Sep 18, 2007
Dr. Destruction Original from Muttpop
Dr. Destruction, the leader of the Formidables, is the next figure from the talented folks at Muttpop. Bill's character has made the leap from his drawings to vinyl in fine form. Here's look at a prototype of the original colorway. Dr. Destruction will ship in November of this year and is the most well-equipped Muttpop figure to-date with removable cape, cane and cigarette accessories. We're impressed by the cane (must plug into the clasped hands). Check back with us on Friday for exclusive pics of a wild Dr. Destruction colorway.
May 11, 2007
Mini Fabien: 2nd Round Sculpting
Here are the latest progress pictures of Erick Sosa’s work on Muttpop's Mini Fabien sculpt. The eye and mouth elements have been added to give a better sense of the overall figure.Included below are Fabien’s extensive notes on what needs to be addressed. As can be seen from his notes, Fabien’s experience in the animation industry has helped him develop an efficient means to address key issues. It’s a marvel to see the back and forth that unravels between artists at this stage of development.
May 04, 2007
Mini Fabien Initial Sculpt
You asked for it, so this week we're showing off the initial sculpting work by Erick Sosa and his team on Muttpop’s Mini Fabien figure.
Visually, Fabien took inspiration from his love of marine life for the design of the Luchador Mask. Erick began the initial sculpt in sculpey. He began by fleshing out the body, head, and scales…yes, scales. The "scales" really pop on Mini Fabien and make full use of this 3D art medium.
Apr 27, 2007
Mini Jerry and Mini Bill - Initial Sculpts
As shown last week, Muttpop is expanding their mini-line with the addition of Mini Jerry and Mini Bill. To bring these new mini characters to life, they hired San Fernando based sculptor Erick Sosa.
Erick has sculpted professionally for many years now. The bulk of his work has been in action figures and superhero themed statues. With his strong sense of anatomy, attention to detail, and ability to work on sculpts in a variety of sizes, Muttpop felt confident that Erick Sosa could bring the Mini characters to three dimensional life.
To get a rough sense for the shape and detail placement for the figures, Erick begins his sculpts in sculpey. Very little detail is rendered into the clay. At this point, Erick is more interested in shaping out an accurately proportioned figure that has a rough suggestion of where the critical visual cues of the figure will be placed.
Once a sculpey version of the figure is to his liking, Erick will create Silicone molds of the figure. These silicone molds will be used to make wax casts of the figures.
Apr 20, 2007
Muttpop: Final Dr. Destruction Cast 2
This week have a further look at Jorge Martinez's casting process of Muttpop’s Dr. Destruction. These pics demonstrate the way Jorge mounts the sculpted pieces prior to creating the initial silicone mold. Additionally, we have photographs of the complete final resin cast including the cigarette and cane. Last but not least is a peek at the initial rough sculpts of Mini Jerry and Mini Bill next to El Panda Original. Both Minis will be to scale with Mini Gobi.
Apr 13, 2007
Muttpop: Dr. Destruction Sculpt
Now that Muttpop’s Dr. Destruction sculpt was complete, it was time to make some resin casts to send to the factory. Los Angeles based Jorge Martinez took Syte R’s final Dr. Destruction sculpt and encased the various pieces in silicone. After removing all air bubbles and allowing the silicon to completely dry, the original wax sculpted pieces are removed. Liquid resin is then poured into the silicon molds to create resin duplicates of the original wax sculpt.
Dr. Destruction was a particular challenge in the mold making stage for a variety of reasons. First off, the position of Dr. Destruction’s arms forced Jorge to use a lot of silicon to create the molds. Second, Dr. Destruction comes with a variety of small accessories such as his cigarette and cane. Lastly, the curved shape of Dr. Destruction’s cape made it very challenging to mold and cast.
But not to worry! As can be seen at the initial glimpse at the Dr. Destruction resin cast (minus his cane and cigarette), Jorge Martinez did a wonderful job!
Mar 30, 2007
El Panda Edicion Kozik
COMANDANTE ROJO: EDICION POBLANO POR KOZIK. Vinyl Pulse X Muttpop. June 2007.
Mar 23, 2007
Muttpop: The Collection
This week we take a look back at all of the Muttpop figures in existence. This includes produced figures and the new batch that we have revealed here at Vinyl Pulse. In case you're wondering, there are no plans to
produce Carai Tequila (the other Extra Spicy).
Mar 16, 2007
Muttpop: Raw
Since we’ve moved production to a new factory, we’ve had to adapt to their different process of production. A welcome and unexpected change to the process is their vinyl approval process. Before doing any paint tests for the figures, the factory pulls vinyl rotocasts of the figures from silicone molds. Photos of the vinyl rotocasts are submitted for Muttpop’s approval. Curiously, the new factory uses a “non-colored” vinyl that is a slightly translucent pearl white plastic. The factory sprays the figures with a mist of brownish-gray paint to accentuate the details of the figure. Even in the crude pictures that were sent to us, we knew that both “Raw” editions of the figures had to be made. Here they are. “Raw” and “Smoked” versions of El Panda, Red Demon, and Mini Gobi. As with previous Raw editions, each figure comes in an unprinted package and a super limited run. Only 20 figures of each “Raw” and “Smoked” figure will be made.
Mar 09, 2007
Muttpop: Original Red Demon and Original Gobi
The Originals. The backbone of Muttpop’s Lucha Libre Art Figure Line. Designs and colors by Bill and Gobi. Sculpts by Monster5. All produced in supreme rotocast vinyl. Aren’t they beautiful? Below are the first complete glimpses of both figures from various angles. Original Red Demon and Original Gobi will debut in April/May 2007.
Mar 02, 2007
Muttpop: GID
Black Bean, Classico, Pop Culture…what else does Muttpop have up its sleeve? Glow In The Dark! Glow In The Dark Editions of El Panda, Red Demon, and Mini Gobi will be available very soon. You will be able to get your very own Glow In The Dark edition of all three figures sometime this year from StrangeKiss, the online designer toy and art prints retailer.
There are two important qualities for Glow In The Dark figures. One, they should look really cool while they glow. Two, the figure must retain it’s personality in darkness or by daylight. By limiting the painted accents to the colors black or white and keeping those painted accents to a minimum, Muttpop was able to not only respect these two factors, Muttpop was able to celebrate them.
Paint application emphasis was placed on the eyes and face to bring focus to this most expressive region of the figure. Also, if you look carefully at the pictures of El Panda, Muttpop used two slightly different tones of Glow In The Dark Vinyl on the El Panda figure to create a subtle contrast between El Panda’s Military garment and the rest of the figure.
Feb 23, 2007
Muttpop: Wizard Exclusive
Muttpop was approached by Wizard Entertainment to do exclusive variants of figures in the Muttpop Designer Toy line. Because of the sincere enthusiasm Wizard had for Muttpop, the collaboration was a very natural and exciting one. Muttpop decided to give these exclusives a splash of “pop” culture. El Panda Dragon is a nod to the great Bruce Lee. Muttpop elevates the “Game of Death” tracksuit design with a bit of that ever-loving Muttpop humor. Red Demon Vice Edition (gives props to the funky Miami “style” made famous by the original 1980s “Sonny” Crockett. I can assure you he’s not wearing socks. Both figures are limited to 250 pieces and will be available in late April/early May. Wizard is taking advance orders at their Wizard Universe Store. You will also be able to purchase both figures at Wizard World conventions. Last but not least, here’s sneak peak at the “Classico Collection”. Note the first clear glimpses of Red Demon Classico and Mini Gobi Classico! Stay classy.
Feb 16, 2007
MiniGobi Prototype
We’re taking a bit of a break from our look at the Dr. Destruction sculpt to focus on the other projects brewing at Muttpop. Back in 2006, we teased you
guys with the developments on Red Demon and a sneak peak glimpse at MiniGobi. Both figures are coming very soon! Here are the final rotocast vinyl
prototypes of MiniGobi Original, MiniGobi Black Bean, and MiniGobi
Classico. At 4 inches tall (10 cm) and a very reasonable retail price of
$12.00, MiniGobis are an affordable addition to the Muttpop collection.
