I like ramen, do you like ramen?

[MmM]

Schmoo

Ghastly, decapitated heads that first appeared in Konami's 1997 Sony Playstation Castlevania: Symphony of The Night (Japanese title: "Akumajo Dracula X: Gekka no Yasoukyoku", or "Demon Castle Dracula X: Nocturne in the Moonlight") video game. Schmoos float about the book-lined corridors of the Reversed Long Library area in a haphazard manner, colliding with, and injuring, unwelcome visitors. Assuming you've encountered at least one specimen, Schmoo is catalogued as entry #99 in the Master Librarian's enemy list, where it is rather unimaginatively described as 'Monster nicknamed "schmoo"'. They are ranked at experience level 28, have 50 hit points (HP), and have a base experience point value of 1,000 (the amount you'll actually receive is dependent on what level Alucard is currently at--if you're also a level 28 character, you'll get that exact value, if you're below that, you'll get more than 1,000 experience points per Schmoo kill; on the other hand, if you're above level 28, you'll get progressively less, all the way down to a measly 1 experience point at level 43 and above). Being undead, they are particularly vulnerable to "fire" and "holy" based attacks; however, as Schmoos don't have many HPs to begin with, and a defense rating of zero, it's probably not worth the time or effort to try to take advantage of said weaknesses. After destroying a Schmoo, you might get one of two rare item drops (having a high luck rating increases the likelihood of obtaining these objects). The first, a bowl of delicious Chinese ramen noodles, can restore 30 of the hero's hit points. The second, the Crissaegrim sword, is a fearsome blade that slices enemies to ribbons with ease--indeed, this is widely regarded as the most powerful/effective weapon in the entire game. While it doesn't have the highest attack power, the sword's ability to hit multiple times with each stroke, long reach, and zero recovery time make it an edged weapon without peer.


Materials:
Newsprint, Kleenex, white glue, dog hair (the animal was not harmed in acquiring it), nail polish, acrylic/watercolor paint, and marker.

Dimensions:
3.2 cm/1.3 in. x 3.2 cm/1.3 in. (widest point x highest point)

Time:
Roughly half a day on April 3, 2009.




For comparison purposes, below is the Schmoo game sprite from the Castlevania: Symphony of The Night video game.




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Blade Master

The reanimated skeleton of an expert duelist that first appeared in Konami's 1993 NEC PC-Engine: Turbo Duo Akumajo Dracula X: Chi no Rondo, or Akumajo Dracula X: Circle of Blood video game--however, my figure is based on the 1997 Sony Playstation Castlevania: Symphony of The Night (Japanese title: "Akumajo Dracula X: Gekka no Yasoukyoku", or "Demon Castle Dracula X: Nocturne in The Moonlight") version of the character. Appropriately, given their profession, Blade Masters can be found prowling the grounds of the Coliseum area, just itching for someone to test their skills against. Upon sighting an unwilling sparring partner, a Blade Master will immediately engage, dazzling its adversary with both aerobatics and swordplay. Assuming you've encountered at least one specimen, Blade Master is catalogued as entry #69 in the Master Librarian's enemy list, where it is described as 'Master of twin-bladed combat'. They are ranked at experience level 17, have 65 hit points (HP), and have a base experience point value of 80 (the amount you'll actually receive is dependent on what level Alucard is currently at--if you're also a level 17 character, you'll get that exact value, if you're below that, you'll get more than 80 experience points per Blade Master kill; on the other hand, if you're above level 17, you'll get progressively less, all the way down to a measly 1 experience point at level 26 and above). Undead entities, they are particularly vulnerable to "holy" based attacks. After destroying a Blade Master, you might get one of two rare item drops (having a high luck rating increases the likelihood of obtaining these objects). The first, a Shotel, is a sickle-shaped sword that, in addition to being swung in a traditional manner, can be thrown in a boomerang-like fashion by inputting the command: down, down-towards, towards + attack. The second, the Cross Shuriken, is a single-use projectile that inflicts considerable damage upon impact. In other Castlevania titles, this recurring enemy sometimes bears the moniker Skeleton Blaze rather than Blade Master.



Materials:
Newsprint, Kleenex, white/hot glue, wire twist ties, and acrylic paint.

Dimensions:
2.7 cm/1.1 in. x 6.8 cm/2.7 in. (widest point x highest point)

Articulation:
Twenty-two points: Neck (2), pauldrons (2), shoulders (2), elbows (4), wrists (2), mid-torso, waist, hips (2), knees (4), and ankles (2).

Time:
Six days; April 5-13, 2009--no work was performed on 9, 11, or 12.







For comparison purposes, below are some images of Blade Masters from the Castlevania: Symphony of The Night video game.

[exp(x)]

The hair looks great on the first one.

[myk]

These are awesome. The skeleton's articulation seems almost magical and the detail on the Schmoo head is superb. Also, nice to see the "bare" color used on the bones, as it's very gritty.

[MmM]

exp(x): Rather than just gluing the hair on, or rooting it, I burn it directly into the surface of the underlying sculpt with a woodburner--it works, and looks, great, but, man-oh-man, does burnt hair stink--I've come close to throwing up a few times from the stench, even with the window open (doesn't matter if it's human hair, dog hair, on whatnot, they all smell about the same in terms of putridness). Unfortunately, I messed up Schmoo royally, because I interpreted the sprite incorrectly. The monster is supposed to be a head in a sack, and, yet, somehow, I managed to see a face with hair instead. This wouldn't be the first time I've looked at a game sprite and seen something completely different than everybody else . . .

myk: Yeah, everybody is always telling me that the unpainted look is neat-o on my sculpts, so, for this one, I decided to leave the bones as they were, other than putting a bit of black paint in the eye sockets and nasal cavity. I agree that it looks cool, although the armor looks kind of cartoony in comparison.

[Coopersville]

Cool Revenant with Swords, bro.

Seriously though, the jumping pose is especially awesome.

[Vader]

Wow, that Schmoo head looks freaking creepy, great work! The hair is an awesome touch too.

[myk]

MmM said:
it works, and looks, great, but, man-oh-man, does burnt hair stink

Probably not as much as a rotting, amputated head :p

[Shapeless]

Great stuff. the decapitated head can keep Romero's head on a stick company, and The revenant will have a new boney friend.

[Use]

Excellent as always.

[MmM]

Thanks for the comments!

Coopersville: Yeah, the Blade Master aspires to becoming a Revenant someday . . . but, seeing as how shoulder-mounted rocket launchers haven't been invented yet, circa Sympony of The Night, he's going to have to wait at least a couple of centuries to trick out his armor properly.

Shapeless: The idea of sticking Schmoo on Romero's base didn't even occur to me--Schmoo's head is significantly smaller, so I don't know how well it would look.

[Torn]

MmM I simpley love your work, first time I am commenting it. But seriously it is awesome, I wish I had that skill you have. Btw, I love bone characters, so I would say that the last one is one of the best you have made so far. But I am not sure.

[lupinx-Kassman]

Wow, that is some truly impressive work! One thing I sometimes imagine when I see your models (and others may have already said it), is that they would probably look really good as multiple-angle game sprites, sort of like what T.V. is doing with his Harmony project.

[MmM]

lupinx-Kassman: Yeah, they'd probably make good sprites--doing all that stop-motion crap takes a lot of time and preparation though. I used to make 12-frame rotating animations, but even those are kind of a chore to set up, so I seldom do them anymore.

Torn: Glad you like 'em. I'm rather fond of skeleton creatures as well--they always work the best with articulation too, 'cuz they're little more than stick figures to begin with. The only downside is they also tend to be more fragile, particularly the pelvis.

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"Who ate all of my TMNT cereal?"

Conquering the universe is hard work--certainly too difficult a task to perform on an empty stomach. That's why Krang makes sure he starts each morning with a heaping bowl of vitamin-fortified Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brand cereal. The crunchy net-shapes and colored marshmallows give the evil alien warlord all the energy he needs to fuel his diabolical schemes for the rest of the day. But something is amiss in the kitchen at the Technodrome this morning--the familiar cardboard box feels suspiciously light, and, lo, when tipped, nary a single crumb comes tumbling out. Someone is going to suffer, very slowly and very painfully, for this outrage . . .


Materials:
Newsprint, Kleenex, white glue, computer printout of a miniature TMNT cereal box, a paper grocery bag, plastic cling wrap, colored pencil, No. 2 pencil, ink, nail polish, and acrylic paint.

Dimensions:
5.8 cm/2.3 in. x 3.6 cm/1.4 in. (widest point x highest point)

Time:
Four days; April 19-22, 2009.

[MmM]

Shogun's Cyber Shinobi

Mechanical servants of the intergalactic bounty hunter Shogun. They first appeared (within one of the new exclusive stages) in Konami's 1990 Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game (which is an enhanced port of the original 1989 coin-op game). Unimpressed with the squad of Foot Soldier fodder that his employer, Shredder, provides him with, Shogun prepares for his upcoming battle with the TMNT by supplementing that force with his own deadly minions: Paper Tigers (a.k.a., Vincent Van Growls), Mecha Scorpions, and the Cyber Shinobi. In close quarters, Cyber Shinobi fight with precision hand-strikes; because their fingers terminate in knife-like talons, these blows can cause horrific damage. If a Cyber Shinobi can't immediately close with its intended target, it will instead leap into the air and rain Kunai (throwing daggers) down upon its adversary. These robotic warriors are disturbingly accurate with said projectiles, thanks to the advanced targeting systems located in their central processors.


Materials:
Newsprint, Kleenex, white/hot glue, wire twist ties, nail polish, and acrylic paint.

Dimensions:
3.1 cm/1.2 in. x 6.4 cm/2.5 in. (widest point x highest point)

Articulation:
Nineteen points: Neck (2), waist, shoulders (2), elbows (4), wrists (2), hips (2), knees (4), and ankles (2).

Time:
Four days; April 23-27, 2009 (no work was performed on 24).



For comparison purposes, below are some images of Cyber Shinobi. For the animation, please note that the eye doesn't blink, nor do the head and arms bob up-and-down, in the game--those are both improvements I added.

[Shapeless]

I'm digging the Krang and of course Ninja's are always good.

MmM you've got to make a Casey Jones and Foot Elite.

[MmM]

One of these days, perhaps; they're both figures I have contemplated doing.