The new sculpt period produced four new versions of the venerable cobra android trooper, some of which were repainted time and time again during the era. The initial redesign bore a certain resemblance to the original 1986 BAT, but with a modern robotic twist. However, the initial version was missing the interchangeable arm, the most memorable element of the
Read moreI’ve been fascinated with the Joe MPs ever since the release of Mutt and Junkyard in 1984. I can’t really explain it, but I think some of it has to do with both the inclusion of an animal sidekick and the accessories for the figure. Mutt had that great MAC-10 and billy club, as well as a muzzle (for himself
Read moreAh, the days before Hasbro realized they could simply add Sgt. or Agent to the beginning of a character name to sidestep the whole lost name rights issue. I also dearly love the outright goofy names that they came up with instead. Sidetrack? What is he, the easily distracted Joe who often goes off topic in briefings? So yeah, it’s
Read moreI’ve had Renegades Duke here in the on-deck circle for a couple of months, and just couldn’t bring myself to write about him until now. Don’t get me wrong, I think the figure itself is fantastic. The sculpting and removable gear are all on par with the other recent Joe figures. I really don’t have a problem with the wrist
Read moreThis was the 25th anniversary line’s attempt to recreate one of the cooler Snake Eyes figures from the new sculpt O-ring era. It utterly fails in that regard, and like his multi-pack sword brother, Snake Eyes ends up loaded down with extra web gear. Having said that, he’s still the main reason I bought the sad sack Greatest Battles DVD pack,
Read moreToday’s figure inspired me to write a haiku: Beachhead brave ranger. Always longing for command. Are you a pumpkin?
Read moreStorm Shadow is the leader of Ninja Force–excuse me, got confused there. Rain is the leader of Shinobi Squad, a specialized ninja assault team and sub-group of the Corps! When Lanard’s Corps! line transitioned to the T-crotch in the 2000’s, I found most of the figures to be oddly proportioned and a little too busy with details. But over the
Read more<Munch munch> Oh, hi again! Sorry, you just caught me finishing up my last box of GI Joe Action Stars cereal. It was pretty dry, but I think all that added sugar must act as a preservative. Anyway, I just slathered it in plenty of milk and it wasn’t too bad. Now I can get on with sending away for my free
Read moreThe cynical may consider female Joes “tokens”, or out of place in a boys’ toy line, but it’s refreshing to consider that despite the conventional wisdom of “boys don’t want to play with an icky toy girl”, Hasbro still thought it important to include a female character amongst the Joes from day one. Though there haven’t been a large number
Read moreIn 1992, the sub-group mania begun the previous year continued, as two new groups appeared on toy shelves, the Drug Elimination Force and Ninja Force. Like the other groups, each one featured both packaging and action features different from the main line releases. The Ninja Force burst on the GI Joe scene with shockingly bright hot pink packaging, “real ninja action” and soft
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