ICM has provided this 1/35 figures kit of Special Operations Forces of Ukraine. There are four figures in the kit. Two standing and two bending down. Three grey Sprues, One Instruction guide
Being that other builders have provided explanations about Gunpla and Gundam in their reviews, I will forego that. This particular figure, the Rosan Swordman, is part of the ’30 Minutes Fantasy’ series. The Bandai website offers seven pages of various kits and upgrades for this series.
Per the enclosed guide, the Class I soldiers specialize in swordsmanship and fight in the Colosseum. They wield various types of blades including one-handed, and two-handed swords, and they have an excellent balance of offensive and defensive skills. They have precise techniques and calmly make decisions, demonstrating their proficient skills when fighting alone or with allies.
Included in the box are a total of 11 trees molded in silver, dark blue, and black. With Bandai kits, it is very important to study the build process prior to embarking because, depending on certain options you would choose, the build process differs.
For background information on the main figure, please see the review I wrote titled “Bandai Rosan Swordman”.
This set, like the Swordman kit, is part of the ’30 Minute Fantasy’ series. There are various Class Up Armor sets available for the different figures throughout the series.
Included in the box are three trees: one is bright blue and the other two are silver. The silver trees are mostly duplicate parts from the man Swordman kit 5072036.
The assembly process guides you through a series of steps where you essentially take apart the Rosan silhouette figure. This means removing the head, the arms, and the legs.
As with all Bandai kits, careful study of the instructions in advance is very important because, depending on certain poses or accouterment features selected, you will need to vary the assembly.
Building a Gunpla is for sure out of my lane. For those that don’t know, Gunpla is the kit, and Gundam refers to one of many TV shows. In other words, Gundam is animated Gunpla. This is the second Gunpla I have built. The first was a simple small kit for an in house model contest for my local club. Gundam Barbatos is a much more complex build. Having said that, assembly was straight forward as long as the instructions are followed closely. It turns into a nice kit, if you make a mistake, like I did, it is easy to recover from since no glue is involved. It is a fun build that doesn’t really take that much time to finish. Highly recommended for Gunpla modelers or for those modelers looking to try something different. For those looking for an enjoyable build, this is a good option. Highly recommended.
This figure kit is produced by Aerobonus and is designed to be used in conjunction with several Korean War aircraft subjects or as a stand-alone figure. It’s nicely cast in 1/32 scale from a medium gray resin. The casting is crisp and clean, and contains four parts which include the main body, a head and a right and left arm. Assembly was very easy and there was no flash present on any of the castings.
Representing a US Air Force mechanic on a winter flight line somewhere, the figure is dressed in typical grab found during this time period in a cold weather environment, A coat with hood and heavy gloves cover the upper torso. A baseball like cap covers the head. And the lower torso has Utility style trousers and boots.
This was a very easy figure to separate and clean up. As mentioned, there was no flash present on any of the four castings, and the only real clean up involved removal of the pour gates. A quick job handled with a razor saw.
Modern soldiers today most likely wear body armor in combat to protect against bullets. That was not always the case as body armor designed to stop rounds really came about in the early 2000s. Prior to that flak jackets, designed to protect US airmen against shrapnel and explosives from German “flak” rounds, and evolved to protect US ground troops in Korea through the 1990s. Body armor hails back to antiquity and knights were the penultimate examples.
For some reason, model manufacturers have been omitting pilot figures from their kits. Many aftermarket producers have stepped in to fill the pilot seat void. Czech model manufacturer Aerobonus has a new tool release (2023) in its 1/32 Modern NATO Fighter Pilots, which the instructions state can be used for all 30 NATO member states). Like most pilot figures being released recently, this figure is standing but can easily be made to sit with some razor saw surgery.
This pilot is one of five in the AeroBonus 1:32 Modern NATO Pilots:
The kit comes in a sturdy 12” x 8” x 5” box with an illustration of the Tsubaki figure. Images of the finished model can be found on the box sides. Like Gundam kits, it comes molded in multiple colors so that a nicely finished model can be built right out of the box with minimal work. Both painted and unpainted images of the kit are shown on the sides of the box. The kit comes with thirty-nine individually bagged sprues molded in twelve colors. The engineering of the parts is designed to emulate the paint breaks of the figures complex color scheme. The runners are molded in POM, PVC and ABS and all the parts are designed to be snap fit. Regular solvent based glue will not affect these types of plastic. Figure kits are meant to be posable, thus tougher plastics are necessary so that the joints will both hold a pose and be durable.
1930’s era Gangsters had a certain fascination to many people. I’m sure most people have seen the movie Bonny and Clyde. The figures in this set of three brings us back to that time period without having to rob banks, get into firefights with law enforcement, the risk of prison or worse!!
The kit, provided by the manufacturer ICM, based in Ukraine contains three Gangster figure that include two male and a female, the Gun Moll!! Injected molded with crisp detail and clean parts that contain no flash. The parts for the figures are contained on a single sprue. There are two additional sprues that are identical to each other, which contain a Colt Model1911 hand gun as well as the legendary Thompson Sub Machine with your choice if a stick magazine or the drum mad and the Colt in the other. Also, a three piece valise is included on the sprues.
Following the base and paint modifications, the rest of the build is finishing the model and taking the pictures.
To finish the build, you need to finishing the left arm and leg; these are built the same way of the previous right arm and right leg. I did paint and modify most of the cylinders in the arm and leg as per the previous sections. Once these are attached, we need to build the torso.
The torso is constructed from the inside out with plates being added. The connections of the “hydraulic” lines also occurs. The parts are precut and glued in place and I used the recommended super glue here sparsely. These are attached to the head and shoulder section. The plate sections are heavy plastic or metal. The process continues with the back and cylinders being added. Follow the instructions and read them thoroughly and you should be good as fit is precise and great.
