In the 90’s, I frequented the Half Price Store as part of my regular action figure hunting rounds. The store was a sort of close-out seller, much like Big Lots. Back in the early to mid 90’s, they regularly closed out Hasbro and other toy makers’ stock from the previous year. I can still picture the large deep bins holding
Read moreWhen I grabbed this figure up to take photos, I remembered back to the time of its release, and how excited I was to get it. A Flint based on a never before made Sunbow look; should have been a no-brainer great figure, right? Then I remembered how bummed I was when I actually opened it up. Flint and the Cobra
Read moreIt’s easy for us children of the 80’s and 90’s to focus on our favorite era, and forget that Joe at one time wore real pants. Well, real cloth pants. I would be remiss as a Joe fan if I didn’t recognize a figure with fabulous cloth pants. Coming at the time of the new sculpt Spy Troops line, the
Read moreSince its original version was released during my toy collecting hiatus, I don’t have much of a connection to the original HEAT Viper mold. It’s an interesting, if odd, figure. As part of the Toys R Us exclusive Python Patrol multi-pack, the figure utilizes a paint scheme that’s more in line with the classic Python vehicle colors than the vintage figures. I
Read moreIt’s amazing to think that the Ninja Viper, a one time mail-in figure from late in the Real American Hero era, would get not one but two homage figures. First as the Ninja Trooper in the Valor vs. Venom series, then this one. Who knew a teal ’84 Storm Shadow repaint could be so inspiring? I quite like what was
Read moreDoctor Venom–there’s so much to say about the guy. I guess the thing that most old school Joe comic and toy fans found themselves saying back in the 80’s was–where’s his action figure? While he may not have been the most exciting looking character in the comic (older guy in white lab coat), there’s no denying the impact he had
Read moreThe 1987 battle armor Cobra Commander was one of only two figures from my youth that I kept. Why? I think because I had always been fascinated with not only a new version of the Commander, but the fact that he was wearing armor that made him more powerful. Of course, reading the comic and finding out that a different
Read moreTo say that this figure’s style doesn’t resemble the usual Major Bludd is an understatement. A couple of the Bludd hallmarks remain intact. A classic styled helmet still sits atop his head, this time with a nifty attached eyepatch and spiked center section. Very 80’s metal, I must say. The head is my favorite element of the figure, as it
Read moreSince the reveal of sideshow’s beautifully rendered 1/6 scale Baroness figure this week, I thought I’d try to dig for a comparable 3 3/4 inch figure. The female form is something of a challenge to render in small scale, and the Baroness’ various plastic incarnations over the years have ranged from passable to downright fugly. The original version is iconic,
Read moreI wonder why blue was chosen as Cobra’s primary uniform color rather than black? I assume it was to add a splash of color on the shelves among all the green good guys. Whatever the case, black has crept into Cobra’s ranks a few times in the modern era. Maybe not as many times as crimson, but changing the color
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