coats remains a challenge. Overall, however, I think this little minisub looks pretty good. 
 

Guardians of the Grid

ZOUNDS but these were PAINFUL to paint, but I prevailed. All those tiny tiny lines on the suits! 

I used tape to mask off the bases, which allowed me to paint perfectly straight lines to evoke the neon grid lines of Tron.