JARHEAD (USMC 1st Gulf War)

'Some man join the Marines to set their souls on fire, others to burn the fat from their souls..... a Jarhead is ideal as a empty vessel, the perfect receptacle for the Corps to mold & build from scratch.....' - a movie review i read somewhere long ago.

First of: This is not the DAM toys release.

Decided to rework a previous gulf war bash to this Jarhead figure coz happen to get a hold of the Jake h/s by Headplay. Likeness is 70-80% but good enough for me. All about the cost again: Why pay $140 for a box set when u have quite a bit of existing parts for a bash.

Of course the DAM toys preview looks great but they should have included the sniper rifle & the drag bag to complete the look. What with SS now joining the fray with their Jarhead Jamie Foxx with tons of extra gear, that's what DAM should have done... extra equipment/weapons not the Santa hat without adding the rugby ball!!!

Never did read the Swafford book but saw the movie & anybody thinking it'll be like a regular 'Black Hawk Down' sure gonna be darn disappointed.... or as my 1/6 buddy Tang put it: 'best anti-war movie ever'. Now's about the time for a revisit.....

Parts:
H/s: Headplay
Body: BBI
6C BDU: DML
PASGT Vest: DML
Boots: DML
Webbing/pouches: TS
Gas mask bag: HT
Gas mask: HT
K-pot: HT
K-bar: HT
M16A2: 21C

Hong Kong Police - Special Duties Unit (Jungle DPM version)

This kitbash was referenced off the recent Hong Kong TVB serial on HKPD’s SDU Team.

However what really got my attention was the fact that the SDU members (in the serial) are still wearing British DPM BDUs even though it’s been more than 10 years since the British withdrawal from the colony. A legacy of their colonial past & tribute to the fact that early SDUs were British SAS trained??? Perhaps PLA digital camo pattern would be more appropriate & substituted in future since they’re now back to being part of China.

SDU box sets were quite a popular release in the early DML & HT days & it was DML’s SDU figures (Michael Chan & Wai) that started me into 1/6 back then.


Fortunes have since changed & in the absence of any updates on the topic e.g. noteworthy SDU movies like ‘The Final Option’ & ‘First Option’ of the 90s, interest for this elite unit have waned considerably (it's director Gordon Chan had since move on to make period martial arts/fantasy flicks, which is a pity). One of the last major SDU movie 'The New Option' (2002) was a lacklustre effort & did nothing to rekindle interest.


Whether TVB’s serial 'Tiger Cubs' will lead to a 1/6 SDU revival remains elusive as probably only audiences in parts of Asia will get to watch it.

Parts:
Body: HT
H/s: e-bay
DPM BDU: BBI
Lvl.3 Vest: VH
Gas mask bag: HT
Boots: HT
Comms: DML
Helmet: DML
Pistol+Hostler: VH
Drop-leg mag pouch: VH
MP5: HT






Reference:

GSG 9 (Classic Version)

I wouldn’t over state the potential of this DML original.

As it is, it didn’t stack up too well against BBI’s Konrad & Medicom’s very own GSG9
which were all released around the same time. My view: DML’s main failure was due to the lack of contrast between the grey overall & vest as compared to the other 2 competitor’s which were more visually pleasing, plus a better quality vest & helmet for both BBI & Medicom.


Also I didn’t know that DML had actually released a companion GSG9 Sniper & Breacher.
Either these other 2 GSG9 sets were not so common in my part of the world or maybe I really wasn’t that much into 1/6 at that time.


However, considering finding this (i.e. DML GSG9 'Ulrich') now mint in box & at around USD20 from the local flea market, it’s really quite a deal. Come on, where can u get a 1/6 box-set for this price these days? Granted that this is about more than 10 yrs old & really does not pack in many accessories, there’s always room for some improvement to pimp the figure up a little…..

To begin, some overall minor weathering to dull away the shiny new overall, vest, helmet etc. Next, replaced the Addidas GSG9 boots with a more detailed looking pair (from VHT), bloused in the pants & added knee pads (not sure if the knee pads are era accurate).

Following those; changed the original DML plastic belt to a black one & added a T-baton (seen based on the ref. pic. below). Supplement with a shield which I pick up loose eons ago (at that time didn’t know it came from BBI’s GSG9). The DML plastic belt hostler was ditched & replaced with leathery looking drop leg. Original HK pistol swapped for a Glock. Lastly, an MP5K from my loose weapons bin to finish up.

End result, a much more satisfactory classic version GSG9 (to me at least).

* Special Thanks to Kelvin aka '1/6 Rookie' for the T-baton, much appreciated.







References: