"Essence of Bangel" Heartbreaking-Sewer-Talk Buffy & Angel (April 2008)

Inspiration

I loved all the light-up stands that came with the new DST "Essence of..." line, shown here:

Each of these 3 stands inspired me to make a scene from BtVS, which I felt worked with the "Essence of..." theme.

Reference

Looking at the vampire in the sewer tunnel, I was inspired to make the scene where Angel is trying to break up with Buffy during their patrol of the sewer, and a vampire makes the mistake of interrupting them.

Angel (to Buffy): "Come on, don't be that way."
  A vampire drops from the roof, growling.
Buffy (to the vampire, dusting him with ease): "Not now."

To me, this is the epitome of Buffy's relationship with Angel: love, angst, and dusting!

Parts

For Angel, I used the deluxe Hawaiian shirt figure. For Buffy I used a Willow figure with deluxe Buffy head and bare arms.

Thanks to MAC and DST for the parts.

Sculpt

For those unfamiliar with customising, the pale pink stuff is the colour of the 'super sculpey' sculpting clay that I put over the plastic figures. It can be translucent, so you can often see the original colour of the figure underneath. Once I've finished sculpting, I always completely repaint the whole figure.

For Angel, I sculpted his hair in his Season 3 style. I covered the articulation in his legs and made his trousers longer. I sculpted the loose jumper and donkey-jacket. I put him in a position where he looks like he's walking toward Buffy and trying to make a point.

For Buffy, I covered the articulation in her legs and made her jeans longer. I sculpted her top and long hair. I put her in a position of staking the vampire, but keeping her attention on Angel.

Paint

I painted Angel in shades of black clothing. I gave him pale skin, a grim expression, and focused his eyes on Buffy.

For Buffy, I painted her with faded jeans and a sheer lilac top over a black camisole. The top has some glittery detail at the bottom. I gave her an intense expression, as she looks back at Angel, suspecting bad news.

I repainted the "Essence of Buffy" light-up stand to make the sewer tunnel and dusted vampire. I made the tunnel darker and more slimy. I added dusting paint-effect to the vampire.

This set was joint winner of Custom of the Month for April at BtVSFigs Forum.