The General is one unwieldy vehicle. I’m not just talking about the fictional sense of how the heck it moves around, let alone manages to make turns, but in the size of the toy itself. Yes, the USS Flagg is monstrous, and the Defiant is a giant unfolding behemoth of a playset, but the General is an absolute beast of
Read moreThe ’86 Viper mold. A fan favorite design that continues to resonate to this day. It’s also a mold that’s been repainted more times than my uncle’s 1974 Monte Carlo. Speaking of the 70’s, what’s more representative of the horrid decor of that decade than brown and gold? I think Cobra Commander was pining for his days as a young
Read moreThe Sky Patrol figures’ packaging touted the “Working Silver Parachute” as a big selling point. Don’t get me wrong, attaching parachutes to toys and throwing them up in the air is fun as all get out. But for me, Sky Patrol is memorable for the figures themselves. Creative repaints, new interesting weapons and cool helmets come together to create what
Read moreThe 90’s began impressively for GI Joe with a lot of new characters and a plethora of accessories for many of the figures. Bullhorn is no exception. Just the mask and sniper rifle would have been good enough. But we got an actual bullhorn and a modular rifle, a first for the Joe line. Cool accessories all around. The character
Read moreEffects is one of those figures you dig out of your bin and say, “Oh yeah, this guy came out.” And that’s about all you can say about him. No cartoon or comic appearances, he’s just kind of—there. I have to wonder if this mold was even intended as a Star Brigade character initially. He looks more like an Eco
Read moreI’m sure most Joe fans have a story or two about getting an “almost” Joe gift from a well-meaning but ill-informed relative for Christmas, birthday, etc. I had a one of those experiences, too. Give Grandma a break; everybody doesn’t pay attention to name brands and such, especially when there’s a cheaper and similar looking figure hanging on the pegs
Read moreLet’s get the name out of the way first. According to his file card, Ice Cream Soldier’s code name is meant to be ironic, given that he’s a flamethrower commando. So you may ask yourself, “how did Hasbro think up such a stupid name? That’s just pure laziness calling him Ice Cream Soldier.” Well, suppress your nerd rage for a
Read moreEver seen a purple Skidmark? Sorry, couldn’t resist. But that’s exactly what Krunch here is. Well, except for the head, of course. He hails from that strange chapter in Joe knock-off history, the 1997 Bronze Bombers. The set included twelve Hasbro driver molds, eight of which were topped with new head sculpts. By the way, can you really call them
Read moreThe unreleased 1995 Ninja Commandos figures have had their collective photos spread thru the Joe internet fandom for years. Hasbro appropriated some of the cancelled Ninja Commandos molds to help produce figures for the Mortal Kombat movie line. Shang Tsung is the only figure that is head-to-toe the original unreleased mold–Budo. Bits of other figures from the series showed up
Read moreThe end of the RAH Joe line produced its fair share of hits, misses and oddities. For me, the mail-in international force mail in set from 1993 was an odd, yet fun and eclectic mix of both characters and colors. As a concept, it’s a great idea, particularly after the foreign Joes released in ’91 and ’92. The four figures
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