This diorama and diostory has been long in the making. It started
years ago when playing the actual Capcom game Resident Evil 4. I had already been immersed into the entire Resident
Evil and survival horror genre from the beginning, but it wasn't until the actual playing of the above game that brought the
want of continuing the story of Leon Scott Kennedy, and Ashley Graham.
My original target date was to be a year before the digital movie which stars Leon's return from Europe,
in Resident Evil: Degeneration. Both in story and actual time, sadly, the pressures of real life limiting issues prevented
this until now. So in retrospect, the digital movie as the creators said is the true "4.5", though my diostory originally
was going to be called that.
The character involvement and scripting of Leon Scott Kennedy is truly creative. Even when playing
his character in-game, it is easy to see and imagine those more descriptive elements such as "Who is he?" "Where did
he come from?" "Who are his friends?" etc. I have tried to do this, while borrowing heavily from the established canon,
and also injecting a touch of my own to make his character more, well, interesting. So there will be new names, and
new faces, and side stories that are not in any way trying to replace the mythos, rather, it is merely an attempt to
add depth to this one year storyline I imagined whilst finishing the game.
There are many people I owe large credit to in the making of this an enjoyable reality. First,
the original figures used did not exist in the scale to which I am using, colloquially known as "Joe-scale" (coined after
the 3 3/4 " GIJOE figures from Hasbro), which is 1:18 scale. This is also the prevalent scale of the various dioramas
I have created both in the community, and for diostories such as these. Aside from CapCom of course for creating the
entire mythos, I owe a large debt to fellow customizer and creative zombie machine John Keenan, who in one large stroke contacted
me when I first wanted to create a Leon Kennedy figure in scale, and said "Hey, just wait a few days."
In short time, he not only provided me with a truly fabulous Leon head, but also a wealth of other
character heads such as Albert Wesker, H.U.N.K., and even Jill Valentine, in scale. In time, we both collaborated in
outfitting ourselves with an Ada Wong head, dream come true for us diehard followers, and well, John still remains the absolute
number one guy I would float any Resident Evil love by.
Another person that figures into the appreciation is my buddy Robert Ragona, also a fellow customizer
and also an exemplary fantasy artisan in the figure arena. Rob, or "Doc" as some call him came through when I was angsting
over how to achieve Leon's signature RE:4 look, and furnished the very outfit that made his look almost a "dead-on" for my
attempt. Doc is a go-to guy, and like John, a literal creative machine.
Lastly, I have to thank my softer (and obviously cuter) half Elizabeth, who for one thing shared in
my appreciation of the Resident Evil mythos, and more importantly, as a fellow artisan, helped me flesh out
the dioramas and accessories one needs to make any such creative endeavor suspend disbelief.
That all said, John, and everyone, sorry for the delays.
One important note for those who will enjoy(or not) the diostory. Much license was taken in
trying to flesh out certain characters who were usually nothing more than either an adversarial afterthought, or a player
character option. I tried to infuse some real to life issues, because in truth, any one of us can point to a scripted
character and muse..."I know a person JUST LIKE THAT!" This undertaking was no exception.
Also, since I am story weaving here, a great care and by virtue visual example is taken in developing
characters, which may infuriate those impatient souls who just assume and expect my diostory to be just nothing but zombie
onslaught goodness. Sadly, this is not so. It will happen, but it will happen later on, as the focus of my story
is Leon and his life, and not virii or parasite driven zombies. So you'll get your zombie goodness, but it will take
some time to get there. Also, if any names, creatures, personas, virii, histories, or anything of the diostory
goes against what the canon followers insist, or hold to, all I can say is well, sorry. I never read the novels, and
only played the games I could afford. So if I have a person alive that was killed later on or in a novel...well, I didn't
care for Glorfindel being axed by two Lord of the Rings movies, but I didn't hang any effigies over it as well.
Like TV, you do have the power to change the channel, just hit the red "X" and don't indulge.
In closing, I have to really enforce this one creative tidbit. I created this diostory, as a
49 year old artisan for adult tastes. That means I will use every special effect and uncomfortable subject matter to
bring the true horror of the mythos to visual life. There will be nudity, foul language, and disturbing images.
As a parent and grandparent myself, I will not for one minute be understanding if you either assumed that just because I am
using toys you buy your children, or your children can wax Resident Evil on hard mode, that they can "handle" it. I
am giving you the FAIREST WARNING...there is a reason I asked my friend "Doc" to screenprint some MPAA warning images to use
before one jumps in. That's your warning. Don't hang my creative backside in pixelated effigy just because you
allowed someone younger to see a decapitation, evisceration, or nipple poking behind a toy made towel for a breasted figurine
that is barely 4 inches tall.
This was made for my sensibilites, and those that appreciate the diostory. It's not an episode
of Robot Chicken, so there may be no comedic slant or cartoon smile to lighten the mood.
Sincerely and enjoy,
Eric, or "Cap".
