I'm gonna start this same discussion with you good people here about any thoughts on WW2 Pacific figures. K & C bailed out and so far so has Conte. I wish somebody would do some WW2 Pacific figures, American, British, NZ, Australian and Japanese figures. It would be such a new direction for collectors and manufacturers. HBO is coming out with their "Band of Brothers - Pacific Theater" mini-series sometime this year or next. It would be great timing. Any thoughts on this?
WW2 Marines - Pacific (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter kingtoot
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binder001
Command Sergeant Major
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This has been looked at before. For whatever reason the Pacific Theater and nearby areas just doesn't get people to reach into their wallets. Too bad, the material, the different Allies, different forces, etc all cry out for modeling or collecting. In the short term, there are decent figures in plastic. Airfix multipose Marines and Japanese are really FINE figures. The soft plastic Airfix aren't bad either. There have been some metal, unpainted, figures by Valiant etc. Many of the weapons were the same as in Europe, and the Pacific had some unique adaptations. Otherwise you have the old K&C Iwo Jima series, the later Iwo Jima series and the Marines from Figarti.
Need those Airfix fellow painted - I'll make you a deal. Then we can talk about the 1/35th scale PT boat from Italeri!
Gary
Need those Airfix fellow painted - I'll make you a deal. Then we can talk about the 1/35th scale PT boat from Italeri!
Gary
Mister Dave
Command Sergeant Major
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If nothing else, you know that at least one major player is going to do some more with this subject once that HBO series airs next year.
Basil Duke
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A possible explanation for the Pacific Theatre's (relative) lack of commercial appeal: the Japanese lacked cool armour.
The great variety of German tanks, self-propelled guns, half-tracks, etc. really "makes" the hobby for me. As vicious and vile as the Huns were, they produced excellent AFV - and these translate into exceptionally intriguing toys. Panthers, Marders, Tigers, King Tigers, Mark IVs, Mark IIIs, Jagdpanthers, Jagdtigers, Hetzers, Flakpanzers ... take your pick.
And what did Japan offer? Not much - crap tankettes and mountain howitzers that made Poland's armored corps look like world-beaters. When a modern company begins to develop product plans, based closely on historical events, they're really basically restricted to a whole bunch of mad dog Jap infantry squirreled away in caves and bunkers.
And I don't think that's all that sexy, from the standpoint of appeal. Sure, we all appreciated the occasional Marx, Airfix and Britain's banzai foot soldier attack across the sandbox as kids, but these were generally turned away quickly and with great slaughter to the attackers.
They needed tanks back then and they need them now - and that just ain't going to happen.
The great variety of German tanks, self-propelled guns, half-tracks, etc. really "makes" the hobby for me. As vicious and vile as the Huns were, they produced excellent AFV - and these translate into exceptionally intriguing toys. Panthers, Marders, Tigers, King Tigers, Mark IVs, Mark IIIs, Jagdpanthers, Jagdtigers, Hetzers, Flakpanzers ... take your pick.
And what did Japan offer? Not much - crap tankettes and mountain howitzers that made Poland's armored corps look like world-beaters. When a modern company begins to develop product plans, based closely on historical events, they're really basically restricted to a whole bunch of mad dog Jap infantry squirreled away in caves and bunkers.
And I don't think that's all that sexy, from the standpoint of appeal. Sure, we all appreciated the occasional Marx, Airfix and Britain's banzai foot soldier attack across the sandbox as kids, but these were generally turned away quickly and with great slaughter to the attackers.
They needed tanks back then and they need them now - and that just ain't going to happen.
What makes the Pacific theater so appealing to me is the fact that it was a bare knuckles fight by soldiers with just the shirt on their back with their personal weaponry. I would rather more figures than vehicles, and supporting terrain. You could model almost any battle in the Pacific with just figures and terrain and a few vehicles. Japanese, Americans, Australians, Brits, Filipino guerillas, and so on...