In early 2003, two oddball figures popped up on Ebay. One was a red Roadblock. The other was this metallic green Firefly. Both figures used the paint masks from the BJ's exclusive Gift Set, but had different base colors. The figures sold for ridiculously high amounts. Within a few months, though, more of the figures started showing up. In 2004, all of the alternate Asian figures were staples of Ebay. And, in 2005, entire sets were blown out for cheap prices on Asian websites. It was a great time to be a collector.
As a figure, this Firefly works better than the red version that was actually released. The red figure is crazy and bizarre. So, it has some value for that reason alone. But, the brown head better meshes with this green figure. And, even the oddball blue and copper look good with the green as a base. I'd have liked this figure had it been released. Sure, we have a green Firefly already with the 2000 version. But, this would have been another that worked.
Like all these once common figures, modern pricing on this Firefly is just dumb. It will sell for hundreds of dollars. So many collectors think this figure really rare as they weren't around when these figures were ubiquitous and common. Sure, there's probably only hundreds of them. But, that's a lot more than some of the other unproduced figures from the '90's where there's maybe a dozen of them that exist. This Firefly, though, is a nice update and works for the Firefly character. But, there were so many Fireflies released in this time that even one more repaint would have been retail overkill. But, seeing this figure again really brings back memories of a far better time to be a Joe collector.
Somewhere, Black Major is working this into a future kitbash set.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't hate that. And, the metallic tinged plastic and paint would be a new thing for him.
DeleteUgh, more Snake-Eyes V1 legs. He needs to rethink his constant use of those.
DeleteIt looks nice, though I think the red Firefly was better. The green is very dull, and dull figures were a thing I think we had too much of from that point. In comparison, the bright red stands out a lot and gives me a fun Firefly to find uses for. The painted details definitely mesh better with this version, though.
ReplyDeleteIt would've been really cool if he was the same blue as the retail BJ's Roadblock, though.