Recently I bought a finished Martian Gun from the movie "Mars Attacks!" from RPF member MIMIC. Since I was so pleasantly surprised when this replica arrived, I felt I just had to write a review.
So lets start with some screencaps from the pistol we're talking about. In the movie there are 2 or 3 guns used by the Martians. The most prominent is the blue rifle-like gun, and the second important one is this pisol. It's used bu the Martian Ambassador, and some other Martians are also carrying such a pistol.
Then for the replica. First a special word about the packaging. This possibly is the strongest packaging I've seen in a long time for a prop. Inside the cardboard box is a wooden frame that can actually carry my own weight. The gun itself was carefully wrapped in lots of bubblewrap and then place inside this frame. I think this prop could only be damaged during transport if a tank ran over it. A picture of the empty box and frame:
So let's go to the most important part: the replica itself. It's made out of resin, with some steel rods to connect the two "halfs" of the blaster. The gun has a nice weight and feels sturdy enough when you have it in your hand. It looks like the two rods in the middel are the weak part of the gun, but since these are metal, you don't have to worry too much about that. Since I didn't buy this as kit but as finished prop, I can't say anything about the casting of the resin parts, but when I read the thread where MIMIC offered this gun as a kit, I only read very positive comments there about the almost perfect casting of the parts.
But as I said: since I bought a finished one, I don't have to warry about casting quality. I only have to worry about the quality of the paintjob, and that's just incredible. The blaster has a nice "cartoon" look to it, as it should be:
Some details are worth mentioning: first is the handle: it s painted in a sparkling, metallic red paint. Very nice touch! Then there is the crackling on the green paint on the front part. This crackling effect can also be seen in the movie in some scenes.. The crackling effect on the replica is very realistic and nicely done. Also some black "weathering" is done on some of the other green parts. So the black you can see on the back of the gun, for instance, is not the paint chipping, but actually meant to be that way. Last detail is the front of the blaster. It really looks as it has been exposed to great heat. It is the effect I'd like to see on the front of replica's of Star Lords Blasters in Guardians of the Galaxy.
So to wrap up: this is a fantastic replica, finished on a professional way, and shipped as any prop should be shipped. I hope to see more prop replica's from MIMIC (also have MIMIC's the Sankara Stones. Review can be found here: https://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=276877), because I think he will be in my top 5 of favorite prop builders if this quality is delivered in future props...
Last picture of this fantastic piece:
So lets start with some screencaps from the pistol we're talking about. In the movie there are 2 or 3 guns used by the Martians. The most prominent is the blue rifle-like gun, and the second important one is this pisol. It's used bu the Martian Ambassador, and some other Martians are also carrying such a pistol.
Then for the replica. First a special word about the packaging. This possibly is the strongest packaging I've seen in a long time for a prop. Inside the cardboard box is a wooden frame that can actually carry my own weight. The gun itself was carefully wrapped in lots of bubblewrap and then place inside this frame. I think this prop could only be damaged during transport if a tank ran over it. A picture of the empty box and frame:
So let's go to the most important part: the replica itself. It's made out of resin, with some steel rods to connect the two "halfs" of the blaster. The gun has a nice weight and feels sturdy enough when you have it in your hand. It looks like the two rods in the middel are the weak part of the gun, but since these are metal, you don't have to worry too much about that. Since I didn't buy this as kit but as finished prop, I can't say anything about the casting of the resin parts, but when I read the thread where MIMIC offered this gun as a kit, I only read very positive comments there about the almost perfect casting of the parts.
But as I said: since I bought a finished one, I don't have to warry about casting quality. I only have to worry about the quality of the paintjob, and that's just incredible. The blaster has a nice "cartoon" look to it, as it should be:
Some details are worth mentioning: first is the handle: it s painted in a sparkling, metallic red paint. Very nice touch! Then there is the crackling on the green paint on the front part. This crackling effect can also be seen in the movie in some scenes.. The crackling effect on the replica is very realistic and nicely done. Also some black "weathering" is done on some of the other green parts. So the black you can see on the back of the gun, for instance, is not the paint chipping, but actually meant to be that way. Last detail is the front of the blaster. It really looks as it has been exposed to great heat. It is the effect I'd like to see on the front of replica's of Star Lords Blasters in Guardians of the Galaxy.
So to wrap up: this is a fantastic replica, finished on a professional way, and shipped as any prop should be shipped. I hope to see more prop replica's from MIMIC (also have MIMIC's the Sankara Stones. Review can be found here: https://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=276877), because I think he will be in my top 5 of favorite prop builders if this quality is delivered in future props...
Last picture of this fantastic piece:
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