From the very beginning, the folks at Mr. Black Publications have stated that their purpose was to present a variety of quality modeling books. For a majority of those editions, they have concentrated on doing figures, probably due to their association with Pegaso, and that is quite understandable. Recently they have started producing editions that concentrate on more extensive works, in this case, dioramas. Previously, multiple figure presentations have been more in the line of vignettes, but not so in the case of these dioramas.

Due to the extent of many of these works, the articles are considerably longer and in most cases, in greater detail than in the Figures books. Indeed, some of them are truly massive and often overwhelm the eye with what is included. In addition, due to the scale of the presentations, the builders work in smaller scale figures, with these being in the range of 50-75mm.

The first is the cover diorama. This is called 'Elephant Down: Zama 202BC'. It is in 54mm and includes an elephant and five figures garbed in the attire prevalent during the Second Punic War. The article spends considerable time on not only the elephant and the figures, but also on presenting the base. Each of the figures gets its own small section that shows how each was painted. While some of the illustrations are understandably small, the progression shown is quite helpful.

Second is another 54mm presentation and it is a clash between Romans and Germanic tribes. It is entitled 'Teutonburg Forest, 9 AD'. This takes place during the reign of Caeser Augustus, which was considered a time of peace as the Roman empire had pretty well consolidated and faced no real threat from the outside. Except for the Germanic tribes. This is a very busy presentation that includes nearly a dozen figures. There are no 'how to' images in this article, aside from building the tree trunk, just a descriptions of how things were done along with a number of pictures of the completed scene.

Next is a scratch-built scene in 75mm. 'Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmet IV of the Ottoman Empire' is based on a painting by the Russian artist, Ilya Repin. In this article, the scene is being developed with an eye towards making it a master for an upcoming set. There is complete instructions on how each of the figures and scenery was done, but no painting information as it was not painted. A nice way to perhaps prompt the reader to try some scratch building.

Moving back to 54mm we have a vignette titled 'Landsknechte Players'. These were German mercenary soldiers from the 15th and 16th century and this one shows three of them at ease in front of a partial stone bridge, wall, or viaduct. The figures are purchased items and the rest of it is scratch built. The article spends a lot of time on how to build the base and wall, providing some excellent tips and suggestions for the reader.

'Stalingrad; the Last Stand' is a very complex diorama in 50mm. This one uses available figures and many available settings items to build up the factory scene that is depicted. The diorama is quite busy with things going on everywhere that you look. As you might expect, there are dead soldiers included, and while I personally don't like seeing those in dioramas, they are a part of the scene. It is a truly well done piece that should provide all sorts of ideas.

A more lighthearted piece is 'Resting at Karachev'. This 1/35 (50mm) scene is a Panther tank crew relaxing and enjoying some peace and quiet while having fun with their pet dog.

The final offering is one that is based on a photograph taken during the 1939 Polish campaign. It is also in 50mm and depicts a Panzer I with a dead crewman hanging out of the hatches. It is along side a dirt road with a local woman walking by. The two figures are scratch built with the tanker missing a leg. Most of this article goes into painting the tank and molding the two figures. 

In all, this is an excellent volume that provides some outstanding work and many very helpful building and painting ideas that you will surely find useful.

Thanks to Mr Black Publications for the review book. Visit them at www.mrblackpublications.com.  

October 2015

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