History

As part of the Allied invasion of Normandy, during the night prior to the morning landing, both American and British Airborne troops were dropped into areas behind the beaches to take out key defences and capture strategic targets. One of these units was the U.S. 82nd Airborne, now represented in this new figure from Manta Figurines.

Contents

The 1/35 scale figure from Manta Figures is cast in resin. The figure comes as a cast body with separate arms, head, and detail parts. In the package from Manta you will find the following:

• Torso and legs cast in one piece
• Right arm
• Right hand holding rifle
• Left arm
• Head
• Helmet, with cast on netting
• Shovel
• Pick
• Canteen
• Boot knife in scabbard
• Scabbard
• Knife without scabbard
• Back pack
• Large pouch
• Grenades (x2)
• Small ammunition pouches
• Pouch (being carried in left hand)
• Strap for above pouch
• Chin strap for helmet

Review

The figure is excellently cast in a crouched running position, holding his rifle in his right hand while carrying what looks to be a satchel charge in his left hand. The casting is very impressive with no flash and great detail, though there are some casting seams that will need to be cleaned up.
The figure’s body has molded on detail to include webbing, small ammunition pouches, and bandoliers. The overall figure detail is excellent, with great detail in the folds and creases. The head and helmet are separate parts, with a great facial expression and good detail. The helmet has molded on netting, which looks a little fine for the scale. A neat feature is the separate chin strap for the helmet, which can be attached to look undone and dangling. The arms are also separate with the right hand, which will need to be attached, molded onto what looks to be an accurate M1 Garand Rifle. The left hand is cast to be carrying what I believe is a satchel charge, and is well done with a separate strap to attach, that again appears to be swaying as the figure is running. There are many small detail parts to be attached as well, including small ammunition pouches, grenades, knife, shovel, pick, and two little V shaped items, that I have not been able to identify.

As for uniform accuracy, I reviewed some images online, and the figure appears to be wearing the correct uniform. This includes straps around the legs holding in the bulging cargo pockets, molded on straps for the boot knife, etc. There is a raised detail on each arm for patches, to include the American flag on the right arm and unit patch on the left.

Conclusion

Overall I am very impressed with the level of detail and casting on this figure. This is a definite figure for painting and showing off, Manta Figurines has done an excellent job on this figure, and I very highly recommend this.