Harry Potter Minis

So, my wife is a massive fan of the Harry Potter franchise. It's a weird thing. She's only one school year younger than me but Harry Potter passed me by completely until the films came out. Seminal book series that informed my growing up were Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy and Lord of the rings.

And yet, as films, I think the Harry potter films are in many way better than the film versions of LotR. Although I do struggle with the manifest lack of world building. Inasmuch as the wizarding world is superficially part of the real world now. Which just doesn't really work. There are all these wizards around doing quite visible stuff and the military never takes an interest? MI5 doesn't notice all the people flushing themselves down toilets in central London and take a vague interest? No wizard ever thinks well, these death eaters have powerful magical abilities, but there anathema to muggle tech means they won't see my M134 Minigun coming?

These are nerdish hangups for nerds, but I think if you do the 'my setting is a hidden part of the real world' you have to address what happens when the real world and the fictional world come into some sort of conflict. Even if it is just to point out that your monsters are immune to bullets.

Anyway, models:

Snape

I am painting all the bad guys; and before anyone's face explodes I know Snape is ultimately a good guy, but for 85% of the narrative he's a bad guy. The game actually handles this by having some models that are duel faction, being able to fight for either Hogwarts or the Death Eaters. When we split our preorder of the entire range, my wife and I decided I could paint anyone who 'could' fight for the Death Eaters, because the majority of models may only fight for Hogwarts. I'm going to see if I can persuade Helen to post some of her pictures on her much neglected blog, Everyday Autonomy (see right) because she has done a fantastic job on the trio.

Painting Snape was interesting as he is dressed all in black. I was tempted to highlight his gown and tunic in different tones (say blue black and grey black) but looking at a lot of the stills from the film they seem to have made a big effort to make all his clothing and his hair even, the exact same tone. So that's what I did. I'm proud of the face. Somehow, and this is a theme with these models, it doesn't look excellent in pictures and seems a little shiney. Maybe it is a little shiney in real life too. Interestingly I havent varnished these at all. I usually varnish all my models with satin varnish (GW Purity seal). I might leave these. I might put a matt coat on them. I am still deciding.

Pansy Parkinson

I'm not convinced I remember Pansy Parkinson doing anything. But I decided to paint all the duel faction models first. I think she came out best. Also, what's nice is that snape and the four slytherin students make a coherent 'group' for playing the game, and I think Helen is painting the trio plus Dumbledore (who are about the same number of points). Which makes for a neat match up. The professors having auras that buff students. Although she is slacking and hasn't painted Dumbledore yet.

Draco Malfoy

I actually own two Dracos, because they also do one of him in a suit with his mum and dad, but obvs you can't use both at the same time. Challenging thing here was the hair. Which I think I remember is screaming skull with a sepia wash highlighted back up with screaming skull.

Crabbe

He has a cake! I think the cake came out really well. Also his face is pretty good. He looks kind of bored. Which wasn't super intentional, but its better then him just having mad eyes that go everywhere.

Goyle

Meh. Goyle doesn't even have his robes on. but I think he looks solidly okay.

I have many more of these to paint, including voldemort, but I think I am going to paint some more dark eldar for my kill team next. Keep changing it up. That's the best way.