The Joe team has had a SWAT specialist since the 1988 release of Shockwave. The team has also had a K-9 specialist since the release of Mutt & Junkyard in 1984. Wide Scope combines the two, which I think distinguishes him from both. A well written bio on his file card brings more interest for me as a character. He’s
Read moreWhen you think of GI Joe, you usually think of epic batttles, bullets (or lasers if you’re watching the cartoon) flying and heroic daring-do. There’s also a part of every military organization (or any organization) that does its job day-in day-out outside of the spotlight and glory. I’m talking about support personnel. For every person in the field, there’s ten
Read moreChuckles is another figure from the 1987 series that’s usually met with derision. Most of the discussion around him seems to centered around his shirt. I’ll agree that at first it’s an odd choice for a Joe to be wearing a Hawaiian shirt. But you’ve got to think that when the designers were thinking up a look for an undercover
Read moreGreg Scott was a brilliant scientist who designed robotic suits. His lab was attacked by Destro, his technology stolen and he was left for dead. And you thought you’ve had bad days at work. So the Joe team finds him and uses his own tech to “rebuild” him. Now he’s a cyborg. I wonder if when they turned him on
Read moreMajor Bludd is definitely one of the seminal Cobra villains. His nature as a mercenary was played up in the comic, but not as much in the cartoon. In the comics he was given a depth of character not possible in a 22 minute toy commercial. While he was heavily involved in the power struggle between Cobra Commander, Destro and
Read moreHave you ever seen a snow ninja? How about a snow ninja who wears a samurai helmet? How about a snow ninja who hails from Hollis, Queens, NY? How about a snow ninja from Hollis, Queens, NY who also wears high top sneakers? Well, you’ve seen it now. This is Bushido, the Ninja Force’s snow ninja. Why does the Joe
Read moreWow, just wow. Now this is a heavily armed trooper. From head to toe, from uniform to weaponry, this guy looks ready to do some serious damage. Again, the mold is mostly reused from a previous release, this time the City Strike Destro. With this heavily armed trooper, the padded, bulky armor works perfectly. The head is new, and is
Read moreArctic Threat Storm Shadow is another of the later series movie line figures that made up a sort of expanded universe of characters and designs. Most of the figures took their cues from the movie’s style, but some also added a little extra, sometimes harkening back to the original action figures. This particular Storm Shadow shows influences of his vintage
Read moreIn a previous post, I remarked on Hasbro’s recent track record of successfully using existing parts to create new and interesting figures. Well, as my dad says, “Somebody’s gotta graduate at the bottom of the class.” For me, that somebody is the Air Trooper.I haven’t seen such a nondescript code name since the Cobra Pilot. I guess Cobra forgot to
Read moreShipwreck is one of those characters that folks seem to love or hate. This is probably mostly due to his portrayal in the Sunbow animated series. He was brash and sarcastic, and marched to his own drummer. This combined with voice actor Neil Ross’ Jack Nicholson imitation put off many fans as he seemed like such an over the top
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