Malifaux Commission and Model Review

When I started working on these Malifaux Gremlins, including the Kin, and a bunch of Bayou Gremlins, I had no idea how tough they would be. So Many tiny parts, some extremely fragile, without any instructions on how they fit together. I managed to piece together some of the more obvious models, but I hit a low point with the youngsters from the Kin. I had no clue where some parts were supposed to go. 

It wasn't until I made a comment on Facebook did someone point out that there were assembly directions posted to the Malifaux website. I looked at the box again to see what I missed. There was not a single mention of where to find instructions. WTF? I guess you're just supposed to know where to find them? 

The other issue I ran into was...some of the parts are paper thin and broke during assembly. I had to resculpt some areas to fix the breaks. Then I was super worried about how to ship such fragile models to the client. That's when I decided that some of the models needed some support. I decided to glue some GW plastic trees to the bases to act as base handles for games and to protect the models during shipment. 

Painting the models was tough as well, because some of the details are very soft, they have to be exaggerated by the painter. The big guy...I don't know his name but he is the oversized goblin in the pictures...his face is just a complete failure by the sculptor. There is no way to paint that face to make it look half-way decent. I know...I spent hours trying to get it right and he still looks odd. 

All of this has really turned me off to ever painting a Malifaux model again. The major issues appear to be:

1) Fragility: This is huge. These are gaming models in plastic, they should be durable. Malifaux models are not. Why? Because the digital design process did not appear factor in how the model will be cut on the sprue. For examples, legs are often separate from the waist AND feet. This means that the joins between many components of the model will be weak. 

2) Shallow cuts. Perhaps due to the digital design process, many of the model's details do not have deep enough cuts that make painting easier. Details stand out more when they have deeper cuts. Malifaux models have very shallow cuts which leads to details meshing together, or not being prominent enough to easily paint. 

3) Lack of flare. I don't know why, but some of these models really did not have a whole lot of detail to embellish. Their leader, Ophelia, is really plain looking. There really isn't anything that sets her apart as a leader. Then there is the big guy...Sure he has a pig under his arm, which is cool, but other than that there really isn't much to paint on this guy. Being bigger should have allowed them to put some more visual interest on the model, but they just didn't do it. 

I think all of this reflects poorly on the company's "gremlin" range. They do not seem to understand the pains and gains of the painter. 

I really could not, in good conscience, recommend collecting Gremlins to anyone. The rest of the range is unknown to me, but these models really don't fill me with enthusiasm for anything Wyrd does.