MK35
F078

When the December 1944 German offensive smashed through the thin American lines in the Ardennes, they caught thousands of soldiers unawares. Most of them had been sent there for R&R and refitting, particularly the 28th Infantry Division, which had been severely mauled in the savage fighting of the Hürtgen Forest a few weeks earlier. Many of the soldiers on the line were green reinforcements, whose first taste of combat was this overwhelming juggernaut. Some broke and ran, but enough stayed and fought with little ammunition or supplies, trying to hold on until help could arrive. They managed to delay the German advance, buying time for the 101st Airborne Division to secure its hold on the pivotal town of Bastogne. In the process, however, thousands of GIs were taken prisoner in the worst rout the US experienced in WWII.

This GI stands with his arms raised. He wears a long melton overcoat, with a belt and cartridge pouches around his waist. He wears the high-laced paratrooper boots. This doesn’t necessarily make him a paratrooper, as these boots were highly sought after by non-airborne soldiers. Wearing a helmet with torn netting, his face has an appropriately somber expression. This figure is nicely sculpted and well cast, with only a speck of clean-up necessary. He scales out just over 6’, which puts him in the Verlinden, DML, YANKS, and Warriors range. Overall, this is an excellent character for a diorama of one of the darker days in US military history.

-tss-