MinIArt Waiters (38052) 1:35

[Mike]

Waiters (38052)

1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd

 

 

War is hell, quite literally, and any break from hostilities is welcomed by soldiers and café owners, particularly since WWI and WWII when war became total, with little in the way of remission for the soldiers for weeks on end.   During WWII and after D-Day, there were occasions when Allied soldiers had access to cafés in France and Belgium as they progressed toward Germany, liberating the people as they went, which allowed them to go back to some semblance of normality for short periods, within reason.  When Paris was designated an open City by the Germans to avoid destruction of its many historic buildings and populace, the Allies suddenly had extended access to café life, and took to it like ducks to water.  This meant more work for the local waiters, who were generally happy to serve their liberators, and the Allied customers were probably a lot more welcome than the previous goose-stepping occupants, as was the additional paid work during a difficult transition period.

 

 

The Kit

This set includes four waiter figures, and arrives in a figure-sized end-opening box, with four sprues inside, although in our example three were linked by a runner, which was discarded for the sake of ease of photography.  Each sprue contains all the parts you will need for each figure, all of whom are males that are wearing typical waiter’s garb of the 30s-60s, including waistcoat, apron tied at the waist, and for one rather creepy-looking gentleman, a double-breasted chef’s jacket with cravat, who is toasting someone, probably an unlucky mademoiselle, holding up a cup of coffee and proffering a leering smile, all whilst sat on a stool, the parts for which are included.  The real figure doesn’t look quite so creepy, happily.  The other three gentlemen are hard at work, serving a dessert on a tray, pouring a bottle of wine over a cloth draped over his forearm, and offering a menu, whilst holding an empty tray behind his back.

 

 

 

 

 

Parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up.  The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from MiniArt’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model.  The sculptor in this instance is Sergey Alekhino, as noted on the box front in small lettering.

 

https://www.britmodeller.com/reviews/creative/miniart/figures35/38052-waiters/instructions.jpg

The rear of the box shows the part numbers in black, and the suggested paint codes in blue boxes, with lines showing what each number relates to, and there is a table below that gives paint codes in swatches, Vallejo, Mr.Color, AK RealColor, Mission, AMMO, Tamiya, and generic colour names, as you can see below.

 

 

 

Conclusion

If you have a café that you’re looking to populate in 1:35, this set could be just what you’ve been waiting for, although we have seen at least three of the four figures in the Allied forces in cafés sets recently.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[John_W]

Nice. When does the rest of the cast from 'Allo, allo get made?

[Mike]

2 minutes ago, John_W said:

Nice. When does the rest of the cast from 'Allo, allo get made?

I dunno, but they'll be expecting a tip.  I have never watched enough of it to be able to quote you one of their lines though.  Was one "listen very carefully, I shall say this only once"?

[Hook]

2 hours ago, John_W said:

Nice. When does the rest of the cast from 'Allo, allo get made?

What?, MiniArt did not include the painting of The Fallen Madonna?

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

[Mike]

8 minutes ago, Hook said:

What?, MiniArt did not include the painting of The Fallen Madonna?

Good to see you stopped that sentence short.  It seems I knew more about the show than I thought I did.  I've probably been subjected to it by people thinking it's funny.  I have to say though, my folks have been watching it occasionally when I'm over, and it's not my thing

[psdavidson]

1 minute ago, Mike said:

people thinking it's funny.

 

It is funny to begin with, but the same jokes start to wear a bit thin after a while

There are only so many times you can hear "Good Moaning" and find it amusing, unless you're 8

 

nice set of waiters.

[Hook]

5 minutes ago, Mike said:

it's not my thing

Let's say it is not in my British Humor top ten either.

 

But back on topic, the originality of MiniArts choice of subject matter never ceases to surprise me. 

 

1/35th pretzels, anyone?

 

Cheers,

 

Andre

[Mike]

5 minutes ago, psdavidson said:

It is funny to begin with, but the same jokes start to wear a bit thin after a while

I think they call it catchphrase comedy, and unless you haven't progressed beyond the joys of repetition that kids seem to get, it tires after a relatively short while.  Little Britain was like that.  First series funny, second less so, and the third... not much.

 

It must have a market though, as it kept getting renewed, and is still being aired even now.

5 minutes ago, Hook said:

But back on topic, the originality of MiniArts choice of subject matter never ceases to surprise me. 

Remember the Sheep set?  That one got so much attention because it was full of sheeps, and people can make jokes about sheeps.  I wonder if that translated into sales?

[Pete in Lincs]

I was just wondering which one has the waffer thin mints?

[Mike]

17 hours ago, Pete in Lincs said:

I was just wondering which one has the waffer thin mints?

Anyway, wasn't that M. Creosote in Monty Python?

[Pete in Lincs]

5 hours ago, Mike said:

Anyway, wasn't that M. Creosote in Monty Python?

We have a winner! 🎇 

[Hook]

35 minutes ago, Pete in Lincs said:

We have a winner! 🎇 

Well, technically, the Maitre D' had the mint.