Buckshot (2015 CORPS!)
I’d you’ve been paying attention to Star Wars action figure collecting lately, you’ve probably noticed that a lot of folks are disappointed that the brand’s attention to articulation has diminished. As a vintage SW collector, the return to five point articulation doesn’t bother me much, as it’s what I grew up with both as a kid in the 80s and later a collector in the 90s. Of course, we Joe fans experienced a bit of the same with the Retaliation movie line’s driver figures. Thankfully, the construction didn’t see its way into the basic figures. Well, Lanard has also toyed with the same idea recently. Figures like Buckshot here, who sports the same kind of 80s articulation, have been sprinkled through the line for the last few years. There have even been a couple with even fewer points of movement.
Granted, Lanard’s offerings haven’t mimicked the level of articulation seen in Hasbro’s product since the Joe line abandoned the T-crotch back in 2002. While the lack of movement isn’t as shockingly different from previous figures as the 2012-2013 Joe drivers, it is nonetheless disappointing. Like the more static Joe figures, the CORPS! characters who have been released in this style exhibit the same level of sculpting and design work as their more flexible kin. It’s equally disappointing that we’re presented with a new mold and character that doesn’t match up equally, play-wise, with his mates.
In the latest CORPS! storyline, Buckshot is a member of the Flying Force, the air unit of the group. Character-wise, he seems to be a modern Wild Bill corollary, hailing from Texas, and even sporting an impressive mustache. The toy’s sculpt reminds me more than a little of wrestler turned actor turned governor turned conspiracy theorist Jesse Ventura. Now that I think of it, 80s era Jesse “The Body” could have made for a great real-life personality addition to the Cobra ranks. Hey, why not? The Joes had Sgt. Slaughter. Can you imagine Jesse Ventura cutting a promo for Cobra?
The detail on him is impressive though. A pity it isnt painted
Lets face it 5POA sucks. It makes for a nearly unplayable toy. It is the one factor keeping me from having any interest in The Corp figs. I just hope they eventually use the hip joints from recent female figs on the whole line in the future. That would be nice at their price point.
The visage is a dead ringer for Jessie the Body. Doubt that’s a coincidence.
Jesse was a SEAL; he’d be a better fit for the Joes.
And the one saving grace of the Retaliation drivers was that the heads were regular Joe heads, so now that we’ve got an easy source for bodies via Marauder Inc it’s simple enough to bring them back up to par.
He looks like more of a knock-off than the CORPS, even. The sloppy paint on the mustache looks like something a Walmart “army” figure would sport.
Actually, he makes me think of Crankcase more than Wild Bill. Nice figure!