Dart (2003)
Let’s hear it for new characters! I find it exciting when a new Joe or Cobra shows up on the scene, as it takes me back to the first few years of the RAH line, when every year held the promise of something new and different. I’m glad that the Joe line in the 2000’s wasn’t a slavish tribute to the past.
Dart would appear, at first glance, to be a new version of Spirit. Though they have similar specialties and backgrounds, the two are different enough for me for Dart to not seem like a wanna-be.
The design is simple yet effective. It’s much more restrained than Spirit. There’s no mistaking the military aspect, unlike his predecessor, who could easily be mistaken for an adventure figure. The Native American touches are lighter here; they’re obvious, but not the primary focus. I also like the personalized look to the uniform. Ultimately though, the figure is held back by the issues of the time, namely, proportion. The shoulders are wide and the head is too small.
There’s some attempt at a personality with the file card, and it states that he downplays what people usually think is some sort of psychic ability. He’s actually just a really good tracker and Recondo man. Oh, and his secondary specialty is refridgeration repair. With the limited amount of info on the modern file cards, I miss the inclusion those kinds of little character details.
What I discovered I liked about the original RAH line (when I first started researching it) was also what I liked about the original G1 Transformers line: every wave every year had new characters, all of them new characters (with only one or two new versions of old ones). I find it a little disheartening how, since the 2000’s, there have been fewer and fewer new characters made for the Joe and TF line–it’s either a new version of an old character or a reuse of the name (most prominent in the Transformers incarnations).
My problem with new characters is that they are great fun as action figures but a pain in the butt to define as characters in media such as the vintage comic or cartoon. When you have over a hundred Joes to choose from like Larry Hama ended up with, it’s nearly impossible to flesh out each and every one. As it stands, I think everyone did a nice job with the 80’s line given the limitations they had to work with.
Dart was one such example of what I’m talking about. He had potential, but I remember him being featured in a DDP story arc and getting injured by the end. That was it for him. I had the figure for a short while but those freaking proportions killed my interest in the line until the DTC stuff started showing up along with the comic packs.
I really like new characters and if he seems a bit Spirit-like at first, that’s happened before. Even back in ’89 I felt Backblast and Downtown were retreads of Zap and Short-Fuse. That’s when it does help to have detailed filecards or, better yet, appearances in other media to flesh out the character.
Great figure!