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Hasbro's original plan was to celebrate the 3-3/4" line's 25th anniversary with two 5-packs, one for G.I. Joe figures and one for Cobra. Each comes with a G.I. Joe logo music box that plays part of the theme song from the TV show. When people actually bought the things, Hasbro quickly churned out a third 5-pack of Cobra repaints. When this stuff looked like it would be a hit, they added plans for two waves of five figures (for a total of 25 figures). When they realized that fans would kill (them) for these things, they rushed out an early wave of five more figures, mostly repaints. Or maybe it was the third 5-pack that was the next planned addition after the first 25... When they realized just how rabid the fanbase had become, they expanded their plans to a full year of 25th Anniversary products, including comic packs, multipacks, vehicles, etc. But only one year, and just a paltry 60-80 figures and 10 vehicles. And then even more stuff without the 25th Anniversary logo. That's their story, and they're sticking to it. Or at least that's the best I've been able to piece together, I didn't even notice that they existed until Wave 3...
To start things off, it's a pack of five classic G.I. Joe characters and a G.I. Joe logo music box that plays part of the theme song when you press the star. Originally retailing for $25 (+$5 at less reputable merchants), it quickly fell to $6.24 at Target after the 2007 holiday season, often the only remaining 5-pack. Because it sucked. All figures were later released carded, and most of those pegwarmed valiantly.
Duke actually gets sculpted hair under his helmet. This causes the helmet to be a pain (give it to Roadblock, he's already bald). He's, um, Duke. Yeah. Because that's special. Not special enough to get him decent articulation though, even a year later.
Weapon of choice: Elite Force tan helmet w/ goggles, bazooka - Yeah, I just want to use the line "Bazooka Duke says chew on this."
Two words - Duke Arms. Two more: Diaper Crotch. Articulation wasn't much of a concern in the first figures, which shows just how much Hasbro understands its market. The hands suck too. And the hair color is wrong. And... Early versions have no backpack hole.
Well, the colors are right on this version, unlike the other million or so Dukes. The guy has an outfit for every occasion apparently...
Never liked Duke. Sorry. Idiot keeps getting captured and/or killed.
This is a tough one. On a single card at current prices, this figure is a joke (at least until they release an updated version with the current tooling of this mold). In a 5-Pack on clearance for $6.24, it's not a bad deal. Most of these sold for about $5, which is still too much for such a flawed figure.
Hey look, it's a girl! With boobs and go-go boots and everything. And a crossbow.
Weapon of choice: FAMAS Bullpup.
Hasbro doesn't quite know what to do with female sculpts that aren't statues. Hair is particularly difficult, as it restricts head movement. The look isn't too bad, but articulation should be better. This is the first example of figures with skinny legs that use a Star Wars-style ball hinge knee joint instead of the Joe-standard double hinge.
No complaints here.
She's the girl. But she still gets something to do (aside from getting groped by Duke).
Not bad, but needs some updates.
Pity the sad Marine who can't stand unassisted. I blame the VA. His joints are so loose that the only way to pose him is in a coffin. He doesn't even get the dignity of being bald, there's just a flat peg under his hat. What, the hat isn't supposed to come off? Well, maybe they should have glued it on or something. His grenade launcher is nice, but the hinge is so small that it falls apart easily.
Weapon of choice: Plastic coffin - this guy can't stand.
Needs work. The crotch got a refit for the comic pack Torch figure (and later single carded releases), but the arms have trouble getting into any useful position. And then there's the whole every-leg-joint-is-so-loose-that-he-can't-stand thing. The hat isn't even a proper hat (nor is it glued down as it should be in that case). The sculpting of the hat changed for the bulk of the carded versions, removing the anchor, then again for Leatherneck and Cutter, smoothing out the corners.
They keep getting this part right...
He's a Marine. Wonderful.
I wanted to like this figure, but he just can't stay upright. Lay off the booze!
Who came up with the idea of a hand-carried .50cal machine gun and why are they still alive? This thing is just awkward. The ammo belt and backpack are nice, but something along the lines of a minigun would have been more useful.
Weapon of choice: Included .50cal - Nothing else looks quite as ridiculous.
Like Gung-Ho, the arms are just wrong. The crotch isn't wrong for once, but one hand is permanently stretched open.
Eh, I'm getting bored of these paint jobs. I don't like the paint apps on the head either.
The guy waves around a .50cal machine gun like it's one of those little flags they hand out on Memorial Day.
Hey, at least you get a big gun with him.
Apparently this figure is too light a gray, so it is a pile of crap. A later version is the proper black and is much cooler. So they tell me...
Weapon of choice: M-14 EBR
One of the best basic body sculpts in the first year of figures, its only flaw is the crotch (which was fixed for the carded release). The arms have surprisingly good articulation, especially compared to much of what came later.
The black version looks cooler, but this one is still good.
A mute commando/ninja. Are you going to take points away from him? And expect to live?
The start of a trend, Snake Eyes is the best of the bunch. Look for a repeat in Wave 5 and Wave 8.
And here's Cobra. This pack was harder to find than the Joe pack, but some remain on shelves as of the Summer of 2008, mostly due to TRU's refusal to clearance them (or at least charge MSRP). Key figures include the Baroness (still never released carded) and a proper red sigil trooper (due up in Wave 12 with the wrong color mask). The rest isn't worth squat.
Hey, it's good old Cobra Commander, with a solid silver head. All over. Seriously, it looks like he got the Destro treatment, only without facial features. Gun stores on back, etc. Use him when the situation calls for a light blue helmeted CC, there's plenty of CCs to choose from.
Three problems - diaper crotch, left hand molded as a fist, strange head. Otherwise, not bad. Most of this looks to be fixed in some of the many repaints to come...
I never liked this color. It might be accurate, but it's not nice to look at. Other people will quibble over paint apps.
Too much of a whiny loser... Go back to selling used cars.
You know, it's one thing to release a multi-pack figure carded, but to do it twice (same UPC even) is just being a dick. Especially when the second one has better colors and a key part of the MASS Device. That makes the old 5-pack version totally pointless. I suppose it was good at the time, but I just can't ignore the glut of clones this guy has on the market with only minor differences. Oh yeah, he's got a vac-metal head in an upcoming DVD pack. Fuck.
No pimp daddy outfit here, just classic Destro. With a million tiny pistols. I guess he gives them out as party favors? The briefcase doesn't double as a backpack, but he's got plenty of nice features to make you overlook that. The wrist weapons look great, and Destro can sure strike a pose to show them off. He just can't hold anything in his left hand. The comic version includes a shiny head, so a swap is in order...
I like the bulk he has to him, but the flat biceps and strangely molded left hand just don't look right. On the other hand, the 5-pack version has some great accessories that aren't included with any later releases.
I liked this color scheme until the cartoon-accurate DVD pack version came out. The lack of a vac-metal head was a problem (until suitable replacements were released), but the colors are just too muted.
He builds giant weapons for Cobra Commander to fail to take over the world with. CC must have one hell of a trust fund to have this guy on his payroll.
Sure, there are some obvious shortcomings, but the figure is decent enough on its own, and it is the only Destro that comes with the full set of accessories.
As one of the iconic figures in the G.I. Joe franchise, you would expect to see plenty of her. And it wasn't until Wave 8 that she got a carded release, in blue of all colors. So yeah, this is all there is. The sculpted hair limits movement and the neck peg is angled forward a bit too much, making normal poses pretty much impossible. Some of the box sets turn her bowlegged, but this can be corrected.
Weapon of choice: AUG77
Aside from the hunchback neck, hair restricting movement, and wide crotch, she's, um, OK I guess.
She's in black. Not much to screw up here.
Not being available on a card makes her worth about $15. Not bad for one of five figures (and a music box) in a $25 pack (that I found a bunch of for $6.24 and $9.45).
Get used to this guy, you'll be seeing plenty of him. Start thinking of creative uses for his weapons, you'll have a drawer full of them soon enough. The bow is a bit useless (um, there's no arrow), and the swords will only fit in the smallest of hands.
This is one of the few figures that hasn't seen any major changes (and hasn't needed them). The crotch could use some narrowing, and a backpack hole was added to the mold somewhere down the line, but that's about it.
Of all the figures in my army of Storm Shadows, this one has the best paint job.
Here's the points, don't make me try to explain his backstory.
You know, if there weren't so many marginally different Storm Shadows out there, I might care more.
Hey look, a proper Cobra Trooper! Some people will sell their souls for more of these. Chances are, they will be available carded soon enough, with "soon" for this line meaning sometime in the next 25 years. Update: Christmas 2008! With a red mask. Crap.
Weapons of Choice: Dragonov Sniper Rifle, AK-47 (any version), RPK PKM, NVR Rifle - right index finger may need to be cut apart from the other fingers to improve weapon handling.
So close, but the crotch (fixed for the Wave 8 Python Patrol Officer) is a problem. Elbows and hands may need to go under the knife for best results posing them with weapons. A backpack hole was added late in the production run.
They got it right the first time (and wrong the next 4 or 5 times...).
Mercenaries from every part of the world, coming together to fight (and die) for a common cause... It's such a beautiful thing...
So yeah, a proper trooper has a red sigil and a black mask (and no yellow webgear). Simple, right? Not if you're Hasbro. The Wave 2 carded release had the black mask but changed the sigil to silver. The TRU SRO version was more or less right, but without gloves. The first DVD pack was pretty goon, only with cartoony detailing and a giant red sigil. The Wave 11 Flint in Cobra Disguise shrank the sigil back to normal size but kept the cartoony detailing. And the Wave 12 carded release has the red sigil and a red mask... Can't anyone over there just pick a standard format and run with it?
When the first two 25th Anniversary 5-packs proved to be a hit, Hasbro expanded their plans for the line several times. One expansion was the addition of a third 5-pack filled with Cobra repaints with a Cobra logo music box that played the Cobra theme song from the movie. The CC and SS are pretty useless, but the troopers are very welcome. When these were clearanced for $14.88 on Wal-Mart.com, they sold out quickly. They were an even better find at $12.49 at select Targets, $6.24 if you were very lucky.
A black Cobra Commander? Hey, it worked in Blazi... Oh, right, black clothes. Um, why? Just a lame repaint in what should have been a pack of lame trooper repaints. Swap heads with a trooper (the heads will fit under Air Trooper helmets) and you can at least use these guys as bodyguards or something.
Weapon of choice: MAC-10
Same as the first Cobra Commander.
Why?
I like the Cobra Secret Service agents I turned these guys into, so it wasn't a total loss. I doubt these would even move for $1 on eBay.
Woo-hoo, uh, what? Why?
Same as the first Storm Shadow.
Eh, I'm not a fan of this design, but it could be worse... The weapon packs look good on red Star Wars clone officers.
He's Storm Shadow.
He's a waste of a 5-pack slot. A Cobra Trooper repack or any repaint of one would have been much more welcome. Heck, any of the other ninjas that have been Storm Shadow repaints would have been good. The Cobra Commander I can forgive, but this one is just a waste.
Another Cobra Trooper, with red mask and yellow web gear (as seen in the comics). Looks kind of silly, but I won't turn down another trooper.
Same as the first Cobra Trooper.
I don't like the comic color scheme. It works in the comics, but it just looks bad on the figures. Painted flesh tone hands are a bad idea too.
It's a throwaway trooper, but it's still a trooper.
Finally, a figure I had as a kid. A gray Cobra Officer repaint. There may even be a Stinger for him to drive coming soon, in 2009...
Same as the first Cobra Trooper, with officer webgear.
It's true to the original, but it still doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the guys...
No Stingers to drive makes him a bit of an outcast...
Good to have, but a bit premature.
WTF? This one really threw people because there has never before been a Cobra Air Trooper. Since this line is meant to draw from 25 years of figures, why are they making a new one? The helmet is based on an old comic pack trooper and the jet pack is based on the JUMP jet pack. Everything you need to turn him into a generic Cobra Officer is also included. Personally, I prefer the helmet and jet pack on the gray mask officer.
Weapon of choice: MP-5 - the usual recommendations for Cobra troopers/officers apply, but something smaller makes more sense for an Air Trooper.
The jet pack and helmet are enough for me to overlook the crotch deficiencies.
The comic deco strikes again. With gloves this time at least... I prefer using the helmet and jet pack on the carded officers, but these will do in a pinch.
He's elite.
How can you not love this guy?
With the line winding down to give way to the movie line, two more 5-packs were released.
This pack is mostly just repaints, but there are a bunch of new heads, different arms, updated weapons, new animal sculpts, and other random modifications.
It's the Wave 9 carded version with repainted pants.
She look-a like a man.
Dear god, did they at least find the truck that slammed into his face? Two serviceable Flint head sculpts and we get this? Oh well, at least Wave 11 gives us extras...
Surprise, surprise, it's the DVD pack updated Snake Eyes v2 in black. With light gray details. Wow Hasbro, you really suck. Even decent figures come out looking like crap when you get through with them.
He has two working hands! And skinny arms.
You know the drill. It's the usual guys plus some random crap.
Good, I was worried that we would get a Cobra pack without a Cobra Commander.
I have lost the will to critique Storm Shadow repaints.
Finally, a black Baroness that isn't in a 5-pack full of cra... Crap. Why do you do this, you fucking assholes? And she seems to have stolen the Spidey/Venom suit from Spider-Man 3.
Um, pink? What is this, Hello Kitty Zartan? Seriously, he looks like he's patterned after a Japanese teenager's cell phone.
Fixed hands? Vac-metal faceplate? Stop it Hasbro, you're scaring me. I almost started thinking that you do care.
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