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PostPosted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:33 pm 
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Tripod King

Joined: Thu Jan 13, 2005 9:30 am
Posts: 300
Without a doubt, one of the symbolic images of the late 70s of artwork cover design for albums has to be the classic Fighting Machine seen during battle with the mighty Royal Navel vessel Thunder Child in the multi million selling album Jeff Waynes Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds released by CBS Records in 1978.<br /><br />The design of the machine was given to artist Michael Trim, designer of other sci-fi/fantasy works. From the original drawings created by Trim, others artists who were commissioned by both Jeff and his late father Jerry Wayne, would create the spectacular booklet that came with the album that includes images such as Horsell Common & Parson Nathaniel by Peter Goodfellow, Panic In The Streets, The Red Weed, Brave New World & Dead London by Geoff Taylor. It was Trim's machine designs that inspired countless incarnations after the albums release, and many which still exsist today in the form of 3D models used for PC and Playstation games. Although not entirely accurate to Trim's machine, they still give you that sense of awe when seeing them. <br /><br />The Trim/Wayne machine did not only exist in the minds of artists or gamers. A few years before the PC/Playstation game, the album cover Tripod came to life, well in static 3D form for model makers with the release of the Comet Miniatures scale kit, which is now being re-released as part of the 2005 re-launch of the classic album.<br /><br />Many have thought, "what would it be like if THAT machine came to life". So how would this machine move, how would it walk. Well, after a couple of months looking into this I have come up with a theory, and one that does NOT come close to the PC/Playstaion versions, something that would not go a miss in the classic Monty Python's Ministry Of Funny Walks sketch - the machine waddles!<br /><br />Trims designs show close detail of the hood and legs of the machine. The static model can show yet again a closer look at how the machine could be constructed. The hood is domed at the top with a flat underside, broken by the under carriage that drops at an angle from the front of the hood or cockpit entrance. Either side of the hood, hanging just at the point the hood sweeps under are two large "pods". From these "pods" come the stabilizer for the leg. The leg itself protrudes from the main hood, with its 35-degree main support leg leading to the socket or hinge, coupled to the main vertical leg. The leg is designed to lift "up" and "down", out and inwards to the body as the stabilizer takes control to prevent the leg slipping away from the body making the machine collapse to the ground. The stabilizer is fitted to the "pod" by the means of a balljoint, allowing the stabilizer to flow with the movement of the leg as it lift's up and down. The Trim design shows the leg fitted to the hood with a "boxed" section, fitted inside yet another "boxed" opening - square peg in a square hole - thus rendering the leg(s) from pivoting forwards or backwards from the main body/hood. Both side legs are designed in this way, but the rear leg is different. The back leg protrudes from a huge metal fin that is crafted into the hood, again fitted with the same joint and stabilizer. The rear leg is designed to take more weight while the machine is in motion. As the side legs can only lift "up" and "down", the rear leg when in use has to "push" the body forwards.<br /><br />Here is an example of how it would appear - left leg would lift up, throwing the hood off center. The rear leg would lift slightly tipping the cockpit forward. The right leg then would lift and as it lifts, the rear leg pushes the hood forward again leveling the hood and putting the machine back into central position - the machine has now moved forward. The machine would continue this method to build up momentum. As it moves, the hood would gradually move from side to side very similar to a waddle - the movement like a duck.<br /><br />This I believe is something the gamers came across during production of the PC and Playstation game. The final outcome - the machine looks menacing when NOT in motion, but very slightly silly when walking, so they took away the original walking idea's to show us a more organic feel, thus allowing the legs on there PC model to move forward, something the Trim design did not allow.<br /><br />In the classic H.G. Wells novel, he describes the machines moving at speed like birds - graceful movement. This indicates that the legs of the Well's machine come from underneath the body and not from the side. The Trim/Wayne machine is completely different, designed for show and not designed from the Well's novel. The Trim/Wayne machine is a lumborsum machine, spectacular to look at, deadly machine armed with advanced weaponry, but slow moving. But who care's, if this thing came to life you still would not be able to escape it.<br /><br />For the film based on the album, I feel the CGI staff will take the machines movement from the ideas of the PC gamers. The machines legs will have that freedom to pivot forward of the body, giving the machine stability and flexibility, taking away its original lumborsum walk which was first intended to scare us back in 1978.<br /><br /><br /><br />H_C


H_C

Forum Moderator to: www.waroftheworldsonline.com - Your Source For The Martian Invasion Since 2002


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