Moebius Models 1/87 The Munsters - The House At 1313 Mockingbird Lane Kit First Look

By Aaron Thomas, Front Range Auto Modelers (FRAM)

First Look

The Munsters TV series debuted in 1964. The series stared Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster and Yvonne De Carlo as Lily Munster. The series aired in black and white on CBS from September 1964 to May 1966 for 70 episodes. The series cancelled after ratings dropped due to the premier of  "Batman" which was shot in color.

The Munsters multi-level Victorian house had the fictional address of 1313 Mockingbird Lane. No town was ever specified, but was referred to, at times as being outside Los Angeles. The house was built in 1946 for the movie "So Goes My Love". Until production in 1964, the house could be seen in many different shows, such as "Leave It To Beaver".  It was also used on other TV shows, such as "Coach", and "Desperate Housewives".

The first thing that you will notice, when you but down your hard earned money for this kit, is the extremely cool box art.  Printed in black and green with a very eerie artist's rendering of the house, it is sure to attract modelers of all interests, young and old. 

Upon opening the box, you will notice plastic and lots of it!  Seven sprues to be exact.  The sprues are molded in gray. There is also a sheet of what could be the coolest windows ever produced for a scale model.  They are not only transparent, but are printed with such things as curtains of various colors and candles. Now would also be the time to decide on added details, such as lights, or maybe in a diorama setting. With the final model being hollow, the possibilities are endless.

Before you begin assembly, this would also be the time that you would decide how to paint it.  On the back page of the instructions is a chart for suggested paint colors.  Keep in mind that these are only suggestions, as the original show was shot in black and white.  Exact colors are open for interpretation, so use your imagination.

Assembly begins with the foundation, and builds up from there. As you move through the different steps, it should be noted to use the foundation as a guide to make sure everything is square. All of the sub-assemblies connect to one another, so with everything nice and straight, it will be worth it when you are finished. While I haven't built the whole model yet, I did test fit several pieces, and found no problems. 

What you have here is one of the coolest model kits released in recent times!
With a few added details, you will certainly have a new centerpiece in your collection. I can't wait to build mine! Great job, Moebius!

My sincere thanks to Moebius Models for this review sample!