G.I. Joe Classified Series (1:12)

[nacho]

Had no problem ordering Outback from Target, skipped the Python figures. BBTS also has Spirit and Storm Shadow in a set with a 3rd, yet unnamed, figure.

I backed the Skystriker, even though I have the modern/PoC/50th one and the SDCC/Jetfire version. I love the black tailfin option, the cloth parachutes, the ball-articulated stand, the flame/smoke effects for the engines and missiles, etc. And the wings and landing gear are now separate levers. Plus, I still have a ton of vintage ARAH MIB vehicles and my MIB skystriker is the Funskool version, so maybe I'll replace that one with this.

IDK, there is something so familiar and therapeutic about opening and messing with o-ring figures that I 100% don't get with modern construction figs, no matter how much more realistic, articulated, and detailed they are. I have 2-3x of every 82-87 figure in storage, but I'll be getting these, one to keep MOC (kitchen-grade silicone o-rings FTW), and one to open. But then again, I'm an unapologetic nostalgia whore. I would take 1984 intravenously if possible.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I took a closer look at Outback, but can’t do the Tiger shirt version. He could be good in a more normal version (preferably with an black or OD shirt vs the classic white). EE has Spirit and SS up as pre-orders with a July 22 fulfillment date. I pre-ordered them, but I’m hoping I can score them before then. The free shipping was too tempting. No sign of the normal BAT yet.

 

[nacho]

I know it's an homage to the Club figure of 2016 since there was no vintage TF Outback, but for the life of me, I don't know why Outback is white-headed now. Does the jungle cause so much stress that you grey faster than normal? The guy is a ginger fer-cryin-out-loud.

I'm going to pose this question around the webs to see if anyone knows.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I wondered that myself. Too much color clash with the Tony the Tiger shirt?

 

[pcsguy88]

I’m still on the fence about the Skystriker, but I know I will cave. That stand and the effects are just too awesome. Pissed this o-ring line did not come out at the same time as Classified and kept me out of the 6” game.

Spirit is an insane sculpt.

 

[nacho]

Yeah, I was chatting with eddie this weekend, and my response about the skystriker was that I want one just to display with all the fire/smoke bits, and I like the idea of having a stand and not trying to suspend it from the ceiling. Objectively it's nowhere near worth the asking price, but I'm going to get one anyway, mostly because I know I'll regret passing a year from now when they start shipping, photos start popping up, and they're 500+ on ebay. I've wasted more on dumber things.

I'm very pleased about Spirit, as I didn't think they'd make him that close to his ARAH version. Sure, they got rid of the fringe, pigtails, and weird belt/cloth that all screamed "stereotype", but fundamentally kept him extremely similar and recognizable.

I always thought it was so strange that they made him so overtly "indian" originally, since Airborne was also native-american and required none of that garb. He was just a military dude. For Spirit to come along a year later and be straight-outta-teepee was bizarre at the time. Then again, I was more into the military-looking guys. Airborne was a must-have in '83. Spirit was a hard pass in '84. That being said, I'm very happy with the updated version.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Same on the original Spirit figure. He was a complete pass for me back in the day. And even as a kid I rolled my eyes at the cliché battle (with whacky voices and all) between Spirit and SS on the cartoon. But, like Zartan and Maj. Bludd, (and even Destro eventually) the sculpts won me over in this line. And now I so want an Airborne figure too!

 

[nacho]

I hated the Spirit/SS "showdowns" in the toon, as I was already steeped in the comic universe where SE and SS were frenemies with a shared past. Shoehorning the indian as a foil for the ninja seemed both weird and a no-contest. Even Quick-Kick fighting Storm Shadow seemed like a horrible mismatch.

I know the 'toon struggled with the mute guy not being able to use witty banter or heavy explanatory exposition, especially in 1-on-1 battles, but I feel like the substitutions were poor at best, Spirit being the weakest.

 

[nacho]

Pulse Premium exclusive livestream... just announced Classified Cobra Officer and Alley Viper. Pre-order Officer tonight 6:30ish for premium, 8pm everyone else. Not sure about Alley Viper yet.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Pretty good looking fig. Got the notification from Entertainment Earth tonight. Might have to pre-order it... gonna wait and see if they offer free shipping like they did the others.

 

[nacho]

I love the cloth-style face mask, the AK, the new gear. Can't really imagine it coming out much better. The more these figures abandon the look of that video game, the more awesome they become.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Lol, I have a feeling you may be skipping that foretold Fortnite crossover figure...

I have to say though that, until we got the Firefly figure, that Fortnite guy was the best 6" representation of him. One could argue that he looks more like the classic FF than the official one...

 

[nacho]

I agree. I have one of those with the boots and gloves primered up, ready to paint, then the official dropped... whatcha gonna do?

I have the fork knife SE pre-ordered, but I have doubts I'll care about other game figs. With my luck they'll have heads that are more classic and I'll have to get them to do a swap or something.

The rumor list that leaked many months ago correctly called SS/Spirit/Officer, Croc Deluxe, and the three Tiger/Python figs by name. If you believe the rest of the list, Tomax, Xamot, Stalker are next, followed by Zarana, Dusty, and one more I forget. Stalker and Dusty are in my top-10 favs, so fingers crossed.

 

[ThunderDan19]

From the article I read last night, there are a couple of (potentially mulit-figure) gaps yet to be filled, thus the Officer fig and the (surprise?) Alley Viper (which I shall have in all his blaze orange camo glory! ). It will be interesting to see if those gaps fill and with what.

You showed us the normal BAT figure, which I would guess will be filling a slot since the only difference from the PP version is the paint, but that still leaves at least the potential for a few more surprises in the next year, if production and fulfillment happens.

In a way it is fun to have some mystery and surprises with the line, but in another way I'd rather know a little bit ahead if something really cool is only a few months out. I'm actually a little surprised that, in this day and age, there isn't more leakage of product images from Chiner. Maybe there are and I'm just not on the right sites to hear about it?

 

[nacho]

The officer is the mystery fig in the SS/Spirit wave. BBTS listed a set of three for that wave last week and simply didn't name the third until yesterday. The Alley Viper and BAT are the two without actual release schedules yet and will likely fill in a gap somewhere.

In the presentation yesterday, some of the pics of the AV included the BAT, but no other figs were in the shoot, which also makes me think they're potentially in the same wave (or multipack?), since the photographer had them at the same time. But that's just speculation on my part.

I'm mostly excited about the rest of the rumor list likely being true, since every revealed fig was correctly called. Of course, plans and timetables can change, but I'm anxiously awaiting those announcements.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Here's hoping that maybe Hawk, Leatherneck or Mutt will be the third fig in the AV & BAT wave!

 

[nacho]

I'd prefer an OG Hawk, or at least give the leather jacket version blonde hair like the OG figure and the comics. The brown hair was just some hasbro production stooge's attempt to distinguish him from Duke, as if we were all too dumb to know the difference. I found the notion insulting and the inconsistency irritating. Apparently I still do

 

[ThunderDan19]

Lol, apparently so! So I had blond(er) hair when I was a young kid which grew more brown as I aged. I guess I applied that logic to Hawk. His hair got darker with age and rank!

I'd love some kind of hybridized version where he has blonde hair but has the cooler uniform and kit. But, truthfully, I wouldn't be annoyed if it was brown either. He just needs to be cool, well kitted and well detailed.

I'm really just hoping for a cool Joe to add to the collection, as so far the Cobra figs have been much better than the Joes for the most part. Therefore, they are significantly outnumbering my Joes.

 

[nacho]

Yeah, the aging thing was the explanation I used as a kid to rationalize the change, but it still buged me.

This is Hawk in my head (Duke is a poser who can take a flying leap). And based on that last page, I wouldn't even mind a black coat instead of brown.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I'd be fully satisfied with a good hybrid of the versions, like maybe he's blonde, wears all green but has the coat as an add on. I wouldn't miss the camo on the pants if it was done well as just OD. I'd like him to come with more than just a pistol though. He should have something that hearkens toward some kind of command/control as a Col/BGen. In reality, he'd be cooped up back at some command center, running the show.

 

[nacho]

In the 'toon, of course he never appears as a Col, and as a General, he rarely showed up on the battlefield except to assess the situation and bark orders. He left the leading-of-men to Flint, Duke, and Beachhead.

In the comic, he was far more of a hands-on leader, even after getting his star. Duke was mostly ignored and rarely appeared, and Flint was less of a field leader and more of a ladies-man. Half of his appearances are him macking on LJ rather than soldiering. I'd argue that Stalker does more leading than anyone besides Hawk in the comic.

I like the camo pants, but I could live with the hybrid version you describe. Either way, he should be blonde no matter what. Duke can stick his nuts in a wheat thresher.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, the differences between the 'toon and comic are stark for sure. You can tell which medium a Joe fan grew up with by whether they overemphasize Duke or Snake Eyes.

I both liked and got annoyed by both. I'd say I gravitated to the comic a little more in general for the "realism," but found myself losing interest when they focused too much on a single character/storyline (Snake Eyes) for too long, got fixated with characters that were not in the line at all (Quinn,Billy, Candy, Hard/Soft Masters, etc.) or with some version of a Joe/Cobra outside their battle kit (Cobra Commander) for entire issues.

As for the cartoon, I enjoyed most of the episodes, but often tired of the red/blue lasers never hitting anyone but then easily knocking out tanks and planes. And sometimes the particular caricaturizations of some of the characters - like "dumb dumb" Bazooka, "meathead" Leatherneck and "suthun hick" Beachhead got really old (and, of course, the Dreadnoks ). I did like that they often "spread" the love of the different characters (and yes, I fully grasped, even as a kid, that it was to try to sell them all), as I kinda felt like the comic wasn't very good at it most of the time.

But I'd say that my favorite storylines and characters where the ones I found most "military" accurate. After all, that grounded military "realism" is what won me over to GI Joe from Star Wars or any of the other popular lines of the era. The closer they stay(ed) to near real world gear and equipment, the better I like(d) it. Still true today for the most part.

 

[nacho]

I consumed and enjoyed both, but my lasting impression of each character seems to be the version that got the most fleshing out. When I think Flint, Gung-Ho, Shipwreck, or Roadblock, I think toon because they were so featured and didn't do much comic-wise. When it comes to Hawk, Stalker, Clutch, Ripcord, and anyone from '87 onward, it's the comic version that's stuck in my head. Lots of characters had prominent roles in one or the other, but rarely both. SE and Scarlett are about the only Joes that really star across the board.

The comic plots with Billy, Candy, Hard/Soft/Blind Masters, the Freds, Dr Venom, Kwinn, etc. were pretty entertaining at times, as they were good supporting characters. I liked Ripcord having a wacky carnival girlfriend - she was better than Honda Lou or Satin from the 'toon! I just was irritated that they never got figures. Within the big bedroom-spanning wars, I wanted to have my own B-plots with those characters too. I had Ripcord kick Zartan's ass so many times...

I only lost interest when the comic went full-ninja. Having one good commando ninja and a complicated ninja nemesis is great. Having everyone either be a member of or have a strong connection to this remote heretofore unknown ninja clan became too much. Scarlett was a ninja, all the new joes were martial artists, Billy became a ninja, the new cobras were ninjas. The ninjas ninja'd all over the ninja's big ninja. I just thought Hama was out of ideas, and truthfully he probably was. And the toyline was flagging at that point, so hasbro didn't give two shakes if his plots went off in the weeds.

The new series of the last decade is mediocre echos of his glory days paired with serviceable-at-best artwork, yielding a title I only buy for the nostalgia of it all. And he pissed me off when he killed off the "real" Snake Eyes and replaced him with an exact copy AND a brainwashed teenage girl, so we have two good guys with the same name, a neo-classic version that isn't the same guy but might as well be and a woke version. It's painful at times a la the 90's Spidey clone saga.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, similar for me. I got my approximations of many of the characters from wherever they were featured as well, except where the characters presented were either too annoying or not hardcore enough for my version of the canon. I filled in the gaps with whatever I could imagine based on the file information and artwork.

I never saw the cartoon past the GI Joe (jumped the shark) movie and, though I still collected well past it, I stopped taking the comic very seriously when Storm Shadow died but didn’t. At that point I had lost respect for it. Hama did a great job coming up with the backstories and file cards for the toy line as well as a few gems, but overall I found the bulk of his work in the comics as way overrated. And his obsession with spending multiple volumes focused squarely on certain characters ultimately bored me of them after a while. The early volumes were better balanced across the force.

And I don’t mind having non-team supporting characters, but not at the expense of screen/page time from major characters in the line. I don’t recall ever wanting any of the non-line characters to be made, save for perhaps the Red October characters. At least they were military and certainly fit for battle play.

 

[nacho]

I loved the marvel run through the Cobra Civil War (ended in #76) I originally collected through 100, but 76 was the end of the Golden era, imo.

I think SS "died" in #46 or 47, and came back in 49 or 50. If you stopped at that point, you kinda missed out on some good stuff that came later in the following couple of years. And of course, Special Missions were great too, giving some focus on characters that didn't always shine in the main book. I imagine that one being up your alley, one-and-done stories with a more military focus.

Ironically, by the early 90's, I was enjoying Hama's Wolverine run far more than his Joe work at the time. Of course the Silvestri artwork had a big hand in that.

Yeah, I've never seen the DiC toon (didn't know it existed until I was grown), and based on reports, I don't want to. I own it, but haven't been able to force myself to watch it.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Oh, I read well past that, and enjoyed much of it. It had just lost the luster of the somewhat grounded “realism” I had always looked to GI Joe comics for, as opposed to the more far out themes often included in the cartoon.

I just remember often wanting to write ‘Ol Larry and gripe about the fringe characters and weirdness that had invaded my favorite battle mag. I don’t remember ever following through with it, but I always oozed disdain for all the butt kissers who got their praise letters published in the postbox.

Truly the comic, cartoon and toy line were all headed down the same path from epic to mediocre to lame to desperate to irrelevant. All of them had their moments though, and we are fortunate to be able to see, and to have seen (25th), a good portion of their best parts revived and reconstructed in a way.

 

[nacho]

A review of the Classified Barbecue figure... by someone from generation-Fortnite who clearly has absolutely no idea who the character is.

It's funny in its utter bizarreness. "He has range and melee weapons!" Um no, he has a firefighting axe and an extinguisher. And his tank is not filled with "propane".

WTF Mattel. I give her four face-palms.

Target Exclusive - G.I. Joe Classified Series #32 - Cobra Island - Gabriel “Barbecue” Kelly - YouTube

 

[ThunderDan19]

Lol, yeah, she seems pretty clueless. At least she's cute so she'll have that for a while at least...

My only takeaway was that the Classified figures actually vary fairly well in height. Breaker seems to be a little fella, while (of course) Roadblock towers. I like the variations! And what's up with the Jean Grey head on Scarlett? Probably something I missed in a different episode or something. Oh, and I really want that Hydra Stomper!!!

 

[ThunderDan19]

Looks like the Alley Viper and BAT pre-orders have dropped:

Take Home a Real American Hero - G.I. Joe! - Entertainment Earth

Take Home a Real American Hero - G.I. Joe! - Mint Condition Guaranteed. Shop now!

www.entertainmentearth.com

I'll pre-order them if they offer free shipping like they did with Spirit and SS. They never offered that with the Officer (that I saw anyway) so he will be a pick-up-if-I-see-him unless they eventually do the free shipping for him or the three pack. I noticed they dropped the expected date for the CO singles back to Nov 2022. I guess if you want him in July from EE, you'd have to buy the three pack.

 

[nacho]

BBTS has them up too, still waiting for pulse...

 

[ThunderDan19]

Does Pulse do anything for shipping?

 

[pcsguy88]

Pulse is a bitch about shipping unless you are a premium member. I use BBTS' box of loot to reduce shipping costs.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, I was thinking that was one of the factors of my not getting on board when they converted from HTS some years ago now. I had used HTS a few times for some of the very hard to find 25th stuff, but do recall their shipping was high and pretty lousy (USPS zero tracking kind of stuff). I used EE and BBTS some back then and remember the POL was definitely the best value for decent, trackable shipping.

I like that BBTS has flat rate $4 shipping, but of course they get it right back with higher unit prices than EE. So I've pretty much resigned to only pre-ordering Classified figs from EE when they have the free US shipping specials. It's still more expensive than just finding them on the shelf at WM, Tarjay or even Gamestop, but it's worth knowing I have it coming if I don't find it elsewhere before next July.

My guess is that most likely I will find them in the stores first and just cancel the pre-order then. That's about how it's gone thus far, with the big B&M retailers getting them before the online shops.

 

[nacho]

When HTS went away, I got a free pulse membership from making a purchase early on when the pulse first started. Then they extended all existing members for a year during the pandemic. I finally had to pay for the membership this year, but I've made up that $50 in free shipping and not overpaying for figs, so I don't feel badly about it. If I didn't buy much, it wouldn't be worth it, but between Joe, Marvel, and SW, I collect enough hasbro stuff to easily make it pan out.

The biggest issue with the pulse is that they never have enough product. If you're not trolling the right boards or social media right when stuff drops, you're just going to miss out, pure and simple. They've gotten a little better about giving members a heads-up, but if you're busy at noon that day and don't get back to a computer until 2pm, you might as well not bother. And when new stuff pops up for PO, it's always limited to qty of 1. That's great to give everyone a shot, but it sucks if you troop-build, keep anything MOC, or simply wish to own more than one of something. Thus I end up ordering the rest from BBTS anyway.

On the plus side, Pulse usually has plenty of their exclusives, they've never cancelled anything out from under me (looking at you, amazon and target), and their cheap troop-builder offerings are pretty great. Getting Hellfire/AIM/Hydra goons for $15 seems like a steal in this day and age.

I don't buy from EE unless it's a last resort. I've bought unopened cases from them on a few things that are hard to come by, but by and large, I avoid them if possible. Their shipping is beyond stupid.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yep, that's why I jump on the free shipping and think long and hard otherwise. All things considered, we are pretty spoiled by how easy it is to get ahold of product if we are really motivated enough. I just fuss when it costs more than Wallyworld - when they are the least predictable with the worst online presence of the bunch!

 

[ThunderDan19]

So this was on my YouTube feed today. Nacho, you got any insider info? I know this is right up your alley...

 

[nacho]

Yeah, there have been rumors swirling around for weeks about new WM 6" Retro Joes. Since the 4" retro line is on hiatus b/c of the o-ring revolution, WM now appears to be getting classified figures on retro cardbacks.

If you follow SW Black or Marvel Legends, this is absolutely par for the course. ML gets "retro" lines all the time. Retro X-Men, Retro Spidey, Retro X-Men on cardbacks with vintage artwork like from ToyBiz. Most of the time they are straight repaints of existing figures, no new tooling, minimal accessories. Occasionally you'll get a new head on a figure, but it's mostly an excuse to get people to double-dip on a character or mold. I typically skip them unless the deco is a major improvement, and the cardbacks are too friggin' big to keep MOC and display.

There is a lot of speculation that the first two codenames in the WM computer correspond to previous releases of Baroness and LJ, so they're probably coming. Baroness will likely be a more classic version (black or blue), and I expect LJ to be more of a toon deco (hopefully with a better head). Hopefully since Joe is not a licensed property, they can afford to include a few more accessories than they do with ML and SW repaints. Beyond that, it's likely just all speculation.

I feel like Hasbro is about to trample all over Super7 if they start going full-toon with the repaints. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, I could see that happening, particularly if they come in at the Classified price point and offer retro cardbacks with the original art and detailing. If they have the original filecards and previews on the back as well, it's pretty much a no brainer for any Joe loving 80's kid with the extra cash to support it... It'd be like going back in time when you hold it, with the card and figure scaled to match our size now.

The biggest thing for me is that I might actually collect them MOC if they are a close approximation (they better say A REAL AMERICAN HERO though), since I already have my Classified figs on display. The only thing I would ask is that the Retro 6" be as completely true to the original as possible, and keep the Classified series doing the modernization thing. No halfway crap. The lines need to be distinct.

Anyway, I was surprised this was potentially a thing, but I suppose I shouldn't be with the SW version of this happening. But will Joe get the same treatment or is this all just somebody's pipe dream?

Also, I saw another video that he is saying the next batches of Classified are starting to show up early. Not sure if that is really a thing or not, as I haven't seen any changes of dates from the online retailers as of yet. Hard to say if this dude is just a big hype-for-clicks guy, or if he's actually on to some things...

According to him though, "2022 is the year of GI Joe..." I suppose there is an argument that there is more Joe action figure merch out there than has been for a long time. Not sure if Hasbro is really as far into it as he claims, but they are at least allowing other producers to generate stuff... So we'll see I guess.

 

[nacho]

The BATs and AVs are trickling in, as retailers get a few at a time from the shipping logjam. Hasbro swears there are PLENTY of them, so no need to hoard or pay scalpers, just be patient. I ordered from both BBTS and Dorkside, and the Pulse still has them available to order too. But they'll be coming out in dribs and drabs for months I suspect, not some big nationwide release like we're used to.

I think the 6" retro line is just going to be Classified repaints, pure and simple. To expect anything different is setting yourself up for disappointment. SW and Marvel already have the blueprint nailed down solid. Just another way to reuse the existing tooling. Knowing Hasbro, they won't be ultra-faithful representations of the figures or cardbacks. I expect classic-ish artwork, but will it be the real thing or 25th style wannabe art? I would not expect ARAH nomenclature either. It'll all be close to what you want but never close enough. Been around that block too many times.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Agreed. I won't get my hopes up. I am not jonesing for the retro deco that much and, honestly, I never expected Classified to be as decent as it is. If 6" Retro somehow turns out awesome, and priced like Legends and Classified, I'll be on it. Otherwise, Classified is scratching the itch pretty well.

I'm definitely not scrambling for the next batches or paying too much for any of them either. I have Spirit and SS pre-ordered from EE, just because they had free shipping. No such luck for the Officer, BAT or Alley Viper, so I'll just press my luck on those. If there are plenty, then all the better. I'll pick them up if/when I see them and cancel the pre-order that isn't supposed to arrive until July anyway.