Major Bludd (2008 Desert Assault Squad)

Major Bludd is definitely one of the seminal Cobra villains. His nature as a mercenary was played up in the comic, but not as much in the cartoon. In the comics he was given a depth of character not possible in a 22 minute toy commercial. While he was heavily involved in the power struggle between Cobra Commander, Destro and the Baroness early on in the Marvel comic, the Sunbow cartoon portrayed him as a field commander who had an eyepatch and armored arm, and  happened to speak with an Australian accent.

This figure is the closest we got to an accurate 25th anniversary rendition of his original figure. Other Bludd figures released at the time embellished on the Major’s look. The right arm, head and accessories are the holdovers from those other figures, and their use here is expected. Bludd has usually been worn some kind of chest armor, and the HISS tank driver’s torso does a serviceable job of approximating his vintage look. The legs are one of the biggest differences between this and other modern versions, as the initial 2008 offering was made up of the redesigned Zartan’s body.

Major Bludd’s inclusion in the Desert Assault Squad set doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, except as a way of including a commander, and the only indication we get that he’s outfitted for desert combat is a removable scarf. I really think that this figure was Hasbro’s way of getting a true homage to his vintage look into the 25th line.