My minions rock...

I have to admit that I really do love my minions. I get sent all kinds of stuff, mostly photos or emails letting me know that the Army is in good hands and our cause is spreading.

Recently additions to the minion regiment are BofstaOne and HoflerOne, yes they are code names to protect their diabolical innocence. We've been having a bit of a time together as I infiltrated their suburb, house and even their school... I kid you not. I think that teachers reading the HiiRagi manifesto as part of their curriculum should be enforced. It sounds kind of creepy because it is, however all's well, that ends well and two of our Occupational Forces have been enlisted in a rad household where our cause reign supreme. Here is the photographic evidence:

Battling the fearsome beast a.k.a Wasabi the miniature dachshund.

The beast (a.k.a Wasabi) subdued.

Ah, it makes me happy...

So...where have you been? A confession

I have a confession to make. Well, it's not really a confession, it's more a statement. I have a real dislike for social media, especially Facebook. I don't want to know your details, or how you just got up, or that you really want a cup of tea, OR see only the greatest bit's of your life. I like my friends to be real, to be crap on days they feel crap or happy on the days they feel happy. For a great blog post on social media read this. The Middle Finger project is awesome. I also like Eddie Colla's post.

Now, what is the point of all of this? Ah, back to the 'confession'... I joined Instagram. That's it, that's all. Nothing for some, huge for me but there you go. It's kinda fun to be honest, especially when you follow artists. I also like the fact that it's images, none of the crap of the others medias. You can see us here at HiiRagiHQ, or not. But that's where I've been. I've always had trouble balancing things....

Five Favourite: Vintage War Images

This is probably a very obvious statement to make but I love vintage war images. Even the worse of the worse images because they evoke emotion in me. In a time when we are bombarded with imagery and advertising without even realising it or recognising the propaganda being forced down our throats as soon as we wake up until we go to bed (see Banksy's rant about that here, it's pretty good), vintage war images still have the power to make me stop and consider.

Often all I can say is F#@k, imagining going through that, or living that, or even just seeing that in real life. The horror of war is evident. Despite this there are those war images that show how resilient people can be, the hope that never fades and that goodness can be found in the most arduous of conditions. And sometimes evil has to be done in order to do good (see The Fog of War [thanks 'Jon']).

Here are some of my current favourites:

I think I may have seem some stoners from my youth doing a very similar thing to be honest...

You can never have too much ammo, that's what I always tell the army.

This is for those minions who complain about work conditions.

And one for the ladies....

For some reason, these two guys made me think about the Recon Unit and all their skulking, maybe a future drawing?!

Guys! How to Accessorise your HiiRagi Tees

Now, even though I am a military organisation where practicality rules supreme, leaving little to no time for frivolity or surplus useless stuff, I do like to do a bit of accessorising. Rephotographing the guys tees recently (for use on the website soon) gave myself and one of my favourite minions (let's call him "Tim" in order to protect his identity) an opportunity to have a play around with all the ever so useful props that I have collected and continue to collect. So we came up with how to accessorise HiiRagi tees.

OK. First up in Look 1 we have the ever classic Resistance is Futile Tee in Charocal. "Tim" has chosen to mix this look up with his ALICE webbing system. Note how the army green compliments the charcoal. The softness of the t-shirt contrasts with the hardness of the harness...stylish stuff "Tim".

Look 2 sees "Tim" channel a bit of Bear Grylls if you ask me. Goggles make any outfit look cool and these bronze 'steampunk' style combined with the Middle Eastern Desert Army Scarf say 'hot'. Worn with the green HiiRagi Logo tee and face camouflage, he makes a dashing contribution to the HiiRagi cause.

Onto Look 3 and in a similar vein to Look 2, we have the goggles and scarf. This look is more of a green on green ensemble and shows real subtlety for when minions need to skim under the radar , yet be stylish at the same time. Just because you are under pressure doesn't mean you don't have time to make an effort with your uniform...

Tanks is the theme for Look 4 and nothing says "Don't mess with me!" more than the HiiRagi Tank tee. Double the fear by having an actual tank and look at people tremble! Diabolical.

And finally, Look 5. The classic Gas Mask. Wear it with a scarf (as "Tim" has here) or just wear it on its own, it is truly making itself THE HiiRagi accessory to wear. Team it with any HiiRagi Tee, here "Tim" has chosen the Recon Unit Tee in grey marle.

So there you have it guys, look at how easy it is to dress up your HiiRagi tee and still look manly, diabolical and "mean business". Dirt is also a good one, I reckon. And maybe just a bit of blood?! I'm always open to suggestions...

Occupational Force

I've been making heaps of toys lately so I have them in numbers that I have never had before which is pretty exciting as it means I will have enough to start doing the photos that I have been crapping on about for ages to anyone who will listen to me. In the meantime I took a couple of shots of the Occupational Force in formation for the fun of it...

This is my pathetic take on the Star Wars film poster that showed Annakin Skywalker with the shadow of Darth Vader (awesome poster, shame about the film...)

And then there were HEAPS!!!!

Once again, adopting the "cute" disguise, Occupational Force peaks out. Minutes later he had maimed and destroyed a horde of HiiRagi disbelievers with his bare hands....

...unfortunately I can't post those images....

Viva le HiiRagi! Or HiiRagi invades France?

It would seem that everyone else is taking photos of HiiRagi at the moment rather than me (who should be!). My favourite pirate Captain Blueberry set sail back to France for a couple of weeks, but being the excellent minion she is, has taken a smaller member of the army with her to infiltrate the French! Bwahhh Ha hahaha haaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! or should that be Arg?!







Aw, he's a pretty cute Recon Unit, I must say. And can I say that I am LOVING the Star Wars angle....what a collection. I also realise that these images could have been taken anywhere and that she may not actually be in France. Yes, HiiRagi minions are THAT diabolical.

HiiRagi badge spotted on tropical island

One of the great things about Salamanca can be the people (and minions) that you meet (and convert). The following images are from an awesome Austrian guy I met and forced to take a badge with him, which he then took to Bali (unfortunately he resisted taking me as well). How nice does it look there?!





Some badges have all the luck....

Scoping scoping scoping training spots....

Where have I been?! I've been everywhere, man! (Sorry, that's a cheap shot and I know it). Lately the army and I have been heading beyond the safety of HQ and exploring new terrain. We woke up in this spot and I just had to share it with you.





How nice is that?! Even the most hardened World Domination Specialist and All-Mighty Uber-Leader of an unstoppable Robot Army (it's ok, I will stop there) has to take a moment to appreciate the beauty and romance of this spot (just don't tell anyone I said that). It's Lake King William in Central Tasmania if you're wondering and if you head up there, you may just see us running amok in the wilderness. Or maybe you won't, we're pretty good at hiding, I bet you can't see any robots in either image.



Oh and here is a token Wombat shot. I mean with a camera, not a gun. I want one as a pet but then I remember Fatso from A Country Practice and then I don't. Yep, how deep can one person go?

RU1028 Reporting

RU1028 went out into the world a little while ago, and he's certainly making quite an impression. Whilst awaiting my orders, he's been using...shall we say... a bit of initiative...I recently received this communication from him:

And this is why we will take over the WORLD.

Occupational Force out and about with Luca

I had these great images sent to me by Luca, another World Domination Specialist. He is currently waiting for me to get it together to make some real vehicles for the Army. All in good time. Aren't these images great though?!

Thanks Luca!

Getting Ready for War

I found this image as part of an article of war propaganda in my great History of WWII series.  I just reminds me of knitting and old fashion catalogues, only thing is this image probably precedes them...

Now that's A LOT of bullets to carry...doesn't he look happy?

Parachutes

I recently found a whole box full of WWII Historical magazines (so many I don't think I'm going to have to buy anything else for a long long time).  One thing I noticed going through is the beautiful photographs, black and white, hand-coloured and colour.  I'm currently a bit obsessed with parachuting so I thought I'd share a few with you.

I just love them, particularly the second image with the blimp, such delicate colours!  Actually I love them all.