My Favorite Accessories - Part 2

Part 1 of this series looked at my favorite weapons from childhood.  This time around, I'll be looking at some of the gear that really drove my second phase of collecting.  This period, technically, covers 1988 through 1997.  During that time, I only was able to find a few figures.  So, you're going to see a cross section of accessories.  And, a few classic items will be missing because, while they were released during this period, I didn't acquire them until 1998 or later.  Some of these items appeared in my early teen years when I wasn't collecting or buying Joes, but my youngest brother still was.  So, the limited exposure to them made them loom larger than they otherwise might have.

Early Adult Favorites:

1. Duke/Stalker/Others MP-5 inspired rifle

As I returned to Joe collecting in the mid 1990's, I spent most of my time tracking down the remnants of the line at various retail stores.  Among the first figures I found was the 1993 Duke.  This is a solid figure.  But, the main source of interest in him was the "new" weapons on his tree.  While I was passingly familiar with Muskrat's shotgun (someday I'll tell that story...), the other weapons were ones I had never before seen.  As far as I was concerned, they were completely new sculpts.  It was the MP-5 inspired weapon that piqued my interest, though.  It looked great with Duke.  It was somehow both compact and large.  This was accomplished by having the overall footprint be small while giving the weapon a larger barrel.  I turned this into a story element.  These newer weapons became "Generation 4" weapons.  They were more powerful and could carry more ammo than earlier weapon designs.  As they were new, they were limited to only the highest ranking Joes.  Eventually, Cobra got some and gave them to elite troopers, too.  As I got more and more 1993 and 1994 figures, the weapons became less special.  And, with more colors in tow, the MP-5 like weapon became one of my favorite standards across my Joes.

Even today, this is my favorite weapon to use with 1993 and 1994 figures.  It exists in a plethora of colors...some rarer than others.  But, you can get it in black, gold, yellow, purple and other colors with a bit of looking around.  It remains one of my key weapons.  And, I'll always pick up a new one if the price is right.  I have unfulfilled plans of being able to outfit the entire 1993 carded lineup with these weapons for a photo at some point.  I'm not quite there on the right number of them in my collection, yet, though.

2. Annihilator Pistol

I first saw this weapon at the home of some family friends who had some younger children.  I remember it being awesome.  Around 1995 or 1996, I found my first Annihilator at a flea market in southern Ohio.  I picked him up for the rifle.  Once in hand, it reminded me of the awesome weapons from G.I. Joe #36 back in 1985.  In short order, I bought as many Annihilators as I could find.  The figure was "new" to me and I loved the portable helicopter.  I saw them as the airborne division of the Alley Vipers and they made up a key ingredient in my early notion of Cobra urban death squads.  With plenty of his weapons in hand, I had them available for use with any other figure I wanted.

And, with them in hand, my fascination with the weapon ended.  It was difficult to make the weapon look good with other figures.  And, it was a bit bigger than I had remembered.  It was less of a one handed pistol and more of a two handed weapon that switched up my notion of the weapon's versatility.  I still find it the necessary weapon for Annihilators.  But, I've long since sold off my army of that figure.  I have a couple of spares of the weapon, though, still hanging around.  I'll use them with another figure from time to time.  I do need to get a photo of it in the hands of a Fred to mimic that old comic.  

3. Hit & Run  Rifle

This one is a bit of a cheat.  I actually did own Hit and Run when I was a kid.  I bought three 1988 figures before I quit toys.  And, Hit and Run was one of them.  I immediately fell in love with his rifle.  But, I didn't to use it very often as I left  my Hit and Run hanging on a wall at my grandparents' house shortly after I got him.  Once the figure was recovered, though, my Joes were put away.  So, it was on rare occasion when I'd get them out.  Inevitably, Hit and Run would be among the figures chosen, though.  Part of it was the sheer quality of the figure.  Part was his amazing rope & grappling hook bag.  And, the final piece was his rifle.  Everything about it seemed perfect.  It had a long clip to store extra ammo.  It was compact enough to be used in close quarters.  And, the figures just held it perfectly.  I wanted to use it with pretty much every one of my favorite figures during this time.  But, I had just one sample with no way to acquire more.

That changed in the mid 1990's as weapon trees began to proliferate.  The real joy was finding extra samples of this rifle being included on weapon trees of 1993 and 1994 figures.  With this discovery, I was able to acquire an excellent rifle in a variety of colors.  As the weapon was my preferred rifle for the 1994 Shipwreck, I came to see it as a standard rifle used by all sorts of Joe themed army builders.  So, having it in cream with Snow Storm and even red with Outback allowed some consistency on the weapons used by the troops who supported the Joes.  Note that this weapon is often confused with the 1992 Shockwave rifle.  They are similar, but not the same.  Also, some late run 1994 figures featured the rifle but with a blocked out trigger guard.  Those aren't bad.  But, I do prefer the original design.

Now the rifle is ubiquitous.  And, I had so many of them that it's become a bit passe.  But, the early 2000's brought some weapons into the mainstream to a point where they started to get stale.  Hit and Run's weapon was one of them.  And, while I still love it, I don't see it as the staple for every figure as I once envisioned nearly 30 years ago.  But, I do still find uses for it and you'll see it being carried by other figures in some photos around the site.

4. Bullhorn's Mask

My youngest brother got a Bullhorn in 1990.  I believe he was  the only 1990 figure that we ever had.  While his rifle was amazing and everyone still goes ga-ga over his weapon case backpack, I found the real value in him was his gas mask.  I love gas masks.  And, as a kid, I lamented that the only ones you could get were either Ripcord's airmask or Lifeline's rescue mask.  I gave them to pilots, troopers navigating gassed caves and just to anyone I wanted to look cool.  But, they had limitations (like the hose you had to plug in for it to look good) and always left me wanting more.

Bullhorn's mask, though, solved this problem.  It was a self contained piece and was sculpted with the air filter right on it.  When placed on the figure's head, Bullhorn could be a faceless army builder.  I now had a way for more figures to be outfitted with protective masks.  Unfortunately, though, the specific design of Bullhorn's mask made it so that it was form fitted for Bullhorn's head.  And, that made it difficult or impossible to really use the mask with a variety of other figures.  And, this limited the mask's use.  But, the overall design still works.  I've since found Bullhorn to be a more boring figure than I'd remembered.  The mask, though, overcomes this and keeps the figure relevant to me.  I just wish it was a little more flexible for use on a wider variety of figures.

5. Spearhead's Rifle

I do not know how this weapon entered into our collection.  We never had a 1988 Spearhead.  But, at some point, his rifle appeared among our toys.  It was likely left by one of my brother's friends.  As soon as I saw it, though, the rifle simply enthralled me.  Mostly, this was because it was new.  But, also, the rifle featured a couple of key design elements that I found among the cooler features of Joe accessories.  First, it had a bayonet.  But, we'll talk more about this, later.  The second, and more important feature, was the strap.  I had long loved strapped weapons.  They allowed your figure to carry their weapon without having to always be holding it in their hand.  I never like my Joes climbing a rope if they didn't have a strap on their gun because it wasn't realistic to just have their weapon magically appear at the top if they didn't have a means to carry it.  It's weird what unrealistic elements bothered me when I was a kid and which didn't affect me at all.

Back to the bayonet, though.  While I really liked bayonets, the piece on Salvo's rifle made the weapons footprint rather large.  And, at some point in the early 1990's, I wanted a knife for some figure.  The bayonet on Salvo's rifle was of sufficient size to work as a knife for a figure.  So, since the weapon wasn't key to any complete figure in my collection, I snipped off the bayonet and gave the knife to someone.  The paired down rifle was then smaller and looked even better with the figures to whom I gave it.  At various points, I've found the snipped bayonet and wondered who's knife it was.  Usually, I then remember that I cut this off from the original weapon.  I'm 99% sure that the bayonet is still sitting in a plastic baggie of superfluous edged weapons stored in a shoebox in the basement closet.  And, you'll see the snipped version of the rifle in a photo below.

In the early 1990's, I gave this weapon that mysteriously appeared in our home to a figure who also had a similar origin: Salvo.  I don't know where Salvo came from.  And, our figure just had the helmet.  So, it was another likely leave behind from some unknown friend of my brother.  But, Salvo and Spearhead's gun just seemed to mesh.  And, without having Salvo's real accessories, it made sense for him to have this borrowed weapon.  So, between 1991, or so, and 1999, Salvo always carried Spearhead's rifle.  In fact, if you can find really old Salvo photos on the site, you'll see him carrying it.  To this day, I more associate Spearhead's rifle with Salvo than I do with Spearhead.  But, that's because Salvo is an awesome figure and Spearhead is...not.

Really, these were the dark days of Joe.  I didn't collect for several years.  And, when I got back into things, I was chasing the dregs of the line at retail while also scouring out the not ready for primetime flea market scene that define the pre-internet days.  You didn't find a lot of Joes back then.  And, those that you did find were often those from my childhood years.  Meaning they were figures I already owned.  So, it was hard to find items I didn't have already.  

There were many more, better accessories that were released in this time.  But, I didn't really acquire them until my collector phase began in earnest around 1998.  We'll explore those in the final installment in a few months.  Until then, though, what are some of your favorite accessories from this time?  Let me know in the comments below.

1986 Motor Viper - Around The Web

As a stand alone figure, the 1986 Motor Viper isn't terrible.  Sure, the mold is full of odd tubes and hoses.  And, his helmet is a bit weird.  But, the blue colors with silver and black accents really work.  And, when you take the figure as a companion to the 1986 Viper, it becomes even better.  The two figures share an aesthetic that allows them to be used in conjunction with each other.  So, you have a symmetry among the contemporary Cobras that was the hallmark of vintage Hasbro.

There's some solid content using the figure out there.  So, check out all these Motor Vipers from around the web.

1986 Motor Viper Profile

1986 Motor Viper by SteelBrigade

1986 Motor Viper by thedustinmccoy

1986 Motor Viper by atticagazette

1986 Motor Viper by gen_liederkranz

1986 Motor Viper by g.i.joe_manila_ph

1986 Motor Viper by scarrviper

1986 Motor Viper by dreadnokdread

1986 Motor Viper by zakupocalpse

1986 Motor Viper by 80e90allora

1986 Motor Viper by sithviper

1986 Motor Viper by thedustinmccoy

1986 Motor Viper by dreadnokdread

1986 Motor Viper by gijoe_c4_panama

2005 Heavy Assault Set Duke

In 2003, G.I. Joe was riding high.  Hasbro was investing massive resources into the brand.  Retailers were stocking Joe toys in numbers second only to Star Wars.  And, consumers were buying the toys as fast as the stores could get them onto the shelves.  The collecting community was strong, vibrant and interesting.  The Christmas holiday of that year marked the crescendo of the repaint and JvC era.  At that time, we didn't know that.  But, less than 18 months after that amazing time in the hobby, the Joe line had completely crashed at retail.  Hasbro cancelled marketing pushes and packaging refreshes.  Toys stopped appearing on shelves as retailers had no faith in carrying volume in their stores.  And, Hasbro, knowing the end was near, dialed in some products that were outright embarrassments.  The 2005 Heavy Assault Set (or, HAS set) was as bad as it got.

At the 2005 G.I. Joe convention, Hasbro was getting heavy pressure from the collecting community.  Everyone knew the line was in trouble.  But, Hasbro didn't even acknowledge that elephant in the room.  Instead, they pulled typical subterfuge that was common for them and those in their orbit during the early 2000's.  Hasbro showcased the HAS set at their booth on the first day of the convention.  And, they took flak for how much the set sucked.  By the third day, Hasbro had pulled the HAS set from the display: claiming that what they had on hand wasn't "ready", yet and shouldn't be showcased.  Just a couple of short weeks later, though, the exact set that was shown on Day 1 started showing up at Toys R Us stores all over the country.  It was another bold faced lie from a cowardly team.  The worst thing, though, was that Hasbro knew about the upcoming DTC experiment.  Rather than generating excitement among the fan base over this innovative idea, they simply ignored the fate the line.  This killed collector interest.  So much so that the community shrunk in just the few weeks between the failure of the convention and the announcement of DTC.  This tanked DTC's chances of success.  And, about a year later, DTC was dead and the last remnants of the Joe line were liquidated to Toys R Us for pennies on the dollar.

The HAS Set was bad in a lot of ways.  It used three figure molds that had all appeared in Toys R Us exclusive sets in 2004.  And, in each case, barely recolored them outside of the pants.  The Greenshirts were a bad figure mold.  And, Greenshirt sets were still backed up at every Toys R Us store in the country when the HAS set was released.  And, those Greenshirts included helmets, backpacks and an armory of weapons.  The figures in the HAS weren't even different from those in the Greenshirt set.  They just had crappier gear.  

It didn't have to be this way, though.  Originally, the HAS set was going to include Ace and Mutt.  We don't know which molds would have been used.  But, they still have filecards on the back of the package.  You can't determine their molds or color choices, though, as the artwork used on the filecards was art Hasbro made for other releases of the characters in the JvC line.  Poor Roadblock, though, doesn't have a HAS filecard: showing he was a late edition to the set.  You wonder what would have happened if the HAS set had included a repainted 1992 Mutt and 1992 Ace.  Even the Anti-Venom Mutt and the 1983 ACE would have been interesting choices that would have given the set more cachet.  

This Duke figure, though, isn't all that great.  The grey pants with dark cammo spots jus don't really work.  And, when matched against the dark greenish/blue shirt, the whole figures clashes.  The figure's chest, though, has potential.  It's nicely painted.  And, set against a different pair of legs, it might have worked.  Black Major produced a similarly colored Steel Brigade figure in the mid 2020's and it turned out very nice.  So, the color can work.  But, the terrible 1984 Roadblock arms suck any usefulness out of the design.  The arms are just too scrawny for the chest.  And, the thick face paint on the figure's head makes it too large for the chest, too.  So, you have this weird visual where the figure is top heavy while being puny at the same time.  The whole package just doesn't work.

G.I. Joe conventions used to be well documented.  Every collector who attended took photos.  And, every Joe website hosted massive convention galleries.  There were first hand write ups and recording of the various sessions.  All of that, of course, is now gone.  The forums have all disappeared.  Most of the websites have gone dark.  In short, much of the documentation that we have on the history of the Joe line of the early 2000's is now lost.  It's an unfortunate byproduct of the internet era.  And, with social media ravaging content outside of their walled gardens, there's little hope we'll ever recover that information.  Again, looking at the current slate of online videos that document the Hasbro livestreams of the Classified era, we think that they are permanent artifacts of the line's history.  But, our legacy is that these relics will also, at some point, be lost.  It probably doesn't matter.  But, for those of us who were around during those days, it's tough to confirm our memories as their original sources have all disappeared.

Duke's gear is terrible.  Hasbro gave up on the HAS set and we were just given a couple of overstock, commonly used weapons with the figures.  Hasbro didn't even go the extra step of loading up the pack with a bunch of superfluous weapons like they had with some other dud sets.  So, Duke just gets a silver version  of the 1986 Low Light Uzi and a black shotgun that was sculpted in the 2000's and released with just a ton of different figures.  The gear isn't sensical for Duke and doesn't look good with him at all.  Sans helmet or pack, Duke feels lightly covered and the flaws of the Duke parts become more obvious.  You'll note that I try a variety of different gear combos on my figure in the photos below.  This is just an attempt to find a look for this figure that works since he didn't include any accessories that improved the figure beyond his paint applications.

This is a 20 year old figure.  The ARAHC figures that started Joe's return to full retail in 2000 are 25 years old.  This Duke is now as old as the 1985 Flint figure was when this Duke was first released.  It's difficult to wrap my head around this figure being two decades old.  It seems like the Joe line was at retail not that long ago.  What I do find interesting, though, is that the Joe team of the early 2000's never really understood collectors.  It took them years to find a way to appease collector wants.  And, even when they scored a hit, it was never followed up upon.  Hasbro's current Joe team, though, are not long time collectors.  And, yet, they seem to have a pretty good idea of what collectors want.  The Classified Haslabs are bona-fide hits.  Each new figure release seems to be met with, at worst, tepid enthusiasm.  And, most releases are considered solid if not great.  Maybe the designers not being collectors is what makes them good at getting items for collectors.  But, it's sad to see a team lead by a "collector' fail so miserably to get collector wants fulfilled in the 2000's while a new team consistently nails every release even though they don't really have a conduit into the fandom like the Hasbro team of the early 2000's did.

It's tough to price this Duke.  Dealers sell loose figures for between $20 and $30.  And, they try to get $40 or more for a complete with filecard figure.  But, those figures sit and sit with no interest.  You'll see carded HAS sets sell in  the $120 range.  Which is appalling on its face.  Most of the interest seems to be around Roadblock and Snake Eyes who make up over half of the carded pricing.  If you can find a market priced seller, this is probably around a $10 figure.  And, frankly, that's too much.  This is a bad figure from a bad release that really has no purpose in your collection.  He doesn't match the two good figures in the set and isn't even a useful Duke.  If you want the character, buy the 2022 version.  He's about the same price, has better coloring and includes amazing accessories.  

1992 Firefly - Around The Web

I bought this figure in December of 1992 because it was Firefly and I wanted a new version of one of my favorite characters from childhood.  I found a figure that was actually a lot of fun and very visually interesting.  His rifle was cool.  His uniform worked well. His grey accents hearkened back to the 1984 original.  And, even the bright green was cool.

Now, not everyone agrees on the last point in the above paragraph.  Despite that, the 1992 Firefly appears often enough in people's photos to suggest that it's a figure that collectors find useful.  So, check out the content below.

1992 Firefly Profile

1992 Firefly by yojoe_collectibles

1992 Firefly by gen_liederkranz

1992 Firefly by thedustinmccoy

1992 Firefly by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1992 Firefly by fosilru

1992 Firefly by 73larebear

1992 Firefly by yorktownjoe

1992 Firefly by aka_patch

1992 Firefly by gen_liederkranz

1992 Firefly by yojoeonline

1992 Firefly by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1992 Flak Viper vs. 1993 Night Creeper - Brothers in Design

A few years ago, I was cataloging some new acquisitions.  I spread the figures out on a white plastic lid and take pictures to document them before they join the rest of my figures in various drawers that are segregated by year and affiliation.  Two figures in the bunch, though, drew my eye.  I happened to place one above the other.  At first, I noticed how their accessories were the same color.  But, upon closer inspection I found that these two figures shared more than just common hues of their gear.  At first glance, the 1992 Flak Viper and the 1993 Night Creeper could not be more different figures.  But, they share quite a bit of common design.

One of the hallmarks of the Joe line is compatibility.  Not only were things like accessories and vehicles designed to work with any figure, but the figures themselves were designed to complement each other in terms of the colors chosen.  This is why you'll see instances where figures released years apart use plastic of exactly the same color.  This trend started with the line's initial release year and carried over through 1994.  Most collectors lose sight of this compatibility as the line progressed.  But, it's still there.  And, the similarities between the Flak Viper and Night Creeper showcase that the designers reused color combos and sculpting elements that worked well.

The most visual clue to the figure's similarities is the blue base used for each.  The blue color is identical.  The color matches on the figures as well as on the accessories.  As such, you can interchange their weapons and still retain the same visual appeal.  Each incorporates the blue into the main figure coloring, too.  In fact, the blue forms the accent color for both figures.  Really, the only difference in color between the figures is the green on the Flak Viper and the purple on the Night Creeper.  

Going deeper than the blue, though, you see that both figures utilize the same shade of grey as well.  While it's more prevalent on the Flak Viper, the same hue is used to mute the Night Creeper's purple and blue.  The crazy part, though, is the Night Creepers lower arms.  The grey there is broken up by lines.  These lines perfectly match those used on the Flak Vipers vest.  Were is possible to swap the Night Creeper's lower arms with those of the Flak Viper, the Flak Viper would appear as if he were designed with the Night Creeper's arms.

There are a few other design similarities as well.  First, both figures feature a massive chest that is crossed by a strap.  For the Flak Viper, it's his overalls.  For the Night Creeper, it's a bandolier.  But, both start at the bottom right and cover the left shoulder.  Both of their arms feature short sleeves over a grey undershirt.  And, both have elaborate gloves on their hands.

In addition, you will note that both figures feature details on the upper arm, right above the swivel joint.  These adornments are unnecessary.  But, help to hide the joint and give both figures more bulk in their arms.  The construction of the arms on both figures is remarkably similar.  It makes both figures appear more bulky and adds details to break up the mold and make it appear more substantial.

The final point of similarity is in the helmets.  While this one is a bit more far fetched, both helmets are blue with a visor of a different color.  (Black for the Flak Viper, red for the Night Creeper.)  Each helmet has a design in the center with smoother lines on both sides of it.  While the helmets are definitely different.  You see some of the same design elements on each.  Hasbro knew how to make an action figure look cool.  And, they could incorporate artistic creativity inside standard templates that they knew would translate to a toy kids would love.  

Having noticed these similarities, I now want a Flak Viper in 1993 Night Creeper colors and a Night Creeper in 1992 Flak Viper colors.  Both would make for excellent toys and would complement each other very well.  I'm probably the only person who would want this.  But, the fact that these figures are so similarly colored really makes me want to see each figure in the other's color scheme.  

I'm sure there are more examples in the line of figures who, at first sight, appear totally different but who are, actually, very similar in their design.  It was a bit of kismet that lead me to see these two figures and how similar they were.  So, if you have some other examples (The Interrogator and Sonic Dial Tone are another.), please post them up in the comments.