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DML/ DRAGON 1/35 U.S. ARMY AIRBORNE (OPERATION VARSITY 1945) FIGURES

By Ray Mehlberger

KIT NO. 6148  MSRP: $8.00

Packed in an end-opening type of box, with great box art by Valstad, we get a great new quartet of American paratrooper figures and their gear. This is a welcome break from DML, who mostly dwell on figures of the German Army.

Inside the box is a large cello bag that holds one each of a large, medium, and a small gray plastic parts tree. The medium and small trees are further bagged in a second cello.

The large tree holds four figures. One is prone, one is kneeling, and the remaining two are standing. They are divided into heads, torsos, arms, and left and right legs. Their equipment consists of: canteens, various ammo pouches, map cases, shovels, .45 cal pistols in holsters, a rifle case, bayonets, some large bags, helmets, a smoke grenade etc. (91 parts on this tree).

The medium sized tree is from DML's earlier kit no. 6010 " U.S. AIRBORNE, NORMANDY 1944". It holds a bazooka, a Thompson machine-gun, a carbine with bayonet fixed, and two carbines with folding stocks. (eight parts here)

The small parts tree of weapons is from DML's kit no. 6802. I do not have that kit in my personal collection, so I cannot tell you what the title of that kit was. Anyway, you get a B.A.R., three carbines and a ground tripod for the B.A.R. (five Parts here)

The back of the kit box is to be used for the assembly instructions and the painting guide. The colors to use are only called out as Gunze Sangyo brand paint numbers. I wish that DML would come out and just "SAY" what the colors are. If you don't have a cross reference for these numbers you are lost.

Conclusion

I highly recommend this kit. You can never have enough figures of G.I.s. My only reservation being the numbers used to tell you the colors to use and the usual lack of any history of the model subject in the kit. DML really needs to do something about these two problems...but that is just my 2 cents.