Wreckage (2003)

How many times has the ’84 Firefly mold been used, especially since the 2000’s? Too many times to count. The Cobra saboteur seemed to turn up each year back then, even making it into two separate Cobra multi figure packs. I know the mold is a classic, but sheesh, talk about overexposure. Well, that wasn’t always the case. Until 1998, the mold hadn’t seen a re-release.  In 1988, it was planned to be used in the GI Joe Tiger Force sub-group as a new character called Sabertooth. A photo of the prototype even made it into an insert advertisement.

Fast forward to 2003, and a Toys R Us exclusive five pack of figures based on the old Tiger Force group. As an homage to the Sabertooth character, the figure fits well into the vintage group’s style. The character’s specialty of demolitions also  fits the mold well, since the ’84 Firefly mold was outfitted with lots of explosive gear, especially the backpack. Wreckage’s personality and background is well fleshed out on his file card, with a past as an Army jungle warfare trainer who used interesting methods (like sneaking up on a trainee and writing ‘Bang You’re Dead’  on the back of his helmet) to get his lessons across. New characters are always welcome additions to the Joe mythos, and though the mold was familiar, the character of Wreckage was new and certainly interesting.