Playmobil has been an amazing toy since it's creation. To add to that there are no licenses that really pollute the many generic themes that run thru the Playmobil toy line. Needless to say, there are those that wish Playmobil would make its' version of some very incredible themes like 2001:A SPACE ODYSSEY. I have long been a fan of this movie as have many us. Stanley Kubrick made sure that any and all models were destroyed after filming so as not to be commercialized--why he didnt lean the other way, I have yet to discover, but the amazing thing about 2001 is that its vehicles were based on real engineering and the function was first not the form.
My first attempt at making a 2001 toy was to figure out which one to do first. I chose the ARIES 1-b lunar transporter. It is mainly a sphere with 4 retractable legs and large rockets underneath, but it is similar enough to the Lunar lander that many common folk were still amazed by it. It is not sleek by any means, but the toy vehicle I have designed should follow in the spirit of Kubrick and in the spirit of Playmobil as well.
The ship actually had a passenger deck at the equator of the sphere, it had seats all around the deck, this ship/playset will have the same. I am adding landing skids under each pylon, I dont know if I can make them retractable, but the effect should be pretty impressive...at least to me.
I intend on making the cocpit from an old helicopter cockpt and making a display board to the sides and above the cockpit area. Granted it is not perfectly made, but the spirit of SPACE is there and that is what I am hoping to achieve. It looks more like it belongs in an oil refinery diorama but I am sure it will look close enough to 2001 that you will enjoy looking at it.
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