Figure Stuffing (1 Viewer)

[red devil]

What an interestng thread this is starting to be now! We start off talking about K&C bumping up figures in vehicle sets to inflate the price and it leads onto the the poor performance of the Italian Army in the desert plus we also get a course in international cuisine!
However my only contribution to this will be that quite often in the desert, the Italian AT gun crews and tank crews fought to the death with very inadequate resources against allied armour particularly the Folgore Parachute Battalion who were a match for any allied soldier in the field. Nobody could ever question their valour or bravery. For those who did not want to fight - who can blame them? Have you seen Italian women - personally they are a lot better looking than some of the grimmers (the Sharon's and Tracies) I see on the streets of Britain these days falling out of the pub at 11pm! (Present company wives and girlfriends excused of course) If I had been in the Italian army I personally would have much more preferred to have been at home in the arms of one of those lovely ladies than fighting 'Il Duce's' private little war.
I do not think OZ meant any harm by his comment and I actually thought it was quite funny - in the UK we live and die by this sense of humour but in international circles it sometimes takes a bit of getting used to!
Thinking back in history I seem to remember that 120,000 British and Australian troops surrendered to a force one third their size at Singapore in 1942. Of course they were commanded by that idiot Percival which did not help matters but there would be no question about us questioning our boys bravery there? History is so often written by the winners
So lets hear it for the Italians - they did their bit and lets not forget they came and fought for us as well and let bygones be bygones!

 

[red devil]

'Nuff said.

yes but thats scottish cooking for you mate - nothing to do with us English!

 

[Wraith]

Ah, the Scottish may have slapped the batter on and dunked it in a boiling vat of lard, but the Mars Bars itself is pure English cuisine at it's best.

 

[red devil]

What an interestng thread this is starting to be now! We start off talking about K&C bumping up figures in vehicle sets to inflate the price and it leads onto the the poor performance of the Italian Army in the desert plus we also get a course in international cuisine!
However my only contribution to this will be that quite often in the desert, the Italian AT gun crews and tank crews fought to the death with very inadequate resources against allied armour particularly the Folgore Parachute Battalion who were a match for any allied soldier in the field. Nobody could ever question their valour or bravery. For those who did not want to fight - who can blame them? Have you seen Italian women - personally they are a lot better looking than some of the grimmers (the Sharon's and Tracies) I see on the streets of Britain these days falling out of the pub at 11pm! (Present company wives and girlfriends excused of course) If I had been in the Italian army I personally would have much more preferred to have been at home in the arms of one of those lovely ladies than fighting 'Il Duce's' private little war.
I do not think OZ meant any harm by his comment and I actually thought it was quite funny - in the UK we live and die by this sense of humour but in international circles it sometimes takes a bit of getting used to!
Thinking back in history I seem to remember that 120,000 British and Australian troops surrendered to a force one third their size at Singapore in 1942. Of course they were commanded by that idiot Percival which did not help matters but there would be no question about us questioning our boys bravery there? History is so often written by the winners
So lets hear it for the Italians - they did their bit and lets not forget they came and fought for us as well and let bygones be bygones!

And I forgot to say I am not even half or quarter or whatever Italian so no bias on my behalf!

 

[panda1gen]

Big Gav, I actually agree with you that the vehicle sets are better value and your comments bring another side to the discussion. However I suspect most of us would prefer figures with vehicles that are only relevant to the vehicle such as the normal crew. And even then I'd prefer say only three tank crew even if the usual was five as that would make the set a bit crowded and also increase the price where my main interest would be the tank.

That said I also collect the odd figure set such as the German Foot Patrol to enhance my dios. However I would much prefer to select the figures myself rather than have to suffer random figures, signs etc that Andy has included with a vehicle set. However I do agree that extras such as a camp fire and say four or five crew are attractive and suitable for limited editions such as the Winter Tiger set. But for the average vehicle/tank set I suggest two or three appropriate figures are all most collectors need.

As for the Panzer II set with Italian figures. I recall saying when the set was issued that the inclusion of the Italian figures are likely to discourage most collectors. No offense to our Italian members, but I just can't see where they would fit into my dio plan vision. It's well known that the less popular figure sets such as Italians, Indians, Russians, Australians (sad but true) don't sell as well as the Germans and US sets so why not make them in Limited Editions to attract more interest.

Oz - I always seem to agree with you on most things, but I have to say the Italian patrol, complete with sunglasses is one of my favourites and I just throw them in any old desert scene.

I haven't had time to get the blackshirts out properly yet, but they also looked pretty cool. There were far more Italians than Germans fought in the desert so I am happy personally.

I also agree with the other comments that - as described for example in my favourite Barrie Pitt book on the desert - Crucible of War - the Italians did fight very well and hard when properly lead, especially their artillery and paratroops.

I still think the sets Andy makes are very good value, and beter and better quality, but I have also been saying for well over a year that my purse hurts with the rate of new stuff! I cannot keep up. Will competition prove good for the market? (K&C, HB, NMA....)

 

[Capitolron]

Ah, the Scottish may have slapped the batter on and dunked it in a boiling vat of lard, but the Mars Bars itself is pure English cuisine at it's best.

MARS BARS - English?



It was created and made by Americans - it was the first successful American Invasion of England !!

Our Candy - Youre Pounds................

 

[panda1gen]

MARS BARS - English?



It was created and made by Americans - it was the first successful American Invasion of England !!

Our Candy - Youre Pounds................

I used to work at the Slough plant that made them - Ron, you are right - is it called a Milky Way in the US?

 

[OldCelt]

Ah, the Scottish may have slapped the batter on and dunked it in a boiling vat of lard, but the Mars Bars itself is pure English cuisine at it's best.

OH!! Now were slaming Scottish foods.
HAGIS TATTIES AND NEEPS RULE! Don't knock it 'til you've tried it!
A nice fat salmon with onions and chips! UM UM UM!!
O.C.

P.S. What was the original subject of this thread?

 

[Wraith]

MARS BARS - English?



It was created and made by Americans - it was the first successful American Invasion of England !!

Our Candy - Youre Pounds................

Aaaaaaggggghhhh!!!!!
Can we not even lay claim to a candy bar?
Well, at least our fine English cuisine includes Big Macs and....oh, hang on....

Original thread response: I'm fine with a few figures as long as they're relevant to the vehicle, like the two AK figures with the AK24 set, or even a few more if they make up a particular scene such as the Winter Tiger or General ****** figures with the SL Sherman.

Simon

 

[Louis Badolato]

Gentlemen,

In defense of food in Great Britain, the second best meal I ever had was in a restaurant called "Scotts" in London. Venison to die for. The best meal I ever had was in Prague in the Czech republic. Stag medalions. They were killer.

However, as a general rule Italian, French and Chinese cuisine are my favorites, along with good old fashioned barbeque from the Southern U.S.A.

 

[Capitolron]

Simon

I couldn't help myself !

OK OK

Back to the subject of the thread....

I agree with Simon - I like the figures in the AK 24 and they do add to the set - my problem is when we are just stacking figures in and out of the tank and on and on and on.......

I simply believe that you can have a quality product, with a good set arrangement and do it all for under $125.00 USD. IMO.

 

[ucla1967]

I know you yanks don't know much about other countries but you shouldn't include Australian cuisine in with other cultures, including the United Kingdom

If you had ever been to Australia you would soon discover that Australia has the most culturally diverse cuisine in the world, and some of the best chefs in the world are Aussies. Australia is also the fourth largest exporter of wine in the world, not bad for a country of only 20 million people

Here's an interesting link on American/Australian differences: http://www.aussieinamerica.com/Default.htm

You guys cut up your meals with the edge of your forks Didn't your mummies let you use knives

Now Oz, you shouldn't go making generalizations like that about us Yanks. Some of us indeed have lived in other countries and travelled widely in the world. Heck, I even tried to learn Spanish, French and German in high school and college. I can even speak some passable Italian only because the U.S. Govt sent me to five months of full-time Italian language training.

Culturally diverse cuisine says it all---Chinese, French, Italian, and Indian restaurants are probably very popular given the alternatives. Australian cuisine, per se, cannot be that good or we would have more than the pseudo Australian Outback Steakhouses here in the states. I have visited 48 of the 50 states and have never seen an Australian resturant. But I guarantee when I do visit your wonderful country (and I do mean that sincerely) I will try some genuine Australian cuisine.

 

[OzDigger]

Now Oz, you shouldn't go making generalizations like that about us Yanks. Some of us indeed have lived in other countries and travelled widely in the world. Heck, I even tried to learn Spanish, French and German in high school and college. I can even speak some passable Italian only because the U.S. Govt sent me to five months of full-time Italian language training.

Culturally diverse cuisine says it all---Chinese, French, Italian, and Indian restaurants are probably very popular given the alternatives. Australian cuisine, per se, cannot be that good or we would have more than the pseudo Australian Outback Steakhouses here in the states. I have visited 48 of the 50 states and have never seen an Australian resturant. But I guarantee when I do visit your wonderful country (and I do mean that sincerely) I will try some genuine Australian cuisine.

Hi Mike, I thought it was you that started the generalizations Btw, I'm not upset about this issue, it's just our sarcastic style of humor, something from the Brits that we still hold onto I guess

Now about those "Australian" Outback restaurants you have in the US. On another forum a few months ago I was speaking to a guy from Maine and he told me about them. And after googling their menu I soon discovered they were complete BS and nothing to do with Australian cuisine. Which the guy was relieved to hear as I think he was concerned for me

Therefore, please don't get the impression that the "Outback" restaurant franchise is an accurate reflection of Australian cuisine. For example I noted they had an Atlantic Salmon dish on the menu and those salmon are virtually unknown downunder considering the Atlantic Ocean is nowhere near Australia. In fact all the other dishes on the menu had nothing to do with Australian cuisine, except for the Aussie style names they had.

As for other any "Australian" restaurants you may one day come across your travels in the US. I suspect these will be similar to the tourist versions we have in Australia for people visiting from overseas which usually include Australian native ingredients such as Crocodile, Kangaroo etc. The fact is that very few Australians actually eat any dishes that include our native flora and fauna. We much prefer beef, lamb, pork, chicken and fish dishes that most of the people in the Western world eat.

What does the "average" Aussie eat? I guess that various as much as the average Aussie. I guess I'm as average as most Aussies, so I'll list what I like to eat. But I'll do that on a new and separate thread so we don't confuse this one any further.

 

[Rob]

What an interestng thread this is starting to be now! We start off talking about K&C bumping up figures in vehicle sets to inflate the price and it leads onto the the poor performance of the Italian Army in the desert plus we also get a course in international cuisine!
However my only contribution to this will be that quite often in the desert, the Italian AT gun crews and tank crews fought to the death with very inadequate resources against allied armour particularly the Folgore Parachute Battalion who were a match for any allied soldier in the field. Nobody could ever question their valour or bravery. For those who did not want to fight - who can blame them? Have you seen Italian women - personally they are a lot better looking than some of the grimmers (the Sharon's and Tracies) I see on the streets of Britain these days falling out of the pub at 11pm! (Present company wives and girlfriends excused of course) If I had been in the Italian army I personally would have much more preferred to have been at home in the arms of one of those lovely ladies than fighting 'Il Duce's' private little war.
I do not think OZ meant any harm by his comment and I actually thought it was quite funny - in the UK we live and die by this sense of humour but in international circles it sometimes takes a bit of getting used to!
Thinking back in history I seem to remember that 120,000 British and Australian troops surrendered to a force one third their size at Singapore in 1942. Of course they were commanded by that idiot Percival which did not help matters but there would be no question about us questioning our boys bravery there? History is so often written by the winners
So lets hear it for the Italians - they did their bit and lets not forget they came and fought for us as well and let bygones be bygones!

Not sure about that.Of course we let bygones be bygones but at the same time they were the enemy lets not forget that.They joined the most evil regime in History and clearly switched sides when things were going badly for them and the end was in sight.Whilst it is so important to move on and mend bridges it is also important not to try and dress up History or view it through rose tinted glasses,facts are facts.

Rob

 

[OzDigger]

Thinking back in history I seem to remember that 120,000 British and Australian troops surrendered to a force one third their size at Singapore in 1942. Of course they were commanded by that idiot Percival which did not help matters but there would be no question about us questioning our boys bravery there? History is so often written by the winners

There were about 15,000 Aussies taken prisoner. For the record the surrender was more to save impact on the large civilian population in Singapore rather than any lack of bravery.

 

[Big Gav]

I think i'll just pretend that I never mentioned the the whole spoon thing. I forgot how international these forums are. But the food debate has been funny.

 

[Rob]

Yeah what were you thinking Gav!.Good job you didn't mention the knife and fork too.You've started an international incident over where's the best place to eat Pasta and should we eat barbecued Mars Bars!

Rob

 

[Eazy]

What are you having for tea tonight Rob?

 

[Rob]

Well i'm making my darling wife a chicken casserole and then i will take the serving spoon and capture all the remaining Japenese troops hiding in the Islands of the Pacific!

How about you mate?.How about a deep fried Flake!

Rob

 

[Capitolron]

This Thread is totally out of control !!