16/12 BRINGERS OF WONDER DIORAMA

 Here's another reminder of the pre-production ‘Bringers of Wonder’ Sixteen 12 prototype models.

The set includes a small Pilot Ship, designed to be in-scale with the newer second season 16/12 12” Eagle. 

I’ve included a photo of it with one of the small 16/12 Alpha buggies in shot to give an impression of scale. I should mention I don’t know for sure whether a buggy is included in this set.

Although it’s an unsurprisingly small model, about 31/2” long, the Pilot Ship does have plenty of detailing, including tiny representations of kit parts from the Airfix Eagle, and the engine bells from the Airfix Saturn V, that was used as detailing on the original prop. 

Here are some photos I took of the original prop, which was built for the story by Martin Bower, and is regularly displayed at various model events, thanks to its current owner, Simon Rhodes.

As you can see, the set also features a large No. 5 Nuclear Waste Dome, which I found perfect for creating an instant diorama. I didn’t measure it but I reckon the dome was over a foot wide and about 9” tall. The base was a slightly larger egg-shape to accommodate the various surrounding installations.

The detailing and shading actually looks to be fairly accurate to the prop Dome 5. There’s also the site warning billboard, which on screen is shown some distance away from Dome 5. It’ll probably irk the nit-pickers, but I think it’s reasonable to put its closer positioning down to a little artistic licence. 

The set comes with the ubiquitous die-cast Eagle. The one that Sixteen 12 provided for the photos is the same one that comes with the Dragon’s Domain set, which has the removable Command Module, and the additional rear piping, which was actually added for the second season.  I have to admit I really do like this version, and I’d be happy if they eventually released it as part of this set, removable command module and all. One thing I’d like to see return is the black paint underneath the Eagle leg pods, which Sixteen 12 added to the leg pods on their Wargames set.

While I had the prototype Dome No. 5 to photograph, I couldn’t resist doing a couple of shots featuring two Eagles, including an attempt to recreate the Eagle 10 crash!

“I’ve haven’t had this much fun since I set fire to Grandma’s wig!”