Posting the 25th anniversary Airborne last week got me to thinking about the original again, and how much I like the figure and character. There’s something timeless about the 1983 figures; they’re slimmer, more muted color-wise and accessorized with some of the most unique weapons and equipment in the line. I wouldn’t describe Mr. Talltree’s uniform as plain; he’s instantly
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By Past Nastification My hatred of head-to-toe repaints runs deep. Grand Canyon deep. Looking at this “Frostbite” figure takes some mental energy, because it’s just a Snow Job figure with the wrong name thrown on it. Maybe that’s the worst way to look at it. Instead, I’ll try to set aside the naming issue and appreciate the figure on its
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If I had to point to a single impressive element of the 25th anniversary series, it would be the detailed accessories. The small GI Joe scale certainly has a history of amazingly intricate weapons, backpacks and other gear, and the revamped figures continued the tradition. As the modern figures have evolved, Hasbro refined its approach to the layered style of
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Going back to the 25th anniversary well, Airborne was another figure I really wanted to see recreated for the new line. What we got was not without flaws, but a good looking if not entirely playable figure. If you’re into revisions that look good on a shelf and are able to achieve a few decent poses, it’s a figure for
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By 1985, Snake Eyes was equal parts commando and ninja. Just a couple of changes to uniform and weaponry transformed the Joe team’s mystery man/soldier into a mystical warrior. With the introduction of Storm Shadow, an entire ninja mythos was born. It continues to this day. In 2007, the anniversary series met with enough success that the pegs saw the
Read moreBy KansasBrawler When the Resolute cartoon was first released, everyone went crazy over Snake Eyes. The character was well handled and his design was great. However, it initially looked like the Resolute Snake Eyes figure was going to fall victim to the line rebranding from the 25th Anniversary line to the Rise of Cobra line. That meant that the stolen
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Yes yes, it’s another Snake Eyes. He’s just darn hard to avoid if you’re going to talk about 1980s and beyond GI Joe for any length of time. Most of the time, his figures are black, black and black. Sure, sometimes grey is in the mix, and he famously broke out some blue duds in ’91, but for the most
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By KansasBrawler Some Joe vehicles just really take on a life of their own. When you look at the original Sky Hawk, you wouldn’t think it would be destined for the greatness it achieved. It was a neat little design, but it really took off when it saw extensive use in the Joe comics and the cartoon. While the Skystriker
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Scarlett was one of the first group of Joes to be released in the 25th anniversary series. She was also among the first few modern style comic packs, alongside a uniquely designed Hawk. While the deco of the main line figure hewed closer to the card art and original 1982 toy, the comic pack version put Scarlett in a much
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By KansasBrawler Every now and then, Hasbro releases a set that winds up being highly controversial. During the shift from Rise of Cobra over to Pursuit of Cobra, we got one of those sets. Hasbro released a pair of army builder packs (one Joe, one Cobra) as Toys ‘R’ Us exclusives. The Joe set had familiar names like Footloose, Law
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