Mars 1/32 Scale WWII Japanese are coming according to Kent Sprecher. The set will have eight different figures.
Mars 54mmm WWII Japanese Details
The poses are as follows
- Standing firing rifle legs bent
- Right hand up to throw grenade, left hand holding rifle down
- Charging with automatic rifle
- Standing firring bayonet rifle with straight legs
- Officer with sword and rifle
- Charging with bayonet rifle
- Stabbing down
- Laying firing machine gun
As we get more details we will let you know
Looks mediocre like their previous sets. Will have to see them in person. Are the Mars Pirates out yet?
Paul, you’re amazing. I don’t know how you say on top of all the breaking news. Fantastic. All of us are grateful to you for your passion for the hobby.
Dick
I’ll probably get a set and paint them. They look crude but maybe they can fill up the ranks. Thanks for the update. Maybe we will see some other companies produce more WWII Japanese soldiers next year.
I like the unique posing but crude sculpts and their scale is too small for me.
I think they look pretty good myself.
I like the color of plastic used, and the overall posing. I think they will make excellent fill-in squads with WWII Japanese by Marx, Airfix, CTS, MPC, and Lido.
I think all of these MARS sets have been great, reasonably priced contributions to a somewhat shaky toy soldier hobby which can use all the help it can get.
WOW!!!.What wrong with his maker 10 sets wrong and going down in quality ,one nice well done =pirates yet to come and hoping as to the rest will be and now these horrible superbad close halve mold wasted poses with crappy detail in semi flat poses .
The DGN-HIN FAT made in china 14 poses japanse from 2014 are far better ,even the clones 45 mm airfix /ESCI HO poses made in china and sold in buckets are much better.http://www.stadsstuff.com/?p=2341
Sad way waste plastic .
my thoughts .best
I think you’re being too hyper-critical and too negative, Erwin.
I’ve got the DGN/Hing Fat WWII Japanese that came in tubes — and I would say these new figures from MARS look better, and certainly not appreciably worse.
Granted, they are not up to the level of Plastic Platoon, but Plastic Platoon figures are at least five times as expensive, for one half the number of figures. Not every collector can afford to build toy soldier armies at that kind of cost.
These MARS figures seem to come out with regular frequency, in popular historical time periods, and in a good 54mm scale.
I see no reason to launch bitter verbal assaults on them, about how “awful”, or “horrible”, or what a “waste” they are. Such talk is excessive and unbalanced.
I myself appreciate what MARS is trying to do. I think many collectors will like these new figures, and find a good use for them.
Don
The problem is Mars has so many chances to do quality figures at afforable price, but they keep giving out poor quality figures. Only the pirates are on my want list. Each person is going have their own feelings regards figures. I hate the early Cherilea swoppets other people love them. You feel that Mars Japanese will be fine for you that is great. For Erwin and possible others they do not. Erwin stated his criteria on his dislike of them which is valid. you are the final decider of whether you buy them or not.
I will pass on them as they do not exict me.
I also think these new MARS figures, massed together in the at least 16 figures which come in a boxed set, will comprise an excellent “banzai” charge against entrenched U.S. Marines, with the two prone firing figures set out on the flanks to lay down a support fire.
I don’t think they are half bad, the poses are good, I don’t care for the off set seam down the middle of them. I don’t know why the officer has a light saber, but the others look passable. Pose # 2 is a waste of space, but the others would be good for a Banzai charge.
Will need to get out the xacto knife and do a little trimming.
Aside from all the flash and/or uneven mold halves, these Japanese are probably the best Mars WW2 set yet. Certainly they are miles ahead of the Mars Germans with those weird sagging-crotched trousers. The only problem I have with them is the uneven seams and flash.
Nice addition for Japanese Troops ! I don’t know what the price might be ?
I think Don Perkins is right they are great Japanese figures. All this negativity about them will stop the company from making anymore in 1/32. Most of the people on here all moan about the price of figures now. Yet when you get a company doing them at a fair price you moan about them you cannot win.
I will be picking up a few boxes to fold into my Japanese armies.
The Mars Pirates should be ready in December. I don’t think the Japanese are all that bad and as mentioned several poses make a nice Banzai charge.
Pose #2 is a grenade thrower.
See PSR for a write-up about the 1/72 versions.
http://www.plasticsoldierreview.com/Review.aspx?id=2644
I thought the figure 2 might be a grenade thrower but the picture was not clear will update.
Thanks for the review of the 1/72 scale figures
If you don’t support manufacturers by buying their product, they will not make more. I always try to buy at least two sets. I agree that the Mars German Fallschrimjaegars look kind of like they’re still dressed in their pajama-bottoms. CTS first set of Germans were sort of “meh”, mixed in scale, muddy details etc. Their second run is spectacular in my opinion. The point here is buy a set, help keep them in business. Maybe what’s coming will surprise you.
In my opinion
Mars is been making HO figures for over 25 years now and even after being considered the lowest in HO versus most all other producers/brands and many not like it as you can find in reviews made in HO plastic blogs as their HO figures are ugly detailed versus other brands and just a bit cheaper .Yet it has not stopping then to make HO and actually venture in 1/32
So, my opinion or that of others who had express their dislike and the fact that me, admin or others will not buy these sets or other will not affect the makers’.
I’m wonder how many collectors buy every single set army made by every producer since 90s when most makers start the fury and most those makers are gone now?
AIP been as big sample of this point, no one buy all they did as no everyone or most do not at all collect all eras or periods
So that is not a factor to affect maker or affect hobby.
We don’t buy every food from every local restaurant every week to support the local business. Unless someone is rich and can afford it.
The main factor in makers loose sales goes as they overproduce them self for a very limited hobby population-buyer in a too short period of time with out chance recover the cost production at all.
Not enough buyers, not enough people with deep pockets to buy so many sets per years at same time.
Sample HAT,IMEX ,ACTA .AIP ,EMHART ITALERI,WATERLOO LTD and others ,they made from 5 to 12 sets per years and in that short time not possible way they can recover the investment in even 50% and of course 0 profit ,by time they had spent so much and not recover they stop cold .That is why makers such CTS and few others had last more as they produce much less sets per years and wait for to see if can make more.
Short PRODUCTION mold cast runs such Russian makers in many brands are far ahead now as more realistic to support and survive the hobby demand versus their cost by making better quality sets at high price in few quantities
My thoughts.
best
First these so call Japanese soldiers figures not only have wrong mold cast and odd pose in my opinion, like or wherever, but the uniforms are very bad done as were the horrible Germans they did before. The helmets by poor quality detail sculpt looks as early WW2 Russian helmets at first look or other type, so are the tunics or shirt very thick-loose or extra size with close neck. Contrary to smaller closer to body Japanese uniforms.
Base in photos
It looks as figures have two pockets tunic only and not open collars in many??
Japanese 1938-1945 tunic or shirt uniform of soldiers and NCO was the single-breasted tunic (98 Shiki-Gun-I) had a stand and fall collar, five buttons which ran down the front and four large internal pockets with scalloped flaps.
There was a minor variation for tropical issue to some units as well the internal tunic style form.
As extracted copied from another source.
• Bousyo-i/Tropical – The tropical cotton uniform, a design similar to the M98, was initially available in tan or light khaki, but was superseded later in the war[which?] by versions in medium to dark green. It featured open collars, buttoned side-vent flaps below the armpits, and pleated patch 4 or internal pockets with flaps. Trousers could be full-length, 3/4 length, or a loose-fitting breeches style pantaloon. Troops in the Pacific islands usually wore knee-length shorts with a lightweight cotton shirt which had three front buttons, 3/4-length sleeves and patch breast-pockets with flaps. Officers wore a short- or long-sleeved lightweight white (or off-white) tropical shirt with the green trousers, and when they wore the green tropical tunic, they usually wore the shirt collar outside and over the tunic collar.
Type 94
But mores wrongs sculpted made is the fact that all are wearing what looks high leather or rubber boots as too big and barely detail to make looks as puttees
Soldiers from 1938-1945 either use the less known Jika Tabi =TOES type shoes in some units or the ankle shoe models with puttees (Kya-han) and tapes over as standard for all season and weather. These figures look like wearing big thick Russian heavy boots because lack detail and made then look more thicker versus pants.
The officer has a flare gun and too short straight sword still with scabbard!?
That is nothing to be with Shin guntō Type 94-98 military WW2 sword that some call Katana by mistake.
Not to mention he has it grab-hold by mid lower section of handle (Never would a Japanese officer grab with one hand a sword in that way)
The pistol revolver else can be a horrible done type 94 nambu or a revolver, I think.
I expect this maker have bad done rifles as usual but short ballonets x Japanese is a big NO
The grenade is a not common made in figures but thanks to gross extra plastic looks like a sake bottle with straws to me. Yet a nice touch about so much wrong, I think.
If compare these figures and detail uniform with old vintage by Airfix, Britain, Marx, MPC, LIDO, Blue Box and even OLIVER recast of PH brand will notice that barely none fail so much as above (MARS) wrong making and those other were toy figures x children back them
Not counting new made BMC, CTS, TSSD and others with much better presentation work of course.
Conclusion. In this maker there is not historic detail or look by artist at all, neither good sculptor and the molds machine are very bad.
I’m still surprise about the pirates they show and I’m sure they use another maker, artist and mold machinery x it if they will come as first photo I saw, I hope so otherwise they will look as Viking/zombies.
My thoughts.
Best
Here’s what I’m trying to say:
1. As a little boy, I thought Elastolin was superior to Starlux, but I didn’t therefore hate & despise Starlux;
2. I also thought Britains was superior to Timpo, but I didn’t therefore hate & despise Timpo;
3. I thought Marx, Auburn, and Ideal were superior to Timmee, MPC, & Lido, but I didn’t hate and despise Timmee, MPC, or Lido.
Can’t we accept that most toy soldier figures are neither totally good or totally bad?
Can’t we enjoy less expensive toy soldiers like MARS, from a relatively poor country like the Ukraine, without blasting their products as “horrible”, “awful”, “worthless” or a “total waste”?
I understand Erwin’s desire for strict historical accuracy, followed by a perfect manufacturing process. But I suspect very few toy soldier sets will ever meet such exacting standards. I’m going to acquire and try to enjoy some of these new products anyway — including this new set of MARS WWII Japanese. From the photos, they look like they will fit in very well with my Marx, Airfix, CTS, DGN/Hing Fat, and TSSD from the same time period. For those who like to clean excess flash and then to paint, I think they will look even better.
Don “Can we”!?- sounds to communism, we are individuals’ humans and like things different not in masses and combined preferences unions-accords. Likes and preferences are personal desires and that is reason we got choices and we are individuals.
I don’t even mention the word hate, so I don’t know why you bring yourself so high for others opinion.
Neither I’m strict historical. Just simple. These figures are bad done -period.
You go over limits labelling me when is not. Don’t be extremist. No need.
I’m pointing the fact of so bad quality product that let less to show of what they can do with simple molds as other had made.
I like the Napoleonic set made(Other Russian maker) with wrong left handed firing position but unfortunately I may get only one set as I can play with some left handed but not entire line of course ,yet that other new maker least got figures with better detail where you can see faces ,no need trim entire figures, long finish ballonets and price same or close to this as cheap -18-20 .00 for entire set least
These MARS -Short ballonets, waste mold excess, bad detail that make looks bad are wrong bad finish products in my views and others as well.
Mars should know this first hand.
Some of many brands you mention before were made as toys x children back when accuracy and history was not a main point.
Yet Marx,LIDO,MPC (“TOY FIGURES”)are far better in historic by simple sculpt and cheaper around ,least Marx that had been reissues and MPC as well as I import then from Peru in 90s in silver and gold color So they are cheaper to get ,same in DGN and Hing Fat pantograph poses set from ESCI molds where you can tell are clearly Japanese least .
I got all those and any one could get then cheap too.
CTS and BMC are cheap too manufacturers and sets very economic, they did not come with those defects.
Airfix been recast and Britain too but those are more toy soldier model line and I won’t use then as references, neither TSSD and others were figures are 2.00 or more each per set
AIP made very cheap sets far better mold and detail with no defect, so HAT and ACTA as well. Where you can get an array poses figures for low price to build armies and detail is much better plus finish mold cast too
MARS start making few modern wars sets with simple crude detail THAT WAS PASSABLE. But when they did Germans they mess up and as admin mention why they had not improved if even show a big difference with their pirates sets, they announced before!?
Unless their pirates are not that well done and was just a prototype.
Even yourself got surprise when pirates announce and call then” best sculpt so far from then”!
http://www.stadsstuff.com/?p=13174
But if they go so far much better with those pirates than this why produce a set of so bad done quality figures!?
They got the tools, just simple sloppy job done now.
Why!?
They have the potential, simple did not produce then well and got a finished bad product, in fact the worst from them.
Who here will buy all that come in pipeline to support the hobby !?That is unrealistic as different collector eras likes and preference and few with so much money extra to spend on this.
You can, go ahead you buy it. I don’t like I say my opinion and dislike as many times because is my opinion and personal individual right to choose and I bet many are same as me.
Good for you and good for me. To everyone his own.
Best …
They look OK to me but I’m concerned about the size.
Jap bayonets are waaaay too short.
Collector “9th Hussar” noticed that the Mars Japanese, the Pirates and a set of Napoleonic French Old Guard are being listed as upcoming releases by Hannants.