From my
Custom Celebration WIP ChallengeBaloo and Kit appeared in my WIP stuff last year after I got the C-130 from Toys R Us. I still haven't made the first step towards customizing that but I'm gathering ideas and supplies.
Here's how I worked them in.
Douglas Baloo, the owner/operator of Baloo's Air Service out of Cape Suzette was a lazy pilot who took only enough jobs to get by. After having to dump a delivery to evade Don Karnage and his air pirates, Baloo needed some quick money. Heading over to King Louie's, the local pub where all the news worth having was found, Baloo took a smuggling job. Now dealing with people who are not exactly trustworthy, Baloo didn't always get paid on time or at all. His debts piled up and he was close to losing his business and his prized airplane, The Seaduck.
Head: POTC with sculpted hat
Torso: 25th Bazooka with sculpted details
Arms: 25th Bazooka
Waist: 25th Bazooka
Legs: Duke and Crosshair
Enter one Rebecca Cunningham. A smart woman with a business degree, an ex-husband, and a young child. Seeking the chance to reestablish her life as a professional before she married and began raising a child, Rebecca bought Baloo's Air Service from the bank and took ownership of The Seaduck. Now running a business and raising a child, Rebecca gave up her life in the high rise apartment building where her ex-husband left her and moved into the one bedroom that Baloo called home in the back of the shack on the docks. Now she can focus on her new business and keep an eye on Molly.
Head: Cover Girl
Torso: Cover Girl
Arms: Bombstrike and IJ Elsa Schneider
Waist: Baroness
Legs: Lady Jaye and Kenner Princess Leia
Baloo is understandably upset when he returns to his shack to see the sign on the door has been changed to say Higher For Hire and his longtime mechanic and friend, Wildcat, is applying the same logo to The Seaduck. Baloo demands to know what is going on and Wildcat explains that she hired him as the mechanic and maintenance technician for Higher For Hire.
Head: Spytroops Recondo with sculpted hair
Torso: VvV Alpine
Arms: VvV Storm Shadow and VvV Beachhead
Waist: Spytroops Destro
Legs: VvV Dusty and VvV Beachhead with sculpted details
When Baloo demands to know who "she" is, Rebecca steps out of the shack and introduces herself. She explains that she bought the business fair and square from the bank and wants to turn it into a successful company. Baloo makes for The Seaduck and says he'll just take his plane and she can have the dock, only to find the door locked and Rebecca holding the keys. Rebecca informs Baloo that the plane was part of the business and now has her name on the title. Furious, Baloo storms back to King Louie's to drink his anger and vent to the one other person who will listen to his problems.
Head: Shrunken Hellboy with shaved details
Torso: DTC Major Bludd with sculpted details
Arms: Spytroops TeleViper
Waist: VvV Gung-Ho
Legs: VvV Stalker and Spytroops Mindbender with sculpted details and mods
Thoroughly inebriated, Baloo returns to the dock to take back his airplane under the cover of darkness. As he approaches the dock, he stumbles and goes down, passed out for the night. Rebecca hears the commotion and finds the man sound asleep. With the help of Wildcat, she drags him inside the office and lets him sleep through the night. When he wakes in his office he is sure it has all been a bad dream, only to realize the strange woman is in his kitchen, cooking breakfast. His anger returns and charges into the kitchen to confront her, only to find her young daughter in a high chair eating cereal, and Rebecca sitting at the table across from a plate of bacon and eggs.
Head: SpyKids
Torso: Mega Blocks Casey Jones
Arms: MB Casey Jones with hands from Princess Leia
Waist: MB Casey Jones
Legs: MB Leonardo
Baloo returns to Louie's with his new Higher For Hire cap on and fills Louie in on the details of his new job. Rebecca needed a pilot and he had no choice but to accept the job. Now with a new assignment to head out to pick up some fruit and deliver it at several stops, he's not going to be around for a while. He's decided to work hard and earn enough money from Rebecca to buy his airplane back at least, and then he's gone. Unfortunately, a nearby eavesdropper has heard everything and he now has a way out of Cape Suzette. Kit Cloudkicker has been raised in foster homes and group homes since he was a baby, never knowing his true parents. After recently running with Don Karnage's crew, Kit decided to make a go on his own but he needed a little bit of capital. He swiped a rare jewel Karnage had stolen and now he needs to get away from Cape Suzette and find a buyer. Stowing away on The Seaduck, Kit just needs to stay quiet.
Complete Figure: Bilbo Baggins with feet from Bombstrike and sculpted hat
Flying out of the Cape the next morning, Baloo is happy to be in the air again. He makes his pickup with no problem. Kit is unable to find a buyer so he's back in the hold awaiting the next stop. Karnage's right hand man, Mad Dog sees Kit at the next dock and follows him. He radios his boss and Karnage is on his way. What luck finding the thieving kid and that much sought after airplane. Still no luck getting rid of the jewel, Kit sneaks back aboard The Seaduck.
Head: POTC
Torso: VvV Leatherneck
Arms: VvV Action Attack Gung-Ho
Waist: Spytroops Beachhead
Legs: DTC Mutt
Mad Dog keeps a check on them and Karnage joins him in pursuit. Baloo thinks they are only after his cargo and tries to reason with them over the radio only to be answered with gunfire. He opens the throttle and heads straight home, knowing that Cape Suzette defenses will protect him. As they gain on him, once again Baloo must dump his cargo. As he hits the cargo door release, he is startled by a yelp and is surprised by Kit jumping in the cabin with him. With no time to explain, Kit tells Baloo to keep the doors open and he jumps out the rear with a tow rope in hand and a glider under his feet. He causes the pirates to slow down and cross up, shooting some of their own men. As they near Cape Suzette the pirates back off.
Head: Star Wars
Torso: 25th Crimson Guard
Arms: 25th Crimson Guard
Waist: 25th Crimson Guard
Legs: Spytroops CLAWS Commander and Spytroops Recondo with sculpted boot cuffs.
There is more to the story but this introduces my customs right now.
