We all know that buildings don't always turn out like the renderings. Last-minute changes and real-life materials can all cause discrepancies between the vision and reality of a project. In our weekly Flash Forward Friday feature, we take a look at how different projects stack up.

An artist's illustration shows the tower rising high above the cityscape, image via Carlos Zapata Studio

At the time of its completion in 2010, the Bitexco Financial Tower was the tallest building in Vietnam. It has since slipped to third place according to recognized skyscraper authority CTBUH, but remains the tallest building in Ho Chi Minh City. When it was proposed in 2005, the 68-storey tower was presented as one of the country's most ambitious construction projects. Designed by Carlos Zapata Studio for Bitexco Group, it now holds office and retail space within a curvilinear glass envelope adorned with a helipad jutting out from the 55th level. 

Another rendering portrays a greener tint to the tower, image via Carlos Zapata Studio

Designed to embody the energy and aspirations of the country's people, and constructed during a time of record growth for the national economy, the building anchors itself to the heart of Ho Chi Minh City's business and entertainment district. Renderings showed the organic massing of the skyscraper, drawing inspiration from the Lotus, Vietnam's national flower and a symbol of purity, commitment, and optimism.

A rendering of the Bitexco Financial Tower prior to construction, image via Carlos Zapata Studio

But while the general sculptural quality of the tower stayed the same, the colour palette of the building changed from illustration to illustration. Some renderings showed the development cast in a green tint, while others, which turned out to be more representative of the finished product, portrayed a blue shade. The earlier rendering also showed a more magnified lip compared to the final rendering, which employed a straighter diagonal cut along the lower facade.

The completed Bitexco Financial Tower, image by Flickr user Tri Nguyen via Creative Commons

While the abundance of contemporary office space speaks to the project's corporate functions, an observation area, cafe, and restaurant straddling the 49th and 50th floors recall the building's public gestures. These contributions to the city fabric are further heightened at the base of the tower, as a six-storey retail podium enhances the district's commercial portfolio.

The fictional Stark Tower, image via Marvel

An instance of art imitating life, the fictional Stark Tower — popularized in numerous Marvel superhero films since 2012 — bears some uncanny similarities to the 264-metre-tall landmark, the most obvious being the cantilevered helipad. 

The skyscraper has a commanding presence from the streets, image by Flickr user Charles Van den Broek via Creative Commons