G.I. Joe 2016 Lineup

[pcsguy88]

I have 3 nephews from the ages of 8 to 12 and they just never cared about soldier toys. They play war with nerf or xbox, not figures and vehicles. I've kept my mom's toy closet well stocked and given them countless presents, yet they have only played with Star Wars ships or a 6" war machine figure. They didn't even care about a full scale 1:18 jet. 2 of these boys shoot real guns, so it's not politics. My daughter also only cares about 6" Star Wars figures. If it's not a Marvel superhero or from another galaxy, kids just do not care. They do not seem to want to replicate real life during playtime. They have magic panes of glass that show them anything the want instantly. Joe ain't ever going to compete with that unless it's another Sigma Six styled toon full of comedy one liners like Teen Titans.

Cut that cord already.

 

[Videoviper]

I said it before & I will say it again GI Joe's biggest problem is that its Hasbro competing with itself.

The 3 big boys toy lines in the 80s were GI Joe Star Wars & Transformers. 2 different companies Kenner vs Hasbro. Healthy competition.

Now Hasbro owns all 3, Transformers has a world wide appeal & Star Wars still sells even with the toy line being 5 poa. So GI Joe is just competition that can easily be removed.

Now I'm not saying they don't have a plan for GI Joe to come back, but for now it about old men in their 40s not kids.

Now if Disney pulled the plug on Hasbro's Star Wars line then I guarentee Joe would be back in full force.

 

[Mandingo Rex]

I just preordered the few I wanted off BBTS. Fuck hunting those down, and that lady figure isn't particularly great looking now.

 

[Falcone]

Even with BBTS mark up, the figures are still cheaper than they were when single carded at retail. Even they restock the preorders I might buy them. I only found two of the packs at retail last year.

 

[Goldbug]

 

[lancelot]

Webgear really does hide the hideous torso. I'm still not a fan of that helmet with that head, it looks like it's being pushed up by a plastic hair bun (gee I wonder why). I wish the MTF Valkyrie figures had remained on schedule this year and beat this release, because I believe they would have put it to shame and because you could use the new MTF parts to spruce this figure up with a masked head that would suit the helmet much better.

 

[Mandingo Rex]

Reminds me of Robot Chicken. And not in a good way.

 

[NSA]

My middle kid likes army men and all that jazz. He likes Call of Duty and games like that too, but also likes the Call of Duty megabloks.

I doubt I could get him to care about GI JOE though, because.. well, there is no real narrative to sell him on. How would a kid today even learn about who GI JOE is.. or who COBRA is.. or any of that. Sure, you could break out the 80's show or some other dated reference.. but I'm pretty sure that's "uncool". So GI JOE/Cobra are just colorful soldier figures.. and expensive. Why not just get some biglots sets, or TRUE HEROES or whatever.. save some money and get more.

If they want to make GI JOE relevant they need a proper good TV cartoon or better yet, a GOOD video game. Some sort of origin story to reboot things again. The movies were a decent attempt... but that's not getting young kids into things.

 

[lancelot]

Yeah . . .

 

[Contraband]

My middle kid likes army men and all that jazz. He likes Call of Duty and games like that too, but also likes the Call of Duty megabloks.

I doubt I could get him to care about GI JOE though, because.. well, there is no real narrative to sell him on. How would a kid today even learn about who GI JOE is.. or who COBRA is.. or any of that. Sure, you could break out the 80's show or some other dated reference.. but I'm pretty sure that's "uncool". So GI JOE/Cobra are just colorful soldier figures.. and expensive. Why not just get some biglots sets, or TRUE HEROES or whatever.. save some money and get more.

If they want to make GI JOE relevant they need a proper good TV cartoon or better yet, a GOOD video game. Some sort of origin story to reboot things again. The movies were a decent attempt... but that's not getting young kids into things.

Just make them better! more realistic,better sculpts,better articulated. If you know 5-8year olds aren't your bread and butter anymore don't make bullshit that looks like it's for them..

This figure looks like shit! This abortion is going backwards IMO! looks like a 25th figure to me. If she actually was neat looking in some way you'd have a chance. If I didn't own any action figures I surely wouldn't want start with this one.

 

[NSA]

Just make them better! more realistic,better sculpts,better articulated. If you know 5-8year olds aren't your bread and butter anymore don't make bullshit that looks like it's for them..

Well, yeah. They need to make it a premium collectors line.. but the problem is GI JOE fans are cheap ass fucks who won't support collectors line pricing.

Fuck, GI JOE fans didn't even support regular retail pricing, waiting for stuff to go to ROSS. (But still somehow support the GI JOE club.. I don't get it)

I don't think there is any saving it at this point.

 

[nacho]

It's not a matter of Joe fans being "cheap" that keeps a collectors' line unappealing. For every loudmouth that screams "gonna wait for clearance at ROSS", five other diehards would gladly jump on something new. There are two problems with the current system:

First, the collector's club 4" pricing is as high as Matty/Digital River charges for 6" MOTUC figures that include tons of accessories. And I don't think it's us being cheap not wanting to pay $25 + shipping EACH for a subscription of figures that are 70% crap.

Second, the club began as a way to get obscure figures out to the diehards (mission accomplished?). It didn't start from scratch. If modern articulated Joes had only been available through a club subscription back in '07, I'm pretty sure every damn one of us would have been on-board. But as it stands, the club figures are mostly characters from the latter stages of the original era (which only select few care about) and remakes of vintage foreign repaints (which even less people care about).

If they want me to sign up for Joe subscription figures, they'd better be 6" ML scale at the $25 price point, or sub-$20 for some new/improved 4" figures. Ridiculous prices + weak characters = no sale. Is that "cheap" or just not wanting to be abused?

With the resurgence of Marvel Legends and the wild popularity of SW Black 6" figures, I thought a 6" line of ARAH Joes would have been a guarantee by now. BAF Snake Armor...

 

[NSA]

Well, the club is terrible all around.

I never would have got into 1:18 if the 25th Anniversary figures were not at big box retailers (Target).

We were getting GOOD figures with the RoC and PoC lines, Retaliation wasn't terrible either, but by all accounts they were not selling like hotcakes. I'm sure WE (and Hisstank) were buying them up, but not enough to keep a big box line alive, with sub-$10 prices.

And GI JOE 'fans' were clamoring for more big vehicles, but those are exactly the things that languished on shelves, with people on the forums clearly stating they were waiting for them to get clearanced.

If Hasbro would have kept with the PoC theme with only small, $15 vehicles, I think it would have been better overall.

I have zero design for 6" anything (giggity), same with 12" (double giggity).

 

[Videoviper]

I think I have 2 club figures. Neither I want to open because of the price I paid to get them. (Topside & Tan Grunt) which kills the fun for me as I am an opener.

If the club could come out with a cool line, at higher production & reasonable prices I would gladdly join up. (obviously other club issues have kept me away but I do like the idea of a club.)

I wish it was more assessable as it is it either all in or not at all.

The funny thing is I pay thoughs prices for BFS, & kickstarter figures so if Joe could create something "special" I'd be on board.

 

[NSA]

I mean if they could come out with a well-designed figure line, with good accessories/etc and charged a premium I'd be fine.

I will not pay $$$$$$$ for misplaced nostalgia shit.

 

[nacho]

12" is too big, IMO. I too have no interest in that. It can stay the purview of Hot Toys and Sideshow as far as I'm concerned.

But 6"? Yeah, I'd do that. With all the Marvel, DC, MOTU, SW figures I have in the 6" scale, it seems odd that Joe hasn't given that a try. They are oddly missing. But then again, I like having my favorite lines/characters in mutable scales. I just made 80+ custom tiny megablocks Joes! I want to make cool 4" MOTU figures someday. Apparently I want all characters in all scales. Oh well.

But back to the original topic... I simply ordered what I wanted from the '16 lineup from BBTS. Fuck TRU only ever having the duds of the wave. It's like 1987 all over again... finding nothing but pegs full of Crystal Ball and Sneak Peek (both charter members of the Peg Warmer Hall of Fame) .... ugh.

 

[Contraband]

Well, yeah. They need to make it a premium collectors line.. but the problem is GI JOE fans are cheap ass fucks who won't support collectors line pricing.

Fuck, GI JOE fans didn't even support regular retail pricing, waiting for stuff to go to ROSS. (But still somehow support the GI JOE club.. I don't get it)

I don't think there is any saving it at this point.

That's the main reason I say ditch the neon colors,and stupid 80's tie in. complete reformat to a more realistic gijoe line that'll appeal to others without the nostalgia,and maintain the articulation. If they're actually neat other people will buy them. I bought neat shit all the time before I got into figures...still do. Rehashes of the same shit doesn't interest me. I couldn't care less about nostalgia.

 

[nacho]

I get that. And while I'm an admitted Joe nostalgia whore, I can say with great certainty that I own all the 4" ARAH Joes that I'll ever need, and I've got enough spares for several future generations. That doesn't mean I won't buy more as they continue to dribble out a dozen figures a year, but if they stopped, I wouldn't feel shorted. That being said, I would love a 6" ARAH line because nostalgia.

However, I'd definitely get excited about a 4" line revamp that didn't have ninjas and neon. Realistic soldiers more like the ARAH line was *trying* to be in '82 - you know, when Joes actually wore green. Realistic enemies are a must too. Make the bad guys of all different races, colors, and ethnicities so we're not stereotyping. White guys, asians, arabs, africans, south/central americans - the whole color spectrum. I know it would sell to old guys like us who have grown out of the fantasy elements of ARAH, but I can't imagine it wouldn't have some appeal to the Call of Duty generation as well. Enough to support a line? I don't know, but it's hard to imagine that it's not worth a shot.

 

[Contraband]

Now is the best time to launch a new joe line. Those 5poa SW figures are selling like crazy by people that have never bought a single figure. As for 6"? Fuck that noise! Too big,making vehicles too big! You gotta remember the figures where originally accessories for the vehicles! Not the other way around. I do believe a call of duty type fully articulated gijoe would sell extremely well!! that's why y'all buy those shitty blocks,and why everyone and their brother makes custom armyguys that all look the same...at least to me they do.

 

[nacho]

I would have agreed with that "6-inch is too big for vehicles; it'll never work" theory a few years ago. Then SW Black happened. They proved that the figures can still sell in the absence of giant vehicles, even in a vehicle-centric universe like SW.

Plus really old-timers (older than me) would also argue that the vehicles aren't a necessity, as the 12" Joe line sold well for over a decade with little-to-no vehicles to supplement the figures.

I'm not saying it's a slam-dunk for retail, but I'm confident there would be enough support for a 6" Joe line of collector figures, a la MOTUC, that they should give it real consideration.

Side note: Mattel just needs to fucking give up. Hasbro, even with their sloppy paint work, has eclipsed them on 6" figures as well. It used to be that Hasbro ruled 4", and Mattel owned 6". Now mattel can't even keep up with DC Direct, much less Hasbro in the 6" space. They need to stick to barbie and board games.

 

[pcsguy88]

I don't know why they don't just release a 4" COD line. It might canibalize sales of MB figure packs, but certainly not the sets since those people want to build shit. I'd support both sizes.

If Joe released 6" figures of the original 13, I'd be all over it, but I'm certainly never going to collect an entire line or anything beyond those originals.

 

[nacho]

I don't know why they don't just release a 4" COD line. It might canibalize sales of MB figure packs, but certainly not the sets since those people want to build shit. I'd support both sizes.

If Joe released 6" figures of the original 13, I'd be all over it, but I'm certainly never going to collect an entire line or anything beyond those originals.

Bite your tongue! You DO NOT want mattel making your 4" CoD figures... They have never made something even resembling a tolerable 4" figure (recalls Infinite Heroes.... shudders).

That being said, I don't know if CoD licensed all toys to mattel or just brick-scale toys to megabloks. If Hasbro did them, at least they wouldn't have t-crotch. PoC-style CoD hasbro figure would be epic... for us, but until we get some national pride back, I think that'll never happen at retail.

Original 13 in 6"? F#$k yeah, I'd get behind that. I could buy enough to customize the rest of the characters I like. Make them $30/each and a subscription. It's not like we wouldn't know what we're getting, and the parts reuse would be a hasbro wet-dream. Who does Jet-tits have to blow to get this done?!

 

[Contraband]

Seriously? A 6" figure tank would be the size of a power wheels! One tiefighter that warmed shelves till they clearenced them out for $40 hardly constitutes a viable vehicle. Besides,I dislike aircraft like jets&fighters as accessories to figures. I like something multiple figures can look like they're interacting with. Without a ground crew,and all that it's not happening with a fighter.

Iirc the 3.75" figures where made to sell the vehicles? I think I read it on yojoe?

 

[nacho]

Right, the SW Black TIE was a poor selling, single-store exclusive. Exactly. And yet, the line is ridiculously popular. It survives essentially without vehicles.

I could see Joe doing the same thing. Fuck tanks. Something more along the lines of a RAM cycle (like the SW speeder bike) or dio sets like the old small battle stations would be the largest reasonable accessories. It would be assumed the play pattern (if you call it that for grown man-children) would be small-scale warfare, special ops, and urban warfare... on a shelf.... not 200 figures and vehicles recreating the battle of Normandy in your yard.

Bottom line, I don't want or need giant vehicles to enjoy a nice 6" military line.

 

[K-Tiger]

Seriously? A 6" figure tank would be the size of a power wheels! One tiefighter that warmed shelves till they clearenced them out for $40 hardly constitutes a viable vehicle. Besides,I dislike aircraft like jets&fighters as accessories to figures. I like something multiple figures can look like they're interacting with. Without a ground crew,and all that it's not happening with a fighter.

Actually, Good Smile did a pair of 1:12 Panzer IVs for some of their Figmas. You can still get Ausf. D on Amazon for under $90.

Of course, that's way to0 much of a risk for an American company to take, especially on the redheaded stepchild that is G.I. Joe. As for 6" Joes, I'm not interested unless they changed them so that they looked like they were wearing OG-107s.

 

[Contraband]

Right, the SW Black TIE was a poor selling, single-store exclusive. Exactly. And yet, the line is ridiculously popular. It survives essentially without vehicles.

I could see Joe doing the same thing. Fuck tanks. Something more along the lines of a RAM cycle (like the SW speeder bike) or dio sets like the old small battle stations would be the largest reasonable accessories. It would be assumed the play pattern (if you call it that for grown man-children) would be small-scale warfare, special ops, and urban warfare... on a shelf.... not 200 figures and vehicles recreating the battle of Normandy in your yard.

Bottom line, I don't want or need giant vehicles to enjoy a nice 6" military line.

I like vehicles in moderation,..humvees,Bradleys,shit like that...6" figures are just too damn big. 3.75"-4" are just right IMO. I could even do 2.5" if they weren't under articulated or looked like apes like megabloks figures do.

 

[Goldbug]

.......

 

[lancelot]

I'm starting to think we maybe a little too old for toys if the hobby is this unsatisfying . . .

 

[K-Tiger]

Pretty much. As to G.I. Joe 2016, [JudyGarland]I don't care, I don't care About these dumb-ass toys[/JudyGarland].

 

[G.I.*EDDIE]

I'm starting to think we maybe a little too old for toys if the hobby is this unsatisfying . . .

Nailed it.

 

[nacho]

My childhood died when I had to sell my MOC joe collection to pay for private school tuition a couple of years ago... every figure from 82-88 plus about 40 carded Action Force figures and assorted other international guys. Death by paper cut as I boxed each one to go to a new home.

But fuck it, I kept the full set of 24 japanese Joe figures on the blue/red cards. They are too cool.

 

[G.I.*EDDIE]

I imagine a snot dripping sob fest as they were boxed up.

 

[Preacher13]

GI JOe Black Series is gonna Happen. I guarantee it.

I don't know why they don't just release a 4" COD line. It might canibalize sales of MB figure packs, but certainly not the sets since those people want to build shit. I'd support both sizes.

If Joe released 6" figures of the original 13, I'd be all over it, but I'm certainly never going to collect an entire line or anything beyond those originals.

 

[G.I.*EDDIE]

 

[Falcone]

No one going to bring up Big Lob here!?

 

[nacho]

I imagine a snot dripping sob fest as they were boxed up.

Not quite (almost), but there were some somber moments. Head down, focus on shipping logistics, try not to notice the giant bare wall that used to be full of MOC Joes.... But it's all good. Now there are shelves full of other toys in that spot, could be worse.

 

[Videoviper]

No one going to bring up Big Lob here!?

I have enough homo erotic toys from the BFS line & my sad attempt at creating a 4" Heman series.


EDIT: I was thinking of Big Boa.

Big Lob is that ass hole who never got a "real" (arah) action figure.
:trollface:

 

[deloraa7]

Love this forum. Still have to explain to a lot of people why I still play with toys also

 

[Blue_Knight]

GI JOe Black Series is gonna Happen. I guarantee it.

By that, do you mean dreaded six inch figures

 

[Preacher13]

Yes. I bet you anything they do a series, starting with a limited run, featuring maybe Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Scarlet and Stalker or something like that.

Than they'll continue based on whether it's successful or not. Given the popularity of the size and what customizers could do, plus the availability of ML and SWTBS molds to supplement new sculpting, they'll probably end up making more...

By that, do you mean dreaded six inch figures