As fans of the Battle Beasts line there is probably one joint thought that unites all of us and that is; What if………
What if TAKARA HASBRO had decided to continue the line instead of having it ending so abruptly?
What if TAKARA would have decided to return with a stronger Battle Beasts inspired and looking line instead of the unsuccessful Beast Saga line?
In other words what would the Beasts look like today….
That question lies underneath this #BeastformersProject by the Beastformers Team simply asking ourselves the question;
What would 21st Century Battle Beasts look like?
How could they have evolved from the cute looking anthropomorphic animals from our childhood into Beasts that are ready to Battle in this era?
Initially the creation of these BEASTFORMERS 2.0 Beasts was not planned because it all started back in the beginning of 2014 when LRG member PlasticSoul released a couple of Rabbit heads that would fit on the Armorvor bodies created by Onell Design, sculpted by Jason Frailey and prototyped by Marty Hansen aka The Godbeast. Since those Rabbits heads, by PlasticSoul, were so well sculpted there was no way around them for the Beastformers Team and that is where it all started. But this time instead of going to our main custom artist, who was still busy working on other Beastformers projects, the Rabbit head and an Armorvor body were send to Koppenschevelle. This skillful artist was not very well known by the Beastformers Team at that time but he had just raised high expectations with a custom Penguin that was added to the Beastformers collection as part of LRG´s Secrect Santa event.
Even at that time the outcome of this Rabbit head match with the Armorvor body was unclear but the moment the first updates were shown the project became more and more impressive. From the beginning it was clear that it had to become a modernized, 21st century, version of the customized Battle Beasts White Rabbit. Months passed with discussions about little touches and details going back and fort until the final and important point was reached; the eyes. For each figure the eyes are a crucial detail because that will bring the life into the figure but in this case and with many different attempts and options the eyes never really turned out well enough probably because of the fact the initial White Rabbit did not have painted eyes either. But in this case, unlike the original Battle Beasts eyes for the Rabbit, the eyes were to big to ignore leaving them white like the head. After more thinking and struggling with other options the result was as simple as sufficient; why not showing the eyes as closed. With that final step the bad and to aggressive looking eyes of earlier attempts were redone resulting in this very serene looking new version of the White Rabbit. (There is also a thought behind that serenity but that might be explained in the future)
With this White Rabbit done, actually two identical figures of this White Rabbit were made with one being a gift for a good friend, it felt like the project was finished and that this great figure could soon be added to the Beastformers collection. But in 2015 The Godbeast came with a new head sculpt, a Chameleon head. Although the Rabbit will probably always remain the favorite of the Beastformers Team for obvious reasons that new head was stunning. So many little, also fragile (with the antenna), details which with a good paint job could turn out to be an awesome figure. And this time there was no doubt who the right artist for this job was so even though the Rabbit figure was not even shipped out the 2nd Beast was in the making and with that the first thoughts going in the direction of BEASTFORMERS 2.0 Beasts came…. And with the outcome of the figures and this page being created for them now you could easily say the rest is history.
All the pictures shown here do not even do enough justice to the great look of these two stunning figures because these are real pieces of art. An example of a perfect symbiosis between the successful Armorvor line and even more impressive artistic skills with two beautifully sculpted heads merging into these figures. If there could have been a new Battle Beasts line this might have been a solid attempt for 21st Century Beasts…
Project Idea: Battle Beasts of the 21st Century
Started: 2014* – 2018**
Ending: 2016* – 2019**
*First period creation of 2 figures
**Second period creation of 2 more figures
Although these two figures are finished there is still the hope to find some more impressive Battle Beasts inspired heads that might result into the creation of a few more 2.0 versions.
Credits:
A huge thanks to all the great artists who have been responsible for the creation of the various parts out of which these Beastformers 2.0 have been created. Starting with PlasticSoul (Rabbit head), The Godbeast (Chameleon head) and of course these heads would have been nowhere without the support of the Armorvor bodies by Onell Design. Major thanks to Koppenschevelle for the great cooperation and his artistic skills doing a great paint job on those figures and even some additional sculpting on the Rabbit head. Without those talented and great people the BEASTFORMERS 2.0 project would not have been possible, THANKS!
Time for a better look at the figures:
グリーンカメレス Delta Chameleon 2.0
There is so much to say about this 2.0 Version of the Chameleon from the Series 2 Battle Beasts line but this rotating image speaks almost for itself. With the horns it might have been more obvious to go towards the direction of the Laser Beast Puzzelcolor but I´m glad we sticked to Delta Chameleon because his color scheme is a bit stronger and suits better here. For the rest there is some impressive details;
- The very natural looking horns, mouth and eye
- A very dangerous looking bionic eye
- Fragile but really great addition is the little antenna
- Smooth connection/overflow of the head into the body
And a few more details up close showing the armor with Battle damage:
白いうさぎ White Rabbit 2.0
It should be obvious that the Beastformers Team is very proud at this 21st Century version of the White Rabbit because it turned out even better than we could have expected. Bringing the avatar to live was the initial plan but for the future it would be awesome to see a similar figure in the original Battle Beasts Hare Razing Rabbit colors. Also here some very impressive details;
- The very strong B&W color scheme
- Additionally sculpted head armor
- Closed eyelids giving it a serene look
And also from this 2.0 White Rabbit some up close details and here also the armor is showing some Battle damage:
NOTE:
None of the above shown material may be used, copied or multiplied without permission.
Both figures belong to the Beastformers Collection.
UPDATE: Feb. 2022 two more figures added to the Beastformers 2.0 Page
A few years since the creation of the first two Beastformers 2.0 it was time to create a few more 2.0 versions of the Beasts. Of course it all started with finding the right heads to create figures with the right expression and feel to do justice to the Beastformers 2.0 project.
Credits:
For the creation of the two figures completed in 2019 a big thanks goes to the artist who´s been responsible for the first two as well huge Koppenschevelle delivering two awesome figures again. He not only did the paint job but also worked some magic by some additional sculpting.
In the Beastformers 2.0 Project UPDATE Post you can see some Work In Progress shots of these two new Beastformers 2.0 versions.
The Rabbit head that´s used is the same one that´s used for The White Rabbit 2.0 version which was a creation of PlasticSoul the origin of the Cobra Head is a blank… (it´s been a few years and wasn´t able to trace back where it came from and who created it (if someone knows/remembers please reach out)). Similar to the first two 2.0 versions that have been created these heads would have been nowhere without the support of the Armorvor bodies by Onell Design. Thanks!
Time for a better look at 2 NEW figures:
コブランダー King Cobra 2.0
Initially, looking at the Cobra head, without seeing it on the Armorvor body, there were some doubts but the moment they merged together it´s clear this had the potential to become a very nice 21st Century version of King Cobra. There´s no doubt that Battle Beasts fans would recognize this figure straight away, but beware keep your distance because it´s a Cobra! A Cobra with some very impressive details;
- The back of the head clearly shows the hood markings which actually identify it as a King Cobra
- Bended head flows nicely into the armor and while facing front it looks a bit timid it changes to moment you look at it from an angle and the fierce eyes become visible.
- Actually looking at the Cobra from under it´s hood gives you shivers because once it´s positioned like that looking down on you you simply know you´re screwed.
- Going with the original color scheme of the original Battle Beast which was already a very well balanced design and this 2.0 verions confirmes the design choices made back in the days once more.
Here are a few more close up details:
ラピットキッド Hare Razing Rabbit 2.0
Pre-announced in the decription of the 2.0 version of The White Rabbit, the original Battle Beasts Rabbit now exists as a 2.0 version as well. The original was responsible for a lot of childhood memories and seeing it in this version feels a bit as if that original figure has grown up as well. Also here some very impressive details;
- The original color scheme with the interesting tones of turquoise and pink
- Additionally sculpted head armor
- Recognizable Battle damage to the armor representing its battle with the test of time to make it into the 21st century
Also for this 2.0 Rabbit some additional up close details:
NOTE:
None of the above shown material may be used, copied or multiplied without permission.
Both figures belong to the Beastformers Collection.
Now that two NEW Beastformers 2.0 creations have been added to the Beastformers Collection and finally have been updated to this Beastformers Project page how about a nice line up shot of all 4 of the 2.0 that exist.
ALL OF THE CUSTOM FIGURES WITHIN THE BEASTFORMERS COLLECTION ARE THE RESULT OF AN ARTISTIC AND CREATIVE PROCESS BETWEEN THE ARTISTS AND THE BEASTFORMERS TEAM. RESULTING IN ONE OF A KIND UNIQUE FIGURES. THEREFORE ITS NOT APPRECIATED THAT EXACT COPIES ARE MADE OR COMMISSIONED.
PLEASE RESPECT THIS AND USE THESE FIGURES AS A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION TO COME UP WITH YOUR OWN IDEAS CREATING YOUR OWN 21ST CENTURY BATTLE BEASTS!
Thanks for visiting and keep an eye out on the Beastformers Blog because in the future, hopefully, a few more of these Battle Beasts 2.0 versions might show up, until than;
Enjoy the Beasts!
The Beastformers Team
BEASTFORMERS 2.0
a #BeastformersProject ´14-´16
Beastformers Blog 