by Randy Kloko

Endsville Eddie runs into a familiar face on Mars.

Not much of a backstory here, really. While ramming around in his landspeeder, Eddie comes upon hard evidence pointing to the perp who put the enigmatic face on Mars. SPOILER AHEAD: It was George Lucas.

About the diorama: It consists largely of pity purchases from the clearance shelf at Wal-Mart. I passed Eddie month after month on my way to the pharmacy. I fondly remember the first incarnation of the Hawk Weird-Ohs (I built Freddy Flameout in 1963), so I finally relented and took the last one home. Vader's face is a child's mask bought three years ago from the bargain rack with an eye towards a Cydonian diorama. The base is a cardboard circle from a vegetable steamer package. When the contest called, the elements all just came together.

The speeder was sprayed with Rustoleum Hammered Metal (don't go there!), great stuff that goes onto plastic without priming and gives a nice micrometeorite-pitted surface. The base was roughed in with spackle and model railroad grass before being sprayed with Rustoleum Terra Cotta accent paint. Eddie's helmet is Wal-Mart rattlecan yellow, and the details are done in various combinations of Testor and Tamiya acrylics. The engines were stolen from an A-10. The pressure suit is made of chrome duct tape, while the straps are colored chart or electrical tapes, a technique I dub cintage (rhymes with 'collage') for want of a better word. Decals are mostly stock.

Image: "Live long and prosper, dudes!"

Image: Overall

Image: From above

Image: From behind

Image: Left side