So, Ripcord kind of fell to the wayside. Until he appeared as a major player in the comic, that is. As Ripcord's importance to the comic story grew, I brought the figure back around. Ripcord found new importance to me and continued to be an often used figure through 1986 where he joined the Tomahawk crew. One of my great disappointments as a kid was finding how lame Crazylegs was when compared to Ripcord. The later paratrooper simply didn't match up. Fifteen years later, though, I found a figure that did. And, it was simply a slight repaint of Ripcord who breathed some new life into the Ripcord mold and made me appreciate the original figure all over again. That variant is the Plastirama Fuego figure that was released in Argentina.
The Plastirama figures were a relatively small line of Joe figures released in Argentina. While there are a few very significant coloring and mold combination exclusives in the line, the bulk of it was slight repaints of Hasbro paint jobs. This was mostly so that the foreign companies could repurpose marketing materials that Hasbro had created for their markets. But, it also created a bunch of slight variants that offer modern collectors slightly different looks for many of their line's early, classic characters. Among them was Ripcord. The Plastirama variant features different greens from the Hasbro figure as well as nice, blue cammo. The main calling card, though, is that Fuego features flesh colored hands. He is the only version of Ripcord released anywhere in the world that is not wearing gloves. Usually, I prefer gloves. But, in this case, the figure having uncovered hands allows for a different look for the Ripcord character, even if it's slight.
And, really, that's how I use him. I like Ripcord and try to include him in various photos. Having the Brazilian, Hasbro and Argentine versions allows for some diversity when he appears in various backgrounds and scenes. The colors of this Plastirama release, though, really pop and they are the brightest and most vibrant of all the Ripcord variants. The quality, though, isn't great and I'm leery of putting the rifle in his hand. But, since he was used to cheap, the quality was less important than the visuals that the figure offered.
Fuego includes all of the gear from the original Ripcord. Though, there are significant differences that let the two sets of accessories stand on their own. Fuego's pack is cast in a greyish-brown color that does not match the figure. It is a color unique to Argentina and actually works with the repainted Ripcord figure named Sokerk. His helmet is the same as the classic Ripcord. But, it is cast in a glossy black. It is shiny and easy to distinguish from other uses of the helmet mold. The mask is tougher to discern. But, it tends to be rigid and shiny as well. Finally, Fuego's rifle is cast in black. The Auriken release from Mexico also has a near black rifle. American collectors are aware of the dark version of the gun from the Tactical Battle Platform. And, the Gatilho figure from Brazil also includes a blackish version of the gun. But, Fuego's rifle, once again, is defined by the sheen. It is a very glossy weapon that is unique to Argentina. In an age when loose figures from childhood collections defined foreign Joes that were imported to the US, these distinctions would be crucial. But, since most of the Fuegos in the hands of collectors came via opened carded samples from the Plastirama warehouse find in the late 1990's/early 2000's, most of the figures you see out there will include the correct gear.
Ripcord appeared all over the world. Yet, despite that fact, there are really only two major versions of the character. After the figure's use by Hasbro, he was planned for release in the 1988 Tiger Force subset. Unfortunately, the mold had already been sent away. So, the mock up Tiger Force Ripcord never saw production and we're left with a couple of catalog images of what the figure might have looked like. (I often wonder how we'd view Ripcord had the Tiger Force version been released. It's pretty likely that the figure would, today, command a premium over even the original Ripcord figure.) From there, the Ripcord mold appeared as Fumaca in Brazil, as Soga in Mexico and then as Fuego in Argentina. All of these figures are based on the appearance of the Hasbro original: though they all have differences among them. Ripcord was used twice more, though as new characters in each instance. In Argentina, Ripcord's mold was used as the second, later and more common Sokerk figure. And, in Brazil, he was turned into a Cobra and released as Relampago in the Python Patrol subset. Ripcord's absence was a large hole in the 2000's as collectors would have gobbled up any repaint. But, there are a lot of Ripcord figures to track down...even if most of them are very similar. Hasbro finally released a new Ripcord in 2023 as part of the Haslab Skystriker. This Night Force Ripcord looks great, but has poor quality, especially on the gear. Maybe we'll someday get a repaint of it and finally see a Tiger Force release.
Time was, MOC Fuego figures were stupidly cheap. You could buy individual figures for under $5 and you could buy up lots of a half a dozen figures for just a couple of bucks per fig. Fuego was among the least popular Plastirama releases. And, his lack of popularity continues today. You'll probably pay around $25 for a carded figure. Though, you might find loose versions for less if you have the patience. Figures in COPS boxes tend to be a bit more popular. Though, those are desirable for the packaging and the figures in the window are less important unless they are one of the ninjas or TNT. For the money, this figure doesn't make a lot of sense. You can get a mint and complete American Ripcord for about the same price as a carded Fuego and Ripcord is a better figure and is higher quality. But, Fuego's unique coloring does make him distinctive and the lack of gloves is a fun update to a classic figure. I'm a sucker for foreign versions of characters that are barely repaints of the original. So, I probably get a lot more value out of figures like Fuego than most collectors. But, I also got him at a time when he was cheaper to buy than retail Joes put out by Hasbro. So, your mileage on this figure will likely vary from mine.
Fuego includes all of the gear from the original Ripcord. Though, there are significant differences that let the two sets of accessories stand on their own. Fuego's pack is cast in a greyish-brown color that does not match the figure. It is a color unique to Argentina and actually works with the repainted Ripcord figure named Sokerk. His helmet is the same as the classic Ripcord. But, it is cast in a glossy black. It is shiny and easy to distinguish from other uses of the helmet mold. The mask is tougher to discern. But, it tends to be rigid and shiny as well. Finally, Fuego's rifle is cast in black. The Auriken release from Mexico also has a near black rifle. American collectors are aware of the dark version of the gun from the Tactical Battle Platform. And, the Gatilho figure from Brazil also includes a blackish version of the gun. But, Fuego's rifle, once again, is defined by the sheen. It is a very glossy weapon that is unique to Argentina. In an age when loose figures from childhood collections defined foreign Joes that were imported to the US, these distinctions would be crucial. But, since most of the Fuegos in the hands of collectors came via opened carded samples from the Plastirama warehouse find in the late 1990's/early 2000's, most of the figures you see out there will include the correct gear.
Ripcord appeared all over the world. Yet, despite that fact, there are really only two major versions of the character. After the figure's use by Hasbro, he was planned for release in the 1988 Tiger Force subset. Unfortunately, the mold had already been sent away. So, the mock up Tiger Force Ripcord never saw production and we're left with a couple of catalog images of what the figure might have looked like. (I often wonder how we'd view Ripcord had the Tiger Force version been released. It's pretty likely that the figure would, today, command a premium over even the original Ripcord figure.) From there, the Ripcord mold appeared as Fumaca in Brazil, as Soga in Mexico and then as Fuego in Argentina. All of these figures are based on the appearance of the Hasbro original: though they all have differences among them. Ripcord was used twice more, though as new characters in each instance. In Argentina, Ripcord's mold was used as the second, later and more common Sokerk figure. And, in Brazil, he was turned into a Cobra and released as Relampago in the Python Patrol subset. Ripcord's absence was a large hole in the 2000's as collectors would have gobbled up any repaint. But, there are a lot of Ripcord figures to track down...even if most of them are very similar. Hasbro finally released a new Ripcord in 2023 as part of the Haslab Skystriker. This Night Force Ripcord looks great, but has poor quality, especially on the gear. Maybe we'll someday get a repaint of it and finally see a Tiger Force release.
Time was, MOC Fuego figures were stupidly cheap. You could buy individual figures for under $5 and you could buy up lots of a half a dozen figures for just a couple of bucks per fig. Fuego was among the least popular Plastirama releases. And, his lack of popularity continues today. You'll probably pay around $25 for a carded figure. Though, you might find loose versions for less if you have the patience. Figures in COPS boxes tend to be a bit more popular. Though, those are desirable for the packaging and the figures in the window are less important unless they are one of the ninjas or TNT. For the money, this figure doesn't make a lot of sense. You can get a mint and complete American Ripcord for about the same price as a carded Fuego and Ripcord is a better figure and is higher quality. But, Fuego's unique coloring does make him distinctive and the lack of gloves is a fun update to a classic figure. I'm a sucker for foreign versions of characters that are barely repaints of the original. So, I probably get a lot more value out of figures like Fuego than most collectors. But, I also got him at a time when he was cheaper to buy than retail Joes put out by Hasbro. So, your mileage on this figure will likely vary from mine.
Wow, just $25? I've been wanting some oddball Plastirama figures for my collection, but I don't look for them too often since I figured the noobs probably ruined that too. That's not much more than what Battle Corps figures go for now, so it seems surprisingly fair.
ReplyDeleteThe blue camo is nice, and the figure looks distinct enough to be worth owning. Of course, It's a GI Joe figure that really can't hold a gun, but that's excusable for his novelty value.
Never saw the appeal of Ripcord.
ReplyDelete