Vampifan's Views 45 - Monthly Musings 26

Vampirella by Michael Golden - sexy and disturbing!

So we come to the end of the first month of the year and the time has seemed to have flew past. My love affair with all things to do with St. Trinian's continues. I thought I had all of the films on DVD - The Belles of St. Trinian's (1954), Blue Murder at St. Trinian's (1957), The Pure Hell of St. Trinian's (1960), The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery (1966), St. Trinian's (2007), and St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold (2009) - but thanks to the erudite knowledge of my good friend Joe, he informed me that I was missing one - The Wildcats of St. Trinian's (1980). The reason I missed it was that it was not listed amongst the St. Trinian's films on Amazon. This was because they didn't have it in stock and nor did they know when or if they'd be restocking it. Seeing as I wanted it to complete my collection I resorted to plan B - eBay. I found an American seller who had lots for sale at just $12.00 (roughly £8.00), and they were all Region 0, meaning it can be played anywhere in the world, so I ordered it and it arrived yesterday. I'll watch it this weekend. It's funny but the blurb on the back of the DVD describes it as "the forgotten St. Trinian's film." Very apt, I thought.
I have converted four Hasslefree Miniatures 28mm scale figures into four of the girls from the 2007 film, namely, Chelsea (the Posh Totty leader), Taylor (the Chav girl) and Tania and Tina (the first form twins).
I have been thinking which of the seven films is my favourite and it has to be that 2007 version. Why? For me, it has  the best cast of characters, with far greater emphasis placed upon the girls instead of the adults, as in the earlier films. Most of my figure collection are of characters from that film, so it seemed to me to be an obvious choice. I admit that I like all seven films (yes, including The Wildcats of St. Trinian's, which I saw on TV many years ago) but last weekend I watched the 2007 film again, and it just reaffirmed why I love it so much. My one and only criticism of it is the casting of Flash Harry by the obnoxious Russell Brand. What a tool!
Having built up a good collection of figures of the girls I am now concentrating on the staff members. I have found a few worthy contenders from Black Cat Bases and Turnkey Miniatures (who took over the moulds from the dearly departed Mega Miniatures). I have found my headmistress and Flash Harry from them, along with a few other teachers and yet more schoolgirls. This is growing into quite a collection!
I did say that I wanted to pit the girls of St. Trinian's against my zombie horde in a one-off ATZ scenario, but Joe came up with an even better suggestion - why not run a mini campaign with them? He said he could think of a few scenarios for them and I certainly can as well. I see no reason not to run a St. Trinian's campaign alongside my Team Vampifan campaign, with one set in the UK and the other in the USA. Hmm, the best of both worlds. This has set my creative juices flowing. As things are just in the planning stages now, I'll take on board any suggestions you might have for my alternative campaign. One major difference will be that firearms will be far less prevalent in the UK than in Mayhem City. Melee combat will take precedent over shooting.
And so to other news. I have finished painting a batch of zombies and corpses from Recreational Conflict, and a set of four zombie clowns from Studio Miniatures. Reviews will follow soon. I seem to have lost my mojo for making card scenery again but once I find it I'll go at it with a vengeance. I must finish making my Brummie's Burgers fast food restaurant. Then I want to make Carl Stoelzel's excellent Haunted House, which he kindly named Scott Mansion after me. And, just to add to the huge backlog of buildings I want to make Carl has just gone and released his first Wild West buildings set and I can say they are excellent. Damn you, Carl, why do you churn out so much great stuff? I can't keep up with this much awesomeness!
I tend not to comment on The Walking Dead TV series because I don't have satellite TV or watch it when it is repeated on terrestrial TV. Instead I wait for the DVD boxed sets to come out and then watch the whole season in a few mammoth sessions. By the time I've watched them most folk are watching the next series. However, my friendly window cleaner knows I am a huge fan of the show and he's even more of a fanatic than me. He's been recording series 4 and he lent me the first 8 episodes on DVD. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching them and the 8th episode with the attack on Rick's prison by the Governor and his force was just awesome! Now, like everyone else, I can't wait for the mid-season break to end.
That's all for now, folks. Be happy. I know I am!

Crooked Dice Doctor Who Figures 01

When I sent away to Crooked Dice Games for my St. Searle's Savage Schoolgirls I also ordered a selection of eight 28mm scale Doctor Who figures. And here they are.

First up is Doctor Who as played by Matt Smith. To avoid copyright problems Crooked Dice Games have called him Tweedy Mattison. He is very well sculpted and is posed holding up his sonic screwdriver, whilst his other hand is in his trouser pocket. He wears his trademark bow tie but thankfully not his fez. I don't care how often Matt Smith says that fezes are cool, they're not!
Standing beside him is his faithful companion, May Killan, whom we all know as Amy Pond as played by actress Karen Gillan. Amy has been sculpted in a WPC's costume, which she wore when she was first introduced to the series. Although we soon learned that she wasn't a WPC but a kisser-gram girl. That explains why she is wearing such a short mini-skirt. She is armed with a truncheon in her right hand.

Third in line is Amy/May's husband Rory Williams or as CDG call him, Mr. William Killan. Rory was played by Arthur Darvill in the TV series. At first he was Amy's boyfriend but later, after sharing many adventures with the Doctor, he married Amy. Sadly, Amy and Rory did not get to live happily ever after as they died battling the Weeping Angels. Rory's pose is very simple and if you're looking for a young male civilian he'd fit the bill.
Last in line is Group Captain Jim Barrowight, who is better known to both Doctor Who fans and Torchwood fans as Captain Jack Harkness played by actor John Barrowman. During his time with the Doctor, Jack became indestructible and couldn't be killed - a trait that came in very hand for an action hero like Jack. The figure is dressed in Jack's trademark RAF coat and he carries an old service revolver in a holster.

The second group of companions starts with action heroine Melody Lake as named by CDG but who is better known as River Song, played by actress Alex Kingston. This figure comes with a choice of two right hands, one holding the BA Pistol shown and the other holding a photonic spanner, which I suspect CDG have named instead of calling it a sonic screwdriver, which must be copyrighted.
Next up is the first of a trio of companions who reside in Victorian London. CDG have named her Eliza but there is no mistaking that she is Madame Vastra of the Silurian race of lizard-like aliens. Madame Vastra is played by actress Neve McIntosh. She helps Scotland Yard solve mysterious crimes and she is a skilled swordswoman. She is posed holding a katana in a fighting stance. This figure comes with a choice of two heads, the reptilian head shown in my photo or a human head.

Madame Vastra is controversially married to a human woman called Jenny Flint, who was her maid at one time. Same sex marriages in Doctor Who are incredibly rare. Jenny is played by Catrin Stewart and she possesses considerable melee skills. Just like Madame Vastra she is armed with a katana. CDG have named this figure Genevieve.
Finally, is Madame Vastra's butler and medic, Strax of the Sontaran race of aliens. Strax is played with great comedic effect by Dan Starkey. Strax is a member of the warrior Sontaran alien race forced to serve as a nurse, healing the injured as a punishment for being defeated by the Doctor during the Sontaran invasion of Earth. CDG have named this figure as Sachs and like Madame Vastra/Eliza, he comes with a choice of two heads, the Sontaran head as shown in my photo or a human male with very long sideburns.
It may seem odd for me to be reviewing Doctor Who figures on a blog devoted to all things undead but bear in mind, with the Doctor being a time traveller, he and his companions can pop up anywhere or anywhen in the universe. Also, the Doctor has already battled vampires in recent times so that alone is good enough reason for him to appear here. Who knows, I might just have the Doctor and friends make an appearance in my ATZ campaign.
Tweedy and WPC May cost £4.00 each but CDG offer the pair together for just £7.50. The same deal applies to William Killan and Melody Lake. Individually, they cost £4.00 each but buy them together and the price drops to £7.50. Jim Barrowight can only be bought separately and he too, costs £4.00. Eliza, Genevieve and Sachs will cost you £4.00 each if you buy them individually, but buy all three together and you save yourself a pound as they only cost £11.00. Any fan of Doctor Who will want these well sculpted figures in their collection.

Where's the Zombie? by Paul Moran

This is a review of a book that I would have loved to have received as a Christmas or birthday present. The book is called Where's the Zombie? and it is written by Jen Wainwright and illustrated by Paul Moran. It is, if you hadn't guessed already, a Where's Wally? (or if you're American, Where's Waldo?) type of book. The book contains 17 double page spreads packed full of figures (humans and zombies for the most part) and your job is to find 10 family members who are all zombies, 10 first aid kits and 5 special items that are listed at the back of the book. That gives 25 separate things to find in each picture, meaning hours of fun.
The zombie apocalypse began when Joel Peters, a scientist at Hart Laboratories, New York, got exposed to a deadly virus named ZX-5, which he was developing. He was sent home and quarantined. However, he spread the infection to his family and they all somehow escaped. The Hart family consists of Joel, his wife Martha, four children (an older daughter, a son and two female twins), Joel's father and mother, and their two pets, a cat and a dog. Yes, even the animals were zombified. You can clearly see all ten members of the Hart family on the front cover above.
Please note that the front cover has a parental advisory notice because the book contains gruesome scenes. This is true. There is a lot of gore in the book, so it may not be suitable for very young children. The back of the book shows the answers to where the family and the first aid kits can be found, but it also gives you a further five items per scene to find and these are not shown in the answer pages. Most of them are easy to spot but some are fiendishly difficult. The family members are not too hard to find, although the cat, being the smallest, can be rather tricky to find. Finding all 10 first aid kits is a lot harder because they are so small.
I must admit that I found this book immensely enjoyable and it kept me quiet and busy for hours as I searched for the 25 items per scene. I was pleased to note that the book gave a nod to the original Wally/Waldo, in that he appears in one of the scenes (the fourth one set in Ringhill High School). He's the geek with a suitcase, one of the five special items you're asked to find. He isn't wearing his trademarked red and white hooped top but the face is definitely him. A very nice touch, I thought.
The book costs £9.99, but I bought my copy much cheaper at Amazon.co.uk for just £4.97. I'll  give it an 8 out of 10 rating. The illustrations are excellent but I do wonder if, once you find everything, would you go back to it again? Anyone looking for inspiration for survivor figures, civilians and/or zombies, or just colour schemes, could find much inspiration in here.

Vampifan's St. Trinian's Schoolgirls

St. Trinian's seems to be the flavour of the month for me. Having recently purchased the two recent remake films on DVD I also bought the boxed set containing the four original films from the 1950's and 1960's. So I am now well qualified in the subject of St. Trinian's. I thought I'd revisit four figures that I showed on my blog five years ago. Since then they have been repainted and one of them (Froggy) has had a name change. These four girls were sculpted by me about six years ago. They are based on set Girl001 Sorority Twisted Sisters from Graven Images’ Dystopia range of 40mm scale figures. Being 40mm in size these were far too big to use in my collection of figures. So, I resculpted them in 28mm scale, meaning these four figures are totally unique! Once again, I came up with their names and none of them are based on characters from any of the films.

The first girl in this set of four is Sabrina Sykes. She is armed with a 9mm FN Browning High-Powered HP-35 pistol and a flick knife, which is hidden in her skirt pocket. She is an incredibly accurate shooter. She is wearing opaque black tights, which I always regard as passion killers!

Second in line is "Froggy" Fraser. "Froggy" was so named because she looks like a frog! She too, is armed with a 9mm pistol and a flick knife. She is also the group’s medic and she carries medical supplies in her pink backpack. Rather than leave her bare-legged I painted her wearing stockings and a suspender belt, which many of the St. Trinian's sixth formers wear.

Third in line is Rosalie Alexander, a bubblegum-chewing miscreant with a serious attitude problem. At first glance she appears to be unarmed but hidden in her blazer, which she has slung over her back, are six sticks of dynamite, a flick knife and a spray-can of paint. She is the scrounger of the group and has a bad attitude. She is another girl who favours stockings and a suspender belt.
Finally, is Bridget Strong, the psychopathic bully of the group. Although armed with nothing more than a baseball bat, she is more than a match for most fighters. Her particular non-combat skill is breaking and entry. In ATZ-FFO she'll have high Melee and Savvy skills. She is wearing black opaque hold-up stockings. All four of these girls are blondes but none are natural blondes. They all have black roots showing.

I enclose a photo above of the four 40mm Dystopia figures from their website so you can compare my sculpts with the originals. None of these will win any beauty contests, will they?  I'm not sure if these are still available for sale - I suspect not. Those of you with long memories or who have been following my blog since the start may well remember that I ran a scenario using these four girls plus two of my Copplestone Castings schoolgirls in a scenario for a set of zombie rules that I was play-testing. The rules got no further than the play-testing stage but if you want to check it out here is the link to it - http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.co.uk/2009/06/st-trinians-and-living-dead.html
This concludes my reviews of my St. Trinian's schoolgirl figures... for the time being. Last week I placed an order with Hasslefree Miniatures for four more girls, which I will convert. I also sent off for their pack of five hockey sticks. As soon as I get them converted (which I have already started on as the package arrived yesterday) and painted I'll review them. Look out for them soon. Then I must bow to pressure and run a scenario pitting the girls of St. Trinian's versus a zombie horde. That should be fun! The zombies won't know what's hit them!

Crooked Dice Games St. Trinian's Schoolgirls

Having introduced you to my collection of 28mm scale St. Trinian's schoolgirl figures last post it's time to take a look at the bulk of my collection, eight figures from Crooked Dice Games (CDG). With the exception of one figure (Misty) these are all quite new figures, having been released last November. As soon as I got them they jumped to the front of my figure painting queue. Well, would you want to argue with them?

We start off with three fourth formers and at the far right, a fifth former. They are all original figures in that none of them appeared in any of the St. Trinian's films. Most of their names were invented by me.
First in line is Nikki Thorpe, a member of the Chavs tribe. I told you last time that the girls of St. Trinian's are divided into numerous tribes. She is nicely posed firing her catapult. Note that she has used her tie as a belt rather than wearing it round her neck. The little rebel!
Next, is "Violent Elizabeth" Crompton. Violet Elizabeth Bott was a character in the Just William books by Richmal Crompton. But this character, whilst sharing a similar name is far more dangerous, hence her nickname, "Violent Elizabeth." She has been beautifully sculpted screaming her head off because she hasn't got her own way. Someone will suffer for upsetting her! She'll "thcweam and thcweam until I'm thick" Yes, she does have a lisp but it is unwise to mention it or even worse, to mock it! Translated, she means she'll scream and scream until she's sick.

Third in line is Lucy Parker, another Chav. She is just so full of character. She carries a catapult in her right hand. Her left hand is giving someone the finger and her face has been sculpted in a scowl that just screams "Screw you!" I like this figure a lot. She is the only figure out of these two sets to wear a hat.
According to CDG, Dorothy Thorpe (I added her surname) loves sport and cooking. She's armed with a baseball bat and a backpack full of home made explosives! Most St. Trinian's schoolgirls prefer the hockey stick as their weapon of choice but Dorothy is a bit different. Note that she is wearing a leather biker's jacket - hardly regulation school-wear!

Next up are four hockey stick wielding schoolgirls. All of them are sixth formers and just one of them (Polly) appeared in the 2007 St. Trinian's film.
At the far left is Jackie Grimshaw, a sporty lass who loves hockey, but who rarely plays by the rules. She is holding her hockey stick aloft as she shouts defiantly at the opposition. In her left hand she holds a dagger with a wicked looking blade. I wouldn't want to face her!
Next in line is Polly Cole, the geek and a bookworm. Polly was a character in the 2007 St. Trinian's film and was played by Lily Cole. Lily is also known as a supermodel, so she was clearly cast against type. Polly didn't have a surname so I just pinched Lily's surname for her. This figure bears a remarkable similarity with Polly and I'm sure the sculptor was inspired by her. She holds her hockey stick nonchalantly over her right shoulder and is far more absorbed in reading her book. CDG suggests she is reading A Clockwork Orange.

Third in line is April Stevens, whom CDG describe as "the looker" - and who am I to disagree? She has to belong to the Posh Totty tribe of girls. She is certainly the most beautiful of the eight girls featured here. But the way she holds her hockey stick in a two-handed grip suggests she means business and is not to be messed with.
Finally, we come to Misty the Zombie Hunter, her nickname according  to CDG. She came out long before the other seven girls but she does fit in well with the others. I gave her the surname "Winters" as I see her as a darker version of Buffy Summers aka Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Misty is not unlike Faith the Vampire Slayer when she went off the rails. I see Misty as a fearless fighter but she also has a soft side as witnessed by the teddy bear she has  strapped to her belt. Misty is the best melee fighter in St. Trinian's and is something of a legend.
Crooked Dice Games use these girls as part of their fictional St. Searle's School. Ronald Searle was well known as the illustrator of the St. Trinian's novels from long ago, so Crooked Dice have cleverly kept the St. Trinian's connection alive. I have simply transferred the girls from St. Searle's to St. Trinian's. All of the figures shown here can be purchased separately for £3.25 each. However, if you buy each set of four - Savage Schoolgirls Set 1 and Savage Schoolgirls Set 2 - then they cost just £12 per set, saving you a pound on the price of buying them individually. Set 1 contains the 3 fourth formers and the fifth former. Set 2 contains the 4 sixth formers with hockey sticks. I can highly recommend them.