1/72 Multiverse

Scooby Doo is a cartoon that has been around for the last 50 years, with the latest installment just released earlier last month. 

Concept art by Greg Taylor

I just received an order from Elhiem that included the figures from their new fantasy line.

猫 シ Corp. : NEWS AT 11

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

– Amendment I to the United States Constitution

Denigrating the news industry has been a popular pastime in many quarters, but I still have the utmost respect for the journalism profession (even if specific media people and news outlets make me shake my head on a regular basis).

I have my own views on opinion disguised as news, the 24-hour news cycle, national media outlets (including social media), their c-level overlords, and how they gain access to the news they report to us, but I won't bore you with them.

Instead, if you like, you can watch a clip from the Patriot Act which is more entertaining (if you're not using headphones be warned that Hasan has a bit of a potty-mouth).


Anyway, on to more pertinent issues. In the 1/72 world, there are four sets of modern news crews that I own and am aware of.

The first figures are from the News Crew set from MJ Figures (not to be confused with MJ Miniatures).


There are a female reporter, photographer, and security contractor in the set as well, but I seem to have misplaced them somewhere.

The next three sets are from Elhiem, and they're pretty much the same figures in different outfits.

The first pair are the Afghan/Al Jez TV crew (AFC03), then the TV crew in casual shirt and trousers (OBJ10), and finally the TV crew in body armour (OBJ11).


The Afghan news guys are dressed in Pashtun clothing for some reason, but whatever. Most Middle Eastern news crews I've seen in war zones look more like the TV crew in body armor, and their regular TV news people also wear modern dress.

Several news vans are also available for your 1/72 reporters.

The first van is a 1/73 Mercedes TV News Truck by Matchbox. The one I have is in Sky News livery.



The camera can be raised out of the truck, but only rotates when it is in the lowered position. The satellite antenna isn't entirely convincing, but it can rotate in either the raised or lowered position.

The next two vans are Hot Wheels Custom '77 Dodge Vans similar to the one I wrote about in my van post. I bought these in particular because they represent the local So Cal region.


The Action News 68 El Segundo van is a reference to the year that the first Hot Wheels car was released, and the city where Mattel is headquartered. It has a clear roof which I'm guessing is supposed to showcase the interior of the van.


The KVWN 4 San Diego van is from the movie Anchorman. A 70s style satellite dish antenna is mounted on the roof.


Last is an overhead comparison of the three different roof styles for the Hot Wheels '77 Dodge Vans along with the Matchbox van.

SWAT units were first implemented by LAPD in 1968 to perform police operations that required specialized training. Since then, they have been introduced to the police departments of most major US cities.

In the 1/72 world, modern SWAT officers are produced by Elhiem. I purchased the figures with some vague notions of using them for some sort of modern gaming, but mainly because I thought they would be easy to paint.


While the proportions are good, I thought the figures were all too short. They're not quite 1/76, but they weren't big enough for 1/72 either. I know that most if not all police departments have done away with minimum height requirements, but I think that big, brawny dudes are still preferred as recruits. Again, I had to break out the pliers and J-B Weld to adjust their size.

The only other nitpick I have with these figures is their lack of tactical knee pads, although maybe they were modeled after FBI SWAT teams, which do not seem to always wear them.

And finally, to transport the SWAT team to their destination is a Matchbox SWAT van (MB60/MB787).


The Matchbox Express Delivery van is putatively 1/70 scale, and it seems to resemble a Chevrolet step van. It is equipped with a rear overhead door instead of swinging doors. The van would probably be more appropriate with an older style of SWAT team (e.g. from the 70's TV show), but I think it's fine for gaming purposes.

The Thing, and Ice Station Zebra are two films that have left a lasting impression on me. The former is on my personal top 5 list of horror movies, while the later is a vague, but resonant memory from my childhood.


In The Thing, you have alien horrors, flamethrowers, and Kurt Russell. In Ice Station Zebra you have nuclear subs, Russian paratroopers, and Jim Brown. In both films, you have suspicion and paranoia running rampant in a frozen environment, as members of an all male cast are threatened by an enemy hidden in in their midst. Sounds like all the ingredients for a winning recipe in gaming to me.


With regards to 1/72 figures specifically wearing clothing appropriate for Arctic or Antarctic conditions, the only choice is Elhiem. I'm pretty sure no other manufacturer makes figures wearing fur hooded parkas (unless you count Nikolai eskimos).

The first picture is of Cold War US in Arctic Gear (ART01), and the figures look like they come straight out of Ice Station Zebra.


The second picure is of First Special Service Force figures in ski parkas. The first figure on the left is a limited teaser figure (FSSF-T) that is a bit shorter than the others. The figure is armed with a Johnson LMG. The next three figures are from the FSSF NCOs and LMG set (FSSF01), while the last four are from the FSSF Riflemen set (FSSF02).


All of the figures are nicely proportioned, though I feel that they should ideally be 1-2mm taller. Unfortunately there are no figures armed with flamethrowers.

The first thing I did was to increase the height of the figures using my patented compression method, and then built up the compressed area with J-B Weld. There was one casualty with the FSSF teaser figure which seemed to be cast from a very brittle metal that snapped under pressure.

"We've gotta burn the rest of him."

I painted the FSSF figures mostly with white or ivory parkas, with a couple in faded olive drab. Trousers, equipment, and webbing were painted in various shades of green.

"I dunno what the hell's in there, but it's weird and pissed off, whatever it is."

For the Cold War US figures, olive, blue, and orange uniforms were considered as options, but I felt it was better to go with the more generic white. The equipment covers and webbing was painted a light gray color, though I've only really seen the Arctic canvas cover used for canteens.

Tekeli-li!

Now all we need are some ushanka-wearing Russian paras in winter gear.


Sorry... couldn't resist...

MBM Models carries a series of figures based on illustrations from the Osprey Airwar/Aircam series. I'm not really sure who the actual manufacturer is, and the product line is just listed as Aircam, though they arrived in SHQ baggies. The sculpting is a bit soft, but the figures are decent, and good representations of the illustrations from the book (though some are more faithful to the original art than others).

The first set of figures is the Luftwaffe Night Fighter Air and Ground Crew (AIR7209), based on Luftwaffe Night Fighter Units 1939-45 (Airwar/Aircam 9). It consists of (left to right) a Luftnachrichten-Helferinnen Führerin, Hitlerjugend Flakhelfer, and aircrew Leutnant.


The second set of figures is the USAAF Fighter Air and Ground Crew, MTO (AIR7212), based on USAAF Fighter Units MTO 1942-45 (Airwar/Aircam 12). It consists of (left to right) a WAC Private, aircrew 1st Lieutenant, and 15th AF Captain.


The final set of figures is the Japanese Carrier Groups set (AIR7221), based on Japanese Carrier Groups, 1941-45 (Airwar/Aircam 21). It consists of (left to right) a Junior Lieutenant in winter flying suit, Petty Officer 1st Class in summer flying suit, and Petty Officer 3rd Class in summer fatigues.


The figures are a bit pricey, and some of them seem to be a bit on the overly tall side (e.g., the Helferinnen and the Japanese), but I'm guessing they're probably intended more for use alongside scale aircraft, rather than with other figures.

Finally, I did a group shot of the Helferinnen with all of the German female auxiliaries that I own. Not surprisingly, there are more WWII German female auxiliaries than 1/72 females from any other nation of this time period. Elhiem figures even makes a zombie version of one.


From left to right are an Odemars figure from Operation Antarctica - Haunebu (CREA04), three Odemars figures from The Last Defenders of Berlin set (PF17), a figure from the Orion Volkssturm set (72017), a figure from the LW(?) Leaders of the Second World War set, a metal Luftwaffe Female Auxiliary (Elhiem LUFT02), and the Aircam Helferinnen.

Even before the 1954 movie Creature from the Black Lagoon, Fishmen have been macking on human women. H.P. Lovecraft's Deep Ones are probably one of the earliest influences on the development of Fishmen in horror, and also the most successful in making inter-species relationships work.

In the miniature world, there are many types of Fishmen that can be used as Deep Ones. A sampling of Fishmen in 25mm is shown in the images below. The first figure is a Deep One from the Grenadier Creatures boxed set (6502) for Call of Cthulhu, which has always been a favorite of mine. Next are three Fishmen from the Black Tree Design Fantasy Armies line (M150), and at the end is a Sahuagin from the Grenadier Denizens of the Swamp boxed set (2010).



The Grenadier Deep One is broad and bulky, but I don't think it would be too out of place with 1/72 figures. The BTD Fishmen are somewhat different in appearance to the Grenadier figure, and larger, so could be used as more venerable Deep Ones. Of note is that it took over 6 months for the BTD figures to arrive (September 2009 to March 2010), so buyer beware.

The next image is of two 20mm Fishmen Warriors from Elhiem Figures (P17). These figures are very compatible with 1/72 figures, and are actually very similar in build and appearance to the BTD Fishmen. Hopefully Elhiem will expand this particular range of figures.



Elhiem also produces a Lesser Fishman, that is less fish-like in appearance, and which can be viewed at their website.

Last but not least, are 10mm Fishmen from Pendraken. These figures were samples that were kindly sent to me by David Pengilley at Pendraken Miniatures. The Pendraken Fishmen are not as menacing as the larger Fishmen, and are pretty much normal fish with arms and legs, but in some ways that makes them somewhat more disturbing. Shown below are the Fishman with trident (FF3), Fishman gun with crew (FF12), Fishman with net (FF2), and Fishman with harpoon (FF4).


These Fishmen are very large for 10mm, and may work better as 15mm Fishmen. I plan on using them as a servitor race for the Deep Ones.

A comparison of 10mm, 20mm, and 25mm Fishmen.

The chemical suit and gas mask are an indispensable part of the post-apocalyptic wardrobe, designed to provide protection against contamination by radioactive, biological or chemical substances which would otherwise cause sickness, death, or turning into a zombie.

There are not a large number of gas mask wearing figures in 1/72, but I've assembled a small group of compatible figures for this blog entry.

First up are the Elhiem Soviet NBC troops. The first figure carrying the RPG is wearing the OZK chemical suit, but the others are dressed in what appears to be the L1 chemical protection suit. I painted some of the troops in mint green as shown on the Elhiem website, but after doing a little research, I could only find images of the OZK suit in that color. All the images of L1 suits showed that they are gray. Though there was mention of green L1 suits, what type of green was unclear since I could find no definitive pictures. The figures are very nice, but being 20mm miniatures they are a bit on the short side. However, it's not something that will really be noticed on the tabletop.


Next is a general comparison of gas masked figures. The first figure is Rose from Hasslefree Miniatures (HFA039J). She is intended as a 28mm grade school kid, but passes easily for a 1/72 middle school kid. She wears a school blazer and skirt with her gas mask, though it's unclear why she has the gas mask in the first place. The next pair are two figures from the NATO Pilots and Ground Crew set (ESCI 243), followed by two figures from the NATO Ground Crew set (Airfix 01758). One of the Elhiem figures is next, and last is a 1/76 figure from the much maligned (and rightfully so) German Infantry with Gasmasks set (Fujimi 76028). The plastic figure sets have all been reviewed at PSR.


Some interesting pictures of people in gas masks during the cold war and in general, can be found at Dark Roasted Blend.

For Halloween, I decided to cover some of the typical creatures we associate with this celebration - witches, skeletons, werewolves, mummies, and vampires.

Witches

The first group of miniatures are 15mm witches from Chariot (MM01). There is one standing pose and two sitting poses with traditional pointy hats and long robes. The set comes with a shallow cauldron with separate legs. These miniatures are true 15mm figures, so will most likely be used as donors for future witchy projects.



Skeletons

Representing skeletons, we have the Skeleton Recruiting Party from GFI (25980006). This set consists of a number of miniatures from the old Minifigs Valley of the Four Winds line. Shown below is the Dead Cart (VFW42) and the Coffin, Plain with Skeleton (VFWM4).


The rest of the recruiting party consists of a Skeleton with Lantern (VFW120), a Skeleton Carrying Wine barrel (VFW118), and a Skeleton Carrying Basket of Skulls (VFW119).



These are true 25mm figures, and full of character to boot. Except for their enormous heads, they are quite compatible with 1/72 figures. Next to the three GFI skeletons is an old Citadel Skeleton Warrior (FF52-1). He is a bit bulky, but also compatible with 1/72 with the exception of his huge head. Some unfortunate 15mm skeletons will have to donate their heads to make these guys suitable for my Army of the Dead. At the end is a plastic Caesar skeleton for comparison.

It is my hope that one day, GFI will re-release all of the classic Minifigs skeletons, particularly the Great Bell and Tower that they use as a teaser for their pre-order thumbnail.

Werewolves


There are a number of different werewolf types, which could be characterized along a continuum of increasingly wolf-like features. There is the old horror movie wolfman à la Lon Chaney Jr.; the man-wolves of The Howling; the werewolf in An American Werewolf in London; and finally, the man-transformed-to-actual-wolf of mythology.

The first werewolf figure shown above is from Citadel (FF19). It has characteristics of both wolfman and man-wolf. It actually reminds me a bit of the big burly bear-wolves from the old Werewolf TV show. The next werewolf is from Ral Partha (ES61). It too has hybrid features, but it has the lean look that I associate with werewolves. After, is a 20mm werewolf from Elhiem (P28), followed by three 15mm Wolfen: the Wolfen Berserker (W006), Wolfen Shaman (W010), and Wolfen Spearman (W002). Though Wolfen are not proper werewolves, the Elhiem werewolf is clearly undersized, being no taller than the 15mm Wolfen.

For me, werewolves should be tall, like Miss Lupescu of the Graveyard Book, or the Lycans of Underworld. Other than the Ral Partha werewolf, I'm not sure there are any other miniatures that meet my criteria.

Mummies


Most of the mummies shown above are of the old school Hammer Films style mummy. The first mummy is from the Grenadier Monsters boxed set (5002), followed by one by Ral Partha (ES20). These mummies are large and bulky. Totally unsuitable for 1/72 despite the preponderance of tall mummies in this scale. Next is version 1 of the Citadel Mummy (FF60). I believe that version 2 is identical to the Ral Partha version. I find this Citadel version superior to the Ral Partha version, though like most 25mm figures, the head is too big for 1/72. Next is the Elhiem Mummy (P28) which is slightly short, but fine. The last bunch are from Chariot (SHE06), which are tiny at 15mm.

Vampires


Vampires round out this entry, with The Count and Countess from Elhiem (P27), and a line up of Elhiem Vamps (P33). I'm not sure why The Count is so short, since he is obviously based off of the Bela Lugosi version of Dracula rather than Tom Cruise's Lestat. After all, Lugosi was supposed to have been 6' 1".

A comparison of 1/72 vampires and mummies in plastic and metal.