Martian War Machine

Review by NekroDave

The H.G. Wells science fiction novel "The War Of The Worlds" was brought to the big screen for the first time in 1953.

This 1/48 scale model kit is based on the invading saucer from that film and was produced earlier this year by Pegasus Hobbies. The kit could be purchased either unbuilt for $24.99, or in a completed form for $34.99. I'll be reviewing the completed version.

The completed kit comes packaged in a beautiful cardboard box with a clear window allowing you to see the product inside. The box measures approximately 13" x 11" x 8" and inside the ship rests in a clear vacuform tray and held in place by twisty ties. This fact is the only problem that I have with the entire production. The outer shell of the ship has a beautiful reflective gold chrome plating and the plastic ties had a tendency to scuff the surface. It's slight, but with such a beautiful, shiny outer hull, you really want to preserve the pristine condition as much as possible.

Beneath the ship itself rests a base representing the top of the planet Earth with a "The War Of The Worlds" logo. A curved plastic stand elevates the ship above the planet and makes for a great looking display.

As you can see in the pics above, they also went the extra mile and decorated the interior of the box with burning buildings and rubble. The ship looks great against such a backdrop.

At 1/48th scale, the Martian War Machine is about 10.5" across from wingtip to wingtip. The antenna on the top of the ship can be turned. The tip of the antenna has a clear plastic end. The nose of the ship, the wing tips and 3 circles on the bottom have clear green plastic. You should be able to insert some small lights into these areas to create a great effect. I haven't done so as yet, but I'm not sure why. It looks like it would be pretty easy. If you remove the ship from the stand, there is a screw in the hole where the stand attaches. It appears that all you'd have to do is unscrew it and you'd have easy access to the interior of the kit. I really should look into adding lights to this thing.

Of course, as a model kit, other than the rotating antenna, this doesn't do anything other than look really nice. But it succeeds at that admirably. Perhaps the best thing about it is the price. Between the packaging, the base and the completed kit, you really get a lot of bang for your buck.

Of course, this being Halloween time, although I'm reviewing a collectible based on the movie, I feel like I need to work in the infamous Halloween 1938 radio broadcast by the Mercury Theater somehow. So I'll just say that I'm a big fan of old time radio and if you haven't listened to the show, you owe it to yourself to do so now. It may sound a little dated now, but it's historical significance can't be denied. For you younger readers who may be unfamiliar with it, the show caused a panic as some listeners tuned in late and believed the show to be an actual news report of a martian attack, due to the show's news broadcast format. Enjoy! And remember...

It's only a radio show....

...only a radio show....

...only a radio show....

(If the above embedded player won't play, the mp3 is HERE.)