Friday 20 May 2022

MOUNTING HORROR

 Two more models for Monster May(hem) today, the first is a Blurrg, this is what Wookieepedia says :

blurrg (plural: blurrg or blurrgs) was a non-sentient, two-legged reptilian beast of burden found throughout the galaxy. Blurrgs were notably used by the Twi'lek Resistance and Free Ryloth Movement during the Clone Wars and the Imperial Era. They were also corralled by the moisture farmer Kuiil on Arvala-7.

These creatures have been around for a while, their first appearance was in the Ewok movie "Battle for Endor", then they appeared in the animated series "The Clone Wars", and "Rebels", then more recently in "The Mandolorian" , I have included reference pictures underneath the model from the 3 sources.


Next is Zero the Hutt, who was the uncle of Jabba the Hutt, here is what Wookieepedia says :

Ziro Desilijic Tiure, also known as Ziro the Hutt, was a Hutt male crime lord who, with the title of Master of the Hutt Clan, controlled seven star systems in the name of the Hutt Clan during the decline of the Galactic Republic. A native of the planet Sleheyron, Ziro eventually left Hutt Space in favor of the galaxy's Core Worlds and established his residence on Coruscant, the galactic capital of the Republic. In addition to his father and mother, Ziro's family included his son Hiro and Jabba Desilijic Tiure, his nephew who fathered the Huttlet heir RottaGorga Desilijic Aarrpo was another influential relative of Ziro, serving as a member of the Grand Hutt Council.

In the year 22 BBY, Ziro formed a secret pact with Count Dooku—the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems—during the early days of the Clone Wars. With the help of the Separatists, Ziro had his great-nephew Rotta abducted and taken to a B'omarr monastery on the distant world of Teth. Knowing the Jedi Order would send their own to rescue the Huttlet, Ziro hoped that the deaths of Rotta's would-be Jedi saviors would lead to a conflict between Jabba and the Republic. With Jabba removed from power, Ziro would be in a position to seize control of their clan.

Ziro's role in the conspiracy was discovered by Senator Padmé Amidala, who confronted the gangster in his nightclub on Coruscant during the mission to rescue Rotta. With Rotta safely returned to his father on Tatooine, Ziro was taken into custody by the Coruscant Guard. However, as the war progressed, the Grand Hutt Council regarded Ziro as too dangerous to be left in a Republic prison, given his knowledge of their inner workings. As a result, the Hutts recruited the bounty hunter Cad Bane, who freed Ziro and turned him over to the Hutt Council. Although Ziro escaped the Hutts as well, he was ultimately murdered in 21 BBY by the Pa'lowick singer Sy Snootles, Ziro's one-time lover whom Jabba hired to kill his uncle and retrieve the Hutt Council records.

He appeared in both the animated Clone Wars film and series, I don't know how I'll use him in a game, but it was just one of those characters I just had to have.


Still got 1 more model I'm working on for the challenge, let's see if I can get it done in time, so until next time stay safe and have fun !

Cheers Dave

26 comments:

  1. Great stuff mate, It was really sad when the Blurrg died in the Mandalorian, I don't think I'd be as upset if something happened to Zero though! 😉

    Cheers roger.

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    1. Thank you Roger, yes the whole scene with the Blurrg and Kuiil was very sad, whereas Zero's death scene was more of a justification ! LOL

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  2. Excellent models, Dave. Are they self-sculpted or come from somewhere else..? Either way they're excellent representations of the Star Wars characters. I especially like the blurrg. Awesome paint job on Ziro the Hutt too though.

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    1. Thank you Simon, they are both sculpted by me, as the only blurrg prints I've found look very grainy and come with a rider ! LOL Zero's back markings were a pain to find, but got there in the end, lot's of pausing of the clone wars film.

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  3. Wow, you are doing such an incredible work covering all the corners of the SW universe with your sculpts. The blurrg is most excellent, but then I saw Ziro and I think it's quite a jaw dropping work. Fantastic!

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    1. Thank you Suber, there's a lot more I'd like to get done, eventually I'd like a 6' x 4' board covered in scenery for Mos Espa or Mos Eisley with enough creatures and background characters to populate the streets, will get there eventually. some of the subtle tones didn't show in the photo of the Blurrg, but glad all the markings on Zero showed up ! LOL

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  4. Amazing work on both - I had to look closely at the Bluurg to start with as I thought it may be a 3D print, until I eventually realised you must have sculpted the thing yourself - same on Ziro - though there's some bloody impressive freehand on Ziro's paint there - kudos on both, mate! :D

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    1. Thank you Azazael, if you look closely you can actually see a few spots where my greenstuff didn't blend seamlessly but in hand is less noticeable, Zero blended better, as the folds got to hide the blends easier, the freehand was a pain, but got to keep pushing myself, especially with all the T-shirt freehand you keep showing mate ! LOL

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  5. I remember the Blurrgs well from those old Star Wars TV specials! Those were kind of terrible but when I stumbled across them at a video rental place as a child, I couldn't believe there was more Star Wars stuff out there that I didn't know about and I enjoyed them at the time. I guess that is the magic of the VHS days because retail stores could surprise you much more than they do now, I find. Either way, I think both of these look fantastic and your sculpting skills never fail to impress. Is there any chance I can convince you to sculpt a Gorax? It would be a big miniature but amazing to see for this diehard Star Wars fan :) Pretty much anything from Endor would be awesome though honestly. It is one of my favorite planets in Star Wars.

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    1. Thank you Jeff, In the UK they were released as cinema releases, but I only watched them when they got released on video, out of the two I preferred "Battle for Endor". The Blurrgs suffered from the technology of the time, but for stop animation they were good for the time of release, obviously they have improved a lot with their more recent rendition. A Gorax you say I'll see what I can do for you mate, as I hadn't planned on Endor, too many trees to represent ! LOL

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    2. I don't think they were worthy of cinema releases to be honest. The boy, who I think is mostly in the first one, is such a bad actor. He makes the acting Episode II: Attack of the Clones look award worthy haha!

      There are A LOT of Endor things you can make if you take up a project like that. Ewoks would be a big one but you could make characters from those specials too. Teek, Wilford Brimley's character whose name I've forgotten, the little girl who is in both of them, the marauders, and so on. I think some spiders are in there too. There is a lot more in the extended universe including evil ewoks if I remember right too. Its probably more work than you should take on if I'm being honest! :)

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    3. He died early in the second movie, so wasn't there for long ! LOL
      There are a lot of other creatures as well from the expanded universe on Endor indeed, a full eco system to be precise if you include all the creatures shown in the creature book. Probably more work than I really want to take on ! LOL The project has already included much more than I originally intended, but that's the things with huge projects like this they are constantly evolving so I wouldn't say it's not a possibility but certainly not on the cards at the moment ! LOL
      Oh Wilford's character was Noah

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  6. I thought that blurrg looked familiar — it looks like me first thing in the morning LOL! Fantastic work on it, and on Ziro. The freehanding on Ziro's back is just amazing. Lovely work, Dave!

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    1. Thank you Matt, both of you look far better than me first thing in the morning then ! LOL The freehand turned out better than expected, and managed to do it first try, no paint overs which was very lucky in my books !

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  7. Well done on the monsters. I actually found the blurgs on the Mandolorian kinda endearing. Kuiil was such a cool character. I tried the ‘I have spoken’ line on my wife once. It didn’t work as well. 😀

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    1. Thank you Stewart, the Blurrgs were cool and added to the different riding beasts seen, although I do hope we get to see a Mythosaur if the prophecy comes true. Probably wise not to try that again then, and definitely don't try " This is the way " ! LOLI once tried " I know" in response to " I love you" not a good response ! LOL

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  8. Brilliant conversion and scratch build work Dave! Zero looks excellent!

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    1. Thank you Simon, they're both scratch builds, just using two different methods, but that's high praise if you thought one was a conversion.

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  9. Once again you bring the thunder, Dave. Your scratch builds are just awesome! I absolutely love Ziro. I've been making my way through Clone Wars recently. I loved the character; his demise was one of the more recent episodes I've seen!

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    1. Thank you Keith, he was an interesting dynamic as a Hutt, even more vile than the other Hutt's with it being eluded that he killed his own brother and father, plus obviously the kidnapping of Jabba's son as well, all for power. Have you been enjoying " The Clone Wars" it can be a bit disjointing as the series isn't in the correct order ! LOL

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  10. John@justneedsvarnish23 May 2022 at 12:52

    Crikey, Dave, these are brilliant, sculpting and painting! :-)

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    1. Thank you John, managed to pull one out of the hat for this post, as the intended model I'm still struggling to finish ! LOL

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  11. Awesome scratch builds, lovely finish!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thank you Iain, I think I started both of these last year, and they became my fill ins, when I had some spare green that needed using as it was starting to dry.

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  12. Wow, that is pretty awesome. Love the stylish body paint! I'm sure Princess Leia would swoon!

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    1. Thank you Ann, luckily for Leia Zero was long dead before she was born, and her mum didn't even have to change outfits when she had dealings with him ! LOL

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