Today I am going to review the 28mm scale Bobby Jackson Zombie Mum. It is a controversial figure as some have said it goes beyond the realms of good taste. Do you think that bothers me? Nah, of course not!
The figure depicts a pregnant female with her baby clawing its way out of her womb. I must admit that this is a pretty sick concept. Her long dress has been torn in places. Note her left breast is exposed, another thing to make puritans complain. The baby is alive or rather is undead. I do wonder how much of a threat a zombie baby could be? After all, its teeth won't have formed yet, nor will its fingernails. However, the mere thought of a zombie baby would give anyone a case of the heebee-jeebees. Sanity check required if using it in Call of the Cthulhu or a fright check if playing GURPS.
The zombie mum's face and hands are smeared with blood from a victim. Also, her dress is coated in blood from where the baby has burst through her stomach. She was an absolute joy to paint. I did wonder on how much blood to coat the baby in as it is still partially inside the woman's stomach. There is an argument for coating it in blood but I have taken a more restrained view, which is odd for me, as I am an unapologetic gore hound.
There is one more thing that may put many of you off from purchasing this mini and that is the price. She costs a hefty $12.99 (just over £8.00) which borders on Games Workshop prices for a single figure. I bit the bullet because I really wanted this mini. She is a unique figure I know for a fact that she won't be to everyone's taste but I do like her. She can be bought from the Cool Mini Or Not webstore, although checking this morning, I noticed that she was currently out of stock.
Whilst the subject matter of the mini doesn't disturb me (it's an OK mini), the thought behind it is strange. It does look like the baby is clawing its way out the mother, but without fingernails ?
ReplyDeleteSo does it count as a single zombie or two ? Interesting "dilemma".
That's a good question, Joe, but as I asked in my review, how much of a threat is a zombie baby? Very little, I'd say. Maybe it's a mutant baby with teeth and claws. Now that would be scary!
DeleteI'm so glad you reviewed this one! It's an awesome sculpt and your paint job shows it off really well, as usual.
ReplyDeleteNice!
Many thanks for the kind words, Jon. I agree, it is an awesome sculpt.
DeleteWE need more bad taste zombies. There has to be something about them that makes you uncomfortable, it makes them scary! For me the scary thing about this one IS the price.
ReplyDeleteI do like the concept but I can't imagine getting one of these. As for the question of is this one zombie or two. Surely that depends on how long you think the baby has been gestating. As an evil Ref I would say that it counts as 1 zombie but with two brains! (I know that's pewrhaps not realistic, BUT are zombies really that realistic?
Yep, the price of this mini is scary! Are zombies realistic/ Or course they aren't. But they are certainly entertaining... unless you met one in real life! One zombie, but two brains? Hmm, now that's an interesting thought.
DeleteI dunno, when I first saw the sculpt I was actually thinking why doesn't it bother me as much as I'd expect it to bother me. While seeing it does remind me of a war story I've read (involving pregnant woman, knife and some sadists) , I just can't get myself to view miniatures as a "real persons" so things like that don't really bother me.
ReplyDeleteI think you made a good call by not coating the baby with gore...while he'd look much,much more morbid and awful that way, you would lose the focus on him, as he'd blend in I suppose.
I have to say Clin'ts comment about price being the scary thing did make me giggle :D
Well said, Mathyoo, on all counts.
DeleteUmm, I'm not sure I like this one. The concept certainly disturbs me quite a bit, but also the sculpt just looks too thin to be a heavily pregnant woman. Not impossible, perhaps - but something about it just doesn't look right to me.
ReplyDeleteFair enough, Hugh. I think the reason that the woman looks so thin could be because she is so emaciated from being dead for so long. Plus, her baby may have ate a lot of her flesh!
DeleteNicely done Bryan, Its an interesting figure it doesn't really bother me apart from the price. It might offend my better half though so its a bit of a risk if it was to get spotted!
ReplyDeleteI like the amount of gore you used. I think you could of gone full on gore if the dress was perhaps a lighter colour to provide contrast with.
Thanks, Simon. A lot of the blood on the dress is hidden because of the dark background colour.
DeleteThe way I see it, if you think something may offend you, stop winging and just stay clear of it! Great figure again Bryan, I personally would definitely get one were it a bit cheaper!
ReplyDeleteAye, that price tag is a real bummer, Dave.
DeleteYup, not to some people's taste, but it's apretty cool mini al the same
ReplyDeleteI think so too, Adam.
DeleteCertainly not a model I would buy, but it's certainly unique, and has provided plenty of food for thought, gaming wise!
ReplyDeleteThe model reminds me of something. Wasn't there a film in which a pregnant woman who was bitten turned and gave birth to a zombie baby? It's been a while since I saw it, and can't remember which film it was.
I'm not sure about the film you mention, Jon, which probably means I haven't seen it.
DeleteFound it, and I'm kicking myself now. It was the 2004 Dawn of the Dead remake. My google search history now makes me seem like one sick puppy! Still that's one mystery solved.
DeleteMy memory was slightly distorted. The mother dies and turns whilst giving birth, not beforehand.
You are spot on, Jon. I have seen the film but I totally forgot that scene. Nice use of Google Fu.
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