The campaign hat makes him immediately recognisable as an American Marine. The date asks us to stop before the famous battle: in 1917, the 6th Marines were a newly organised regiment preparing for the war that would define them.
On 23 February 1945, while a flag was being raised on Mount Suribachi, Hershel “Woody” Williams was working towards Japanese pillboxes with a flamethrower. The photograph on the summit would become the island’s enduring image. Williams’s task belonged to the other Iwo Jima: the close, dangerous work that continued beyond the reach of that picture.
VN017’s exposed driver and flat load bed tell you immediately that the M274 Mule is a different sort of military vehicle. There is no enclosed cab to dominate the shape. The driver sits at the front with his weapon alongside him, leaving the platform behind as the model’s main visual feature. Even empty, it introduces the work of moving things into an infantry collection.
The VN015 Ontos looks unlike a conventional tank. Its compact tracked hull carries clusters of long recoilless-rifle barrels, with the commander visible in the open top hatch. The reference photograph makes the contrast between the low hull and projecting weapons especially clear. This is a vehicle to display with room around it, not squeeze between two larger tanks.
VN010 sits low on the ground with an M79 raised to the shoulder. The broad barrel and short weapon give it a silhouette quite different from the nearby M16 and M60 figures. K&C’s release copy connects the nickname “Blooper” with the sound of the launcher. The title is informal, but the model’s subject is specific: a Marine grenadier using the M79.
VN009 places a kneeling corpsman beside a seated, bare-chested Marine whose torso has been bandaged. The wounded man’s helmet rests on the ground. The figures face one another closely enough that the scene reads as an exchange, not two unrelated poses. It brings a quieter and more vulnerable moment into the VN collection.
VN007 brings the M60 up across the Marine’s chest and shoulder. The broad stance, raised arms and long weapon create a strong horizontal shape, while the ammunition carried around the body adds another layer of detail. The sculpt depicts a Black Marine, giving the early VN group a more representative mix of servicemen than a row of identical faces.
VN005 holds the shotgun diagonally across the body, with knees bent and attention directed to one side. The weapon is carried ready but is not raised to the shoulder. That small distinction gives the figure a useful role between a stationary sentry and a man already firing. He can look toward an opening while the viewer imagines what lies beyond it.
The first thing to notice about VN002 is how much of the figure sits below the rifle. The Marine folds into a compact seated position, with his arms brought together around the scoped weapon. His head, hands and rifle form the main line of attention. He reads differently from a standing rifleman even before the telescope becomes visible.
VN001 is busy without firing a shot. The Marine kneels with a radio handset at his face, an M16 in his other hand and an antenna rising above his helmet. The equipment on his back and the divided attention of his hands explain his job more clearly than a label could. In a shelf of riflemen aiming in the same direction, he introduces a different kind of activity.
