Spirit (1992)
Spirit got his due in the 90s with a newly designed figure, and a command as well. The leader of the Air Commandos, a group of figures who piloted gliders, the long time Joe team member shows up in an interesting 90s uniform.
The original Spirit is one of the more iconic figures for those of us who grew up with Joe in the 80s. He’s also one of the members of the team whose appearance evokes the now tired GI Joe/Village People jokes. He’s got less of the tracker/adventure style of the old figure, and is equipped in the kind of pseudo military attire prevalent among 90s figures. He’s still representing his heritage however, with boots, headband, and long hair. The mold itself is also done up in the stockier style that emerged in the late 80s and early 90s GI Joe figures.
Sadly, Freedom the eagle did not make the transition to the new release. Maybe he wasn’t deemed necessary since Spirit himself was taking to the air. He would however reappear for Spirit’s introduction in the new sculpt era, both in the small and large scale figure lines.
The mold was used again as part of the International Action Force, an odd inclusion, if you consider the term international in reference to countries outside the team’s country of origin. Regardless, I didn’t mind, as the new Spirit figure in yet another useful color scheme was a welcome addition to the Joe team.
Spirit is one of my favorite Joes ever, so I was glad to see him updated even though I wasn’t collecting by then. Nowadays, I view this figure and the later repaint as a transition point between ’84 Spirit (my favorite) and the POC homage to Billy from “Predator.”
This version is rather, shall I say, extreme? In accordance to then current tastes in comic artwork, I gather. I’ll always prefer Spirit’s iconic look from ’84 onwards which is still being used today in the Hamaverse comic, but this isn’t a bad alternative, either.
I wonder how it would look if you stuck the torso and arms of the International Action Force version on this figure….
I happen to have that version, and just recently I got back the red version of this figure’s rifle from another collector and gave it to the IAF Spirit.
Also, I just noticed–the vest has the same kind of fastening style as the Duke from around this time. (Look at the buttons, is what I mean…)
I really like this one. I’m sure I would’ve bought it had it not come with a glider. I didn’t really use my Joes outside that much since my backyard wasn’t really good for it, so a Joe that came with a fun thing that I couldn’t use inside was kind of a drawback in my opinion. That said, this version of Spirit is really cool and I like his new headsculpt here that looks a lot less stereotypical yet still has some Native American nods in it.
As a kid, the air commandos were well out of my price range. Now i have them all except for this version of Spirit and the yellow guy [Cloudburst?]. They are all missing their gliders except for sky creeper whom i found complete at a car boot sale for fifty cents.
I guess by default my favorite member of the group would be my namesake but this spirit looks like a pretty good figure too. I had no idea he had a pony tail.
@Clutch i heard a rumor that in the UK, some kids poisoned themselves by trying to drink juice from a vine ala Predator
@Skymate: It takes all kinds. Kids will be kids, but that’s the last lesson I’d guess they’d take away from watching Predator.
I’m guessing you have the figure of your namesake since he was the first Australian Joe? I have yet to own any of the glider pilots myself except for a Night Vulture that a friend once gave me, long lost by now.
@Clutch
During the arly days of the ARAH brand over here, we got Recondo who was available as the Action forces Australaian member. I think he was renamed “Dingo” and came with a kangaroo companion. He’s in really high demand over here as everyone remembers him as “The Australian” of the group. I’ll always see him as “Jungle Recon”
As for my namesake, i picked him up with a huge lot of “DIC” figures at a swapmeet in ’06. Funny how most of them have skyrocketed in value…especially my namesake. He’s missing all his gear and the bow broke off in the harness but i intend to hang onto him. Its bizzare how much he goes for [$45.00 AU]
Best thing about these sky commandos is they dont need to be attached to gliders to be played with
That is a really nice headsculpt, it is Spirit all the way. Nice paint details on the bandana, too. The overall color scheme isn’t too crazy, either, though the red gloves are a bit weird, but good. A soldier picks gear that works, how it looks being secondary (and real soldier’s gear only comes in tan, olive, and black!)
Not one of my favorites. The original Spirit’s face sculpt, if I may contend, is actually vastly superior. The 1992 version is almost a Lanardic parody, with the bright green Low-Light/86 Roadblock vest and three exposed black grenades. Not to mention the simply marvelous red gloves and bright blue pants. Unless your name is Big Boa or Sgt. Slaughter the whole bare arms motif has a certain redneck aesthetic, even if you have the giant guns to pretentiously show off. This Spirit doesn’t have any noticeable biceps mass or discernible sculpt to his rather pedestrian arms making the figure all the more an ironic joke.
This may seem strange, but I kind of like the 1993 Spirit more. Maybe because the red & brown, white & gold seemed to go together more than bright green, bright blue, and red. The black trim on the shirt looks better than the white trim though. 1992 Spirit is fairly good by 1990s standards though, but some of the other Air Commandos are cooler-looking though. Obviously the original was the best.
Nice facesculpt!
@Acer
It’s not just Duke. A lot of other Joes have similar vests, including the 1986 Roadblock (as troublemagnet touches on above), as well as the original Cross-Country and Muskrat, something which always intrigued me in a faction so determinedly un-uniform in terms of costume design.
Additionally, Roadblock, Cross-Country and Low-Light also all share a red pad on their right shoulders. Badge of the Class of ’86?
I’m a fan of the mold but prefer the mail away 1993 version. Still this figure has merit and is a decent update to spirit. Though nothing beats the original.
I find it odd that hasbro found Big Ben and big bears molds but spirits for reuse during the repaint era. This mold would have been a great replacement for roadblock in the night force set.