Firefly’s 1984 figure is one of the most iconic designs in the Real American Hero line. The masked head, urban camo and unique accessories all give the character a coolness level in geek circles that rivals Star Wars’ Boba Fett. The familiar uniform has had a few redesigns over the years, of varying degrees of success. Looks like someone took
Read moreI always found the classic HISS driver to be an odd duck, even when I was a kid. He spent all of his days inside the HISS canopy and only came out when Destro would want to drive and kick him out. Here was a guy in red among an entire army of blue. He looked too thin and I
Read moreWow, looks like someone spent a little to much time in the Dreadnoks’ tanning bed. I haven’t seen such an inhuman pallor since the talking General Hawk or Jersey Shore. Now that I think of it, Hawk was from the same sub-line as Road Pig here. What was going on in the Hasbro factory? Was the color mixer asleep at
Read moreThe Renegades animated series did a fantastic job of taking the Joe brand in a fresh new direction. It’s too bad it ended so soon. At least we now have some figures based on the series. Hasbro struck a nice balance of the established modern style with the likenesses of the animated characters. For the Cobra Trooper, the Renegades style
Read moreI may be in the collecting minority on this, but I don’t mind repaints. I’m definitely in the minority on this, but I like some of the 2002 t-crotch figures. My favorite of the bunch–Storm Shadow. The first series of the Joe Vs. Cobra series had some dynamic stances molded into the figure. Limited articulation and pre-posed stances are usually
Read moreEvery collector has his or her own focus, or niche or reason for collecting. There has to be some impetus behind adults buying little plastic toys, right? For some it’s the packaging, for others it’s the storyline and marketing. What keeps me interested in the GI Joe brand, and with toy collecting in general, is just the look. Now I’m
Read moreI’ll say this about the classic style comic packs. I loved ’em, warts and all. For someone who grew up following the comic, they were a dream come true. Seeing figures representing characters from the pages of the comic was something my ten year old self always wanted to see. My favorites of the bunch were the Cobra troopers. Red
Read moreYou wouldn’t know this was an Iron Grenadier trooper from his looks. Black and gold are usually the colors one thinks of in regards to Destro’s forces. But I’m all for a splash of color and flash from time to time. So is Destro, apparently. Some of the Iron Grenadier bling is on display here, from the gold braids on
Read moreStep into the kinda-wayback machine with me to the era of Spy Troops. So much has happened in the Joe brand since 2003 that this fairly recent era seems almost a distant memory. Imagine a time in this not too long ago past when Joe product was readily available at retail. And in two packs at that. Neo Viper Commander
Read moreShadow Vipers are described on the file card as infiltration and espionage specialists, but come on, we all know this is still the Astro-Viper, of the Cobra astronaut corps. Also according to the file card, they cover themselves in powder in order to pass undetected during infiltration. Really? So that’s not a space-based EVA pack on his back? I assume
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