2004 was the year of the revived blueshirt. Between the comic pack that spawned this brightly colored version and the uber-popular Infantry Forces six-pack, collectors could get their fill of the generic Cobra ground pounder officer. I certainly did. I’m sure my buying binge was due not only to the colorful nature of the figure (I’m a sucker for brightly
Read moreThe Sonic Fighter figures get a bad rap, don’t they? I mean, what’s the big deal with the colors or the backpacks? Don’t most world military forces accessorize in gold and wear seven foot tall backpacks? I’ve actually covered this fella a few years ago, but for some reason, I left his most important accessory out of the photo. Witness
Read moreCould this book manage to cram much more cool into its cover? First off, you’ve got the good Dr. Mindbender proudly flaunting a chest and ab combo that would make any crazed orthodontist envious. Next, there’s Zartan, whose appearance is always welcome, even when his chestplate is depicted more like a stainless steel banded halter top than the traditional belly
Read moreI’m sure most Joe collectors (and toy collectors active in the 90s) remember the saga of Recalled Roadblock and his Deadly Spinning Launcher of Death and Dismemberment. The thing apparently didn’t pass muster back then, the story being it either broke easily or was too powerful, so the powers that be recalled it. Was it because Hasbro didn’t want kids
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
Read moreI used to think that having the 1982 Joes was an afterthought in comparison to picking up the “improved” 1983 versions. I only went back and bought the straight-arm first run of the original thirteen after the completist bug had bit me in the early 2000s. Looking at the 3 & 3/4 inch line as a whole, and from a
Read moreby KansasBrawler Every good zombie story needs that one character who is prepared for the zombie outbreak. For the Zombie Initiative, the GIJCC decided to make it be Outback—and I love that choice. As the Joe’s resident survival expert, Outback has the requisite skills to survive a full-on zombie apocalypse and while that’s not quite what happened in the Zombie
Read moreThe Dreadnoks were an impressive addition to the Cobra ranks to a kid in the 80s. With an edgy design amalgam of punk and the Road Warrior, they were a threatening force of destruction. Ripper is one of the original Dreadnoks, and as such, is equipped with an amazing melee weapon along with an unexpected implement of destruction — the
Read more1994 was a bittersweet year for this GI Joe collector. While the 30th anniversary salute was a fun tribute to the brand, the Real American Hero line also came to an end. Having just come back to collecting Joe in 1991, I was disappointed to see it exit when it did. The last mail-in of the first small Joe era,
Read moreJoe A Day wishes all those who have served their country in the past and present a happy Veterans Day. We don’t say thank you enough to those who sacrifice for the sake of others. Yo (real) Joes!
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