I am always amazed

[The Hordesman]

There are in fact bears in Japan, and who's to say this isn't a Japanese fantasy theme? Based on this picture, I think sieg101 is a Japanese builder. I wonder who's a better judge of "what looks Japanese."

Well, I guess the euroarmors could be used for that and the horse helm too, but the knight helmet is too european and the heater shields are out of place (and the swords could be Jians, but somewhat oversized).
But yet, its a good idea to use KK2 parts for other themes, and perhaps they do remind of samurai when massed with one of those awesome banners among them, and perhaps a banner on the back?

[Moroder]

Hmm, let's see. There are some points that I disagree with Dunechaser, and I hope not to create contend, but to make clear my point of view. Sorry if I sound rude.

About judging if the MOC fits the japanese style: I believe that Anthony brought the creation to us to hear opinions and to start a good discussion. Of course, nobody here is an expert on any culture, but at least we can discuss the topics!

I think the red armor, combined with that helmet, nicely evoke the way ninjas might go into battle. (Which of course wouldn't happen, but that's not the point.)

Right, it's not the point, but if we are talking about 'judging the japanese accuracy' here, we should take every aspect of it, right? If ninjas wouldn't go to battle on open field, a ninja would never use a heavy armor.

And the flags clearly demonstrate that sieg101 has done some research into Japanese heraldry.

Well, the flag is clearly from a Ninja set, so I believe it's really accurate.

[SavaTheAggie]

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.
--Anthony

[Lord_Of_The_LEGO]

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.

Amen!

[The Hordesman]

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.
--Anthony

Be careful with that statement- do not inspire people to overuse their imagination and use Timmys in the castle theme as ordinary soldiers... Chaos would ensue.

[JoshWedin]

Well, the flag is clearly from a Ninja set, so I believe it's really accurate.

These are the flags that Dunechaser was refering to and they are not in any ninja sets.

Josh

[MaxiVisVires]

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.
--Anthony

I agree... tired of hearing "Oh that's not historically accurate" when seeing great MOC's. Plastic isn't historically accurate either!

[Moroder]

These are the flags that Dunechaser was refering to and they are not in any ninja sets.

True, I'm wrong on this point. My fault. Looks like the creator really likes the japanese culture.

Thanks for pointing it out, Josh!

[Modesty]

It is fun, and that's why the seed part challenges are so interesting, I gotta enter in one some time.

Japanese/taiwanese(?)/other asian lego builders seem to have a lot of the same thing often, by my standards.

[Scnicker]

I care whether it's realistic or not. Many people complained about KKII because the breastplates aren't realisticly coloured. Many Castle loving AFOLs want realistic castle sets. There is a thin line between what looks right and realism; and plate mail wearing samurai aren't realistic at all. As someone mentioned before (I guess) samurai were swift in their leather armor unlike the bulky European knights. But that wasn't the main purpose of this topic; it was about the jellybeans being useful and I agree with that. I love the jellybeans because of the colour variations that they provide us.

Just My 2 Cents,
Yankı

[JoshWedin]

Be careful with that statement- do not inspire people to overuse their imagination and use Timmys in the castle theme as ordinary soldiers... Chaos would ensue.

So let it be written, so let it be done.



Josh

[BuilderQ]

I am always amazed at the LEGO community for using parts for unintended uses.

Yes, but here... minifig headgear and armour are being used as minifig headgear and armour.

Here is the most interesting use of KK armour that I have seen:

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.

Within the context of LEGO models, some are more realistic than others.

[Dunechaser]

Who cares if it's not realistic. If you want realism, you shouldn't be playing with super deformed little plastic men and buildings made from plastic.

Hear hear! We're talking about toys, and what's important is that they're fun. The day LEGO ceases to be fun and starts to be something serious is the day I pack it up and sell it in one giant lot on eBay.

The intent of my original post wasn't to weigh in on the realism or accuracy of the minifigs. (As someone who spent 15 years in Japan, I can say with some authority that they are not.) To be honest, "realistic" and "accurate" MOCs are often much less interesting to me than ones that take a little artistic license with the subject matter. In other words, reimagining is more interesting than recreating.

I'm with MaxiVisVires: Do we really need to qualify our praise with "It's not accurate, but..."? It's not that criticism doesn't have its place. I'm just taking issue with the way "accuracy" and "realism" have been elevated as primary considerations in so many MOC discussions.

Okay, getting off my soap box. I'm exiling myself to Classic-Space.com while I watch the rest of the Super Bowl. Go Seahawks! Heh heh...

[Formendacil]

Is the POINT here even that the figs are realistic in this context so much as it is that the figs look good here? Seriously, who, looking at that lineup of Santis Knights behind that Samurai, all matching and impressive-looking, can say that red-coloured KK2 knights are all bad- even relatively unmodified?