Wet-Suit (2002)
Where the first Wet-Suit figure looked like a sport diver to me, this one goes for an all-out science fiction/comic book influenced garb. Par for the course with the 2002 series, to be sure, as the first series’ packaging was heavily inspired by a more graphic design scheme than the fully painted packaging deco of the 1980s and 1990s. At the time, I was glad to see anything GI Joe return to the toy aisles, especially since the line had been taken out just a few shirt years after I started to collect again. I could finally get into Joe at the ground floor. Maybe that’s why I don’t harbor much ill will towards the era. There were disappointing elements through its various stages, but for the most part, I have good memories of the days of the so-called new sculpt figures.
Although it’s a t-crotch figure, and not fully “compatible” with the usual small GI Joe construction style, I still find a lot to like with the uniform. Sure, it’s along the lines of the brand’s more sci-fi leanings, but the mix of armored pieces, a unique new removable dive helmet/mask, and small touches of highlighting colors add up to a figure that is pleasing to the eye.
Other accessories are all holdovers from older diver figures, but their presence isn’t badly out of place. After all, maybe Wet-Suit was really attached to his trusty diving light, and how can you really improve on a speargun? (Although Depth Charge had a really nice new compact version of the classic underwater weapon.) Underneath the helmet is a very nice head sculpt, which has a wavy hairstyle similar to the character’s Sunbow animation model.
Finally, this is Brian M.Forrest according to the file card, and not Brian C. Forrest as the original 1986 figure was known. I know, I know, that’s a totally nerdy thing to point out, but there it is. On the positive side, as many issues as the relaunch era had with code names, file cards and the like, at least they actually included file cards.
Recently this summer, I traded this complete figure, along with his wave-mates Frostbite, Heavy Duty, Gung-Ho, and Snake Eyes (along with their Cobra pack-in mates) to a fellow collector for a nice bundle, which included all but the waist of a 1985 Snake Eyes (the parts were in terrific shape!). I think the head on this figure could’ve been used for a redo in later waves, it’s certainly good enough.
I like that headsculpt. A lick of paint and he’d look just like the Sunbow incarnation
This is one of the few T-crotch guys I kept playing with after they shifted back to o-ring construction. I liked the idea of Wet Suit in a more armored dive suit and I could excuse the loss of articulation as a trade off for his more armored look. While guys like Frostbite wound up getting exiled to the bottom of the box after the return of the o-ring, Wet Suit stayed up top for quite a while.
This is probably my favorite T crotch figure.
When these then-called new sculpt figures came out, I told myself I was only sticking to the original, I wasn’t going to buy much more than just this Wet Suit/ Moray pack….
… Not too many years later I ended up with around a hundred or so figures from the Generation 2 style years….
I’ll have to pick this guy up and see if I can convert him to o-ring…
@Dekkard
It has been done, so you’ve got some examples to work off of:
http://www.joecustoms.com/customs/customs_specific_item.php?kind=figure&thumbs=on&alpha=W&page=1&id=3979
Nice facesculpt!