In 1994, the 30th Anniversary trading card set was released. It showcased a lot of rare G.I. Joe items that, at the time, collectors had few avenues to ever see. Among them was the Cobra De Aco figure. It was listed as the rarest G.I. Joe figure in the world and that there were only a few of them in the whole world. This might have been true at one time. But, the cards didn't really foresee the impact of the Internet and how it made the world smaller. As late as 2002, there were still dealers who felt there were only a handful of Cobra De Aco figures out there and would try to sell the figures for massive amounts. But, Brazilian collectors had found hundreds, if not thousands, of De Aco figures and have shipped them to collectors in the U.S.
Today, the figure is fairly common, even complete. Most do have some paint wear as the yellow pads, Cobra logo and chrome head are all susceptible to wear. But, even high quality figures aren't all that much different in price than they were 15 or so years ago. In the early 2010's, the Black Major produced bootleg De Aco figures. Depending upon how you feel about straight arms versus swivel arms, the figs were awesome or terrible since he kept the straight arms from the original design. Along with homages to the Brazilian release, he also repainted the mold several times. So, there are more affordable ways for collectors to get a version of the figure should they want it.
what do you think mike fountain is doing right now?
ReplyDeleteHe's at home, washing his tights!!
DeleteWherever he is, he's still the baddest man on eBay!
DeleteThe legit De Aço is a nice figure, not due to rarity (it's a consumer item), but the design, and colors are awfully nice. The yellow is a shade that isn't used on any other figure, either.
I have the Black Major version. What's funny is the bootleg version often looks way better than the originals because they weren't played with. I think they kept the straight arm, because then the upper arm pads wouldn't be sacrificed for the increased articulation. Look how cheesy/strange the painted on upper arm pads look like on 83 Flash.Also,even the Black Major bootlegs are going up in price because few are available on the open market (right now). I think I paid 15 bucks with shipping for one a few years ago, they've doubled in value since then, at least until BM makes more.
ReplyDeleteI don't own original or Black Major's creations. Yeah, straight arms...not something I get nostalgic for, just like the old breakable thumbs for that matter, which is something else Black Major does and I understand why kinda for consistency with true vintage. But the softer hands were great thing from 1997 onward.
ReplyDeleteThe BM version pretty much satisfied my needs for this character. He's nice, but nothing I'd want to pay tons of money for. Straight arms aren't my cup of tea either, but a lot of this figure's charm is in his novelty value so it's alright for him.
ReplyDelete