“Would you kindly…?”

It’s pretty tough to overstate how much of a big deal Bioshock was when it was released back in 2007. It still holds up today; both graphics and gameplay, and as for the story, forget about it. Your plasmid-fueled trip through the failed, Randian underwater dystopian city of Rapture is a tale well worth revisiting and replaying, even fifteen years and two sequels later. Scary, thrilling, darkly comic and somewhat grotesque, Bioshock is art.

Among the many adversaries you will face as you traverse the leaking, seaweed-choked halls and passages of Rapture, the most iconic (and deadly) are the Big Daddies. There is no escaping them. You will meet them, you will kill them; and you will most certainly be killed by them. Many, many times.

The Big Daddy’s sole purpose is to protect the Little Sisters, who are the main source of ADAM, the raw material substance which allows genetic alteration. In game terms, this is how your character gets cool abilities and powers. Little Sisters were once normal young girls who have been altered to reclaim ADAM from the corpses of genetically altered people. When meeting a Little Sister (after killing her Big Daddy first), you have the option to either Save her or Harvest her. Saving her returns her to normal and grants you some ADAM; harvesting her kills her and grants you a lot more.

I’ve been called heartless before; but I save all the Little Sisters. (I’m not a fucking monster.)

The Little Sisters call the Big Daddies “Mr. Bubbles”. For my “Mr. Bubbles”, I chose this “hardsuit” miniature from Recreational Conflict. It’s about as close to a Big Daddy as you can get.

After priming it black, I based it with Citadel Tin Bitz before layering on Vallejo Bronze. I didn’t like the look of it (too uniformly metallic), so I washed it in Vallejo Sepia Tone. This gave it a really nice, warm color. I highlighted up with more Bronze and finally, Citadel Shining Gold. I also used some Brown Ink to line the seams, and some Citadel Typhus Corrosion to grime it up a bit.

I fucked up on the base, though. I should have mounted him on a Tech Base, but instead I based him on a 40mm MDF disk, which I then covered in sand. I couldn’t remove him without having to assemble him all over again (screw that), so I did what I could. Big Daddies can go underwater just fine, so I added a starfish made out of Magic Sculpt (I stole the idea from Matt’s zombie shark base; thanks, Matt!). The seaweed is the remains of a Heroclix cape from a DC Hypertime Hawk model. I used the main body when making Blue Diamond for Forgotten Heroes, way back in 2017! I never throw anything away. ( Looking back on those Liberty Legion conversions, I realize I hadn’t yet admitted to myself that I can’t see shit anymore. If I was doing them today, I think they’d look a lot better, thanks to my magnifiers. Maybe I should revisit them…)

For the seashell, I took a trip to Horseneck Beach in Westport, Massachusetts. Actually, it’s not much of a trip, considering I live within spitting distance. Going to the beach just to get a shell reminded me how much I take living near the ocean for granted. Although I’ve lived here all my life, I hate going to the beach in summer, because I hate people, I burn easily, and I don’t like to swim in salt water. Horseneck Beach is also good for a great white shark sighting or two every couple of years; but just because you don’t see any on a given year doesn’t mean they aren’t out there. (They are.) I usually get bored and annoyed very quickly when I’m forced to go to the beach; but days like this, when it’s overcast and windy and I’m the only one in sight…I could get used to this.

Up next, a return to Trek!

9 thoughts on ““Would you kindly…?””

  1. Dave Stone

    Wonderful work on your Mr Bubbles Keith, I think the colour and textures you’ve got on the suit are Excellent ! Very nice base too, has a very underwater feel to it, so is perfect.
    Nice looking beach, and Great Whites as well, was always on my bucket list to cage diving with them, before my diving days were cancelled.

        1. Dave Stone

          ROFL Matt, as wild creatures go, sharks are actually easier to understand and watch for the relevant body signals, than say the domestic cat, sharks arch their backs when, aggravated and ready to attack, whereas a cat will be happily sat on your lap wanting fuss, then in an instant turn into demon cat trying to rip your face off with no warning or signs ! LOL

  2. Matt

    Mr Bubbles looks great, Keith, you’ve really managed to get an aged and worn look to the bronze. I’ve only made it through about half of Bioshock despite owning it for years. I do like it, I keep getting distracted by Half Life 2 🙂

    Happy to see I inspired you to make a starfish! Did it work first time, or did you take about five attempts like I had to LOL!

    I’m with you on the stormy beach thing; even living 200 yards from the ocean in Long Beach, the only time I enjoyed going was when the skies were overcast. So about four days a year.

    1. The Angry Piper Post author

      Thanks, Matt. I’m total ass at sculpting, despite the kind and patient advice of Dave and Roger. I managed to roughly shape a blob of putty into a star, and then I waited long enough to let it harden somewhat. Then I just trusted that paint would cover any imperfections. It’s a starfish. It’s supposed to be bumpy.
      I assume you also save the little sisters? Please tell me you don’t murder kids, Matt. 🙂

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