A lot of us Sunbow freaks have a laundry list of “cartoon only” characters we’d like to see in action figure form. Sparks was always at the top of my list. His presence on the cartoon confused me, since the Joes had a communications specialist (Breaker) since the first mini-series. I still liked his look however, with his odd helmet
Read moreThe Anti-Venom Task Force set I must admit was a pretty cool idea. Released as a Toys R Us exclusive during the Valor Vs. Venom series, it presented a group of Joes tasked with the assignment of tracking down the animal/human hybrids created by Cobra. The set was a nice tie-in to what was going on in the main line.
Read moreSo here’s Bazooka in his away jersey. I was never a big fan of either the figure or character back in the day. The figure just didn’t hold much interest for me, and I didn’t care for the cartoon version’s “sack of hammers” persona. I have since come to like both of the figures based on the original mold. I
Read moreAs a fan of both the 2002-2006 era of GI Joe and the newer 25th anniversary style of figure design, I often think of how quite a few of the so-called new sculpt figures could really benefit from a re-do in the moden style. I wish Hasbro would get on that. Wait, what? They already did? Really? In 2009? Get
Read moreCheck out the latest episode of Flag Points. I’m sorry I missed recording on this one, as Dave and Don interviewed Flint Dille, a writer of some of my favorite 80’s toons including GI Joe, Transformers, Inhumanoids and Visionaries. Gotta find a way to work a Visionaries review into the blog. I think I have an idea how…
Read moreWow, who upset Dr. Mindbender’s new intern? This is Hotwire, the Cobra BAT Mechanic from the 2008 convention exclusive set. The theme for the year was Cobra Headhunters, and the main boxed set included both some cool new frankensteined BATs as well as the awesome Headhunter and Headhunter Stormtrooper molds. Hotwire, a character originating from the 2004 GI Joe card game, was a
Read moreLet me tell you about a love affair that’s been going on since 1985. It involves a 3.75 inch plastic ninja commando. It began when I first saw the Revenge of Cobra mini-series. I already had an ’82 Snake-Eyes and it was one of my favorite GI Joe figures. But when I saw his new design in that mini-series,
Read moreWhen the original o-ring GI Joe line ended in 1994, Lanard’s me-too series The Corps! (don’t forget the exclamation point) rolled on. Many if its 1986 molds continued to be produced in varying excitingly horrid hues and odd camo patterns, but there were a few new mold additions. Whispering Willie is one of those original Corps! characters to get a
Read moreA word of advice: if you decide to get into the “new sculpt” era of Joes, be careful. There was so much product released between the years 2002 through 2007, it’ll make your head spin so much, you’ll end up with a loose neckball. Another word of advice, and this isn’t so much a commercial as it is a necessity
Read moreThe 1984 Joe series really took the line’s concept to the next level. In terms of breadth of characters, accessories and styling, it was the second year in a row that evolved the line into the blockbuster it became. Rip Cord is a perfect example of Joe’s evolution. While the previous year presented an airborne specialist, ’84 gave us the
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