2022 Snake Eyes

If you've been collecting since at least 1997, the last thing you need is another all black Snake Eyes based on his original 1982 design.  The character has been released at least 5 times in the repaint era in a mold and color combo that's the basic 1982 Snake Eyes but with some colored details.  So, you probably already have plenty of figures to represent the original Snake Eyes.  So, there's no real reason for this 2022 Snake Eyes to be part of any collection.  But, this brand newly molded figure does feature some aspects that haven't been seen in 40 years.  And, frankly, one of the updates makes this guy very worthwhile.

Back in the early days of collecting, everyone wanted a 1983 Snake Eyes with some painted details.  And, Hasbro delivered on that.  Every take on the original Snake Eyes mold released between 1997 and 2022 featured some painted details to bring some extra oomph to the mold.  What Hasbro never did, though, was make another all black Snake Eyes.  Really, there wasn't a reason to in the early 2000's.  For most of that time, the original Snake Eyes figures were relatively abundant and most of the collector focus was on the 1985 version.  But, in 2022, a newer collector base who had come online in the three or four preceding years did have a need for the vintage look.  

And, let's face it, 1983 figures aren't holding up all that well after 40 years.  (Though, the original Snake Eyes doesn't discolor ,can't have paint wear and, generally, has aged the best of the original 13 figures.)  But, it is nice to have a fully black Snake Eyes with the original waist that also has the softer plastic hands where you don't need to worry about breaking thumbs.  But, that's a pretty niche use for this figure.  Personally, I prefer Snake Eyes with some painted details as I think it's a more realistic look.  I break out the vintage figure specifically to photograph the vintage figure...not because I like the all black visage.  Even among my vintage figures, I'm more wont to use the Action Force Stalker figure just because the grey highlights make for a better photo.  So, there's not a compelling reason for me to really break this guy all that often.

But, I'd be remiss to not comment on much the original style waist piece on this figure enhances his visual representation.  I'm not someone who hated the 1986 Roadblock waist that debuted on the 1997 Snake Eyes releases.  But, seeing the figure more as it was originally intended really drives home how much care and thought the original Joe team put into their creations back in 1982.  The precision with which the parts fit shows a level of skill that is not replicated today.  But, back when you'd sell a quarter million copies of your worst designs, you could afford to take extra time and care on every piece.  But, seeing the figure in a much closer representation of how it was originally intended  is a big step forward and makes this figure worth owning.

The release mechanism for this Snake Eyes wasn't great.  You got him and Stormshadow in a 2 pack, boxed set for $40.  The set featured the following packaging: an outer brown shipping box, an inner, decorated box with character artwork and the actual carded figures themselves.  Since it was online only, it also then shipped in another cardboard box.  That's a LOT of packaging that collectors had to pay for.  And, $20 per figure seemed exorbitant when super articulated The Vintage Collection Star Wars figures were only $13 at the time.  (The greater Star Wars production numbers are mostly offset by the licensing fees Hasbro pays.)  Personally, I'd have preferred the character artwork box either replace the vintage cards or been removed with just the vintage cardbacks made available.  It would have been a cheaper option.  But, 2022 Hasbro was still riding high on the pandemic era collectibles bubble and they were almost not wrong in thinking people would pay nearly any price for nostalgia.

For some reason, the box art packaging for this figure does not look like the actual toy.  Instead of the 1982 Snake Eyes appearing on the box, we see the 1985 Snake Eyes mold.  Why is this?  Well, we have no reason or explanation as to the gaffe.  Truthfully, the 1985 Snake Eyes would have been a better choice since he has a sword to fight Stormshadow and it hasn't been released by Hasbro since the figure was discontinued at retail in 1986.  Seeing other box art mistakes, though, leads me to believe that Hasbro just made a mistake with artwork as it was commissioned separately from the toy.  Rather than worry about it, they just released it as is.  And, with an obscure, online only release, the questions and complaints were buried by social media volume in a matter of days.  And, now, no one really cares because for Joe collectors, it's always been about the toys and, maybe, the single carded presentation for the figure.

There are plenty of options for a Snake Eyes with a similar appearance to this one.  Aside from the plethora of releases during the repaint era, there are swivel arm versions available from Funskool in India as well as straight arm versions from Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.  Even Black Major has released a multitude of V1 Snake Eyes repaints.  Hasbro has yet to repaint this newly sculpted Snake Eyes and it seems extremely unlikely that they ever will.  It's sad as they could have done a couple of cartoon repaints that would have been well received.  But, factory custom makers have really done a bang up job in maximizing both the original Snake eyes mold and the 1985 version.  So, you can find pretty much anything you'd want out of those molds through those avenues.

In talking with a few other collectors over the past year or so, I've found it odd that we've become very nostalgic for earlier times in the collecting world.  The early 2000's were when most of us really got involved in the Joe world.  And, that was a great time with the advent of online forums, a new comic, widely available Funskool, an irrational number of new toys from Hasbro and widespread availability of cheap and plentiful vintage toys.  The Joe world went into some doldrums around 2006 through 2009 or so as the world and the internet evolved.  The early '10's, though, saw the emergence of a new, more creative collector base.  Vintage was cheaper than it had been even 5 years earlier.  And, the rise of factory customs seemed to invigorate the base.  This was a great time, too.  Slowly, though, those communities that appeared began to migrate to the new social media sites of the era.  And, as algorithms downplayed long term engagement, those communities fell away.

So, this leaves me to wonder, will we have the same nostalgia for the subsequent period of collecting?  The Joe world changed drastically in 2018 when the Netflix toy propaganda series dropped an episode on Joe.  Suddenly, pickers and dealers got an inflated sense of Joe's popularity and prices skyrocketed as they bought up supply and priced it high to cash in.  The pandemic threw gasoline on that fire for a year or two as homebound people starting collecting...well...everything.  And, while we've seen falling prices for a while, they're still not really down to reasonable levels since the supply of inventory is so restricted.  During that time, Hasbro brought back a few items for classic collectors.  But, really, this is the Classified era.  But, the focus of Classified collectors seems to be buying and owning the figures instead of really being creative with them.  Will that lead to an era that has a future renaissance?  Maybe.  But, it does seem like we're on last vestiges of the vintage Joe era.  But, it felt that way in 2007, too.  So, we probably have another hurrah left in us.  I just hope it sparks another era of new creative forces instead of stale discussions about who should star in the next movie remake.

Quality wise, these Pulse era figures are OK.  The plastic is softer than vintage. Which is a great thing for thumbs and crotches.  I have no fears of snapping Snake Eyes' thumb when I put his weapons into his hands.  So, that's nice.  As this Snake Eyes has no paint apps, there's no concern over the paint rubbing away.  On other figures, I worry about paint loss because the softer plastic has lead to softer paint that isn't as sturdy the paint used on vintage Joes.  Being all black, I'm also not concerned about discoloring with this figure.  The soft plastic that Hasbro has used so far this century has not held up well.  Blues and whites turn yellow very quickly.  But, we haven't see that with the black plastic.  So, this Snake Eyes will probably hold fine in that regard.

One area where the Pulse releases did excel was in the accessory complement.  This carded Snake Eyes includes remakes of his vintage Uzi and explosives pack.  This gear had been mostly absent from the original Snake Eyes repaints after 1997.  So, it was nice to get it.  But, in addition  to that, there was a small, tissue paper wrapped package inside the bottom of the character art box.  Inside were some additional, loose accessories for Snake Eyes.  These included a 2nd classic Uzi as well as the Uzi, sword and backpack from the 1989 Snake Eyes.  There was also a standard figure stand.  This additional gear was a definite value add for the overall package.  I'll always take extra Uzis  based on the 1982 mold.  I do wish they had remade the 1985 backpack and sword instead of the 1989 since the '89 molds were used so often during the early 2000's.  But more gear is better than no gear.  And, the extras give some indication that Hasbro had at least some awareness that collectors would open a few of these figures.

When Snake Eyes and Stormshadow first went on sale, they quickly sold out.  This appeared to be the end of the availability of the figures.  But, as orders were processed, the set came back in stock.  And, it stayed in stock for months.  It stayed in stock so long that in June of 2022, Hasbro had a promotion where you could get 40% off if you bought two of the sets.  (Well, at least $75 of Hasbro qualifying product.)  But, it's a stunning blow to a line that seemed poised to finally have a supporting adult collector base.  Instead, it's slowly being proven that the Skystriker was a speculative fluke and that vintage Joes just don't have the cachet to survive for long at retail, even as a niche, collector oriented and premium priced product.  Snake Eyes did, eventually, sell out.  He never showed up at specialty, online retailers who bought all the extra Duke/Cobra Commander and Cobra Trooper/Cobra Officer two packs.  I'm not convinced that we've seen all the Pulse stock of vintage style Joes make its way through the retail supply chain.  But, the figures remain cheap, even if you can't just buy them from retail stock.

Currently, a mint and complete 1983 Snake Eyes will run you between $65 and $70.  A far cry from the $100+ of just a couple of years ago. But, that's still a pricey figure for one that is rarely susceptible to minor wear.  So, this 2022 remains a much more affordable option for a nice rendition of the original Snake Eyes look.  Carded sets with Stormshadow sell a bit under their $40 original retail price.  But, sales are few and far between since the collectors who stashed extras haven't been compelled to sell at the below retail cost prices...yet.  It's unlikely that this figure would reach his retail price at an open sale.  So, you can wait him out and probably get one for a lot cheaper a few years from now.  If you love the early look for Snake Eyes, this is a figure you probably should own.  But, at the same time, if you have a nice 1983 version, there's not really a compelling reason to track down this more recent edition.