By Past Nastification Almost a decade before American children were exposed to the visual poison that was Robojoe, our UK counterparts’ eyeballs were devastated by the Action Force figure Kiwi. Kiwi was the Space Force engineer. “Space Force?” What? If you’re not familiar, I’ll explain. If you are, skip this paragraph. The ARAH GI Joe team started life as one
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I’ve said this many times over the history of the blog: I miss o-ring GI Joe figures. While I don’t have a problem with the modern figure construction, I simply prefer the style and sensibilities of the older guys. Some of the allure is nostalgia, since they’re the Joes of my childhood and some of it is an appreciation of
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By KansasBrawler I’ve mentioned before that I’m not huge on international Joe variants. For some reason, they never really appealed to me. As such, I wasn’t expecting a lot from Calvin “Jammer” Mondale. I thought he’d be an interesting diversion, but at his core, he’s not the much different than the classic Stalker figure. I wasn’t mad or disappointed at
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Palitoy’s Action Force packaging is interesting in its straightforward design. There’s no explosion, character art or extraneous copy, just bold color and text. It’s basic and effective. When the line began to incorporate the US Joe concepts like Cobra and o-ring figure designs, small additions were made to the cards. The Commander’s card features a unique Cobra logo design, as
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The packaging differences between 80s GI Joe and his overseas cousin, Action Man (or Action force) are striking. Ever since I first discovered the series in the pages of Tomart’s Actvion Figure Digest way back when, I’ve been fascinated with it. Thanks to the incredible work of the Blood for the Baron site, we’ve all the information we can handle
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I just can’t seem to get enough of the Steel Brigade. This ad from an Action Force magazine is even more bold than the various US pamphlets that touted the figure. It even pictures the toy itself. Very nice. The concept of ordering an action figure that you (sort of) created still piques my interest. This is definitely something Hasbro
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May the Fourth be with you! I know there are other, more direct ways to sneak in some Star Wars references on this day. Sure, I could have talked about the Cobra Mountain/Geonosis Arena shared molds, or the POTF2 figures who shared similar rifle molds with 90s Joes. I could even have discussed the Endor Bunker that donated itself to
Read moreEvery military force needs a field medic, and Action Force was no different. I find the early Action Force figures fascinating not only for the quality of their sculpts, but also for their resemblance to real world military uniforms and equipment. While Hasbro’s 80s GI Joes were positioned 10 minutes into the future, much of the Palitoy original Z Force
Read moreI just can’t get enough of these Action Force figures. Even though they don’t feature the extensive articulation we’re used to over on this side of the pond, the designs, sculpts and accessories are top drawer. The Z Force radio operator incorporates several unique features. First off, under the removable cap sits a head sculpt that resembles the vintage 60s
Read moreHere’s the Grunt of Action Force. Well, in the sense of an infantryman, at least. Unlike the relaunched GI Joe of the 80s, the Palitoy offerings included unnamed army builders on the “good guy” side of things. I’ve become really smitten with the Palitoy Action Force figures. The combination of five point articulation with designs based on earlier twelve inch
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