Toy Soldiers are absolutely Harmless, Or are They?
Originally Posted by BBC
Harmless toy or recruiting sergeant?
Many children relish military themed toys. But is a new range of Action Man-style figurines sold by the Ministry of Defence a harmless plaything or an inappropriate recruitment tool?
In 2006, an era ended for a fuzzy-headed, scar-faced, eagle-eyed object of childish affection.
Hasbro Toys ended production of Action Man in Britain after more than 30 years in which he had been the boy's toy of choice.
A selection of MoD-approved toys
Action Man purists blamed the manufacturer's political correctness for his demise as the doll's military accessories were replaced by in-line skates, water pistols and snowboards. To collectors at the website Action Man HQ, the toy had become "generic, contrived and unauthentic".
It is not surprising that the gap in the market has been spotted. That it has been spotted by the MoD is perhaps more surprising.
It has signed a deal with toy company Character Group to create a new range of military figures based on the Navy, Army and RAF. These will be sold under the "HM Armed Forces" brand, with weapons currently in use in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Royal Marines Commando wears desert camouflage, regulation boots and body armour, and carries a miniature SA80 assault rifle. The toys will be released alongside a range of military vehicles including quad bikes, hovercraft and Scorpion armoured vehicles.
PR exercise
The MoD says it hopes the figures will boost the profile of Britain's serving forces. Listening to this rationale, one can see the toys almost as part of a branding exercise.
The original, in happier times
"[It's] an ideal opportunity to raise public awareness of the armed forces and what the personnel do day-by-day," says Squadron leader Stuart Balfour.
"We feel by children playing with these toys, it promotes things like discipline, sense of belonging to a wider organisation and team work."
But some will regard the toys as a recruitment tool, one that is unacceptably targeted at children. The MoD vehemently denies this.
"Each of the armed services has its own recruiting organisation and public relations activities are separate from that," says Sqn Ldr Balfour.
"We know there is a fine line between recruiting and raising awareness of the armed forces, and we tread that line with care."
Money raised from the sale of the toys will be reinvested in other public relations exercises to showcase the armed forces.
The new figures are inspired by the recently defunct Action Man
But with ever growing anxiety about gun crime, not everyone is comfortable with the idea of children playing with military action figures.
"The problem is they contribute to the idea that guns are normal in our society, and also that they are glamorous and desirable instead of being lethal machines that are designed to kill human beings," says Louise Rimmer, from the International Action Network on Small Arms.
"So if you encourage a child to experience guns in this way, you are storing up problems for later when the child is an adolescent, and may well encounter a real firearm. In which case the consequences can be devastating."
Screen break
But in an age of advanced game consoles, is there even a market for a military figure? A random and unscientific sample of two children shows a degree of sympathy for old-style play.
If I had nothing to do I would play with them
Samuel, aged nine
"You can have games like these on the Nintendo Wii," says nine-year-old Samuel, from north London.
"You'd play with these toys once, then put them aside and forget about them. I've got a really old one that used to be my dad's.
"It's like these, but they've got loads of clothes and you can change them. If I had nothing to do I would play with them."
His friend George agrees: "It depends what mood I'm in really. Right now, I'm probably in the mood for playing more with these. But in a while I'd probably want to go on my Xbox. They are realistic. Most of them look the same, but they have got good detail."
The release of the new toys coincides with a growing interest in the original Action Man. On auction websites, some of the rarer first edition figures fetch four-figure sums.
A mint condition Judo Action Man, in its box, can sell for up to £5,000 because of its limited run.
Bob Brechin, chief designer of the original Action Man between 1967 and 1988, says the prices are being driven up by nostalgia.
"The people collecting them used to have Action Men 30 or 40 years ago. They are trying to relive their childhood in a way. They've been collecting them, looking in lofts and in shops, looking for the ones they didn't get when they were a child."
Character Group admits drawing some inspiration from the original Action Man, but believes their range for the MoD goes further.
"We've taken [the brand] into role play and outdoor," says managing director John Diver. "We're making camouflage netting, night vision goggles and metal detectors to give an adventure for a child outdoors, as well as making the action figures to replicate the boys in the forces."
So what do you think of these Toy Soldiers?
Personally, I think I'd actually buy them and create bloody battles.
Some mothers might complain about them and say they encourage gun crime. But I disagree. I think they can teach children about the military and how are they any different to Action Man (other than being more realistic)?
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did Ataturk throw back our invasion forces at Smyrna!? I'm still trying to piece together the clues, and all I'm getting from my side is "lack of supplies".
