Old Glory are, perhaps, one of the most widely available and popular brands of 15 mm Napoleonics. Based on the figures I have purchased their appear to be two reason for this. First, they offer a fairly comprehensive range from Brits to Bavarians. Second, at about $0.23 per figure, they are relatively cheap very
inexpensive. They seem, however, to suffer from a particular reputation, namely that the poses of their soldiers are routinely over exaggerated, even cartoonish. The figure here shows this somewhat. This brave soldier is not running, he has tripped and is half a second away from falling flat on his face. However, this particular pose is clearly meant to be dramatic and energetic. But there is (or was) a long string of messages about the silly poses so often found in Old Glory miniatures. It was posted to The Miniatures Page and was worth a chuckle or two. But that said, how does Old Glory stand up?
The detail is, I think, better than average. The cuffs, collars and coat lace are nicely sculpted. Straps can get a bit confusing in tight spots but are not bad. The shako is nicely done as is the face (though again, some of the faces are a bit overly dramatic on other sculpts not pictured here). The musket too has what I think is the right amount of detail. The flintlock is clear, and the barrel is clearly delineated from the stock.
Overall proportions are fine. The hands and face are the right size, and we have clearly avoided any leaning toward ”gnomeitis” - the bane of many 15 mm lines. The legs, too are about the right length. Other figures (not from this purchase) were not as good, however.
As for the pose - judge for yourself. I don’t like it much (see above) but on a war gaming table it might give your army a little more life than many other possible poses.
Finally, most Old Glory packs come in a wide variety of poses. This particular pack (BNI-04 March attack, no command) had 5 different poses, but a pack of rifles (BNI-11) had 13 poses.
All in all, Old Glory are a little better than average. Given their low price and relative detail, they make a good choice, especially where cost is an issue. But if you can afford it, trade up to Battle Honors or AB or Fantassin. Why eat hamburger when you can have steak?
Page Last Updated May 1, 2005
|
