Kit Review:

The King

Resin Realities

reviewed by the Mad Skotzman

Appearance of the Kit
pose, expression, details/articulation, accuracy (or originality)

Lemme tell ya, Mark Van Tine is GOOD!  I mean, really fantastic.  This is a dead-on likeness of the most famous monkey ever, the original King Kong.  I have to say that I am a real critic of Kong kits.  That film changed my life . . . it is the reason you have CreatureScape in fact . . . so I am hyper-critical when it comes to the big gorilla.  However, this kit is essentially perfect in its articulation of detail and its accuracy of sculpt.  It is not just the face--the body proportions are true to the movie, the hands and feet are exactly right and the personality of the monster/hero of this seminal film is just freakin' wonderful.

The kit is simple in its presentation, but I almost got whiplash when I saw this one.  It is a real jewel in a sea of Kong kits.

Construction and Quality of the Kit
ease of assembly / fit of parts, putty / sanding work, 
quality of cast / ease of painting /painting options

The cast of this kit is very good and the pieces fit together quite well.  The left arm has a lock and key style peg, but the rest of the kit deserves pins or posts during the assembly.  The fur lines up well to guide assembly, with limited putty work.  The kit requires some modeling skill to assemble, but the seaming is straight-forward and everything is easy access.

The mouth is easy to get at and the front fangs are on a separate resin mold, so you can paint them and then set them in.  Nice.

Time/Energy/Money
 how much effort, headache, etc. is there versus the cost

There is nothing particularly difficult about this kit, but as I say above, it does require some modeling skills to blend the fur and post the legs for added strength.  However, if you have done a few kits, it takes very little time to completely assemble.  There are pinholes in the base, but filling them took me less than 15 minutes using Aves and a little water.  This is a nice, heavy kit that will demand a spot in the center of a shelf.  $155 is a very fair price for this iconic resin

Other Factors
"wow" factor, suitability for dioramas, flexibility for modification

Well, if I wasn't clear above:  I really respect this rendering of King Kong.  It is one of the most accurate I have ever seen and it really captures the sense of character that Willis O'Brien was able to create in his original king of Skull Island.  It comes with a base that you will probably want to preserve because one leg is lifted to fit it, and a separate name plate that is totally optional but very nice.

Now, I have it on inside information that if this kit does well, there may be a second part to the kit--a dead T-rex, fallen tree and Fay Wray to complete the scene.  So . . . can you see the value of the kit now!  On its own, this is a very desirable kit.  With the expansion kits, it will become a classic.

Overall Recommendation
Level of skill required and general thoughts

The kit is not complicated, but it will require pinning and putty to complete.  The depiction of the '33 Kong is arrestingly accurate and this is on my list of best kits so far this year.  Take a good look at the face, the eyes, the chest, the body position and expression.  You'll see what I mean.

© CreatureScape 2006