Introduction:

Evolution Miniatures is a small modeling company based in Russia, specialized in producing high-quality 1/35 scale resin figures. The company offers a number of figure sets depicting Russian soldiers from Chechen Wars and one of the latest sets released under Evolution Miniatures label shows casualties of war: Russian Soldiers, Lost and Wounded, Chechnya (EM-35117).

Review:

The kit is packed in a small cardboard box, about half the size of the usual Evolution Miniatures box. The front of the box features nicely painted box art image and lists Sergey Traviansky as both the sculptor and painter of the set. Along with being more compact, the new box design features piracy warning inscription on the box flap. As many Evolution figures are being illegally recast and sold, I would like to offer my support to the company in fighting this counterfeiting phenomenon.

The box contains zip-lock bags with parts for assembling two figures. One of the figures is cast as a single piece affair, while the other is made of 4 pieces: full body with legs and head, left arm, right arm, and weapon. The pieces are perfectly cast in grey resin; I didn’t notice a single air bubble, seam line or any flash residue. Some of the carrier blocks on the smaller pieces have already been removed, probably to make things a bit more difficult for the counterfeiters, but also to facilitate the cleanup process. The fit is absolutely amazing. The pieces feature irregularly shaped indentations and protrusions which facilitate optimal alignment of the pieces. The assembly results in almost no visible gaps between pieces, which keeps the putty work to a minimum.

The figures depict Russian Army casualties from the war in Chechnya. One of the figures is portrayed dead, covered with a blanket, showing only a part of the right arm and lower legs. With only one boot and several tears on the uniform, the figure shows the reality of war well. The other figure is sculpted in a sitting pose, holding the weapon. This figure features a large bandage on his head, covering the left eye. The figure is wearing Russian winter uniform consisting of lined jacket and trousers. The jacket is made of cotton and has four pockets on the body and one small pocket on the upper part of each sleeve, and reinforced elbows. Removable jacket lining can be attached for additional warmth and has a fur collar exposed over the collar of the jacket. The trousers are also lined and made of cotton and feature a pocket on each thigh. Over the uniform, the figure wears 6B5 fragmentation body armor with 4 integrated AK ammo magazine pouches and grenade pouches on the back of the vest. A grenade bandoleer is slung over the figure's shoulder; it holds 10 VOG-25/VOG-25P 40mm fragmentation grenades, which are used with GP-30 under-barrel launcher fixed on the figure’s AK-74.

The set is nicely sculpted and offers amazing level of details all around. The figures are designed to fit a 1/35 scale model of the T-72 tank, as shown on the boxart image of the set. However, these could easily be adapted to fit any other Russian vehicle used in wars in Chechnya as well, i.e. BTR-80, BMP-2, etc.

Conclusion:

I really like the 1/35 scale figure sets produced under Evolution Miniatures label, depicting Russian soldiers from the wars in Chechnya. These figures offer a perfect “human touch” to different vehicles used in the conflict. Russian Soldiers, Lost and Wounded, Chechnya (EM-35117) is a very welcomed figure set in this theme. Realistically sculpted, perfectly cast in resin and easy to assemble, this set offers a glimpse on a grim reality of war, something not usually seen in military model vignettes and dioramas.