I basically wanted a more "substantial" Jim figure than what has been put out there in the past. You know the one based on the cartoon that let you launch Jim's spring-loaded head off like a missile? Instead of customizing and upgrading one of these figures (which I don't own anyway) I decided to start from scratch. And since I wanted him to be at least somewhat articulated I decided to base him on a Marvel Legends figure. The rest is Magic-Sculpt. I used a bunch of pictures of EWJ to base this custom off of since they are all pretty similar. But I used the box art for Earthworm Jim 2 as the main inspiration.
On to the dirty details: I started with the torso and arms of a ML Mr. Sinister. With the head, waist, and hands cut away I molded a smooth thin layer of Magic-Sculpt over the torso and built up the biceps. I then built the crotch & butt area up and added 2 pieces of wire to represent the legs. After sculpting the feet to the ends of the wire I was able to sculpt the legs in a more dramatic pose and literally give him legs to stand on. Because of this Jim has no articulation of any kind below the waist. From here I sculpted his belt, harness, decorative holster, and backpack. I left a slot in his pack in case I ever get around to making his sidekick Snott. The hands were a challenge as I loathe sculpting (as well as drawing) hands. I think they hold up well enough though. I decided to go with his uzi-like gun from Earthworm Jim 2 instead of the classic red plasma gun. I saved the head sculpting for last since it'd be the easiest to screw up. I did the side slanted grimace expression for his face and a slightly longer head tail. After all sculpting was complete and I gave it a light sanding I sprayed a layer of flat black primer on the figure. The final paint apps are Testors acrylic.
So that's how my EWJ figure was born. He's probably one of my cleanest and most custom of my customs as well as my most recent. Thanks for checking it out!