Cool Stuff: Steampunk Star Wars Action Figures

Sillof has created a complete series of Steampunk modified Star Wars action figures.

What is Steampunk you say? According to wikipedia, Steampunk is a subgenre of fantasy and speculative fiction which denotes works set in an era or world where steam power is still widely used-usually the 19th century. The stories are often set in Victorian era England-but with prominent elements of either science fiction or fantasy, such as fictional technological inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or real technological developments like the computer occurring at an earlier date. The cool new trend at Comic Con is to dress as a Steampunk version of your favorite character. Last year I saw a Ghostbuster wearing a top hat and a wooden backpack. And in previous editions of Cool Stuff we've shown you a guy who made a Steampunk Flux Capacitor and another guy who made a working life-sized Steampunk R2-D2.

 "The idea behind my C-3PO design was a mechanical man, almost skeletal, with exposed gears, pulleys, and hinges," writes Sillof. "Since 3PO was mechanical I wanted to balance the 2 with gears and steam. So R2 is designed to be a little steam powered boiler-bot. I incorporated the focal elements segmented dome (this time with rivets),  the single eye, the short nature, and used R2's original air vents as a modified furnace door & the knob on R2's head is now a stovepipe type chimney. Inside the vents is a large translucent flame that lights up."

"With [Obi-Wan Kenobi], for a European feel I went for a more traditional knight, rather then the Asian samurai robes.  I wanted the look of Kenobi's head to look like a guy who had been hiding out and keeping low.  I also wanted it too have the feel of an elderly warrior who put on his old armor for one last adventure.  I went for a thinner frame, kind of Don Quixote-esque.   I thought the antique armor worked as the Jedi are established as an ancient and dead order.  I gave the armor the riveted steampunk feel. I also made it look old, tarnished, and little rusty.  With the shoulder pauldrons and waist tunic, I tried to evoke the brown Jedi robes, I also felt they gave the armor a ceremonial feel.  The lightsaber is connected to the same power pack as Luke.

"Han Solo is still the cocky smuggler pilot, but I played the smuggler up with a pirate feel and rather then a spaceship he now pilots a large dirigible-like airship.  I added the classic steampunk goggles to the smug grinning face," writes Sillof. "I gave Chewbacca a more animalistic look with the more feline face and clawed hands and feet.   As first mate on the airship I figured he would still have mechanic duties, as seen from his classic bandolier now serving as a tool bag. I gave him some pirate-ish clothing with loosing too much of the exposed fur look."

"I wanted my stormtrooper to have the classic white on black look. I used the more ornate and engraved look for a more antiquated feel. I wanted the stormtrooper helmet to resemble Vader's helmet to tie the two together aesthetically. I used the air tubes to resemble the shape of the classic Stormtrooper's helmet. Of course the air tubes have to lead somewhere, in my design the go to the large riveted air tanks on his back," wrote Sillof. "To capture that European feel I used title "Lord Vader", as Tarkin calls him, as the inspiration. My imperials are meant to have that Eastern European/German feel that the film version had somewhat. Vader's flared out helmet is no longer a samurai look but now a more Prussian spiked helmet.  His fierce angular face mask that helped with his breathing is now a modified gas mask.  The patina chest armor is a homage to his classic shinny black armor.  The clunky lightsaber is connected to a power pack via the tube."

You can check out all of Sillof's designs, along with a ton of more photos and description on Sillof.com.

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