The Oktober Guard Comic Packs saw a truncated production run. This was due to the slow sales of the prior waves during the 2004 holiday season. For about 6 weeks in the spring of 2005, you could find the October Guard figures. But, after that, you were pretty much out of luck unless a collector had a spare to trade. That's lead to a series of figures that tend to be fairly pricey, these days.
Stormavik was my favorite Oktober Guard character. I thought he had the coolest rifle and I loved the white and blue undershirt. So, I was looking forward to his first figure. Sadly, though, the figure's head was not great, his signature weapon was nowhere to be found and the parts used for his body appeared far too often during this time to make a really unique figure. So, I was vastly disappointed in the result.
In the 19 years since his release, not much has changed on that front. I don't use the Oktober Guard figures all the frequently because they didn't live up to their comic appearance. But, to be fair, I'm not sure that even a perfect figure could exist that lives up to the artwork in the second G.I. Joe Yearbook. But, we're never going to see another Stormavik figure. So, this one is as good as it's going to get. So, enjoy the few photos below of the 2005 Stormavik. Hopefully, I'll get inspired to try to use him a bit more often in the future.
Hasbro sure got good use out of that Red Star mold. I bought the three pack around 2009 or so for -thirty dollars sealed! 2007 until the club ended was a great time to pick up O-ring figures because everybody was going crazy for the 25th/Modern style. I clearly remember the derision that posters on the HISS Tank forums had towards the vintage O-ring figures Now, that particular style is all but forgotten with the advent of Classified. Joe fans always seem to gravitate towards the latest, greatest thing for some reason. I think a lot of Joe fans will buy almost anything, they're so grateful any time Hasbro throws them a bone. I still have all the October Guard three packs sealed, only because the price has gone up so much.
ReplyDelete"I think a lot of Joe fans will buy almost anything, they're so grateful any time Hasbro throws them a bone."
DeleteWell, except Sgt. Savage, G.I. Joe Extreme, Sigma Six, or Built-to-Rule. Those did not sell so well. :)
I am one of those O-ring turned ME collectors but converted back to O-ring in 2016 or so. I love alot of the stuff about the ME figures, consider reacquiring a small collection of my favorites but no interest in classified personally. I think they are very cool but the scale isn't GI Joe to me. Hasbro seems to be giving a large portion of the collector base what they want which is great. Luckily there are some options. I continue to support o-ring either through Hasbro, Super7 or any kickstarters that pique my interest.
Delete"Well, except Sgt. Savage, G.I. Joe Extreme, Sigma Six, or Built-to-Rule. Those did not sell so well."
DeleteThat was ancient history. I'm talking about the era beginning with the 25th.
I don't like any of the 1997+ era heads. Hasbro didn't retain any sculpting talent from the original line.
ReplyDeleteThey fired them all in 1994. The kept the Kenner team...which was weird. By the early 2000's, the Hasbro team actively resisted working on vintage Joe heads because it was so old that they couldn't use the work to build their resumes. So, it was definitely the C team or worse who did most of the work.
DeleteI kind of wonder if the poor sales of previous waves wasn't just an excuse. The 1998 Oktober Guard 3-pack was a peg warmer. And so 2/3rds of the third comic pack wave was the Guard. Hasbro may have shortened their run for those reason. Another suspicious thing, o-ring Comic Packs Wave 4 was NOT hard to find and even hit close out.
ReplyDeleteAt least there's more loose Brekhovs out there than people think, he appeared from sellers in China for a bit. The rest?
Asian sellers had most of the figures, at first. But, they seemed to sell out pretty quickly. Since Daina had the alternate variant, that sucked most of the interest in her figures.
DeleteYou make a good point about the OG. The '98's were still around as late as 2001. No one wanted them. I think they kind of "reset" the Comic Pack concept with retailers since they delayed the #9 pack and brought some color and pizazz to the line with the next wave. But, yeah, it got clearanced out everywhere. I almost wonder if a lot of that mid 2005 product was designed for low cost outlets at discounted prices. So much of it ended up in weird stores that it seems like it may have been part of the plan since they knew the line was pretty much dead by then, anyways.
Great photos! Love seeing the Oktober guard members in the photos together, very cool.
ReplyDeleteI missed picking this set up a few times -1. 2009/10 for about $40; a few years ago at SmallJoes for $80. Now its over $200 on Ebay. It's a shame that we will most likely never see Classified versions of the Oktober Guard characters.
ReplyDelete