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25th Anniversary GI Joe


JELEINEN

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Got the Joe pack today from Target. Snake Eyes and Roadblock are easily my favorites. Roadblock makes me miss the Ma Deuce on my Abrams more than anything, as it's gorgeously in scale. Too bad they couldn't have given it the combo colors like they did Snake eyes knife. I like the ammo belt and pack, too, as well as the helmet. Mostly that they actually used a sculpt and made Roadblock a big bad mofo. Weren't there supposedly legal issues around the Roadblock character or something like that?

Anyways, Snake Eyes commando is great. I passed on the more traditional Snake Eyes visor with timber at Frank & Sons, today, but hopefully I'll catch it at retail. F&S had both the white wolf and dark wolf variants, as well as leopard print Destro and gold headed Destro. My favorite Destro today (that doesn't look like a 70s bare chested goon or the leopard print pimp is the Iron Grenadier gold-head Destro. Hopefully we get a 25th anniversary that does that character justice, so I can buy it with a straight face. :D ).

They need to do a 5 pack of 5 Cobra troopers and 1 Cobra officer, though.

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Shin:

Thanks for the different link to reviews - works great!

:)

And I didn't realize it, but after reading a few reviews, I now understand that while Sigma 6 is going away, the 8" Joe line isn't - but there are different series in the 8" line now. And some are new combos of old molds ... ah, I see!! Very cool.

Muchos gracias!!

:)

No prob man, Justin's s6 review site is the best for s6 reviews. Sigma 6 and the 8" line are going away after this year. Combat Squad 2 is one of the last waves of the year(the one with Torpedo, Sgt. Boulder, and Recondo). The remaining 8" series for this year are Combat Squad, Adventure team, Commando class and Soldier class. Adventure Team wave 2 may not make it out this year.

Weren't there supposedly legal issues around the Roadblock character or something like that?

Another company may have had rights to the name at the time. This is why Heavy Duty was brought into the new line during 2002. Hasbro did regain the rights to Roadblock in 2003 or 2004, as they used the name on an Energon Transformer and Roadblock in the gvc/spytroops line.

Hopefully we get a 25th anniversary that does that character justice, so I can buy it with a straight face. biggrin.gif ).

Already slated for a future wave. His filecard name is Blade Destro.

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Yeah Blade Destro sounds right up my alley. I'd just as soon as we don't get Voltar if he's gonna be a lavender clad type, but sure hope we get the Iron Grenadier, as well.

I was going over them all again, and Snake Eyes and Roadblock easily remain my favorites. Snake Eyes is just too damned cool and excellent in every regard. Can't think of any changes I'd make to Commando Snake-eyes.

One thing making me raise my eyeball about Roadblock is that his off-hand is apparently meant to cradle the receiver of the M2. Unfortunately, where he has his hand is right where the ejection port is for the shells.

I like Scarlett but she's a bit... cartoony, while the others all have a bit more realism... except maybe Gung-Ho, who has me as a Sergeant of Marines professionally embarrasses since he just screams Village People. I would have liked to see his cammies digitized and the appropriate cover (boonie or field) put on. Speaking of cover, WTF is that emblem on his cover... sure don't look like an EGA. and give him a decent M16A2 or M16A4 (would be best with the digi thing). And if he must keep that stache, make it regulation.

So... ahem... back to Scarlett. I think the extra 1911 lookalike is for her, but neither she nor Roadblock have a holster. A more... tactical, looking outfit, if not a shred of uniformity amongst the GI Joe team would be nice, but I guess they are trying to emulate the comic.

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Don't you be badmouthin' Pimp Destro. He will SLAP you. :p

Ok, I admit I bought this because of the sheer ridiculousness of it. :D

1131043686_9045d363d9.jpg

Where did you find this at? There gone every where I look? Ok con exclusive. Duh!

Edited by scand
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Where did you find this at? There gone every where I look? Ok con exclusive. Duh!

I can't believe the gold version is going for like 60+ dollars on ebay!! I should've bought a bunch of these! :(:huh:

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No prob man, Justin's s6 review site is the best for s6 reviews. Sigma 6 and the 8" line are going away after this year. Combat Squad 2 is one of the last waves of the year(the one with Torpedo, Sgt. Boulder, and Recondo). The remaining 8" series for this year are Combat Squad, Adventure team, Commando class and Soldier class. Adventure Team wave 2 may not make it out this year.

Ok, thanks for the clarification. Looks like I should start hunting around for the 8" Joes while they're available.

Edited by Vermillion21
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Yeah Blade Destro sounds right up my alley. I'd just as soon as we don't get Voltar if he's gonna be a lavender clad type, but sure hope we get the Iron Grenadier, as well.

I was going over them all again, and Snake Eyes and Roadblock easily remain my favorites. Snake Eyes is just too damned cool and excellent in every regard. Can't think of any changes I'd make to Commando Snake-eyes.

One thing making me raise my eyeball about Roadblock is that his off-hand is apparently meant to cradle the receiver of the M2. Unfortunately, where he has his hand is right where the ejection port is for the shells.

I like Scarlett but she's a bit... cartoony, while the others all have a bit more realism... except maybe Gung-Ho, who has me as a Sergeant of Marines professionally embarrasses since he just screams Village People. I would have liked to see his cammies digitized and the appropriate cover (boonie or field) put on. Speaking of cover, WTF is that emblem on his cover... sure don't look like an EGA. and give him a decent M16A2 or M16A4 (would be best with the digi thing). And if he must keep that stache, make it regulation.

So... ahem... back to Scarlett. I think the extra 1911 lookalike is for her, but neither she nor Roadblock have a holster. A more... tactical, looking outfit, if not a shred of uniformity amongst the GI Joe team would be nice, but I guess they are trying to emulate the comic.

Gung ho was the most dissapointing figure of the joe battle pack. Decent figure but he holds the shotgun at an awkward angle, even if you make an incision to make the trigger finger able to grip the trigger. They were going for the 80's comic appearances/iconic look for the figures.

I agree completely about commando Snake Eyes. I would rank the joe figures in the battle pack like this:

Snake Eyes

Roadblock

Scarlett

Duke

Gung Ho.

Duke turned out much better than I expected, he can grip his gun with 2 hands, and his elbow hindrance does not bother me much(full 90 degree rotation hindered by the sleeve sculpt).

Ok, thanks for the clarification. Looks like I should start hunting around for the 8" Joes while they're available.

Walmart just lowered prices. Here they are:

Adventure Team:$17.96

Commando/Combat Squad:$12.96

Soldier:$8.96

I'm still trying to find out whether Target will still carry the soldier class. I have not seen any during the reset. Prices for Target:

Adventure Team:$19.99

Commando/Combat Squad:$14.99

TRU has slightly higher prices for Adventure team and the soldier class:

Adventure Team:$22.99

Commando/Combat Squad:$14.99

Soldier:$10.59

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Shin - how are you so well informed??? Great info as always mate.

:lol:

Thanks man! I'm a fan who is willing inform fans of what they may have missed out on. BTW guys, Hasbro just answered round 3 of their bi-monthly questions from various gi joe sites. I'd give the link to hisstank.com's summary but I can't seem to access the thread at the moment. For now, check out general's joes' q/a link. BTW, general's joes has links to rounds 1 and 2 from various sites linked on that page as well. That page is maintained by General Hawk/Justin, who some of you know from the sigma 6 central website.

Of note is this particular question asked by joecustoms.com:

joecustoms:Will all the 5-pack figures eventually be released as single figures? And will they be the same versions as in the 5-pack?

Hasbro:Yes and Yes.

These questions from joereloaded.com in particular caught my eye:

Are there GI Joe/Cobra characters you consider untouchable for a possible comic book death?

A: Definitely not. The 25th celebrates the past 25 years. It is not meant to be a snap shot at this point in time. Nothing in the history of RAH is off limits.

Will we ever see some other comic created characters such as Candy Appel, Hard Master, Soft Master, Blind Masters, Shooter or Wraith made into figures?

A: It's possible. The initial goal is to capture existing

collectors as well as latent fans who haven't been involved with the

brand for 25 years. Once we have captured everyone's attention, we have

the ability to drive deeper into the fantasy.

Will future comic packs focus more on the Marvel Comics (please!), the DD comics or a bit of both?

A: As we have said nothing is off limits from the past 25 years. However just as our product has celebrated the "golden age" of RAH, any comic re-issues would need to begin there as well.

So what we can get from that, is that Hasbro is directing much of their focus to the 1982-1995 run of A Real American Hero, in essence the joes much of us grew up with. That is the classic era. A neat fact, is that Gi Joe ARAH line actually outlasted Star wars at retail. Star wars did return to retail until 1995, after the Hasbro and Kenner merger.

BTW guys, since there are no vehicles for the 25th anniversary line thus far, a good substitute is the Power Team Elite line. You can find them@Big Lots for dirt cheap prices. TRU has some under their Elite Operations line, but only a couple of their products are Power Team Elite, the others are from Chap Mei and other cheaper toy makers. The F/A-18@TRU is $22.99 and the A-10 is $29.99. The A-10 is in grey, a lot better than the BBI Combat Command A-10 that came out 2 years ago, a lot bigger than the Cobra Rattler, and the only thing I was dissapointed with, was that it lacked a shark mouth sticker. The F/A-18 comes in either grey/green camo or black with red/white stickers and red trim on its weapons. Its a 2 seater and a must buy. The A-10 can be found@TRU and Big lots, but the F/A-18 seems to be a TRU exclusive. Aside the F/A-18, Big Lots seems to be the place to be for Power Team Elite merchandise. Also, though the prices for vehicles and figures are a lot lower than gi joe, don't let them fool you, these are of high quality, and very reminiscent of the ARAH 80's gijoe era, especially the vehicles. The F/A-18 even has folding wings and a moving airbrake. The A-10 has rotatable turbine fans. Both come with boarding ladders. The A-10 even comes with an air traffic controller! Both of these planes are just a bit longer than the skystriker, and very comparable in size. Trust me, they fit right in with your joes. I like these planes a lot better than the gijoe Thunderwing from 2004. In fact, I think the power team elite vehicles as a whole fit in better with the ARAH joe vehicles, than the joe vehicles from 2002-2005 do!

Edited by Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0
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Another nitpick about Duke... I don't even mind that his rolled sleeves are prohibited full 90degree movement... but I'm most irritated that they picked the most obscene, low QC, spot for his wrist articulation. It looks like a major hack job and that articulation would have been better put up at where the arm meets the sleeve itself (and if they had thought about it, they could have rolled it down one more notch and killed two birds with one stone).

Are there any pics or anything on this new Blade Destro? The gold headed pimp version has been a bit appealing, for some reason, lately... :ph34r:

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Another nitpick about Duke... I don't even mind that his rolled sleeves are prohibited full 90degree movement... but I'm most irritated that they picked the most obscene, low QC, spot for his wrist articulation. It looks like a major hack job and that articulation would have been better put up at where the arm meets the sleeve itself (and if they had thought about it, they could have rolled it down one more notch and killed two birds with one stone).

Are there any pics or anything on this new Blade Destro? The gold headed pimp version has been a bit appealing, for some reason, lately... :ph34r:

seriously, that gold headed destro pimp daddy is selling like hot cakes! check out this auction!

Edit in: ok for some reason linking to ebay doesn't work anymore. So here's the item number and search under completed items: 130144267124

:wacko::blink::huh:

Edited by BoBe-Patt
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Another nitpick about Duke... I don't even mind that his rolled sleeves are prohibited full 90degree movement... but I'm most irritated that they picked the most obscene, low QC, spot for his wrist articulation. It looks like a major hack job and that articulation would have been better put up at where the arm meets the sleeve itself (and if they had thought about it, they could have rolled it down one more notch and killed two birds with one stone).

Are there any pics or anything on this new Blade Destro? The gold headed pimp version has been a bit appealing, for some reason, lately... :ph34r:

No pics of Blade Destro yet, though I have a feeling he will be unveiled@joecon next month. I agree on Duke's wrist rotation spot, it breaks the sculpt. I want Hasbro to reissue the Destro Dominator, the tank that turns into a helicopter. Now thats a great IG vehicle right there. I stupidly passed it over when it was $12.99@target 5 years ago.

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Nice. Stalker seems to look a bit too Middle Eastern, rather than black....

Buzzer, Beach Head, Cobra Trooper, Zartan, Red Ninja, Firefly all look great. Mixed about Serptentor (he really needs the cowl). I only wanted to buy a few of these 25th anniversary figures, but this is looking hard!

If I bothered getting Shipwreck, he'd go in the same fairy bin as Gung Ho. I intend to skip him.

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Nice. Stalker seems to look a bit too Middle Eastern, rather than black....

Buzzer, Beach Head, Cobra Trooper, Zartan, Red Ninja, Firefly all look great. Mixed about Serptentor (he really needs the cowl). I only wanted to buy a few of these 25th anniversary figures, but this is looking hard!

If I bothered getting Shipwreck, he'd go in the same fairy bin as Gung Ho. I intend to skip him.

According to some fellow joe fans who were@SDCC, Serpentor was supposed to have his cowl and be based on his vintage look, but by the time some of the team found out what happened, it was too late and this one was already on its way to production. This one is based on his recent costume from the DDP comics. Also, Red Ninja has an all new head based on his look in issue 21 of the marvel run(if I remember correctly, the panel where one shows his sais to threaten Snake Eyes and Snake Eyes responds by throwing a grenade at him). I am definitely buying Firefly and probably all of these sans cobra trooper since he is similar to the battle pack version which I already have.

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I really dig Beach Head and Firefly. But why does Stalker have blue eyes and why does Serpentor wear a motorcycle helmet, does he obey California motorcycle laws for his sky chariot?

Edited by baronv
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I really dig Beach Head and Firefly. But why does Stalker have blue eyes and why does Serpentor wear a motorcycle helmet, does he obey California motorcycle laws for his sky chariot?

Serpentor's helmet is from his current look of the DDP run. Since he was supposed to be based on the vintage design, theres no doubt in my mind that a vintage based version will come out soon enough. No idea about Stalker but I wish he came with his jetpack and toned down colors, though this look is accurate to some of the earlier issues.

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Thanks for the link, Shin!

I'm really digging the Zartan. Maybe it's the obvious snarl on his face, but he looks a bit better than the version we saw from SDCC.

As for Stalker, :angry: where do I begin?!!

baronv is right: what in the blue hell is Stalker doing with blue eyes?! The prototype looked so awesome, and yet, this painted version gets almost everything wrong. Along with the eyes, I personally think his camo should be more dark green and less yellow (Maybe Hasbro should reverse the color pattern Stalker currently has.).

All this is especially frustrating since Stalker was one of the first Joes I ever got.

Two other thoughts I haven't mentioned in earlier posts:

1) Why is it that every shot I've seen of Lady Jaye shows her gun holster riding up her waist/torso? I really hope it's just a matter of Hasbro folks not knowing how to pose the holster right (and not a design issue).

2) The Cobra Trooper's sigal(sp?) should be red instead of the white they used. So what if they already released the red one with the 5-pack; the red ones are a no-brainer, troop-builder!

Other than Firefly, Zartan, and MAYBE Beachhead, I'm just not as psyched up for these next two waves anymore. :(

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One detail that I really like for some reason, especially on Snake-Eyes and Duke, is the lacing on their boots. Makes me want to put on my old pre-MARPAT jungle boots. :ph34r:

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Got "Ninja" Snake Eyes v2 carded, as well as Storm Shadow. As big a fan of Snake Eyes Commando as I am, Snake Eyes v2 is the ultimate fig. I was a bit surprised they didn't include the backpack, though the sword itself slides nicely in between the bandoleer and his back, they should have at least included a "notched clip" on the back of the bandoleer for the sword to slide into. The sword handle itself is a bit too long and the classic shape with blade blade would have been better, as well, but those are my only nitpicks.

Storm Shadow is a pretty good rendition of the Storm Shadow v2 original, though I'm a bit puzzled at their using wrist bands for this one (to hide the wrist articulation perhaps?) and consequently moving the Arashikage tatoo/glyph from the wrist to the forearm.weapon selection is pretty cool, too, as was tying the sheaths/quiver to the ropes.

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Argh, my Commando / Anniversary Pack Commando Snake Eyes holster broke off (only changed the pistol in about 5 or 6 times total). Looks like I just need a little spot of glue, but still a bit irritating. Just thought I'd vent.

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Other than Firefly, Zartan, and MAYBE Beachhead, I'm just not as psyched up for these next two waves anymore. :(

I'm probably going to pick up Firefly and Beachhead, but they're virtually the same figure (different head and accessories) so that's not really saying much i guess.

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