Beware the (Ral Partha) Jabberwock, my son!

Jabberwocky is of course a nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll that appears in his 1871 novel ‘Through the Looking-Glass’. More importantly though is Sir John Tenniel’s original illustration that appeared in Carroll’s novel.

The two Jabberwock sculpts made by Ral Partha and Citadel in the 80s (the ‘rearing up’ Ral Partha sculpt and the ‘walking on all fours’ version by Citadel) faithfully follow Tenniel’s drawing in pretty much every detail except the vest. I suspect the Jabberwock made it into early Fantasy RPGs/Wargaming entirely due to this picture. Had the Bandersnatch or Jubjub bird been illustrated by Tenniel in such a manner maybe they would have made it into miniature form too.

The Citadel version is less dynamic than the Ral Partha sculpt but it still has charm. It’s been OOP for a few years now but you can still find used ones on eBay occasionally, usually for sensible prices…