Rock Trooper Guile - Street Fighter Movie

Several years ago, I profiled the Paratrooper Guile figure. At the time, I was enjoying the various Guile variants that are available and felt the paratrooper was one of the better options for a profile as it was one of the higher profile Guile variants. Accompanying that Paratrooper Guile was another, more obscure Guile theme: the Rock Trooper Guile. This version of Guile features the same head as the other figures, but has a repainted body from the 1991 Dusty figure. The result is a solid repaint that has found a home in my collection.

The Street Fighter Movie figures were a ploy by Hasbro to milk some last pennies out of their now defunct G.I. Joe toy line. The line featured some new parts. But, the vast majority of the figure construction was leftovers from the Joe line. At the time, it was a way for Hasbro to keep the costs down while still producing a line of toys that would take advantage of the marketplace. It is curious that Hasbro has again done this just this year with toys from the Hulk movie line. The existing Joe molds were a cheap way for Hasbro to bring more diversity to that line without having to invest in all new tooling. I don't mind this approach. In the case of the Street Fighter and Mortal Combat Movie figures, the results were some great additions to any Joe collection. In time, it would be nice for Joe collectors to have some other lines like this that would keep classic Joe molds on retail shelves.

Really, what is a "rock fighter"? Is he a mountaineer? A survivalist? Or, is he just a figure that has some a tan base and comes with an eagle? At its core, this is what makes the figure useful. This Guile can be a Joe, an unaffiliated, military consultant or just some guy who likes to forage in the woods with a high powered assault rifle. As such, he brings some much needed diversity to a collection. He is a visually distinctive method of adding some diversity to your Joe ranks. The figure looks like a Joe, but is different enough that most people would not recognize the body at first glance.

This leads to the question of how does one use this Guile version? I see him as a standard infantryman. He is somewhat of a survivalist and is capable of operating unsupported for long periods of time. In a way, he has many of the characteristics of Outback. But, I see more of an independent and rebel streak in the Outback character. Guile is more straight and narrow when it comes to his outlook. He will get the job done. But, he often lacks the creativity that someone like Outback could provide to a situation. But, this trait is also highly desirable in some circumstances as Guile is somewhat predictable. His teammates know what to expect from him and will not be surprised by Guile going against his training when the situation becomes stressful. He is a dependable soldier who is always a known commodity. In a unit like the Joes, this is the type of person who is needed to offset the more rebellions tendencies of some of the other team members.

Guile features a very intricate set of paint masks. They are the most significant part of the figure. Guile is covered in overlaying applications of red, green and blue cammo all on top of a light tan base. He features black painted details that offset the colors, nicely. You wouldn't think that red and blue would make a color palette that was pleasing to the eye on an action figure. But, surprisingly, it actually works. The colors are muted and work to give the figure depth without making him stand out like so many of his neon contemporaries. Even the red and blue help the figure to blend into a neutral background like you find on many rock formations. He isn't invisible, for sure, but he also doesn't stick out like some of his neon contemporaries would.

Guile's mold was well used. Originally, the entire body was used for the 1991 Dusty figure. From there, it was used for the obscure Chinese Exclusive Flint figure. Immediately after that, this Guile figure appeared. In 2000, Hasbro recolored the mold for inclusion with the first wave of A Real American Hero Collection figures. The mold was planned for use in 2001 as the driver of the Desert Striker, but that figure was replaced with Flint. It then appeared for the last time in 2002 as the seldom seen Convention Paratrooper Dusty figure. At this point, we have probably had enough of this body mold to satisfy even its most ardent fan. However, I would not mind seeing the Guile head return. Master Collector has proven that some Street Fighter heads make for great new characters. As such, I would not mind seeing the Guile head return as a different take on a characters like Mace or, maybe, even Duke. It would be a daring departure from the norm. But, in the right context, it would also make a figure for the ages.

Guile's accessories are very solid and provide an interesting look into what was available at the time. The figure includes the first black version of the 1991 Dusty's backpack. (Which has subsequently become quite common.) It also includes an olive version of the 1991 Snow Serpent's rifle. This accessory is somewhat fun as it gives the rifle that is only otherwise available in white a very different look. As such, it helps to distinguish the figure. Guile also includes the missile launcher from the 1994 Flint figure. Only, this version has an olive trigger and missiles that match the plastic color of the figure's rifle. The final accessory, though, is the most interesting. Guile also includes the falcon from the 1987 Raptor figure. This is notable as Raptor was last seen in Brazil only a few years prior. Among Raptor's contemporaries, though, were Blizzard (who also appeared in the Guile series), Hydro Viper, and the unproduced Crimson Guard Immortal and 1991 Cobra Commander. Just about all of Raptor's Brazilian contemporaries ended up in India. But, Raptor did not. Not to say that I would like for Raptor to return. But, it does lend credence to the theory that Hasbro had access to molds like Repeater, Sci Fi and Psyche Out. Perhaps they could one day appear if one knew they were likely under Hasbro's control.

Rock Fighter Guile figures are not easy to find yet still inexpensive. It will likely take a few weeks to find a mint, complete or carded version of this figure. But, a carded sample will run no more than $15 and a loose, mint, complete figure will typically run about half of that. As such, when you do track one down, it will not cost you a substantial amount to add the figure to your collection. Of the Street Fighter Movie figures, the Guile variants are the most common. You will pay substantially more for some of the ancillary characters in this series of toys. Personally, I find these Guile environmental figures to be a fun addition to my collection: but not figures in which I maintain any level of long term interest. They are fun to have, but hard to use. On display, it's cool to see all the Street Fighter Movie figures. But, as integral parts of a collection, only a select few of the total figures released in this set are really worthy of distinction.

1995 Paratrooper Guile (Street Fighter: The Movie)

Many years ago, I profiled a lone Star Wars figure. At that time, I vowed to never showcase another Star Wars figure again. Since then, every figure I have profiled has been, at least in some way, affiliated with G.I. Joe. Technically, the subject of this profile is not a G.I. Joe figure. However, his body is taken directly from a Joe mold and he was released at a time when Hasbro was trying to squeeze every penny they could from every Joe mold they had since the end was near. In late 1994, Hasbro released an obscure line of figures that were to tie into the awful Street Fighter movie. Unlike the Street Fighter 2 figures that are part of the Joe line, these movie figures were completely separate from Joe, even though they shared many molds in common. Many of these figures are the martial arts type figures that have little use in my collection. However, there are a few hidden gems in the Street Fighter line. One is the Paratrooper Guile.

There were at least 7 versions of Guile that were released in the Street Fighter line that shared the same head. Most of the bodies was taken from a previously released Joe figure and was intended to give kids the opportunity to use the Guile character in just about any imaginable environment. The Paratrooper Guile figure used the body from the 1992 Ace figure. The Arctic Assault Guile used the body from the 1988 Blizzard figure. The Rock Trooper Guile used the body from the 1991 Dusty figure. The Night Fighter Guile used the body from the 1991 Snake Eyes figure. The Navy SEAL Guile used the body from the 1992 Wet Suit figure. The other 2 Guiles used slightly different construction that is similar to the later Ninja Force figures in the sense that the figure's articulation is limited. (Fused waist) It is the 5 figures who use the classic Joe bodies, though, who hold collector attention. Each is usefully colored and includes newly colored accessories from the vintage Joe line. Some (like the black helmet with the Night Fighter Guile or the green Snow Serpent guns with Rock Trooper Guile) are great repaints that can be easily integrated into any Joe collection. Others (the baby-blue Deep Six diving bell that comes with Arctic Assault Guile) make no sense and have little use.

The reason I like the Paratrooper Guile figure is mainly because I like the Ace mold from which he is created. I also like the bright orange color scheme. While orange has long been the bane of collectors (despite Hasbro's best efforts to use it) it does work in certain situations. Among those situations would be a rescue pilot. These troops would wear the bright orange as not only a symbol of their purpose, but also as a means to assist them in their duties. This is the role I have assigned to the Paratrooper Guile in my Joe collection. He is a rescue pilot who is also capable of serving in combat. He is certainly not a large part of my collection but remains a figure who can bring something different to the table in specific situations. The Joe line is so vast that figures like this comprise a large part of it. However, this allows the modern collector to find any niche and fill it with a larger sample of figures than most other toy lines allow.

Aside from the mold that was taken from the original Joe line, the Paratrooper Guile's accessories were as well. He included the helmet and mask that originally came with Ace. However, due to the design of Guile's head, the helmet will not fit onto his head properly. This makes the figure less useful. But, as Ace heads of that mold are easily found, a simple headswap makes either a new uniform for Ace or a covered Guile head that doesn't look ridiculous. On top of that, this figure also included a silver version of Big Ben's rifle. At the time, this was a cool accessory as the Big Ben rifle was still somewhat unique. Now, though, that gun has been used so many times in the re-releases that is seems overdone with this figure. The part of Guile that made him the paratrooper, though, is the parachute pack. The black pack with solid white parachute are of the same design as was available via mail order and with the Sky Patrol figures. All of the Street Fighter Movie Guiles included new takes on classic Joe accessories. Some of them are worth tracking down for just the included pieces as they are a new way to expand a Joe collection into something a little more unique.

As the Joe line ended its original retail run, Hasbro scrambled to utilize whatever molds it could in order to cut costs of other, lesser toylines. As such, G.I. Joe molds were used things like the Street Fighter and Mortal Combat movie lines. (In fact, the Mortal Combat movie line of figures contains many of the parts that were intended for use in the ill-fated Ninja Commandoes line of Joes: the only way for collectors to really acquire them.) Hasbro also sold off a few molds to the now-defunct Olmec toy company who produced them in a set of figures called the Bronze Bombers. Other, more obscure toy lines also re-used Joe parts. Many were licensed tie ins and the parts were recycled in order to cut the costs for toy properties whose shelf life was known to be limited. The Joe line was so large, though, that the wealth of molds offered Hasbro a chance to move into different things with reduced risk at a time when toys in general were looking for an identity in the marketplace. The nice thing about this is that it gives today's Joe collector a wider arena in which to find pieces that are not only Joe compatible, but actual re-uses of original G.I. Joe molds. When the current run of Joe products ends its production life, it will be interesting to see where Joe molds continue to make appearances.

For a time, it appeared that Hasbro did not have access to the Guile figure molds. In the chaos surrounding the end of the Joe line, they may have been misplaced, mislabeled, or just packed separately from the rest of the G.I. Joe stuff. However, since 1997, most of the Guile figure molds have been reused. (The NF Guile Snake Eyes mold will appear at the end of this year in the Desert Strike Force set.) The one who is missing is the Arctic Assault Guile who utilized the Blizzard mold. However, if Hasbro has tracked down all the other molds, it would stand to reason that Blizzard may be back in the fold as well. As the 2005 G.I. Joe Convention is in Minneapolis, Minnesota, an arctic themed Convention set seems like a good bet. If this comes to pass, perhaps the Blizzard mold will finally return. I can imagine that a good many collectors would like that.

Paratrooper Guiles (as well as the rest of the Street Fighter Movie figures) can be tough to track down. The movie was a flop and kids didn't really take to toys based on the video game. As such, these figures didn't see high production numbers. In fact, many of them ended up in the clearance bins of KB Toy Stores around the country. As late as 1997, you could still find an occasional beat up figure in the stores. What this means, though, is that Paratrooper Guiles are most often found in one of two conditions. They are either loose, incomplete and exhibit some paint wear as they were cheaply bought on clearance by a parent and given to a child who used the figure, or, they are MOC: usually salvaged by a toy dealer from the clearance bins in hopes that these figures would one day be popular. The end result is that while these figures are tough to find, they still routinely sell for under $20 for a MOC figure. Since these figures are not, technically, G.I. Joe figures, they are under most collector's radar and have remained in relative obscurity since their original release. They are, though, a great way to grow a collection and add something much more unique than many of the common Joe figures. You just have to take the time to find them.