Well another year has come and gone, and as the clock creeps its way towards 2025 it’s time for me to give my assessment of Simon’s output for the year and pick my top ten miniatures from his consistently impressive output. So without further ado here my ten favourite miniatures of 2024.
No. 10 - Soviet Cosmonaut by "Black Site Studios" - November 21st
I’ve really enjoyed Simon’s posts about his combative astronauts, so much so that I had to go over and nose about “Black Site’s” website - though thankfully, I have resisted “pulling the trigger” so far! Yes the painting is deceptively simple on the face of it, with it being mostly just "Two Thin Coats" Sanguine Scarlet and "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson. But it’s this simplicity mixed with the painstakingly picked out details that made them really appeal to me. He has not gone mad trying to be overly clever with the painting, and as such the result works so well. I must also give a quick special mention to “Laika” the Cosmonaut dog, he’s just brilliant too!
No. 9 - Ultron by “CoolMiniOrNot” - July 15th
Despite never having played “Marvel United”, my love of all things “Marvel” does keep me avidly reading any posts I find with well painted figures for us “True believers” to enjoy. That’s exactly what we have here - a very well pigmented version of the Avengers bad guy Ultron. Once again though, at first glance it appears to be a simple paint job. But a closer inspection reveals several layers skilfully applied to give that sumptuous silver finish and red highlights. Indeed, this attention to detail is even carried over onto the base work!
No. 8 - Batmobile by “Mattel” - April 26th
Simon has been running a bit of a narrative commentary over the last couple of years linked to the “Gaslands” set of car combat rules, and has produced some awesome (and unusual) vehicles to take part in his games. However, this somewhat caricaturistic version of the 1989 Batmobile is my absolute favourite. The car itself fits the over the top theme of the game so well, and Simon’s additions are well thought out. Added to the simple black paintwork with its subtle red highlights - which hark back to the “Adam West” incarnation, and this is just perfection in my books.
No. 7 - Monica Rambeau by “Wizkids” - May 27th
Well there always seems to be at least one of the now legendary Heroclix figures by "Wizkids" in my yearly round up of Simon best, and this year you will be happy to learn is no different. Though I have to admit to being somewhat indifferent to Miss Rambeau’s exploits as “Captain Marvel” back in the eighties, I can very much appreciate a well painted figure, and this despite Simon’s own disappointment in his results is very much what I can see here. I have found overzealous paint application on the original figure to be a bit of a bugbear on many a “clix”. But the way he has worked around this problem to get the quality results he has is a testament to his and any painters skill.
No. 6 - Marshal Ney by “Warlord Games” - September 9th
I have long had an interest in the wars of Napoleon - mainly through historical fiction more than the gaming side of things - so Simon’s Napoleonic efforts are always a joy to behold. There is a lot of love that goes into each paintjob, and it shows through in the end results. This representation of the “First Prince de la Moskowa” is no different. The colours are as always spot on, and the attention to detail is top notch too. As for the painting? Well after all the relevant colours were in place, Simon "treated it to a zealous amount of Citadel Agrax Earthshade, before dry-brushing with Vallejo Heavy Brown to hopefully tie the colours all together” and, spoiler alert, it did! Top work.
No. 5 - Supernatural Investigator by “North Star Military Figures” - September 23rd
I love it when a figure designed to go with one game can be swapped over to a different game entirely, and that’s what’s happened here as this chap, the “Monster hunter” from "The Silver Bayonet" will also be serving his time amongst Simon's Napoleonic ranks. As usual, the painting is sublime and I especially love the contrast of the "Vallejo" Heavy Red scarf next to the "Two Thin Coats" Cold Corpse Blue of his long coat.
No. 4 - Ruthless Lieutenant by “Crooked Dice Design Studio” - January 15th
Well it was pretty obvious from the moment miniatures started appearing on Simon’s blog from the iconic 1980 version of “Flash Gordon” that at least one of them was going to make my list for this year. Though they were all rather wonderful, there was just something about his painting of this (not) General Kala that put her slightly above the rest. Maybe it was the black (he does do black so very well), I don’t know, but I can almost hear her shouting “Dispatch War Rocket Ajax, to bring back his body!”.
No. 3 - Commander Kuro by “Crooked Dice Design Studio” - August 12th
I’m a bit of a “toy fanatic” ('Big Kid' in other terms), and like nothing better than sourcing or making 28mm representations of my favourite toys from childhood. So it’s nice to know I have a kindred spirit in Simon, - especially when he’s posting inspiring stuff like this small scale incarnation of the “Action Force” villain known as the Black Major. Now I’m not going to wax lyrical about how well he paints any figures dressed in black (I say it every year, because it’s true!). But suffice to say the painting is excellent, and I was especially impressed by the “five o’clock shadow” the figure is sporting.
No. 2 - Howard Quartz by “Warlord Games” - March 31st
Anyone who knows me knows I’m a sucker for the "ABC Warriors" and anything associated with them. So when this outstanding version of the boss of a trio of former/future members of the team appeared on Simon's blog, he certainly had me sitting up and paying attention. The lovely neat brushwork and attention to detail brought the erstwhile ten percent human leader of Ro-Busters very much to life.
No. 1 - Skeletal Spaceman by “Diehard Miniatures” - December 25th
So what has made it to the top of the tree this year? Well Simon left it pretty late to do his finest work by not posting this till Christmas Day. This outstanding undead astronaut is a really nice figure, but it’s the pure 'tour de force' in painting the skeleton that really lifts it to new heights. The actual bone work is expertly tinted and is a perfect contrast to the “grubby” white of his spacesuit. This isn't easy to do, and a closer look reveals subtle aquamarine tones that also add interest without distracting from the piece as a whole. Just really impressive work I love this.
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So that’s it another year of wonderful miniatures condensed into a few lines by yours truly… Well obviously not! There are so many other outstanding posts well worth a re-read (or first read if you missed them), that my advice is grab a brew and a mince pie so you can scroll back to January, and revel in Simon's excellent painting and prose!
Here’s wishing you all a very happy new year. Whether you be gaming or painting here’s hoping you get the results you hope for. I’ll now hand back the reins to Simon, and thank him for letting me loose upon his blog.
Cheers Roger.
N.B. You can visit Roger's excellent wargaming blog and see his excellent output here:
"Rantings From Under The Wargames Table"
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