Man of Action (2007 re-issue)

I’m pretty late to the party when it comes to the classic Adventure Team figures. Although I was old enough to see them a couple of times as a kid (through older neighbor friends) I didn’t have an older brother to hand down his Joes for everyday play. For that reason, I had little experience with or attachment to them. In the 90s, I began collecting the military era 60s Joes, and amassed a decent collection. I also picked up many of the military reissues, including my all-time favorite 12 inch figure, the scramble pilot. I passed on the Adventure Team re-issues until the bug bit me hard in the last couple of years. Much of my fascination with the series has come from the evocative paintings featured on the packaging. The individual figures (and especially the sets) capture a spirit of excitement that must have been hard for kids to pass up on toy shelves. Someone needs to get a high quality book of these published. I’d buy it in a flash! Oh yeah, I also partially blame the wonderful vintage3djoes site for my AT obsession.

The WalMart re-issues were a bit odd in terms of accuracy to the originals. Where the old Kung Fu Grip era Joes came equipped with rifles, the new versions included the earlier shoulder holster and pistol combo. In the case of the Man of Action, the first hard hands release also included the standard fatigue cap. That’s not present here either. I suppose you could consider this something of an homage to both versions. Then again, maybe Hasbro thought that the public would more closely identify the toys with the classic holstered look. I must say they look pretty cool as a group with the holsters.

The flocked hair with the lack of beard along with the holster give this figure a mid-60s secret agent feel to me. The Man of Action would look great in the original Secret Mission to Spy Island set. He also looks pretty cool going up against Caption Action’s nehru-jacketed nemesis, Dr. Evil. It’s medallion vs. medallion! The Man of Action has an advantage however, since he’s wearing boots rather than hippie sandals.