The North Vietnamese Army, commonly known as NVA was officially named the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN). It had its origins at the end of WWII, with the goal of fighting the Japanese. Ironically, some of the men who went on to become the PAVN were originally trained by US agents of the OSS. After WWII, this small force grew and later fought against the French during the Indochina War. After defeating the French, the 1954 Geneva accord left Vietnam as two separate countries, so the North, led by Ho Chi Minh, set its aims in a unified and communist Vietnam. This would become a 20+ year effort, finally realized with the Fall of Saigon in April of 1975. The expansion of the PAVN began in earnest soon after the Geneva agreement, with a couple divisions being raised from southerners who had fought the French and had relocated to the North after the war. Initially the war in the South was fought primarily by the Viet Cong, which was a proxy for the North, which also provided logistical support and supplies to them via the Ho Chi Minh trail. Starting in 1965, the North started sending troops into the South and the first major engagement with US forces happened that same year during the Battle of the Drang Valley, famously chronicled in the book and movie 'We were soldiers once... and young'. Both sides pioneered tactics during this battle that would go on to become common place throughout the war. The Americans' heavy use of helicopters, as well as artillery and air-ground support would go on to play an important role during the war, and the NVA's approach of fighting at very close range to negate the US ability to bombard them. It is hard to say who won this battle as the number of casualties were inflated by both sides. Even if we think of it as a draw, the outcome certainly emboldened the North into believing that they could go toe-to-toe in a war with the US, so from a psychological standpoint, that was a victory for them. Other important offensives during the war were the Tet Offensive of '68 in which the joint Viet Cong and NVA shocked the US and South Vietnamese by attacking 100 towns and cities across the South when they were supposed to be enjoying a holiday truce. Even though this offensive was repelled with heavy losses for the Viet Cong, the world was shocked and public opinion in the US began to turn against the war. In 1972, the North launched another large attack called the Easter Offensive, which had to be dealt with primarily by the South Vietnamese as the US had already scaled back its presence significantly. Despite initial success, the North was eventually repelled, but they did manage to retain some captured territory. The US completely withdrew by '73 following the Paris Peace Accords. Two years later, in violation of the treaty, the NVA launched a final Spring Offensive. The South Vietnamese Army crumbled under the weight of this offensive even though it still held large amounts of materiel left behind by the US. Within two months, Saigon fell and the war was over. In terms of Toy Soldiers, it was not until a few years back when manufacturers finally gave the NVA some attention. So far we have sets from TSSD, Mars, and more recently Plastic Platoon. Let's take a look.
Toy Soldiers of San Diego NVA
If I recall correctly, this was the first NVA set on the market, and even though I must admit that I was not thrilled by it, it was a must have for my collection, which did not have any regular troops to fight my plentiful number of TimMee GIs. What I did not like about this set was mainly the rigidness of the poses. They all have a very straight back, and the poses lack fluidity of movement. On the positive side, these guys are all fighting.
Mars NVA
Speaking of fighting, here are some guys who are doing exactly the opposite. A few of them seem to be just enjoying the day. The two on the right seem a bit odd to me. The main difference between them is that one is standing on the skull of a water buffalo, and the other one is standing on a stump, but for all practical purposes it's the same pose. Again, a bit underwhelming for a set that we had been waiting decades for. But I suppose that given the number of fighting poses in the TSSD set, these guys provide a bit of balance and variety.
Plastic Platoon NVA
Now, this set is up to my expectations. Lots of action, fluidity of movement, and all can be used in battle situations, even if they are not firing, which is something that the TSSD set missed - they are all firing or charging. A very nice range of weaponry, and several nice little touches, like the guy with the knife between his teeth. This set also gives us a bit more variety of head gear, even though the set only has six poses. That's right, the Plastic Platoon sets always leave you wishing for more.
Plastic Platoon NVA Assault Troops with Mortar
Luckily, Plastic Platoon did give us a bit more. They followed up the first set with a support weapons set. It comes with a mortar, a light machine gun, and what looks like a pole with a bunch of stick grenades attached to one end. That last guy definitely displays a level of intensity in accordance to a guy who knows he is on a one way mission. One thing I did not like about this set though is the material. The plastic bends too easily, and in the case of the prone machine gun guy, it has proven very hard to straighten the weapon, so that it's not firing into the sky, and also to make the bipod behave as one. But all in all, the rest of the figures are excellent. Another very nice set from Plastic Platoon.
