[11/7/19] Eurocalypse: Mediterran Mega Update pt. 4 of 4(!)

I looooove the mask in the last pic! It’s very mantis-like!

A lot to unpack. Love the new developments with your figures. All the extra items and the multiplication of small details add a great combination of wonder and realism to your characters, making them and their world feel more fleshed out and palpable. And to do this using similar but non-identical approaches and similar but non-identical materials, producing results that fit in with each other without being too repetitive makes your feat all the more impressive. I hope they were appreciated at the competition! They certainly are here.

It occurs to me I should watch out what I say, since my words appear to resonate and to have some effect on your thinking process and decisions. Art is in the eye of the beholder, and we all react differently to different things. For example, the bad aftertaste of Solo (and the Sequel Trilogy) has left me with a certain dislike of masks on principle, which is not to say that the cool shell masks you have devised should suffer on the basis of that accidental association, or detract from appreciating your creations in their entirety.

By the way, Waterworld wasn't all that bad, for a movie of its genre. As for "Mediterrans," nice decision, except perhaps for the notion that political correctness would hold much water (see what I did there?) in a post-Apocalyptic world.

And you can't post responses without including some new photos? That sounds remarkably inconvenient!

skywalkersaga wrote:

Eagerly looking forward to seeing more pics of this group! I hope they received their due appreciation at the competition. :')

Ovy won it! so they got the appreciation
Absolutly deserved i have to say.

Love this thread and excellent work and vision. Keep it coming

Ovy won? Not surprised, just verifying. If so, congratulations! Glad to see this work recognized.

Love the unique mask!

ThePhotogsBlog wrote:Totally awesome!  You obviously put in a lot of effort into this.  Congratulations on creating a totally unique style.

Thanks, I am also very happy that this style turned out to be unique somehow. You can never have too many fictional apocalypses, keep up the great work!

Stryker2011 wrote:They all look really great, especially with all the new additions. Excellent work.

Thanks a lot, Master Strykewalker.

skywalkersaga wrote:Uh.... WOW??? You have indeed been hard at work on these! As always, I'm incredibly impressed. The new pics are great -- they really 'pop' against that black backdrop. And the various alterations and added little details -- all those dangly bits  -- have really brought these to life. Enjoying the additional backstory and characterizations, as well. 

And the PC term is 'Mediterran' now? LOL, good to know.  

Eagerly looking forward to seeing more pics of this group! I hope they received their due appreciation at the competition. :')

Thank you sky! The black backdrop was the right decision I think, I tried white first and did not like it. And those dangly bits, I love them, as they just fall into place when installed. But sometimes I had to help with a little glue as the end pieces were to light.

And yes, Mediterran! Many Cargonites would say 'Shell people'.
If Chyvlanska wants to visit 'The Shell People', Yurgel might remember what his mother taught him, about always being nice to each other, and correct her.
"They don't even understand our language, haha!" Chyvlanska would answer.
Yurgel would be silent and keep on smiling his Yurgel smile.

Lynkhart wrote:I looooove the mask in the last pic! It’s very mantis-like!

Thanks! Yes that insect look is quite cool.

GubernatorFan wrote:A lot to unpack. Love the new developments with your figures. All the extra items and the multiplication of small details add a great combination of wonder and realism to your characters, making them and their world feel more fleshed out and palpable. And to do this using similar but non-identical approaches and similar but non-identical materials, producing results that fit in with each other without being too repetitive makes your feat all the more impressive. I hope they were appreciated at the competition! They certainly are here.

It occurs to me I should watch out what I say, since my words appear to resonate and to have some effect on your thinking process and decisions. Art is in the eye of the beholder, and we all react differently to different things. For example, the bad aftertaste of Solo (and the Sequel Trilogy) has left me with a certain dislike of masks on principle, which is not to say that the cool shell masks you have devised should suffer on the basis of that accidental association, or detract from appreciating your creations in their entirety.

By the way, Waterworld wasn't all that bad, for a movie of its genre. As for "Mediterrans," nice decision, except perhaps for the notion that political correctness would hold much water (see what I did there?) in a post-Apocalyptic world.

And you can't post responses without including some new photos? That sounds remarkably inconvenient!

Thanks for the long review, I always love to read your little text walls, especially if there is at least one pun in it! You describe quite good what I try to accomplish, 'similar but non-identical approaches and materials' to give them character.
Also, don't worry about limiting your opinions, I won't name Valzenka Milzenka because you recommended it, but I named Capraia Capraia because I really liked your idea. I consider every feedback that is given.

But what's wrong with masks in Star Wars? I liked the mask of that biker person in Solo, which I totally forgot the name and the groups name and purpose of, and also the Italo Western Village of the planet which names I propably never really noticed.

And what Political Correct means for the Mediterrans: If a Clan-Chieftain rises to power, from his or her point of view, it is Political Correct. Everything else not.

Valiarde wrote:

skywalkersaga wrote:

Eagerly looking forward to seeing more pics of this group! I hope they received their due appreciation at the competition. :')

Ovy won it! so they got the appreciation
Absolutly deserved i have to say.

Love this thread and excellent work and vision. Keep it coming

Danke dir very much! Hope you will post your works here too!

GubernatorFan wrote:Ovy won? Not surprised, just verifying. If so, congratulations! Glad to see this work recognized.

Thanks! I won the first part of the competition, at least. The second phase was won by someone who kitbashed and handcrafted a gorgeous 'Lawrence of Arabia' trio with three camels. I would link it to you, but it's not public so you would need an account. But the winners are in the header for a month or so:

MerylAkiba wrote:Love the unique mask!

Thanks! Yes, when I picked it up on a Norwegian coast, I didn't know I would use it as a mask some day. Or ever use it in any way other than having it lie around on a table looking crabby.

So now, here are roughly most of the pictures I used in the second part of the competion. There are more, but I will split my 'Megapost' into four parts. Then, the Mediterrans are finished forever and I won't do something with them ever again.
Just kidding, when this is done, I will probably start a new thread especially dedicated to the Mediterrans, better organized and with a better introduction at the start, just like my apocalyptic idol ReverendSpooky. I have at least one more secret Mediterran in the works.

























Also, I start to dislike the Codename Eurocalypse. It was the first best thing I came up with. It needs some streamlining or completley different. What about E-clypse. Or E-calypse. Eclypse? Ecalyps. Ecalypse. Apoca-Lips. I don't know. Anyway, see yu in part 3 of 4.

Those are great extra shots, Ovy. Beautiful, my friend. Just beautiful. Congrats on your 1st Level win.

Stryker2011 wrote:Those are great extra shots, Ovy. Beautiful, my friend. Just beautiful. Congrats on your 1st Level win.

I totally agree with what Stryker just wrote.

Gorgeous shots! And congratulations again! I did notice "Capraia."

Seeing finished is quite the treat, quite the amazing line up of figures that blows away the mind with all the details.

ThePhotogsBlog wrote:

Stryker2011 wrote:Those are great extra shots, Ovy. Beautiful, my friend. Just beautiful. Congrats on your 1st Level win.

I totally agree with what Stryker just wrote.

Thanks guys. Really appreciate it.

GubernatorFan wrote:Gorgeous shots! And congratulations again! I did notice "Capraia."

Thanks again! Fun fact: For some time now, I have the idea in my head that Capraia and Zraikos are sister and brother. Whadduyathink?

Theboo-bomb wrote:Seeing finished is quite the treat, quite the amazing line up of figures that blows away the mind with all the details.

Thanks a lot, I am happy the details are seen.

Now part three of four, just additional shots that I didn't use.

Haha, sure, as long as it doesn't stand in the way of a good romance... hey, the Ptolemies were from the Mediterranean! just kidding
Love the additional shots, but that's nothing new. Heck, even the photos without actual figures in them look great!

GubernatorFan wrote:Haha, sure, as long as it doesn't stand in the way of a good romance... hey, the Ptolemies were from the Mediterranean! just kidding
Love the additional shots, but that's nothing new. Heck, even the photos without actual figures in them look great!

Thanks again, but I think the romantic chemistry is reacting in another way anyway.
And those last photos of the Mediterrans are the most 'romantic' until now, I guess. But could be just friends, who knows?

So I just checked my older posts, I started the first figure in July. Feels like a much longer time has passed. I am quite happy with the results, thanks to everyone who kept me company through that journey, the nice words and ideas kept me motivated in that time.  So until I start the new Mediterran thread (phase 2? Or phase 3 already?), No more pics here, just comments. Relaxing!
And I found some fitting mandolin music for some celebration. They don't know who Hotel is nor what a California could be. Something to eat maybe? But the song survived the centuries, at least in melody.
A certain Aco Bocina happens to be a mandolin master. Thanks to him too, listened to a lot of stuff while editing the pics.


Now Capraia, Zraikos, Valzenka and Jordivaro have earned a break....

OMG, that overhead group shot is SO freaking awesome! You win another award for sheer creativity in poses and photographing! ;D 

The closer-up shots of them all lying around in the sunshine are just perfect. Your love of the seaside emanates through these pics. And I find it so adorable that their spooky shell masks come in handy for shade as well, lol! Brave of you to have tbleague bodies lounging on the 'beach' like that. I must now of course make my requisite Anakin comment about sand and how it 'gets everywhere'.

Great photos. You've put a lot of thought and effort into this project.

holy cow, those shots look impressive. i love when people go the extra mile to pose their figures properly, the way ankles should move instead of over extending.

hope those bodies didn´t get damaged from the sand or the sun, if by chance you need a tip cleaning the rubber bodies after "use" baby powder or talcum works pretty well. had some glue residue on my m35 after a hot summer week and it became tacky after cleaning it with water. after applying talcum powder it was as good as new.

So many great photos, and the posing is very life-like. Excellent work.

Love the massive, scattered, crowded lounging on the beach scenes.

Thank you Ovy for your topic, the explanations and photos.  Your construction of the mandolin has finally convinced me. Really impressive! I can not write and read English well. But even without understanding English, your photos tell a story.

Just reacting to comments whitout new pics. How liberating! xD

Also, I really need one of those Giant Japanese spider crabs. Or at least a carapace. They crawl out of their carapace when they grow and grow a new one. Actually, those aquariums should have tons of spare Carapaces....
Fun fact, these crabs were filmed in Osaka and my brother is working near Osaka at the moment. I asked him if he could maybe smuggle a giant Carapace in his luggage, but he can't promise anything, he said...xD


A Japanese spider crab would make a great action figure, It would tower over a regular human figure quite a lot! Imagine one of those crawling out of the water on a beach, 10+ meters tall, everyone running, arming and screaming commands.
Reminds me of this, but they wouldn't have machineguns or rocket launchers, only armed with their primitive tools, their grit and their sexy Mediterraness:
(Starts at 1:00 minute)


Well, enough stupid fun, one can dream....

skywalkersaga wrote:OMG, that overhead group shot is SO freaking awesome! You win another award for sheer creativity in poses and photographing! ;D 

The closer-up shots of them all lying around in the sunshine are just perfect. Your love of the seaside emanates through these pics. And I find it so adorable that their spooky shell masks come in handy for shade as well, lol! Brave of you to have tbleague bodies lounging on the 'beach' like that. I must now of course make my requisite Anakin comment about sand and how it 'gets everywhere'.

Thank you very much! The great thing about them just lounging there, there is no risk of them falling, very relaxing just like they appear.
Casualties of the previous photoshoot: One mandolin tuning shell was ripped of, one half of Valzenkas breastplate broke into three pieces, a part of Zraikos big shoulder oyster broke off.

And I guess Anakin would make a good...American Westcostian. Maybe they look like Mediterrans there, but with long blonde hair, shorts and surfing shells, maybe some hippie aesthetics. And they don't have a problem with giant crabs there, but huge white sharks. Maybe sand sharks.

ThePhotogsBlog wrote:Great photos. You've put a lot of thought and effort into this project.

Thanks, you are right I guess.^^

Tjolnir wrote:holy cow, those shots look impressive. i love when people go the extra mile to pose their figures properly, the way ankles should move instead of over extending.

hope those bodies didn´t get damaged from the sand or the sun, if by chance you need a tip cleaning the rubber bodies after "use" baby powder or talcum works pretty well. had some glue residue on my m35 after a hot summer week and it became tacky after cleaning it with water. after applying talcum powder it was as good as new.

Thanks a lot for noting, I think the human eye recognizes non natural poses subconsciously somehow.

And the sun looks quite hot in the pics, but it was just a 'good weather' October sun for some minutes. And yes they have been treated with talcum some weeks ago. I don't know If I really want to remove the sand grains, they live by the sea after all. It's a very fine sand that I first glued onto a corc plate, later added one layer of fine sand that can be 'moved' for more realism.

Stryker2011 wrote:So many great photos, and the posing is very life-like. Excellent work.

Thanks again.

GubernatorFan wrote:Love the massive, scattered, crowded lounging on the beach scenes.

I actually only wanted to photograph all the equipment, but then Jordi decided he could lounge there on a rug, Capraia joined him and then the other two sat down by their shields. Valzenka decided to make some pearl chains. They were hungry, also. The food on Zraikos plate is 1:1 spice.

nhwioz wrote:Thank you Ovy for your topic, the explanations and photos.  Your construction of the mandolin has finally convinced me. Really impressive! I can not write and read English well. But even without understanding English, your photos tell a story.

Thanks a lot! Very happy to entertain you.

Wow. So floored by these! I love seeing this whole group together, and all these photos are so gorgeous! You really captured this amazing beach vibe in all of these.

I love these Giant Spider Crabs ever since I was a kid. Okay I'm still a kid, just a bigger one.
There was a museum of natural history near my home village that had such a crab. Was fascinating. Thanks for remembering.

Fascinating stuff! Love the figures, they really bring the whole idea to life! Really, really enjoyed this!