Schaft Enterprise Europe Type-7B/2B "Brocken" (Patlabor): German Bundeswehr use

[Dizzyfugu]

"Friday night - firefight"! Again an anime kit converted into something "semi-realisitic": a mecha from the Japanese Patbalor TV series.

Reality overtook fiction when the German "Brocken" (uncertain whether the German mountain is meant, or a colloquial german expression for "Hulk"?) Labor was scheduled to be part of German Bundeswehr and its task to defend the frontiers to the east in the late 90ies of the bygone century. The original kit/mecha wears an overall blue-gray livery, making it look even more like a typical German medieval armor plate suit. But what if the background story was taken more seriously, and the Brocken actually been employed by the German Bundesheer, just before the millenium...?

Consequently, this here is a "Brocken" how it would have looked like if it had been on duty at about 2000 - in semi-authentic Bundeswehr colors and with some added weaponry (single action 75mm gun, anti tank missiles, IR spotlight) and details.

Now that we are some steps further, it has some nostalgic - if not surreal - touch...

That's what became of it, including a 20x20cm diorama base:




1:60 Patlabor - Schaft Enterprise Europe Type-7B/2B "Brocken" by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Pics are not so good (gotta make new ones, I think), since these are scans of traditional paper pics, done with "analogue" camera and film maybe 15 years ago - the kit is still there, though.  

[Jacques Deguerre]

That's very cool! Is it one of the 1/60 scale Bandai kits from back in the nineties? I had three of those from back then, the Ingram itself, the Helldiver and the Phantom but I missed out on the Brocken. This series has some of my favorite mecha designs and I love your interpretation of the Brocken.

[Dizzyfugu]

Yes, it's the Bandai styrene kit in 1:60. I have built several of them, including Ingram 1&2 (one with bullet-proof vest), the other "clean", a Gryphon, an OOB Helldiver and a Helldiver "whif" in JGSDF colors. A Phantom and an Ingram prototype are still in the vast pile, as well as one or two 1:35 kits...

The kits are nice - and it is no surprise that they are "convincing", since their designer, Shoji Kawamori (who also invented the famous Macross Valkyries), put much thought in realistic - or at least plausible - mechanics. The step from fiction to a whif is not far, and here the Bundeswehr colors were a natural choice.

I can add some more pics of other models and dioramas next week?

[raafif]

that particular suit does have a Gothic / Germanic Knight look to it, works well

[Dizzyfugu]

Yup, the Brocken was certainly inspired by German plate armor - and funny to see, what a Japansese interpretation makes from it?

As promised, I add some other Patlabor mecha pictures - I think that all of them are scanned paper photos, did them (and the kits) maybe 15 years ago.


"Uh, it's snowing..."


1:60 Patlabor - AV-98 "Ingram" #2 with bullet-proof vest by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Tokyo city patrol:


1:60 Patlabor - AV-98 "Ingram" #1 "Alphonse by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


A Helldiver with an opened cockpit and a pilot figure inside (chest):


1:60 Patlabor - ARL-99B "Helldiver" by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The Gryphon with wings for flight:


1:60 Patlabor - Type-J9 "Gryphon" by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


...and another conversion, a Helldiver converted into a JGSDF scout Labor, in mountineous terrain (no more air brakes in the legs, new head, scartch-built gun):


1:60 Patlabor - JGSDF Scout Labor ("Helldiver" kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr