Wow, did Cobra ever branch out their specialized troops in 1989. Talk about diversification. The year gave rise to urban ops, night troopers, anti-tank specialists, land and air drivers, not to mention several funky Iron Grenadier types. Kids who wanted to troop build must have been in hog heaven. By the way, did anyone troop build back then? I think
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Because no one demanded it! Here’s another video review. Some of these toys just can’t be done justice with pics and text–especially the ones with groovy lights and sounds. Not that my camerawork or rambling does it justice, but hey, I’m new at this video thing. Also, be sure to take some Dramamine before watching. Shaky cam ahead!
Read moreThe beginning of the 25th anniversary series held a lot of promise. Sure, the first multi pack releases had their share of construction and articulation issues, but the availability of small GI Joes on store shelves again was cause for excitement. When the initial offerings performed so well that a second set of Cobras were released, I was ecstatic. At
Read moreEven though Sigma 6 ran a bit short on the villain side, the figures that were released impressed. Keeping the Cobras focused on a core group also gave the line a nice appropriate focus, considering it was primarily figure centric. Though there were a few classic personalities I would liked to have seen (Baroness, Major Bludd) I’m happy with what’s
Read moreThe BAT has a long history in the GI Joe mythos. First appearing in 1986, they were new grist for the mill in Cobra Commander’s attempts to Rule the World. The robotic troopers also made the perfect enemy force for the Sunbow cartoon, as there were probably no mandates from Standards and Practices against shooting dozens of androids vs. humans
Read moreSometimes when I look through my figures for the next batch of subjects, I get all wistful about one or two, particularly if I haven’t looked at them in a while. That’s what happened when I grabbed this guy out of the 2007 con set. This figure impresses me for two reasons, beyond the fact that it reminds me of
Read moreFor your consideration: Toxic Zartan. Before you hit the ‘Back’ button on your browser, for a moment, take Sigma 6 out of its place in GI Joe history as the line that supplanted an improving small scale line in 2005. Put the mostly god awful cartoon series out of your mind. Look at the figures purely from a toy perspective,
Read moreThe second iteration of TARGAT is missing two essential elements of its initial version. First, they’re apparently no longer affiliated with the Iron Grenadiers (at least it’s not mentioned on the file card) the TARGAT troops nevertheless make a welcome second appearance. Most everything else remains the same as far as the troops’ function. The specialty makes a lot of
Read moreThe Python Patrol sub-set was responsible for some of the weirdest Cobra uniform color schemes of the time. While the set has a unifying palette of colors and patterns, they’re not commonly placed on the figures in the same way. All featured a snakeskin pattern, but some were across pants and shirts while others were only on small parts like
Read moreDuring the 25th anniversary series, there were many figures on fans’ want lists. The Defense of Cobra Island seven pack put a few of most wanted Cobra army builders in our hands. The original Alley Viper was one of them, and most of that mold continues to show up in modern versions of the popular urban assault trooper. Less accessorized
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