Can a bit of beautifully rendered package art sell a less-than-great product? Heck, yes. Check out the card art for the 1987 versions of the Cobra Action Packs, the goofy little low price point items that featured (among other gimmicks) wind-up action. Of course, the packs were often outsized and…
Yesterday's post got me thinking again about 1987, and what a unique year it was for GI Joe figures. Some say that the Cobra strangeness represents a slide, but I find the year most intriguing in terms of the breadth of specialties and new designs covered. Psyche-Out was no doubt…
How can you make a figure like Chuckles stand out on the shelves and get kids to buy him? I don't really know, but I certainly picked him up back in 1987. Maybe it was the Hawaiian shirt. Actually, it was probably the cool removable holster.
”Excellent Cobra action figure from 1987”.”But I still wonder if he is crying in his big bird’s nest, about the Atlanta Falcons losing Super Bowl 51 To New England in overtime?”
Thank you very much for showing both sides of the card. For me, looking at both sides of the 87, and the 88 figures’ cards, always brings back good memories of those two years. My first two years of collecting G.I. Joe toys. But, in the comics Raptor had a gun. He was also shown with a gun in the commercial for the Marvel comics issue number 59. And, he also looked a little bit like Zartan in that commercial. Raptor would have looked so much better in this card art with a gun in one of his hands. Same thing with Crystal Ball, who would have looked so much more menacing on his card art with his shield in one hand, to hypnotize an enemy, and a gun on the other hand, to shoot that enemy. I just do not understand why did this figure, and the others like Croc Master, Big Boa, and Crystal Ball were not released with a firearm. At least a pistol, or a revolver. That probably would have made those figures more liked by the kids back then. What were the Hasbro folks thinking that year?
I completely agree. I’d seen the card art and seen him in the comic. Both of those renditions were cool. But, the craptastic figure didn’t deliver on that promise.
I’ve got a soft spot for Raptor. At the time, he really stood out on the shelves. He was like a bird-themed version of Serpentor, only without the rank. The fabric winged backpack was very interesting at the time. As a kid, I wondered if he could somehow fly or if he just wore a bird costume. I never bothered to read the side or didn’t understand that “ultralight airfoil system” would imply yes. His filecard painted an interesting picture. Sounds like he would’ve fit in well as a middle-tier figure in Extensive Enterprises.
The domino mask or eyeblack invokes Zartan. LOL at the bird having its own little harness. Notice the claws on his boots.
In some ways, he represents two versions of Spirit- the first which came with an eagle as his companion animal and the third, which used a glider as part of the Air Commandos.
Hmmm… mink. Perhaps that’s what Destro’s vest collar is made from? Or maybe it’s used to produce Snow Serpent uniforms?
Note that Raptor was a prominent boss in the GI Joe NES game. He was the boss of level 1-2 and would slowly smash up the bridge the player was on.
@ James- Big Boa didn’t have a gun because he had boxing gloves. Can’t exactly use a gun wearing boxing gloves. And he was a Cobra trainer, not meant for running across a battlefield. Sgt Slaughter really needed a gun as the Slaughters Marauders leader. I guess he was expected to infiltrate Cobra territory with just his team wielding a baton to subdue Cobra troops. Gung-Ho in dress uniform wouldn’t be going off to battle dressed like that.
I’d bet no gun for Slaughter because he was a “real person”, and that might be seen as controversial or something. Same with The Fridge. Kids see real life heroes armed with guns, imitable behaviour?
”Excellent Cobra action figure from 1987”.”But I still wonder if he is crying in his big bird’s nest, about the Atlanta Falcons losing Super Bowl 51 To New England in overtime?”
Cobra’s mink ranch is a sadly under-explored part of the canon.
Thank you very much for showing both sides of the card. For me, looking at both sides of the 87, and the 88 figures’ cards, always brings back good memories of those two years. My first two years of collecting G.I. Joe toys. But, in the comics Raptor had a gun. He was also shown with a gun in the commercial for the Marvel comics issue number 59. And, he also looked a little bit like Zartan in that commercial. Raptor would have looked so much better in this card art with a gun in one of his hands. Same thing with Crystal Ball, who would have looked so much more menacing on his card art with his shield in one hand, to hypnotize an enemy, and a gun on the other hand, to shoot that enemy. I just do not understand why did this figure, and the others like Croc Master, Big Boa, and Crystal Ball were not released with a firearm. At least a pistol, or a revolver. That probably would have made those figures more liked by the kids back then. What were the Hasbro folks thinking that year?
I forgot to mention that the 87 Gung-Ho figure, should have also been released with a gun.
Why am I reminded of Harvey Birdmen?
The figure just didn’t match the intensity of the cardart. THAT would be a wicked figure!
I completely agree. I’d seen the card art and seen him in the comic. Both of those renditions were cool. But, the craptastic figure didn’t deliver on that promise.
I’ve got a soft spot for Raptor. At the time, he really stood out on the shelves. He was like a bird-themed version of Serpentor, only without the rank. The fabric winged backpack was very interesting at the time. As a kid, I wondered if he could somehow fly or if he just wore a bird costume. I never bothered to read the side or didn’t understand that “ultralight airfoil system” would imply yes. His filecard painted an interesting picture. Sounds like he would’ve fit in well as a middle-tier figure in Extensive Enterprises.
The domino mask or eyeblack invokes Zartan. LOL at the bird having its own little harness. Notice the claws on his boots.
In some ways, he represents two versions of Spirit- the first which came with an eagle as his companion animal and the third, which used a glider as part of the Air Commandos.
Hmmm… mink. Perhaps that’s what Destro’s vest collar is made from? Or maybe it’s used to produce Snow Serpent uniforms?
Note that Raptor was a prominent boss in the GI Joe NES game. He was the boss of level 1-2 and would slowly smash up the bridge the player was on.
@ James- Big Boa didn’t have a gun because he had boxing gloves. Can’t exactly use a gun wearing boxing gloves. And he was a Cobra trainer, not meant for running across a battlefield. Sgt Slaughter really needed a gun as the Slaughters Marauders leader. I guess he was expected to infiltrate Cobra territory with just his team wielding a baton to subdue Cobra troops. Gung-Ho in dress uniform wouldn’t be going off to battle dressed like that.
I’d bet no gun for Slaughter because he was a “real person”, and that might be seen as controversial or something. Same with The Fridge. Kids see real life heroes armed with guns, imitable behaviour?
I was 10 years old in 1987. Maybe that’s why I’ve always given Raptor a pass.