Did a "holy grail" ever disappoint?

[enyawd72]

I remember a great Spock line from the Star Trek episode "Amok Time"

"You may find that having a thing is not as pleasing as wanting it. It is not logical, but it is often true."

And so after years of hunting I recently acquired my Aurora grail kit...the Penguin. Had him less than a week and let him go. I still can't believe it myself.

There were several factors...by the time Aurora got around to making any Bat-villain models in the 1960's, the TV show was already fading fast, so planned Catwoman, Joker and Riddler kits were all cancelled. So, the Penguin is kind of a one-off in that regard.

Second was the fact that building it in it's original complete form wasn't ever going to happen because of the decals. The Penguin was the only superhero kit to have them, and he had a LOT. Age has destroyed every example I've ever seen...the decals are always yellowed, shrunken and cracked. The built up kit would have seemed incomplete without them.

Third was the kit itself. Even though the box depicts the colorful comics Penguin, the kit is clearly modeled after Burgess Meredith. So on that grounds it doesn't really fit in with the vintage Aurora Batman and Robin kits which are comic based.

Which brings us to the final reason. Moebius Models has just issued an official Penguin model from the TV series designed to go with the rest of their '66 lineup. It's a better sculpt, scale, etc. and I decided I just didn't need my "grail" after all. Go figure...

[PNGwynne]

I view this very differently as a Penguin fan and collector. I've seen built-ups and never though the kit was particularly deficient. I've longed to own a copy.

But you've explained yourself well. Of course I'm disappointed though, I was looking forward to the vicarious experience of seeing the kit built up as you do. And, I think most collectors have experienced a disappointing acquisition.

[enyawd72]

I view this very differently as a Penguin fan and collector. I've seen built-ups and never though the kit was particularly deficient. I've longed to own a copy.

But you've explained yourself well. Of course I'm disappointed though, I was looking forward to the vicarious experience of seeing the kit built up as you do. And, I think most collectors have experienced a disappointing acquisition.

Penguins A-M.jpg

Oh I don't really think the Aurora kit is deficient...it just depends what you're looking for. As a stand alone kit it's fantastic. It just kind of falls in that gray area...too TV specific to go with the comic Batman, and oddly alone with no other TV based kits to go with him. Plus as with all Aurora's kits, the likeness is close, but not on the level of the new kits by Jeff Yagher. Plus with the soon to be released Burt Ward Robin, Gorshin Riddler, and Romero Joker...well that's just a modeler's dream come true.

[windebieste]

Aw, Man. Sorry to hear about the disappointment.

In terms of decals, you could always make your own. Here's a good straight forward video how to start.

There's 2 schools of thought when building a kit:

1). Slavishly adhere to the manufacturer's recommendations. Make the kit in accordance with their recommendations. A fine and worthy pursuit in itself.

or

2). Deviate. Improvise. Create. Use the kit as a foundation for your own creativity. There's nothing wrong with adding and/or subtracting to it. It's yours now. Make it so. I used to mix and match different scaled kits when I was young. For example, some of the wilder aircraft I built had ridiculously oversized engines cannibalised from larger scaled planes. Other ludicrous creative statements included biplane jets. Wish I still had those, but hey. I may go out and buy a couple disparate kits and build something, anyway.

Nonetheless, it's always a disappointment when that long sought after grail item turns out to be well under what you expected it to be. You can bet his fans feel the same way when they meet Justin Bieber for the first time, too. lol.

-Windebieste.

[ScottA]

I'm sorry to hear this as well. It's one of my grails along with WW but I understand you logic. One day I'll own one.

[Brown Bear]

I've always found the term "holy grail" annoying in general when referring to a special and rare toy but that's just my opinion. Lol

[Earth 2 Chris]

I hate to ask this, but....so you opened a sealed kit, then decided you didn't want to build it? If so..ouch...because now you're not going to get back what you paid for it. Sorry Dwayne.

Chris

[enyawd72]

I hate to ask this, but....so you opened a sealed kit, then decided you didn't want to build it? If so..ouch...because now you're not going to get back what you paid for it. Sorry Dwayne.

Chris

No I didn't open it. I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I sold it for exactly what I paid.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Oh, thank goodness. That would have add tons of suckage to an already unfulfilling experience.

Chris