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Takom Anniversary Tiger Tanks
Takom recently announced an Anniversary series of kits, showing one photo, featuring nothing but the silhouettes of the subjects. When it is something new coming, they tend to use that tactic a lot. This time it was three of them, so it was obvious that it will be three variations of one and the same thing. But this exact puzzle attempt was immediately solved by fans, depicting three Tiger I tanks, being one of the most recognizable silhouettes ever. So there was no intrigue here. Just the excitement that followed.
Takom are famous for their 35th scale King Tiger releases, being so good that some of them were re-packed as Limited Edition kits. But Tiger I is an even trickier theme than the Königstiger. And if you wonder how can that be, well, Tiger afficionados know: It is a complex subject with a lot of information surrounding it and even twice that much of it still being hidden and thoroughly researched and re-researched. Therefore the search for that Unicorn of a Tiger I in 35th scale is still in progress. And we can bet that this release won’t be the end of it too.
You can hardly find two modelers to agree on one kit that deserves to be “the best”, but there are many contenders for the title. Lately – even more so. So Takom stepped boldly into an arena that is full of heavy hitters and more frightening – by very serious experts on the subject. They did it with three kits all together, seemingly Early, Late and Mid-Production vehicles.
Thus far, Takom kindly shared information on their FB page, featuring Late and Mid options, but we are pretty sure that Early is about to follow soon. The pictures that you see here speak louder than words. There are many nice things depicted and with what Takom gave us to this day in terms of other releases, we are certain in one thing – happy times are coming for Tiger I fans. As you can see for yourself – it all looks awesome!
Truly, it will be a heated subject in the following weeks and months and especially, after first actual kits hit the shelves. There will be happy people, but it is more than certain that there will be tough cookies that will be bitter about something allegedly missing or wrong. That is the never ending story with each new release, especially on spicy and hot subjects like the Tiger I. But don’t let that fool you.
This release from Takom, will be a memorable one.
What we expect from the critics is more or less the usual – this is wrong, this is right. Maybe something is missing, maybe something isn’t confirmed. Why molded Zimmerit, why not aftermarket… A hatch, a grill, a tool holder maybe. Something will be found inappropriate by some. But the matter of fact is that Takom gave their best shot at this and we are judging it from the fact that 10 year anniversary is really something in the World that we are currently living. Companies are having hard times as much as their clients and the battle for survival is fierce. Information is widespread and somewhat confusing at times, so producing something of a high quality and leaving no open doors for discussions or complaints is nearly impossible. So Tiger I for the first decade – it is truly a bold announcement. We decipher it as: “We Are Here and We Are Here to STAY!”
We appreciate Takom’s effort. We respect them. Just as much as we did and welcomed Border Model and Rye Field Tiger tanks, we are happy to see Takom entering the Tiger I arena. As much as we adore Dragon and their never-ending Tiger fame, we have to admit that there is room for others, especially those who are bold enough to step into that hot pan called WWII memorabilia. Takom did it. It deserves respect, because it takes…steel in the pants to act like that.
Experts will have the final say on this release, no doubt about that. But from a simple point of view, like the one we’d like to express here – we are happy to see a new, re-imagined Tiger I in 35th scale coming to the light. This tank will never get old and we’ll never get tired of it. So what’s wrong with a new one?
Nothing, we think. We have no idea will it be the Unicorn or not, but we really don’t care that much.
And we wish Takom success in their new venture, because we know, that serious scrutiny will be applied on them.
Pictures are courtesy of Takom
