Sd.Kfz.222 North Africa (with DKW cycle and rider)Item #35286
B1 bis (German Army)Item #35287
Kubelwagen Type 82 - w/German Field Military Police Item #89750
Marder III (7.62cm PAK36) - w/German Field Maint Crew Item #89751
Russian Heavy Tank JS-2 Model - 1944 ChKZ Item #35289
WWII French Infantry Set Item #35288
Obviously the German kits are repops of existing items but I think they’ll be welcome nonetheless, esp the German Char B1 bis. The JS-2 is VERY welcome!!!
Cut the crap re: the French. We have better things to do than to mock our allies, dontcha think? Many Allied troopers made the ultimate sacrifice to help restore France.
The French infantryman was on average no more cowardly than his German or American counterpart - most were ready to die to defend thier country. The jokes about the French army come mostly because of the sorry leadership the French military had throughout the entire war. Foch was the only French marshal worth his salt in either world war, and he wasn’t around in 1939…and those that were soon made a sorry state of things through terrible planing and worse execution. If the French generals had even the smallest bit of guts, the German invasion would have progressed much more slowly and its outcome may have been different. Like Rommel’s infamous little ride with the 7th Panzer, deliberately creating a cloud of dust so large that the French commander assumed he was facing an entire corps and ordered the defenders of Dinant to retreat having only fired a few shots. Later DeGaulle disobeyed a direct order to keep his Frenchmen off Patton’s road, creating an impossible traffic jam and bungling 3rd Armored’s chance to close the Falaise pocket. French infantrymen were known to systematically execute even non-SS prisoners, including non-combatant types such as cooks and medics, making them unpopular with other allied troops.
The jokes about the French are not without merit, as the thing they consistently do best in war is retreat. At tactical level the French are fine soldiers but they have never had good operational and strategic commanders. Of course French jokes can be taken overboard, but I don’t think it’s appropriate to get so upset about something legitimately funny, like asking if white flags are included with a piece of French armor.
Back on topic: I hope Tamiya will give us sponsons in the JS-II…[:)]
This forum is read all over the world; no need to reinforce the opinion of many in foreign countries of American arrogance and haughtiness! You have to believe that with the carnage of the WWI battlefields and the trenches that perhaps they’d seen enough death to last a couple generations? Perhaps WE may soon feel the same?!?!
It’s the Marder with the Russian AT gun that’s all ready been released. Like other of tTamiya’s later offerings, they have thrown in a field maintenance crew as a bonus. Maybe, it’s new.
Ben: The Tamiya Marder III Pak 76.2 (r) was the first “modern” tooled Marder III. (Italeri had their Marder III H back in the 70s). Subsequently we’ve been treated to the Tamiya Marder III M and DML and Tristar have released Marder III H kits of their own. For more info on the kit being discussed, look here on this dated review:
…for a refreshing and different view of how Hitler overtook France, read: “Strange Victory.” Very intriguing book that tries to answer the question of why the Germans won so “easily.” If I am not mistaken, however, the Germans lost over 36,000 KIA in taking France and the low countries…On paper, at least, the Germans should not have had such an easy time, or won, for that matter…and part of the problem was the “Let them strike first attuitude” (The Phoney War).
Lots of cool dio oportunities w/ the french soldiers, especially w/ Tamiya’s two recent French AFV releases…
Although im not buying anymore kits right now (ya right) i loved their earlier Char B1 and rate it as one of my most favourite builds so the german version is really going to be hard to pass on so much in fact i just may not be able to, i wonder if its just the same kit with different marking or have they actually changed it, if im remember right the germans change the cupolas and the hull gun was replaced with a flamethrower?? anyway we will see i guess.