I had an interesting discussion with a younger co-worker at the hobby shop. I mentioned casually (as one does) that I thought early hand sculpted GW miniatures are sort of adorable. I will now provide evidence. Here’s Sargent Shovel. He’s a Rogue Trader era (1987?) Plastic Imperial Guard torso with a melty looking plastic head from the 1998 Catachan box (which is still in production because it’s awesome, you hush). His lasgun is from a random Judge Dred kit I had lying around. The Sarge is pictured here with Lord Inquisitor Hargen, who happens to be one of the two original Inquisitors featured in the first edition 40k rulebook.
I’m quite pleased with my paint job on these two little guys. My aforementioned co-worker commented while viewing some of the older GW sculpts that maybe they were sort of bad and really I only liked them so much because I was having trouble letting go of my childhood. She’s not wrong. But I’d like to think my affection for these old toys runs a little deeper than that.
I think there’s a certain charm to older hand sculpted miniatures that is missing from most of the newer releases. The creators of these miniature soldiers put a lot of love and attention into the work. If you look back at old Games Workshop catalogs or magazines the sculptors names were always displayed proudly next to each new release. If you played tabletop wargames you knew who the Perry brothers were. You could spot a Bob Olley sculpt from a mile away. Jes Goodwin and Bob Naismith were household names. This wasn’t just a product, this was art! Yes, sometimes it was clumsy. Yes, sometimes it was messy. But it was always a joy to look at each new sculpt. So much character was present in every new variant and each artist had his or her own unique style… his or her own individual spin on what the world of Warhammer looked like.
I don’t think most modern miniatures are sculpted the same way. Sure, they’re made on a computer now not sculpted by hand. That’s obvious. It’s also not my point. Current GW sculpts aren’t created in a dusty cluttered artists studio, they’re created in a board room by a team of Adeptus Administratum corporate mooks. The sculpts are no longer the vision of a small team of creatives brought to life by the tenacity and sheer force of will of a dedicated artist. Yes, there’s still artists involved in the process but they are answering to the Administratum, not their own creative whims. Those modern artists work hard and have a lot of talent, I have nothing but respect for them. The new GW sculpts are impressive, the level of detail on each model, the dynamic poses, the technical proficiency of the sculpters… I’m in awe of the artists abilities. But I’m not moved in the same way. Maybe it is only a foolish old man’s nostalgia. Maybe I’m desperately clutching at the last remnants of a life I’ve left behind. If that’s all it is I’m okay with that, but I believe there might be something more to it.
