1988 IMP

While I didn't buy many Joes in 1988, my younger brothers still picked up quite a few toys.  When no one was around, I'd dig them out and play with them a bit to check them out.  As newness was always paramount to the the most used toys in our house on any given day, I found the fresh items to be the type of thing I wish I had owned just one year earlier.  It was how I stayed connected to the Joe line.  But, my brothers weren't as into G.I. Joe as I was.  And, when it came to vehicles, they didn't really push for any of the larger 1988  releases.  They did, though, get quite a few of the smaller vehicles that debuted that year.  Along with the AGP and Desert Fox was an oddball Cobra vehicle that had some callbacks to the classic Hiss Tank.  The Imp was one of Cobra's new vehicles for the year.  It wasn't overly impressive.  But, a deeper look finds it to be a pretty solid toy that's fun to have around.

1988 was a weird year when it came to vehicles.  You had these extremely grounded G.I. Joe vehicles like the Warthog, Mean Dog and Desert Fox that were juxtaposed by oddball Cobra items like the DEMON and Bugg.  The flagship toy of the year, the Rolling Thunder, was substantially less impressive or large as the mainline cornerstone pieces from 1985 through 1987.  You had the Battle Force 2000 vehicles that were meant to replicate the Transformers experience in G.I. Joe.  Cobra (and the Iron Grenadiers) got a submarine, boat, 3 aircraft and 3 ground vehicles.  The aforementioned DEMON was large and impressive.  The Adder was much smaller and mean as support.  This left the IMP as Cobra's only foray into a mid sized ground vehicle for the year.  And, as the 1987 line didn't have any Cobra tanks, either, 1988 was a weird year where Cobra itself only had a half hearted, mid sized missile launcher to battle your Joe vehicles.

This leaves the IMP in a weird position where it didn't really get a fair shake.  It was asked to be more than it could deliver in its release year.  But, when taken against the line as a whole, the IMP stands up better.  When it doesn't have to shoulder the burden of being Cobra's primary attack vehicle, you can find some serious value in its supporting role.  Imps could shoot down aircraft.  Or, they could block infantry to dust with the landmines that dropped from the missile shafts.  The rotating gun near the cockpit was useful in keeping pesky Joes away, too.  It had just enough play value to be useful.  For a relatively cheap toy, that was all you could ask.

I have a few fleeting memories of the Imp.  Being beyond my toy playing years, I mostly admired the vehicle.  In the rare times I'd play with it, the adventures were quick.  Usually, it was a one off where the missiles would bomb some crappy Joes into oblivion.  I do recall spilling the mines over figures on at least one occasion.  In the mid 1990s, though, the Imp was among the few vehicles that were lying around.  So, it would get picked up as a way to grind some newly acquired 1993 Joe army builder beneath its treads.  That was the extent of its use.  As a collector, though, I found some good use for the Imp.  It's fun to photograph and provides some diversity from Hiss Tanks or Stingers.  The idea of Cobra having long range missile launchers is kind of fun.  It makes Cobra so much more of a real threat as they can destroy massive civilian life and infrastructure from close proximity.  This means there are no countermeasures and cities would live in terror of the next attack.  For me, it was this fear that made Cobra powerful.  The Imp was a means to that end.

The Imp's colors are...OK.  The maroon body with the silver launcher is pretty strong.  The black treads work well, too.  But, the bright yellow gun is distracting.  Not because it's bright yellow.  The color is a high contrast against the maroon and can be visually distracting.  It's also tough to match figure colors to the Imp.  The box (and, therefore, 95% of collector photos!) shows the 1988 Toxo Viper manning the vehicle.  He's not a nice match.  Really, the Astro Viper is a better fit from a color perspective.  There aren't many other options from the depths of the line, either.  Maybe Gristle would be a nice match up.  I didn't think of that until my Imp was boxed up.  So, it will be on the list when I get around to an Around the Web post about the IMP in 2030 or so.

It's actually a shame that the IMP didn't get a repaint.  In Cobra blue, black or crimson, it would fit perfectly with a Cobra convoy of Stingers, Hiss Tanks and STUNS.  It even fills a purpose that those other vehicles really don't cover.  It could have been a cheap repaint in the 2000's that could have been used in one of those 3 figures/1 vehicle/1 towed battle station three packs that Hasbro really liked in 2004.  I daydream of a set with an Imp, a repainted Mountain Howitzer along with a Hiss Driver and two Cobra Troopers.  But, the mold was likely lost in India.  And, Hasbro lacked the creativity to make something fun like that happen.  And, let's be fair, collectors of the early 2000's would have vehemently complained had a vehicle like IMP been reused when the Stinger had not.

Speaking of India, the IMP had a decent life.  After its retail run through Hasbro, the mold was shipped off to Brazil.  Estrela released the Aniquilador.  The colors are very similar to the Hasbro version.  The red is a bit darker.  And, the body mold is stamped with an Estrela marking.  After that, the mold was to India.  The Funskool Imp is a brighter red color.  It was among the early imports of Funskool vehicles to American dealers in 2001/2002.  It wasn't a good seller.  And, vehicle imports were then limited.  So, it's kind of hard to find a Funskool Imp today.  Without the imports, it's tough to determine when Funskool ceased production on the Imp.  But, it's very unlikely that Hasbro ever got the mold back.  It could still be out there.  It's just not something anyone's ever going to endeavor to track down.

Imps are cheap.  Mint and complete versions can be had for between $10 and $20 depending upon how quickly you want it.  Despite the small mines, complete versions are common and easy to find.  So, there's no reason to not have an Imp or two in your collection.  It's a solid alternative to the staid Hiss Tank.  And, it makes a very nice backdrop for photos.  It's no more ridiculous than any other Cobra vehicle.  It doesn't even take up very much space.  Combine that with a cheap price and you have an entry to the Joe line that is useful and fun.  The Imp is never going to be as popular as the more traditional Cobra ground attack vehicles.  It has its place, though, and is worthy of being a part of any collection.

1991 Ozone - Around The Web

Ozone has the misfortune of being a member of two subsets that were very unpopular in the early days of the online collecting community.  That lead to his solid mold and cool helmet being mostly ignored for many years.  Fortunately, these days, Eco Warriors and Star Brigade are much better liked among the collector set.  That's lead to a bit of a reckoning for the characters that comprised those series of figures.

And, today, you can find some decent content featuring the original paint job on the mold.  The Eco Warriors Ozone is a panoply of solid colors.  Few figures in the line look like him.  And, that really makes him stand out.  There's content in the links below that spans back a decade.  There's creators who are long gone from the community.  But, their work lives on.  So, check it out.

Ozone Profile

Ozone at the Dragon Fortress

Ozone by doksewage

Ozone by Pegwarmers

Ozone by rumble alley toys

Ozone by actionforcedk

Ozone by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

Ozone by kiers.customs

Ozone by thedragonfortress

Ozone by misanthropic_git

Ozone by thedustinmccoy

Ozone by corpscommandercody

Ozone by kitbashjoe

Ozone by knowingthebattle

Ozone by slipstream80

2025 Imperial Armored Commando

It's been over 30 years since Star Wars figures returned to retail in 1995.  Thousands upon thousands of figures have been released in that time.  You have to mine the absolute, obscure depths of the Star Wars universe to find a character who is not immortalized in plastic.  And, one of the reasons why it's tough for fans to rally around a single desired product is because pretty much everything exists.  I might clamor for a "perfect" Boba Fett.  Yet, thousands of other collectors are finely satisfied with one or more of the dozens of Boba Fett figures that already exist.  The only aspect of Star Wars fandom that isn't over represented in toys is the new TV media.  But, even here, the roster is pretty good.

Everything I've ever known about Star Wars collecting generally comes down to a few truisms.  Major characters in their classic looks always sell way better than collectors want them to.  Weird aliens are never the retail hit that collectors think they will be.  And, army builders (especially Clones!) are a guaranteed hit.  But, in recent years, these have eroded a bit.  This Commando has one of the cooler designs we've seen in new Star Wars media.  And, he appeared in the popular Mandalorian universe which is the one property that's really been able to escape the manufactured drama of Star Wars fandom.  Despite that, the figure hit clearance all over the country.  Why?  Well, read on....

We'll just jump right to the meat of this figure.  He was priced at $32 when he was released.  $32!!!  The notion of a "deluxe" figure offering has been around since at least the '90's.  Companies got cute with gimmicks to raise the price of a standard figure by a couple of bucks.  The thing is, those gimmicks at least gave perceived value.  I don't care about a huge backpack with a sound chip in it.  But, there were lots of kids who got a figure that included one and loved it.  The extras justified the increased price.  

Now, look at this figure.  He comes on an oversized card.  This is supposed to give the appearance of value.  But, it's just more trash to recycle.  Supposedly, the selling point is the extra accessory complement.  The figure has a shield, baton, 2 guns and a knife.  That's it.  Truth be told, Vintage Collection Star Wars figures haven't included massive accessory complements.  Usually, it's one or two pieces with each figure.  But, that's offset by the inclusion of attached soft goods or other accoutrements like working holsters, bandoliers and other fun things that couldn't exist at 3 3/4" scale in the 20th century.  This Commando lacks those features aside from the sculpted holster belt.  So, the double price point was for a riot shield and baton.  When put in those terms, you can see why this figure struggled.  There's just nothing there to justify double the retail price of a Vintage Collection figure.  The deluxe figures have, generally, been easy clearance finds in the past few years.  Many have even made it to Ross at really cheap prices.  Yet, Hasbro is hell bent on continuing the concept.  So, they must sell enough to make the clearance worth it.  At some point, they'll break.  Until then, I'll take my clear conscience and cherry pick deluxe figures for 1/2 to 1/3 of retail at clearance.  

Since the Vintage Collection returned a few years ago, it's produced a good amount of amazing figures.  There are figures that I didn't think would ever get made all the way to redos of characters in a look that already has dozens of prior releases.  Somehow, the modern Vintage Collection is both one of the great runs of Star Wars figures and a huge disappointment at the same time.  Much of this, though, stems from the line's history.  I vacillate between two distinct eras as the greatest times to be a Star Wars figure collector.  The first would be the latter half of 1996 through the middle of 1998.  The second was between 2006 and 2009.  

Each of these eras have commonalities.  Both of them produced the best versions of characters that were available at the time.  Both balanced their lineups with: main characters, blink and you miss it minor aliens and droids, offbeat and collector oriented Expanded Universe entities and army builders galore.  Both eras saw massive availability, affordable offerings and a constant stream of new releases.  And, both eras ended with retail malaise setting in.  You can argue that a poor Hasbro decision was the cause of these runs fading away.  But, really, both were about three years long and that's about as long as anything can dominate pop culture without seeing some decline.  

My kids aren't huge Star Wars fans.  They like it.  But, it's more of a background show than anything they really dig into.  But, they are all excited to see the new Mandalorian movie in a couple of weeks.  Sadly, it's not tracking well and it's unlikely to resurrect the Star Wars theatre-going experience.  But, we're going to be there on the first weekend.  It will the first Star Wars movie I've been able to see in a theatre with them.  (They were too young for the others.)  So, it's going to be a great time: regardless of the film's quality.  

Sadly, the days of tracking down toys for them are over.  They've aged out.  I planned to give this figure to my youngest.  But, he said he had no interest.  I've got a bad of cheap Mandalorian universe characters that I've found on clearance in the past year.  And, no one wants them.  So, they're going to go into storage.  And, maybe they'll be something that, in a couple of decades, grandkids find fun.  It's kind of tough to realize that my boys are past their toy years.  It seems like it was just starting up.  Toys, to them, were always playthings.  A fun way to spend time.  But, most of it was spent with each other.  So, the toys were just background to the time they shared as siblings.  That's a vastly different toy experience than mine.  But, that's good.  I was always careful not to push anything too hard to them.  And, they did find their own interests.  It's a lot more fun to see them entering their teen years as fully formed people instead of the stunted mess that I was at their age.

At the end of the day, my Star Wars passion isn't going to die out.  I'll pick up figures here and there.  I'm really enjoying the Retro Collection and hope it finds legs for another hundred figures or so.  And, as cool designs show up, I'll snag one here and there.  I still watch the shows.  Mostly, though, I view the content with my kids.  We enjoy it together.  When they're not around, I'm unlikely to just fire up any movie or show.  Maybe, in a few years, that will change.  I still have my DVD's.  (Heck, I still have my set of original trilogy VHS tapes that were released before the Special Edition!)  So, I can watch it whenever.  Knowing it's there is sometimes the comfort you need, even if you have no plans to actually ever watch it, again.

As for the figure itself, it's cool.  The Commando is a neat design.  He's that bridge between the original trilogy and the sequel trilogy.  20 years ago, this would would have been worth triple his price on the secondary market.  Now, though, he's lost in a sea of Clones and advanced Stormtrooper designs that make him seem another in a large string.  There's nothing that makes him jump out and leapfrog any of the multitudes of cool army builders that have been pouring out of Hasbro since 2002.  If you like the Mando-verse, this guy is a worthwhile pickup if you find him cheap.  He's a good foil to the legions of Mandalorian figures that Hasbro's churned out while also being useful as a backdrop for main characters.  In short, he's fine.

This figure debuted at $32.  Die-hards bought him for that price.  But, generally, the figure hung around.  Around the holidays in 2025, Target started to clearance the figure out.  I found two of them for $12.50 at my  local store.  They dropped to at least $21 on Target's website. (They might have dropped further.  But, I didn't check every day.)  These sold out.  In spring of 2026, Wal Mart began their clearance.  My local store dropped their stock of 8 or so figures down to $16.50.  A week later, they were $11.  I haven't been  back since them to see if they dropped further.  It's just hard to justify much over $12 for a Star Wars figure.  Few figures really hit that sweet spot of nostalgia, absence from my collection and full on quality to get me to spring for one.  At $11, this guy did, though.

2005 Comic Pack Firefly

I'm at a point where revisiting figures is more necessary.  Mostly because I'm running out of figures to profile.  But, also, there are some figures whose status in the collecting community has drastically changed in the time since I first looked at them.  Back in 2008, the Comic Pack Firefly was still considered a peg warmer.  It had been heavily clearanced.  And, the Joe market of the time was saturated with them.  You could get them for a couple bucks with no issue.  In the time since then, though, the Comic Pack figures have taken on a new life.  Figures like this Firefly no longer seem such retail duds.  And, collectors have started to appreciate them for the quality releases they can be.

I'll just say it: this is the best vintage Firefly figure.  He's better than the 1984.  The new head is extremely well done and fits on the body. The updated digital pattern is a better look than the spottled 1984.  And, the grey color is lighter, allowing for more visual contrast.  The original Firefly has no painted details.  This version allows you to see all the things that made Firefly the second coolest Cobra released 21 years prior.  Upon this figure's release, no one wanted another Firefly.  But, Hasbro delivered the best take on the character, ever.  So, that carried the figure into a place of prominence.

It took a while.  Early 2000's collectors were still beholden to their beloved original figure.  Slowly, though, the pull of this 2005 Firefly was just too strong.  And, you began to see this 2005 figure appear among even other 1983 and 1984 Cobras.  More and more collectors found the value in having a great looking figure who also didn't have fragile thumbs or an easily breakable crotch.  And, this figure began to appear in more and more photos.  Slowly, the 1984 figure faded into the background.  If collectors wanted an offbeat Firefly, there were several options.  But, if they wanted to represent Firefly in his original incarnation, they were turning more and more to the 2005 figure instead of the original.

And, why not?  This Firefly has a pretty strong argument for being the best Comic Pack figure.  (The 2005 Stalker is my personal favorite, though.)  Hasbro was finally starting to dial in their heads...just in time for the entire Joe line to get cancelled.  It's weird that a figure that ranks so high would be a character who was entirely played out among collectors and also a direct homage to the figure's original look.  Rarely did these tributes surpass the originals.  But, this Firefly did so with such aplomb that the 1984 now looks quaint when posed against the sterner and more grizzled head.

It's no secret that Hasbro got lazy with accessories on ARAH style Joe repaints.  While the figure's original gear was a staple of 1997 through 2001 releases, Hasbro had mostly abandoned this by 2005 and mostly just released a large volume of random gear with their vintage redos.  Fortunately, Firefly was one of the figures who was not affected by this.  Hasbro released every Firefly mold usage with at least some of his original gear with the exception of the Gift Set Firefly.  This Comic Pack figure includes the classic machine gun, walkie talkie, backpack and socket wrench cover that is necessary for any Firefly figure.  They are all cast in black.  The upside being that Firefly's gear in black got very common in the 2000's so it's easy to find today.  And, the black looks great against the brighter grey base of the figure.  The green, 1984 weapons work well enough with the Comic Pack version.  But, they somewhat wash out with the lighter base.  You can now get Firefly's gun and walkie talkie in a variety of colors from various factory custom makers.  So, you can find a color combo that works if you have some spare time.

It's simply baffling as to what Hasbro would spend money to develop back in the 2000's.  They had a perfectly good Firefly mold available.  Though, it was starting to show signs of wear.  But, Hasbro created a brand new head when the original was beloved by collectors.  It's likely that the body is either an entirely new mold based on the original or it was substantially cleaned up to sharpen the details.  Hasbro paid more to do this.  They resculpted Scrap Iron, Mutt and Lady Jaye.  But, they never bothered to recreate the 1985 Snake Eyes or the 1983 Cobra Commander.  Hasbro would spend on the mundane or the unnecessary while leaving gaping holes of super desirable figures.  They never explained themselves.  So, we have half a dozen amazing Firefly repaints.  But, there was not a single helmeted Cobra Commander figure until 2022.

Comic Pack figures discolor.  This is just a truism at this point.  Hasbro's early 2000's plastics isn't holding up among Joes, Star Wars or Transformers.  This Firefly, though, has tended to do pretty well.  While his pack mate, Scrap Iron, is guaranteed to discolor, this Firefly has held out.  You'll see some tinges of yellow on a few figures.  And, you may see some slight upper arm discoloration.  In the realm of Comic Pack figures, that's pretty good.  And, keeps this Firefly relevant when other figures from his series have fallen off the popularity cliff due to their propensity for discoloration.  

The Firefly mold was used to death.  After the 1984 figure finished it's production  run, it disappeared for a little over a decade.  The mold was planned for use as the 1988 Tiger Force Sabretooth figure.  (More on him in Rarities Month in June!)  But, he was never released.  Instead, the mold spent some time in  India.  Firefly was among the figures released by Funskool and had a production window of a couple of years.  His body was used for a Complan Commandos figure, too.  Hasbro got the mold back ahead of the 1997 series as Firefly was painted up as a possible 1997 release.  That figure didn't make the cut, though.  And, it wasn't until 1998 that Firefly returned to the Hasbro line.  

The return was overkill, though.  Hasbro released the arctic Firefly in 1998.  A woodlands version was included in the first wave of the ARAHC in 2000.  In 2002, the figure appeared in the BJ's Gift Set. (There is also an unproduced version of this figure that's green instead of red.)  2003 was a banner year.  The mold was used for Wreckage in the 2003 Tiger Force set.  And, then, the club released two convention exclusive figures in  the summer of that year.  If that weren't enough, the amazing Urban Strike Firefly debuted in 2004.  Then, 2005 brought us a Crimson repaint of the mold in the Crimson Guard sets.  And, finally, this Comic Pack figure followed close on the Crimson figure's heels.  In short, there are MORE than enough Fireflies to keep you interested should you simply love the character or his design.

Pricing on this figure is way down over a couple of years ago.  For a while, this was a $25 to $40 figure.  And, you'd see carded samples sell between $50 and $70.  Now, though, the carded sets have settled into the $35-$40 range.  It's a pain to find loose figures, though.  The Serpentor has become the most desirable figure in the set.  So, a carded set is probably the best way to go if you want to acquire this Firefly.  As original Fireflies sell for way more, this figure is a cheaper alternative to a classic character.  Since he's also better, you get a double win for your collection.  

1994 Joseph Colton - Random Photos of the Day

Joseph Colton isn't a figure that should be great.  But, he's a guy who works.  There's not much to him.  But, it's enough to make him stand out and work with Joes from every era.  I get him out often enough.  And, he's relatively popular among photographers.  There was a time when this guy was the hottest figure in the hobby.  You don't see them as often, now, but back in the late 1990's, there were tons of carded 1993 and 1994 figures with cut UPC codes where adult collectors had purchased retail figures just to get the UPCs to mail away for the Joseph Colton figure.

But, since collectors were obsessive, tons and tons of Coltons went into the collecting world.  And, the figure is barely worth more now than  he was 30 years ago.  But, that's OK.  It's allowed newer collectors to get a high quality figure for their collections.