Every year, toy soldiers manufacturers come with tons of new releases. With the end of 2021, I figured that it would be nice to look at what was new and amazing, just to highlight the most interesting points of the last 12 months.

The New Collections

In terms of collection, we saw many sub-collections added to the already existing themes. But we also had totally new collections! King and Country came with The Falklands and Cattle Drive and John Jenkins launched The Trojan War and Wellington in India.

The Falklands by King and Country

This collection covers the 1982 conflict in which Argentia attempted to seize the British territory of the Falklands. It is still quite small for now, with only a well known improvised flagbearer, but prototypes for new pieces were shown. This collection will surely expand more and most likely within the next months.

Cattles Drive by King and Country

Here we are back to the USA shortly after the American Civil War. This collection had a more large-scale start with the release of 3 cowboys and 12 different cows as cattle is, obviously, the core of this theme. What is interesting here is the way this collection depicts the daily life of cowboys during that time, eating beans, playing guitar and counting cows while being covered with dust. As it is for now, we are still in a 100% violence free collection, despite many figures carrying weapons.

 

Wellington in India by John Jenkins Designs

The 1803 Battle of Assaye was apparently the most important battle for Wellington. Even after Waterloo, he considered this as his finest hour. This collection brings us to India, at the time where British colonialism was securing its ground with the help of the British East India Company. It’s a collection full of contrasting pieces, mixing European troops and native forces.



The Trojan War by John Jenkins Designs

This collection, based on the work of the illustrator and archeologist Peter Connolly, covers the time where heroes met on the battlefield for the beauty Helen of Troy. The conflicts depicted here took place in 1260–1180 BC, before the invention of writing. In fact, it’s the most remote point back in time available at Toy Soldiers Club! So this is a totally new playground in terms of time, space and look. So far, the figures produced and announced are amazing!

Selected Highlights

John Jenkins Designs

The year 2021 saw the announcement of the most epic set ever produced by John Jenkins Designs. In fact, it’s the most epic product ever sold at Toy Soldiers Club! The item will only be available in early 2022, but still, it’s the most impressive piece that was announced in 2021! Here, we are talking of a full Viking Longship with a complete crew and a sweet display stand.

John Jenkins came with a beautiful sub-collection for his Whiskey, Scalps And Beaver Pelts theme. Those were several figures in a rendez-vous and based on the 1974 painting “Alouette” by John Clymer. Those pieces quickly sold out and now belong to the past. Still, it was one of the most interesting sub-collection of 2021.


King and Country

King and Country also broke the rule for his Ancient Egypt collection by adding relatively recent historical figures with his AE086 - Discovering Tutankhamun set. It’s a leap forward in time of several centuries compared to their usual pieces. The set is magnificent with romanticized versions of the main historical figures linked to the discovery and understanding of Tutankhamun’s tomb.

The Ancient Egypt collection also saw the addition of many pieces for orientalism enthusiasts. A complete series of new musicians and performers was offered to the collectors and the old AE023 - The Original Temple Dancers set was even reissued! And for those who did know, it was the norm for performers to wear a minimal amount of clothing. In fact, King and Country might even have overdressed some of them.

In 2021, we also saw the addition of two new landing ships for the British troops in the D-Day collection. The DD336 - Royal Navy LCVP 1324 and the DD335 - Royal Navy LCVP 1335 are American designs, but the color scheme is a British one. It was about time to find new ships in this collection as a D-Day without landing crafts is a bit like a grilled cheese without cheese. Those ships arrived at the same time as a bunch of D-Day tommies, available in sandy or grass covered bases.

The King & Country’s Sketch Portfolio was also a very good surprise this year. It was produced in very small quantities and given as a promotional item for a few weeks during early October. It holds several printed versions of sketches done by Andy C. Neilson, creative director at King and Country. It was a beautiful gift for art lovers and toy soldiers collectors.


So this concludes this recap of the most important points of 2021. Of course, this is a very subjective list and every collector would come up with different pieces. So feel free to share your list here and talk about what was amazing for you in the world of toy soldiers. It would be also nice to list what you wish for 2022. On my side, I want to see a BF-109 G with a yellow nose done by Jenkins, civilians for the Napoleonic wars and a big sketch book by Andy C. Neilson of King and Country. I now leave you with an interesting news from early 2022: King and Country announced the arrival of the 2022 calendars 2-3 days ago!