I don't always like many from the mid year batch (they tend to do more decorators then, something I'm just not into even though I can appreciate the artistry of it all : the colour effects they're coming up with seem to get more inventive and complex every year!), but usually there's one or two which I think I might buy, and some years there's a must-have where I end up really impatient for the shipment to arrive over here so I can get my hands on one.
This year's wow-I-want-it horse was Voyeur, the jumping warmblood, so I put in a pre-order just incase demand for this exciting new mould overtook supply and the UK struggled to get enough to go around!
He arrived today, I've named him Harecroft Hawkwings (a flight themed name seemed essential for this one!), and I'm pleased to confirm this model is every bit as wow in person as I was imagining!
As always, click any photo to see it larger; I keep them small to fit the blog layout neatly but they're all bigger than they look here!
It's so nice that the regular run line has been treated to the Bristol mould so quickly - just one year after it first appeared. Because lately, Breyer've been making us common regular-run buyers wait what feels like aaaaages for the new sculpts to come around on general release : usually the moulds take several years to filter down from the exclusive models of the Premier Collection/Collector's Club, to Breyerfest and Web/Store Specials, and then finally into regular run colours. I'm not quite sure why this happens, on the most basic level they'd probably make more money from shifting loads of units by dropping something fantastic and brand new into the regular run line, than from the lucky and dedicated few who can afford and justify the high prices for the rare models, but perhaps they're going for the hype of the mould being rare to start with, to make collectors want it more? Or they suspected that not many people would join the clubs and pay the prices if they didn't promise them first bite at the exciting new moulds? Either way, it seems that the days of first edition releases directly into the mass market are sadly gone, and we just count ourselves lucky if the regular runs come along within a year or two!
So, what do we think of the Bristol mould, now it's here? Personally, I love it! There's a real feeling of quality and attention to detail in the sculpting, the kind of fine sharp precision which is rare in plastic - in fact the entire thing really reminds me of the sort of thing you only ever saw in artist resins, from the dynamic pose, to the anatomical accuracy, and the superb level of surface finish detailing too (this boy has whisker bumps, and creases where his ears are pricked far forward). One of the best in the entire Traditional range!
The paintjob is perhaps a little plain, but they chose a real horse with no white markings or dappling to copy, so he was always going to be a basic bay colour. He is a lighter shade than average, though, and they have made a decent job with his shading, mostly by careful spraying to add the paint thinly or more heavily, so he's noticeably paler at the stifles and behind the elbows, with some darker brown tones in the deep hollows of his hindquarters, and above his shoulders too.
His eyes stand out as unusually pale - almost the amber colour of some dilute breeds (my sooty palomino has amber eyes, though interestingly they're down as blue on her passport which was filled in when she was a foal!). I've tried googling the real Voyeur to see if he's known for a light eye colour, but can't really see anything out of the ordinary in photos, so maybe this is just Breyer picking a paler paint than they usually use for a brown eye!
The only down side to jumping models is that I never really know what to do with them for photos!
They need a jump for it to make logical sense for the horse to be in a jumping pose, and then you think on it a bit more and realise, ah, actually, they need a minimum of a bridle (without reins) or halter too, because you can excuse the lack of saddle and rider by saying it's loose schooling, a photo like all those sales ads showing off the jumping scope of a potential competition horse absolutely skying a fence set up in an indoor school!
But I've never done performance set-ups outside of Julip showing, so I don't have any Trad jumps - I think I might have to make one, now I've gone and got this horse who needs a decent sensible photo where he isn't jumping thin air!
Finally, here he is with two other Trad jumping moulds, for comparison purposes :
The top one is the Newsworthy jumping pony, so I expected him to be substantially bigger than that, but having laid out all three I find he also dwarfs the Peter Stone jumping horse (excuse him being a bit of a state, he's from my body box!).
I expect he'll be really popular with performance showing, the best thing in plastic - the older Breyer jumping horse isn't that great nowadays, the Stone one is basic in style and not exactly common, and the Newsworthy is nice but a pony when more people would want set-ups featuring full size horses and adult riders.
He's really tack-friendly round the head and neck, the only possible issue I can see is his stand being in the way of the stud-guard girths which are so common in the real horse world, but as most jumping models have their support stand under the belly somewhere, I imagine that's something the showing people have already come across!
So has anyone else been impatient enough to pre-order and get their hands on the very first batch to land on British soil? Or is he on your wishlist? Let me know your opinion in the comments, do!
No comments:
Post a Comment