Welcome to the MechaZone!
Q) First off, may I ask what is the inspiration behind these beautiful bots you design? What got you into the process from the beginning?
Hello! I’m really happy that you like my designs. My love of robots and toys goes back to my childhood in the 70’s and 80’s when there was a constant stream of new and exciting cartoons every Saturday. I was fascinated by animation because of its ability to bring impossible scenarios to life. Of course every cartoon also had a supporting product line of action figures, playsets, and comic books. I loved them all. I started drawing the robots I saw in cartoons such as Grendizer and the other Force Five shows (aka Shogun Warriors). Later shows and toys such as Voltron and The Transformers fueled a passion for giant robots and machines that continues to this day.
Q) Mecha Zone is so original in their design. With “Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain nearing release do you plan on playing it? If so, on what console? Also, if you were given license to replicated any video-game related mechs what would you choose
Metal Gear Solid 5 isn’t on my radar. I’ve seen some early videos for it, but quite frankly, I just don’t have time for that sort of thing. I pour all of my time into working and creating my toys. It takes a lot of effort to concept, model, and produce original products. It’s really difficult to pick just one ultimate dream design. I am a HUGE fan of the Neo Geo game series, Metal Slug… I think it would be amazing to make a transforming mecha version of the Metal Slug tank.
Q) On average from blueprint/sketch process to manufacturing, about how long does each product take?
It depends on the size and complexity of a product. A small toy, such as my recent Metal Gunner robot, takes about 3 days from the first sketch until the first physical prototype. 1 day for concepting and 2 days for modeling and prototype printing. A larger and more complex toy such as my Mechanauts and Predanauts takes much longer. I can spend a week just doing sketches to find the right look. Then, it usually takes about 2 weeks of modeling to get everything just right.
Q) What was the first robot toy (giant mech or protocol droid) you ever owned?
I think it might have been C3P0. I remember getting his action figure while we were on a family trip to see some relatives. I had just seen the first Star Wars movie at a drive-in with my sisters in 1977. I was 4 years old.
Q) Who would win: Voltron or Wing Gundam?
Voltron. I like a lot of the Gundam shows such as 0083 Stardust Memories and 08th MS team (and many others) but I really disliked Gundam Wing. All of the pilots were useless human beings… really just completely unlikable characters. They were always brooding and posing vainly. Lame! I’m not saying Voltron was a good show… I’ve re-watched it since I was a kid and it’s terrible, but at least it had heart.
Q) Could you please describe the fight for us?
Wing Gundam: “Whine, whimper, shortsighted monologue” Pose, LENSFLARE!
Voltron: Pew-pew, bang, pow! “Form Blazing Sword!” SLICE!!!!! The end.
Q) It is the year 2057 and you are building an actual, functional mech. Gatling gun or electricity cannon? Is it heavily armored and slow or lightly protected and capable of super-sonic speed? Would it use anti-gravity propelling tech or thrusters? Would it have A.I. or a standard O.S.?
I’ll be 84 in 2057 so I suppose I would just transplant my personality into a super mainframe bioroid and leave my useless body behind. The bioroid would use magnetic manipulation to move around and shift from one place to another by creating wormholes and singularities. It wouldn’t have any real weapons… I’m not interested in destroying anything. The limbs would be detachable and could move around independently via quantum-entangled controls so I could send them through wormholes and work in many places at once. If anything, I would use my new body to help gather resources and terraform new worlds to benefit all of humanity and the creatures of earth.
Q) Would you ever consider making a remote controlled toy with the quality of a Mecha Zone figure but the fun of a Battle Bot?
I’ve designed some armor sets for those standard robotics kits you can buy, but I generally don’t think about real-world applications or functionality. My designs are based in fantasy and are already challenging to create without adding a new level of technical constraint. I’m not saying I wouldn’t do it, but I would need help from someone who is a robotics expert.
Q) After completion, would you mass-produce a figure of it?
No, I would be too busy traveling the universe being awesome.
Q) What is your take on Warhammer mini figs and the actual tabletop game itself?
I don’t play Warhammer or any other tabletop games. I went to Gencon a few years ago because of some Battletech design work I was doing and got to see a lot of Warhammer stuff. The models were amazingly detailed and very well made. The skill of the fans that painted them was impressive.
Q) Lastly, who has better power armor? Boba Fett (Star Wars) or Samus Aran (Metroid)?
Boba Fett only has regular armor as far as I know so of course Samus would utterly crush his bones to jelly and then collect the bounty with a smile on her face.
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