IPMS/USA Reviews

Description

This is my second review of Sci-fi & fantasy modeller and I am a bit disappointed. I like to challenge myself to present a balanced review of the Good, Bad and Ugly and at the same time keep it very objective. However, as in my first review, I can not find any Bad or Ugly to report on. Once again, the fine editorial staff and writers have produced a magazine filled with a variety of high quality articles produced on high quality materials and definitely worth the purchase price.

The publication consists of 100 pages, about 7 X 10 inches on heavy stock semi-glossy paper. The isssue is very article dense with only a few advertisements with over 98% of the page space being given over to relevant content.

Table of Contents

• 2001: Filming the Future - A look at Simon Atkinson's three year odyssey to recreate the seminal designs of Kubrick's masterpiece
• Revell's Clone Wars Starfighters - Building and enhancing Revell's Clone Wars kits
• Designing the Moebius Jupiter 2 part 2 - A behind-the scenes look at the making of a mass-market model of the iconic 1960's spaceship
• Clone Wars Magnaguard Fighter- Finishing Revell's Magnaguard Fighter
• Empire Strikes Back replica Tauntaun - Cover article: Visual effects animator, sculptor and artist Jim Davidson gives a behind the scenes look at his most elaborate project - a fully articulated recreation of the Empire Strikes Back's stop motion Tauntaun
• Alliance Model's USS Stargazer -Barry Ford builds and panels Picard's old Command
• H. G. Wells' Time Machine - Building The Time Machine from Reshape Models
• Pegasus Hobbies' Space Ark - Gene Kozicki recreates a tense moment from When Worlds Collide
• Mission 2110 Robot Suits - Neill Gorton of Millennium FX chronicles how he and his team created nine-foot-tall robots for Mission 2110
• Stayn Destroyer scratchbuild - B.P. Taylor scratchbuilds an awesome alien aggressor
• Nemo-Nautilus kits and collectibles - A look at kits and collectibles based on Jules Verne's most enduring creations

Article Example: 2001: Filming the Future - Recapturing the art of 2001

This contains artist sketches and models used to produce the book "2001: Filming the Future" by Piers Bizony. (An authoritive and complete source of information on Stanley Kubrick's 1968 epic, 2001: A Space Odyssey)

Article Example: H. G. Wells' Time Machine

This is the build of a 63 part resin and metal 1:12 scale iconic Time Machine from The Time Machine movie. It is a through kit review and finish with progress and final photos. The model is finely detailed and placed in a diorama of the movie's workshop.

Conclusion

This is an interesting and enjoyable read and the variety of "builds", creative designs and scratchbuilds is a big plus. I highly recommend this publication for the mix of high quality articles that demonstrate different aspects of modeling and the behind the scenes creative process and execution.

Thanks to Happy Medium Press and IPMS USA for the opportunity to review this excellent magazine.