The Genesis of "100000 horsepower" by Sonny Liew for Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention 2014
Sonny Liew (Blog / DeviantART / Facebook / Twitter) is famed for his comicbook illustrations, and it was last year when we begun to see 3-dimensional representations of his creations come to "life" … and this year, we'll see more at Singapore Toy Games & Comic Con, for when he releases "100000 horsepower" with Mighty Jaxx!
Today I present to you a lil'Q&A with Sonny, spotlighting the genesis of this collectible, nd d stay tuned for product details as we get closer to the event on Sept 6-7, 2014.
TOYSREVIL: What was the genesis of 100000 horsepower? What is the link between AstroBoy for you, and the name "100000 horsepower"?
SONNY LIEW: The original painting I did way back in art school. It was part of a series of paintings that tried to explore sci-fi and anime tropes - so there were lots of robots and aliens and Sanrio characters featured.
"100,000 horsepower" is actually the supposedly level of energy driving the mighty Tetsuan in the manga, so that's where that came from.
TOYSREVIL: He looks pretty aged, and I've recognize him to be a mascot for your book(s) - had you always meant for him to become a collectible?
SONNY LIEW: Na, that only happened last year. With the help of my friend Alwyn Lianf, I'd worked with Vinyl and Vinyl to make a Pinocchio figure for the last STGCC, and wanted to try working with local toymakers Mighty Jaxx this time round. I thought the 100,000 hp painting would make an interesting figure. I'm also planning a new series of paintings based on cartoon and comic characters as well, so if this does well, it could possibly be a series.
His look is based around the idea of the dangers of atomic power - potentially a boon to mankind, but also a dreadful weapon, and radioactive waste is always a concern. So I wanted to make an image of figure that looked half boy and half robot, in a stance that suggested strength, but also a little bit sick from the very atomic energy that powers him.
("100000 horsepower" in Black for STGCC)
TOYSREVIL: What led to him being a collectible bust? And what does that base of the bust mean? (Or supposed to represent?).
SONNY LIEW: Well after I picked the image, we needed to find a good sculptor to realise it. Coincidentally Gary Choo whose 3d work I'd been seeing off and on online, had recently left the defunct LucasArts games division here, so we had a window of opportunity to get him to do the sculpt.
The base... is based on part of the Gadget - the name given to the first bomb tested in the Manhattan project back in 1945. Given the close ties between the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the subsequent Japanese semi-obsession with apocalyptic scenarios in their movies and cartoons, I thought a reference to the gadget would set up some interesting tensions.
