The Escape Killers (Area 88)
The finished model:
The video:
The scene:
The ESCAPE KILLERS!
What a name. In the original Viz Area 88 comics there were known as the “Enforcers”, which is a fair translation… but it somehow lacks the punch. There is no mistaking what they’re there for… if you try to escape AREA 88… they will kill you.
I also have a memory of the first time I read the page where they show up… three BAC Lightnings flying in formation. How cool. After they land, the tension at the base gets cranked up to 11 almost instantly. Who are these guys? Why are they there? What do they want? Who’s going to try to escape?
As luck would have it, it turns out that Shin is their intended target. Of course it’s just unlucky that they happened to be there as Shin is putting the finishing touches on claiming the $1.5M needed to buy out his contract with the Asranian Air Force. But when his plane is damaged in his last sortie, and destroys itself during the landing, the setback is enough to make Shin despondent and try to make a run for it.
Of course Mickey and the rest of the gang can see what’s happening from a mile away and step in to make sure a) Shin doesn’t run… and b) the Escape Killers know that they’re outgunned and unwelcome… and then Saki gives them the go-ahead to escort the trio out of the base’s airspace.
I think what really hit home for me was just how high the stakes really were. Death was always an option… but this time hope itself took a beating. So, while it was great to see the team pull together to protect one of there own… how ominous was it to see those three fat bellied vultures swoop down on the base looking for a victim.
Check out the original manga scene here:
The story:
Y’know, I kind of wish that the Escape Killers had showed up later in the manga series, for a couple of reasons. The first is that the timing seemed a bit odd. I know Shin was an ace… and that we were joining his story “in progress”, but it just seemed a bit soon for him to try and make an escape from Area 88. There were only 3 ways to leave Area 88 – you had to fulfil the 3-year term of your contract, you had to pay the $1.5M… or die. Three years doesn’t seem nearly as long to me now as it did when I was a teenager and first reading this series, but even at that time it felt like Shin getting that close to the buy-out was a bit unrealistic.
I also think that the whole “Shin tries to escape and faces off against the 3 mercenaries sent to hunt him down” story would have been better, and more dramatic, if it had been handled like many of the later series story arcs. Oh well, there’s no denying that this is a cool concept, even if it is just part of the one-and-done chapters.
Those chapters are a gold mine for projects, so it shouldn’t be any surprise that I wanted to include this scene in my 1/144 Area 88 project. After all, It’s not every day you find a way to squeeze in fighter aircraft like the Lightnings to a project.
The kits:
- Lightning F.6 “Royal Air Force” x3 (by Platz)
The build:
This one sat in the cue for a while, but I’m not sure why. The amazing Platz kits were there for the taking… so I took them. I guess I just knew the Escape Killers would be sitting there waiting for me when I was ready, and there were other kits that were jumping off the shelf at me.
Still, the quiet confidence and solid quality of the Platz kits kept me thinking about them, so it was inevitable that they’d slot in at some point. On the flip side though, the quality of the kit means there’s not that much to talk about. I mean the worst thing that happened was that I lost… urm…. temporarily misplaced until I fid it… the nose cones for one of the jets. Luckily they come two-kits-to-a-box, so even though I needed 3, I had four kits in the stash – one of which is now missing the nose cone… but just until I find the other one, right?
Other than that, the build was smooth. As usual the Platz parts fit like a glove and there was very little putty and sanding required. The shape of the fuselage… with their awesome pot bellies, left ample room to double-stack the LED lights for the afterburners. The paint went one smooth… a coat of Tamiya XF-16 alluminium for the bare-metal finish of the underside, and a dark blue (similar to the anime) for the top side. A coat of my dwindling supply of Future to lock it all in and then a panel line wash to pull out some of the detail. After that it was just a few decals for the nose numbers and wiring it all up.
Easy-peasy. Why did I wait so long? 🙂
Anyway I think, all in all, it turned out all right, but feel free to tell me how you feel.
