Wow, now this is how you can sell a toy! From the pages of the Action Force comic comes this Super Trooper promo. The Action Force comics in general were quite big and bold in terms of their size as well as graphics. I’m really digging the art style here. It’s very different from what was the norm for the
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Maybe you’ve noticed (or hopefully you haven’t) that I’ve been featuring fewer actual figures on the site of late. The reasons are twofold: First, I’ve lately been fascinated with GI Joe paperwork, ads and package artwork so much that I feel like sharing it more often. I can’t help myself! It’s cool, right? Second, I’ve been more pressed for time
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With the GI Joe relaunch in 2002, the o-ring style originated in the 80s made a limited comeback. In just the first two years, the classic Viper mold (well, most of it–more on that in a minute) had been revisited five times in the mass market, and once (okay, twice if you count the fuschia fiasco) as a Collectors’ Club
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The Intruders as a concept have been a mystery to me. I’d heard them called, according to commercials “Strong Men From Another World” and described by collectors as alien cavemen with advanced technology. Since I hadn’t seen packaging for the figures, I had no idea how (or if) the toy line had explained the methods by which these weird, diminutive
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The Night Creepers sure got a lot of exposure after their initial appearance in the Real American Hero line. The basic trooper figures were followed by a leader character, which itself received a redeco just one year later. Ninja Force featured a redesign for the final years of the original small Joe run. An arctic variant of the trooper showed
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Here’s the earliest Real American Hero cardback, featuring just nine figures in the cross-sell art. It’s amazing to look back on something like this, and imagine a kid in 1982 turning it over to see the other original members of the revamped, smaller GI Joe toys. I don’t recall if my first carded 1982 figure, Flash, had a nine or
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By KansasBrawler Doc is a tough figure for me. Like a lot of the 25th Anniversary product, he looks a bit dated. However, I went through the work to snag the stickers for the Doc mail away (and bought a couple comic packs I probably wouldn’t have bought otherwise to get said stickers), so I feel I should leave him
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Look out, it’s the LCV! I wonder if buyers at Toy Fair asked–what the hell is this!? Proof that the GI Joe design team could do whatever they wanted after a few years of huge success. I also never was able to sit a figure on it motorcycle style, as Bazooka is in the inset photo. Need to check if
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Is there a more iconic Cobra vehicle than the HISS? This early villainous ride hasn’t been ecplised as far as I’m concerned. While there have been multiple re-imaginings of it, and other subsequent vehicles have become more elaborate, the original still rules in my eyes as the de facto Cobra ground combat platform. Geewunner’s Fast Attack Tank resembles the true
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Hey kids, it’s another Kre-O minifigure. I can’t resist, they’re so darn photogenic. Besides, can you really complain about about an homage to ’84 Zartan? Especially one that carries an alternate head on its own special little handle. Weird, I know, but somehow it makes sense. All of the hallmarks of Zartan’s outfit are well represented. There’s the always amazing
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