The birth of the Marvel Universe, which whole generations have grown up with and still inspires a multitude of readers (and cinema fans), has
a definite name: Fantastic Four! Without the success of this formidable group created in 1961, in fact, the same Stan Lee would have probably
changed job and we would not be here talking about statues dedicated to the fascinating world of superheroes... A world of which the Fantastic Four are
not only the origin but also one of the soundest and most traditional points of reference. Sideshow decided to devote to the quartet a beautiful
diorama, depicting all members together (a very rare case) into a single, amazing sculpture. Released in 2006, this little gem was sculpted by Pablo
Viggiano and has a rather limited size (35 x 23 cm), a height of 33 cm and e weigth of 2.7Kg.
The statue has an edition size of 750 pieces for the regular version and 550 for the exclusive, characterized by an additional variant
of the Invisible Woman, with a fascinating transparency effect over most of the body, as to remind the power of invisibility of the character.
The Thing represents the central figure and acts as a base and support to his friends. Ben Grimm (the most likeable and anguished member of the group)
is portrayed half-length, with open arms and hands and the eyes looking down; the effect of the rocky skin is made and colored in a masterful way
and the hero exhibits a large circled "4" at the center of the abdomen, the well-known emblem of the group.
Sue Storm rests on Ben's shoulders, with the body of a pin-up and a rather sexy pose. Two opposing spirals start from the bottom and go up around the
Thing: one is the elastic body of Mr. Fantastic, who rises above the rest of the quartet with a large rib cage and a powerful, slim physique; the other is
the fascinating fire wake coming from the Human Torch, who comes out in flight, in the classic pose with both arms stretched forward.
The diorama can boast of an excellent painting and a great attention to detail.
The costumes of Reed Richards and Sue Storm show a deep blue with a vaguely metallic tone, on which the shiny black of gloves, collars and belts stands out
in a perfect way. The body of Reed is well finished in the musculature of trunk and the colors of face and hair, but even the (seemingly) simpler part
to be made (the spiral stretched behind Ben) shows a beautiful twist, very effective to give the feeling of the hero's elasticity.
Sue's face is gorgeous, with deep pink lips, blue eyes and a very well sculpted, flowing blond hair, just designed to accentuate the
womanliness already emphasized by her breathtaking curves! The exclusive version somehow loses the coloring details on face, but provides the
figure with an astonishing appeal through a graduated transparency across chest, made in a superb way.
Also the fire wake generated by Johnny Storm is very nice. It is rather transparent along the spiral and
appears more opaque in the proximity of the body, so as to bring out the sculpt and details of the face (note, for example, the elegant, fire
tuft of hair on the back of the head). The body of Ben Grimm really seems to be made of rocky plates and looks very faithful to the original tables of Kirby,
with highly irregular contours and a coloring that gives the whole an excellent chromatic impact.
Also the face of Ben is well done, with the typical thick protruding eyebrows, the blue eyes, a flat nose and a mouth without lips,
practically cut off on the rocky face of the hero.
In my opinion, this diorama is an excellent representation of the Fantastic Four. Not surprisingly, it is not easy to find on market
and its quotations are always rather high. And if you have the possibility to admire it live, it is really easy to understand why!