Re: Studio Series 86 Discussion
Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2024 9:58 amTaking a closer look at Swoop from different angles, it seems that they did indeed follow the animation model pretty closely, except in one aspect. And that's the wings.
I add the disclaimer, that this is Sunbow we're talking about. And they're notorious for going off-model. But with Swoop at least, I noted some consistency. The official model drawing for Swoop is this one:
As can be seen for the Dino mode, the wings have a distinct triangular web connection to the shoulders, and to the back dino legs/claws. There are also additional angles near the shoulders/neck to give it a more pinion/webbed appearance.
But in the show, the lazy animators rarely followed that setup. Instead, the wings connected in a fairly straight line without any additional bends or angles. There was also a distinctive three-hinge setup for each wing. It could fold where it joined to the body. It also folded near the middle of each wing. But there was also another hinge half-way between the second hinge, and the wing tip. And in the show, they USED that extra hinge to give Swoop's wings more flapping/curling ability, as shown in this screenshot:
The 86 Leader Swoop figure seems to be trying to mimic the image of Swoop shown at the top left of his model sheet, which shows him looked at from the top and down. I would rather they had followed the other model images which show expanded wings, and the tri-hinge setup. Nitpicking, maybe. But if they were really going for 'on-screen' accuracy, then that setup was the one the animators actually used for the episodes wherein he appeared. It gave him both a wider wingspan, and more articulation. And it looks like they COULD have done it pretty easily.
I add the disclaimer, that this is Sunbow we're talking about. And they're notorious for going off-model. But with Swoop at least, I noted some consistency. The official model drawing for Swoop is this one:
As can be seen for the Dino mode, the wings have a distinct triangular web connection to the shoulders, and to the back dino legs/claws. There are also additional angles near the shoulders/neck to give it a more pinion/webbed appearance.
But in the show, the lazy animators rarely followed that setup. Instead, the wings connected in a fairly straight line without any additional bends or angles. There was also a distinctive three-hinge setup for each wing. It could fold where it joined to the body. It also folded near the middle of each wing. But there was also another hinge half-way between the second hinge, and the wing tip. And in the show, they USED that extra hinge to give Swoop's wings more flapping/curling ability, as shown in this screenshot:
The 86 Leader Swoop figure seems to be trying to mimic the image of Swoop shown at the top left of his model sheet, which shows him looked at from the top and down. I would rather they had followed the other model images which show expanded wings, and the tri-hinge setup. Nitpicking, maybe. But if they were really going for 'on-screen' accuracy, then that setup was the one the animators actually used for the episodes wherein he appeared. It gave him both a wider wingspan, and more articulation. And it looks like they COULD have done it pretty easily.
