I've managed to get myself a reasonably priced version of a Darth Vader costume on eBay. It's by Rubies and is listed as being the 'Supreme Edition'. Based around the Episode III version of the costume it has good and bad points, not the least of which is that it arrived damaged, with postage seriously over-charged and is now the subject of a Paypal dispute because the spanner who sold it doesn't think he's responsible for selling damaged goods. That, however, is a whole other entry. This one's about the costume. It's far from perfect, but most of my issues with the it stem from the fact that it's based on the Episode III incarnation and there were changes made to that I just don't like.
I've had a Vader costume for years having bought one from the marvelous Marco Enterprises (ME version) during the time when no-one was bothering to do stuff for fans. You know; back when collecting was fun, involved some effort and wasn't about how much money you could scalp for your items on eBay. It's not the best thing Marco made, but it did the job and looked good enough that I got a few personal appearance jobs out of it which paid for the costume. What I never got for it was a body-suit making do with leather trousers and a polo-neck. So when this came out I thought it might be nice to upgrade, especially as I had used the Don Post Studios version of the mask & helmet which were made far too small.
Helmet & Mask
That's the first good thing about the costume: the helmet is excellent. True, there's an odd mould shape on the top which undermines its quality and it is based on the Episode III version which has some issues of definition on the band which goes over the head. It still looks like Vader in ways that my old helmet just never managed.
There is an electronic breathing device built into the helmet. It has a very long wire to run down the sleeve and be stuck in the glove allowing the wearer to press the button and switch it on. You can't leave it on as it's a press-stud and stops the moment pressure is released which is a really bad idea. Finding a smooth button through a glove is going to be pretty hard but to have to hold it throughout the time it's worn is stupid as is mounting the speaker in the helmet. Why? Two reasons:
1. Your hearing is impaired enough as it is in there, having a sound effect running inside with you will effectively render the wearer deaf.
2. The wire from the helmet has to be run down the sleeve meaning that you're then attached to the helmet the entire time you're trying to don the outfit. The helmet has to be the last piece and the suit the 1st. To spend the whole time with the two connected is absurd. The sound unit should have been put inside the chest plate with one of the actual switches there used to activate it. This is how it's done on the ME unit.
Chest Armour/Shoulder Pauldrons
Thankfully, Rubies have now begun to articulate the shoulders rather than being a solid piece with the chest armour which is how it appears in the film and is how the ME version is made. That was fine for Hayden who wasn't moving much in it and didn't have to raise his arms. He also needed to be made broader which is why the armour sticks out about 2" past his shoulders on either side. It also means that the end pieces are silver rather than black as they appeared in all other films and have no sculpted detail on them. This is my biggest issue with this iteration of the costume. I know Hayden pleaded with George to be allowed to play the part, but they really should have done as they did originally and got someone to fill the suit rather than make a suit to fit the man. That decision meant that the armour had to be made wide and sadly all images appearing these days are based upon that suit.
All the rest of my problems with the suit are about build quality, or rather about the quality of materials used.
Rubies claim the following for the suit:
The cloaks are lightweight cotton. A little back-lighting and they'll be see through. The main one also lacks the leather collar, but this may also be the case with the Episode III original. The chain is actually attached not to the cloak but to the chest armour with the cloak hooked to either end of that. This is a great idea as the cloak will not be able to slip around out of place. Sadly, the chain used is nothing like the original which isn't actually chain at all. It's rigid and hooks onto the chest in the centre.
Both belt and codpiece are made of synthetic materials stretched over a rigid foam base. In the case of the belt this doesn't even go all the way around as it becomes a thin, nylon belt half-way around. My ME costume came with a great heavy leather belt and a metal (Rubies' is plastic) buckle. Guess which I'll be using!
The shin-guards have been given a slip-on Lycra sock to hold them in place. Pretty rubbish if you've bought leather boots to wear with the costume. I'll make some other method up unless I decide to stick with the heavier fibreglass ones that came with the ME version.
The gloves stink. They're really lightweight synthetic leather and after only a few minutes in them I noticed that the gauntlet had folded down around my wrist.
Chest & Belt Boxes
They're not bad as such just not good. Again, much of the problem is being the RotS version. The chest panel is held in place with straps which run inside the suit rather than outside as they did in all other films. The writing on the panel (originally the phrase His Deeds shall not be forgiven until he merits in Hebrew, I believe) is missing, though likely that's the case from the original. Earlier versions had this in place. The bars down either side are plastic in this version and don't look quite right as they should be metal. The ME version has these in metal, but the rest of the mouldings aren't quite so hot. The belt boxes are also slightly better on the ME version for having metal fittings.
I mainly bought this costume for the helmet, the suit and the codpiece as my old one had deteriorated badly over the years. Searching eBay I found I could get the whole thing for about the same amount as these parts. In the long term the suit and the cloaks will have to be replaced with better-made versions, the gloves and belt have been scrapped and the shoulder pauldrons will require re-painting and detailing to make them look like the ESB version which is my preferred incarnation. The SFX module will be removed an put somewhere more sensible, if not replaced entirely.
Had I paid the full $1000 for which this suit originally retailed I'd be furious. It's not worth anywhere near that. I'm not sure it's even worth the £250 I paid for it. I'm not saying it's bad, and it'll impress the hell out of most casual onlookers, but it is certainly not 'Supreme'.
I've had a Vader costume for years having bought one from the marvelous Marco Enterprises (ME version) during the time when no-one was bothering to do stuff for fans. You know; back when collecting was fun, involved some effort and wasn't about how much money you could scalp for your items on eBay. It's not the best thing Marco made, but it did the job and looked good enough that I got a few personal appearance jobs out of it which paid for the costume. What I never got for it was a body-suit making do with leather trousers and a polo-neck. So when this came out I thought it might be nice to upgrade, especially as I had used the Don Post Studios version of the mask & helmet which were made far too small.
Helmet & Mask
That's the first good thing about the costume: the helmet is excellent. True, there's an odd mould shape on the top which undermines its quality and it is based on the Episode III version which has some issues of definition on the band which goes over the head. It still looks like Vader in ways that my old helmet just never managed.
There is an electronic breathing device built into the helmet. It has a very long wire to run down the sleeve and be stuck in the glove allowing the wearer to press the button and switch it on. You can't leave it on as it's a press-stud and stops the moment pressure is released which is a really bad idea. Finding a smooth button through a glove is going to be pretty hard but to have to hold it throughout the time it's worn is stupid as is mounting the speaker in the helmet. Why? Two reasons:
1. Your hearing is impaired enough as it is in there, having a sound effect running inside with you will effectively render the wearer deaf.
2. The wire from the helmet has to be run down the sleeve meaning that you're then attached to the helmet the entire time you're trying to don the outfit. The helmet has to be the last piece and the suit the 1st. To spend the whole time with the two connected is absurd. The sound unit should have been put inside the chest plate with one of the actual switches there used to activate it. This is how it's done on the ME unit.
Chest Armour/Shoulder Pauldrons
Thankfully, Rubies have now begun to articulate the shoulders rather than being a solid piece with the chest armour which is how it appears in the film and is how the ME version is made. That was fine for Hayden who wasn't moving much in it and didn't have to raise his arms. He also needed to be made broader which is why the armour sticks out about 2" past his shoulders on either side. It also means that the end pieces are silver rather than black as they appeared in all other films and have no sculpted detail on them. This is my biggest issue with this iteration of the costume. I know Hayden pleaded with George to be allowed to play the part, but they really should have done as they did originally and got someone to fill the suit rather than make a suit to fit the man. That decision meant that the armour had to be made wide and sadly all images appearing these days are based upon that suit.
All the rest of my problems with the suit are about build quality, or rather about the quality of materials used.
Rubies claim the following for the suit:
- Heavy twill cloak.
- Moulded leather codpiece.
- Leather belt.
The cloaks are lightweight cotton. A little back-lighting and they'll be see through. The main one also lacks the leather collar, but this may also be the case with the Episode III original. The chain is actually attached not to the cloak but to the chest armour with the cloak hooked to either end of that. This is a great idea as the cloak will not be able to slip around out of place. Sadly, the chain used is nothing like the original which isn't actually chain at all. It's rigid and hooks onto the chest in the centre.
Both belt and codpiece are made of synthetic materials stretched over a rigid foam base. In the case of the belt this doesn't even go all the way around as it becomes a thin, nylon belt half-way around. My ME costume came with a great heavy leather belt and a metal (Rubies' is plastic) buckle. Guess which I'll be using!
The shin-guards have been given a slip-on Lycra sock to hold them in place. Pretty rubbish if you've bought leather boots to wear with the costume. I'll make some other method up unless I decide to stick with the heavier fibreglass ones that came with the ME version.
The gloves stink. They're really lightweight synthetic leather and after only a few minutes in them I noticed that the gauntlet had folded down around my wrist.
Chest & Belt Boxes
They're not bad as such just not good. Again, much of the problem is being the RotS version. The chest panel is held in place with straps which run inside the suit rather than outside as they did in all other films. The writing on the panel (originally the phrase His Deeds shall not be forgiven until he merits in Hebrew, I believe) is missing, though likely that's the case from the original. Earlier versions had this in place. The bars down either side are plastic in this version and don't look quite right as they should be metal. The ME version has these in metal, but the rest of the mouldings aren't quite so hot. The belt boxes are also slightly better on the ME version for having metal fittings.
I mainly bought this costume for the helmet, the suit and the codpiece as my old one had deteriorated badly over the years. Searching eBay I found I could get the whole thing for about the same amount as these parts. In the long term the suit and the cloaks will have to be replaced with better-made versions, the gloves and belt have been scrapped and the shoulder pauldrons will require re-painting and detailing to make them look like the ESB version which is my preferred incarnation. The SFX module will be removed an put somewhere more sensible, if not replaced entirely.
Had I paid the full $1000 for which this suit originally retailed I'd be furious. It's not worth anywhere near that. I'm not sure it's even worth the £250 I paid for it. I'm not saying it's bad, and it'll impress the hell out of most casual onlookers, but it is certainly not 'Supreme'.
No comments:
Post a Comment