The Power of (International) Packaging: Shadow Ninjas Nunchuk
The international Shadow Ninjas sub-set received a different set of card art than its US counterpart. Where the domestic releases featured the same Snake Eyes/Storm Shadow character art, the international versions each had character specific shots like the standard line single figures. There are a couple of interesting elements to point out here. First off, Nunchuk is painted wearing a red jacket and green pants. This may just be artist’s way of conveying the color change (since his accessories are red) but nevertheless it makes for an interesting new look. Another different bit of art is found with the small inset painting that demonstrates the color change based on temperature. Oh, and his uniform is referred to as body armor. He’s also missing a part of his signature weapon, so it looks like he’s holding a highly ornamental stick of dynamite. It’s not crazy on the level of Funskool, but you gotta love the wild west type stuff that sometimes crops up outside of the standard US fare.
Where was this released?
The package back has distribution info for UK, Greece, Portugal and Scandinavia.
Yeah all of the print is straight up English.
A stick of dynamite. Why not a round bomb with a long fuse or an ACME anvil?
On the subject of the toy; its a fammiliar site. I remember seeing discount bins in woolworths 20 years ago full of Ninja force and G2 Transformers. Funny thing is; some of those late G2 Transformers that Woolworths couldnt give away are now worth big bucks.
I don’t hate the cammo pants/red shirt combo. Were this a standard O-Ring figure, it would be a simple parts swap with the original figure to get the artist’s rendition.
My carded Nunchuk is also heavily discoloring in the package. He has the white elbows. I guess the figure might still be OK were I to open it. But, I think it’s more likely the different plastic used for these figures isn’t aging well.
The elbows aren’t discolored, all the color change ninjas have the white elbows, if my memory of stocking these things at TRU 20 years ago hasn’t failed. I think the elbows had to be a different kind of plastic because of stresses applied to the joint in the manufacturing process.
That’s a great card! Maybe he just beaned the CRAP outta some Cobra and busted his nunchuks in half. 😀