1985 Snake Eyes

How do you approach a figure that is generally regarded as the most popular and most important figure in the entire Joe line?  The figure isn't "forgotten" by any means.  It is also a mold that is personal and dear to collectors of multiple generations.  While there are admitted flaws in the figure's design, they are forgivable due to the overall quality of the the release.  I've avoided writing about this figure for 25 years.  Yes, officially, this Snake Eyes marks the 25th anniversary of me profiling G.I. Joe figures.  And, really, the only choice for such an occasion is the most popular figure in the history of the Joe line: the 1985 Snake Eyes.

In very early 1985, a kid in my class heard rumors of new G.I. Joe figures showing up at the local KB Toys store.  Since the Dreadnoks had come out early, pretty much everyone was aware of who would be part of the 1985 line.  And, the cartoon from the prior fall had made Flint, Lady Jaye and Shipwreck early front runners to be the favorites.  Everyone, though, was also highly curious about the new Commando figure.  We all knew it was a new Snake Eyes and were desperate to add him to our collection as a foil to the then brand new 1984 Stormshadow figure.  I finally got my mother to take me to the local KB on a Friday after we got mid term grades.  Sure enough, 1985 Joes were falling off the pegs.  My young mind could barely take in all the various newness that was strewn about the pegs.  I found a Flint.  But, I put him back because his head drooped and I thought he was broken in the package.  (I didn't know about the new head articulation.)  I ended up buying Footloose and Airtight.  My youngest brother got a Crimson Guard.  While I looked over the figures, a clerk came over and remarked about how they had gotten a couple of the "Commando" figures and they had sold out right away.  On one level, I was disappointed I had missed out on this figure.  But, on the other hand, there was so many other amazing new releases that any disappointment was washed away.

Over the next few weeks, my two best friends and I had a friendly competition over who could find the most new figures.  At the time, we didn't know the code-names for the Tele Viper or Snow Serpent.  And, my one friend was oddly bothered by the fact that no one had found a Lady Jaye figure.  None of us really pined over Snake Eyes, though.  Stormshadow, from the year prior, had not really become available at retail until the Fall and my friend had ended up ordering exta figures from JC Penny's to get a Stormshadow figure after being frustrated at retail for a year.  We assumed Snake Eyes would be similar and we'd not see hide nor hair of him until the leaves began to turn.  

The Friday that Spring Break began, though, my mother took us grocery shopping to stock up on food while we were home for the week.  Both of my friends and their families were going to Florida for the time off.  The local Cub Foods in Indianapolis was very close to the Toys R Us.  And, as a quid pro quo for us going shopping and bagging all the groceries, my mom would stop at TRU and let us browse before we'd go to the supermarket.  When we arrived, nothing seemed all that different.  I made my way to the Joe aisle where I saw a box on the floor.  This box turned out to be a yet to be stocked case of 1985 Joes.  I slowly peeled back the flaps that hid the contents inside.  I scanned the exposed accessory bubbles for anything of interest.  My eyes immediately fixated on a grey wolf.  I yanked the figure out of the case and held the 1985 Snake Eyes figure in my hand for the first time.  I was trembling at my luck.  My mother, though, failed to see the significance of the find and refused to buy me or my brothers anything.  Fortunately, I had my own money and took my prize to the front where he became mine.  In the hullaballoo, I'm sure I bypassed not only my missing Flint, but also Lady Jaye and the yet to be named Tele Viper and Snow Serpent.  But, I only had enough to buy one figure and it was going to be Snake Eyes.

I got Snake Eyes home and opened him up.  Immediately, I posed him with my other new 1985 figures on top of the Bridge Layer.  The new Snake Eyes was just so cool that I didn't do much more than admire him for that first afternoon and evening.  I can still recall turning on the light in my room after bedtime, just to make sure that Snake Eyes was still sitting there, next to Alpine, Airtight and Footloose.  I still wasn't sure that finding him had been a dream.  But, it wasn't. And, in the ensuing days of having no friends to play with, Snake Eyes became the focal point of my adventures.  He battled Stormshadow, would kill scores of Cobras and even just do mundane things around my Joe base.  But, mostly I just admired him.  I found the sculpt and design enthralling.  And, I'd try to dream up adventures for the figure where I felt all aspects of the figure could be used.

In the zeal of youth, I called my friends when I got home.  They, though, were both already gone.  I let each of their phones ring more than 20 times (it was the days before answering machines were common) but did not connect with them.  When we returned to school around 10 days later, neither believed my luck until I brought my new Snake Eyes over to their respective houses.  It was months before either of them found a Snake Eyes.  And, in that time, I was pretty much a dick who wouldn't let anyone play with mine.  In fact, there were times I didn't play with mine as I didn't want to break him.  But, having the figure provided more value than the actual character did.

This revelation, though, proved pivotal in my long term evaluation of this 1985 Snake Eyes figure.  While I did, eventually, play my original to death and broke his thumb, I also found that this version of Snake Eyes was almost too cool to use.  Many times, I would take the figure along, but never actually use him.  It was tough to integrate Snake Eyes into my play.  A big part of this was that my adventures of that era were heavy on dialogue to move the plot along.  Snake Eyes being mute made it difficult for him to be an integral player aside from carrying out a specific task or objective.  This lead to Snake Eyes often being set out of the way, waiting for his time in the spotlight.  This backfired on me, too.

After my original Snake Eyes broke, I got another one at some point in 1986.  This figure was better cared for and continued to tag along on great missions.  He was always included in the "away" force that traveled with me to may grandparents' or aunt and uncle's homes.  It was in my grandparents' backyard in Dayton, Ohio that my second Snake Eyes disappeared.  My grandparents had a great backyard in which to play.  It was terraced into three levels by limestone walls full of ledges, pipes and ivy.  Years later, Hit and Run would be hidden among this ivy for months after I forgot him due to his excellent camouflage.  I do not, though, know where my Snake Eyes went.  The stairway to the third terrace in the yard was lined with fresh potting soil and newly planted geraniums.  It's likely that I left Snake Eyes here and he was tilled under before I could find him.  So, Snake Eyes disappeared from my collection once again.  In late 1987, I paid a classmate $10 for both his 1985 Snake Eyes and a complete with microphone Heavy Metal.  (This seems like a deal, now, just due to Heavy Metal.  But, it seemed a princely sum in 1987.)  This Snake Eyes survived for many years.  Around 1996, he and my childhood Stormshadow were set in a permanent duel on a shelf in my room.  When I moved to AZ, then ended up in a Crown Royal bag for the move and stayed there until 2001.  At that point, he was incorporated into my general collection and is, to the best of my knowledge, one of the three or four 1985 Snake Eyes figures I still own today.

Snake Eyes did take on another life in my collection.  The unbroken parts of my original figure were used to make a new, custom character.  This individual was a "mystic warrior" who was trained in martial arts, but also fantasy magic.  He could speak, giving him a tremendous advantage over Snake Eyes.  He also, though, was torn between the world of military discipline and devout practice of his chosen arts.  As I grew into a 1990's jaded Gen X-er, this character turned his back on the Joes and went off to study in the Rocky Mountains.  Cobra, though, managed to train an assassin who would go insane and then started killing world politicians: setting the stage for a post Cold War World War III.  The Snake Eyes character was pulled out of retirement and sent to find and kill the maniacal assassin.  In the end, he was successful in doing so.  But, then also viewed his debt to G.I. Joe fully paid.  Though, he had one final use.  As an old man, he helped to arrange the killing of General Hawk, forcing G.I. Joe to face the realities of the world in the late 2010's.  If he's ever found out, he will die in prison.  But, the stakes were too high and his final, horrible act is also the one that saves the team and allows them to grow before the world passed them by.

Snake Eyes' accessories are damn near perfection.  The weak link, for me, is one of the aspects of the figure that most other collectors hold as the highlight: the inclusion of Timber.  Timber is well sculpted and commands a premium by himself.  I've never really gotten this as I don't much care for animal companions in general.  But, the wolf is a key element of the figure.  Hasbro sculpted a new Uzi for this Snake Eyes version.  It is nearly identical to the original from 1982/1983.  But, it has a thicker barrel and is jet black in lieu of the charcoal colored original.  The figure then includes a well detailed black backpack.  Into this pack fits the character's sword.  The sword is the highlight for me as it's well detailed and a huge step forwards in terms of toy making from both the 1984 Stormshadow katanas and the contemporary 1985 Quick Kick sword.  Something about the shape of the sword just added to the overall mystique of the figure and it remains my favorite sword in the line.

Snake Eyes was released by Hasbro in 1985 and 1986.  The Hasbro figure was available in Europe and Japan.  Estrela got the figure around the early 1990's and produced a nearly identical figure to this Snake Eyes named Lobisomem (Werewolf).  Thus ends the life of this mold.  Yup, that's it.  What is, arguably, the best and most desirable mold in the entire vintage Joe line was used just twice in nearly identical paint schemes.  It was never repainted in any meaningful way.  Hasbro planned the mold for a 1997 release.  The painted mock up is, basically, the 1985 figure with more details.  It would have been a hugely popular release.  But, Hasbro couldn't find the mold.  So, it was replaced with a V1 Snake Eyes hybrid.  Hasbro remade molds for the vintage Crimson Guard, Cobra Trooper, Cobra Officer, Lady Jaye, Mutt and Scrap Iron.  Yet, they never bothered to remake the iconic 1985 Snake Eyes.

This, though, is likely a factor of Snake Eyes' general success.  Hasbro had no incentive to make a new Snake Eyes in the vein of the 1985 because they had access to the 1982, 1989 and 1991 molds.  Those fulfilled the demand for Snake Eyes well enough that it made no sense for them to incur extra expense to make something new for the character.  Had they chosen to re-do this 1985 mold, though, they probably could have repainted it 4 times before collectors tired of it.  So, there is simply an untold amount of untapped potential in the mold.  

In the late 2010's, though, Black Major released waves of 1985 Snake Eyes repaints.  There were nearly 30 of them in the first three waves.  I'm unsure of the final number of repaints that Black Major eventually released.  Most of them were Cobras and sold as flavors of the Cobra Mortal or Cobra Invasor.  But, there are some great versions that can be used as Snake Eyes.  In 2022, Hasbro brought back o-ring Joes.  The first set was Snake Eyes and Stormshadow.  The box artwork showed the 1985 Snake Eyes.  But, the actual figure was based on the 1983 design.  So, as of this writing, Hasbro has never redone one of the most popular figures in the line's entire history.

One thing that the Black Major repaints showcased, though, was that the 1985 Snake Eyes mold has some flaws.  Collectors were willing to forgive the oddly sculpted mouth behind the mask and, even, the slight pot belly that adorns Snake Eyes' stomach.  But, with all the repaints you could ever want now available, those design flaws in the mold became more pronounced.  The black plastic hid the flaws in a much better way than the lighter colors used one some Black Major designs did.  And, it shows that this Snake Eyes mold isn't perfect.  But, collectors can overlook that because this 1985 update is such an improvement over the 1983 Snake Eyes.  

For me, though, the 1985 Snake Eyes is, entirely, seen through the eyes of 11 year old me who found him months before anyone else on that Toys R Us floor.  The figure holds a mystique because it was the single item that every kid my age wanted.  I used him on adventure after adventure.  And, despite all that, I still feel that I didn't use him enough.  I don't have specific memories of him because I could never quite get a story that was as cool as his figure.  So, I still feel that this figure is underutilized in my collection.  I've found it difficult to photograph him in a way that I feel showcases the awesomeness of the figure.  So, to this day, I can't seem to capture the essence of how awesome I've always felt this figure actually was.

The 1985 Snake Eyes has always been expensive.  Back in the early 2000's, they were among the first figures to climb over $30.  Then, slowly, the went over $50.  But, in the doldrums of the early 2010's, the figures settled into that $30 range.  But, when the Joe world went nuts in 2018, this Snake Eyes was among the most affected.  For a time, mint and complete with filecard figures would flirt with $200.  They found a steady price in the $125 - $150 range, though.  As the market has softened, this Snake Eyes has gotten more affordable.  There are just too many of them out there to really remain among the more expensive figures.  Now, you can find nicely conditioned and complete figures in the $80 range.  And, if you're patient, can probably put a complete one together from different sources for less than that.  Dealers will still get $100+ from impatient and uninformed buyers.  You do need to watch for wear on the silver wrist dart as it's the most common place for paint loss.  And, unscrupulous dealers will equip him with a 2000's era Hasbro Uzi.  (It has a different mold and is very easy to spot from a trained eye.)  But, common, loose figures aren't the plum they were in the last hurrah of Joe pricing.  And, we're starting to see them fall into more normal ranges.  Carded figures, though, are a different story as they remain pricey.

And, with that, 25 years of writing about a toy line that lasted for only 13 is complete.  I've come to realize that my continued fascination with Joe is 100% rooted in my frustrated creative juices.  I've ignored my life long pangings to be a writer due to a crippling fear of failure.  So, instead, I've talked about the toys that were the ignition for that creative spark that still ripples through my mind.  I can't really wrap my head around the notion of 25 years, though.  It seems an impossibly long time and also a chronological flash that has raced by.  Collecting has been fun, frustrating and a hassle.  I've met a lot of great people.  And, had a lot of fun.  I have no idea what the next 25 years will hold.  But,if it's like the journey from 1999 through 2024, it will be an interesting ride.

2024 BAT - Super7 ReAction+

About a year ago, Super7 attempted a crowd funding for an ambitious Cobra Mothership.  The campaign included a set of figures that, instead of the standard Super7 five points of articulation, would feature the classic o-ring construction of Hasbro G.I. Joes.  These figures proved more popular than the ship.  At some point during this process, it was announced that Super7 would be creating a full line of classically styled G.I. Joe figures.  This was somewhat remarkable: for Hasbro to abandon on in-house brand.  But, o-ring Joes had been a monumental failure for Hasbro.  (So much so that the stock is still lingering over 2 years later.)  And, Super7 had found success with  their ReAction branded Joe figures.  Hasbro wanted to, rightfully, put all their resources behind the Joe Classified brand.  So, licensing out the 3 3/4 license to a partner who was both willing and competent was a natural match.  In the summer of 2024, the first photos of the newly branded ReAction+ line surfaced.  They were met with cautious excitement.  As more images surfaced, the sentiment remained about the same.  People were excited for the figures.  But, at the same time, there were some doubts as to the final product.  Now, though, the figures are in hand.  And, the verdict on the figures remains, largely, the same.

Initial retail reports of the ReAction+ figures have suggested that Snake Eyes is the most popular.  Among collectors, the Snake Eyes was the least regarded figure.  We all have dozens of high quality Snake Eyes figures already.  Collectors were interested in Cover Girl and this BAT.  But, the BAT seems to be one of the most easily found figures.  This suggests that many of the retail buyers of these figures are casual fans who find interest in the major characters.  This is good since it will  leave the more obscure, collector oriented figures as something you can find at retail and, maybe, even army build.  And, it will sell out the less interesting figures of major characters that we all own in excess.

The presentation of the Super7 figures is geared towards collectors.  Unlike vintage figures that were meant to show off the toy, these modern releases are meant to be kept carded.  The layout of the figure and accessories are all geared for in package display on a shelf or in a case.  The figures are locked in place by a molded plastic tray to that the figure will still look great 100 years from now, long after the o-ring has dried up.  So, that's a nice feature for carded collectors and an added expense for loose collectors.

Accessory wise, the BAT is excellent.  You get two removable hands: one left and one right.  Then, there's the backpack that holds the additional three classic BAT attachments: the claw, laser and flame thrower.  The attachments are all new and feature updated detailing from their vintage inspiration.  The BAT includes one final piece: an oversized rifle.  As a Joe accessory, it isn't great.  But, when you look at the comic panels on which this figure is based, the rifle is a pretty nice match.  It's certainly better than the Hasbro accessories from the repaint era Comic Packs.  The Super7 weapons have been the weak point on the figures, so far.  It will be interesting to see how these evolve over time.  But, the gear has a precision fit to the figure in a way we haven't seen since about 1992.  So, that is a nice feature of these figures, so far.

I am also impressed with the quality of the figure.  The paint masks are sharp.  But, the real surprise was the joints.  All my ReAction figures had relatively stiff joints and would creak when you moved them.  Out of the package, this BAT has no such flaws.  The joints move freely with no sticking or catching.  But, they are also very tight and the figure can hold a variety of poses.  The removable attachments fit onto the pegs even better than those from the 1986 BAT do.  And, the figure could hold his accessories.  I could never get the ReAction figures to do that without fear of stripping paint or plastic off the weapon handle.  In short, they are very nice.  It's different plastic than vintage Joes and it's not the rubbery stuff that's rotting away from the 2000's.

So, my thoughts on the figure.  Since the beginning, I've felt something looked "off" about all the Super7 designs.  The most glaring design feature that drove this is the figure's heads.  The more cartoon inspired heads look very out of place on ARAH bodies.  And, the human heads, in particular are egregiously out of proportion to the older style body pieces.  But, even the masked and helmeted heads are a bit too detailed for the bodies.  The other thing that was noticeable is that the figures are smooth.  ARAH figures have just the right blend of folds, creases and pockets to give the legs and torsos some heft.  They are more realistic looks of how clothes hang on a human body.  The Super7 figures remain overly straight, though.  And, this gives them a bit of a knock off feel.  Remco and even Lanard skimped on sculpting and design elements like the detailed fit of clothing.  Super7 went the same route and it makes the figures stand out from vintage Joes and appear more in line with the cheap imitators who dominated the discount stores of the '80's.  

The last thing, though, was not something I really recognized until I got the figures in hand.  This BAT features a ton of sculpted details on his chest and legs.  But, they are all flat to the figure's body.  There's barely any elevation at all from the base sculpt.  In the vintage Joe line, the sculpted details protruded quite a bit from the body.  Pouches, holsters, knifes and even superfluous details like zippers extend out from the pants, chest and arms in realistic proportions.  When looking at this BAT, his sculpted details are flush with his body.  This accentuates the smoothness issue because you don't have the visual break of extended details.  It also takes away some of the realism of the figure.  Things seem out of proportion because they don't have the necessary width.  It's not a design choice that, alone, makes the figures bad.  But, it contributes to these figures being very different from Hasbro figures and, to me, makes them more Joe-adjacent than actual Joes.

Where the ReAction Joe line succeeded was mining the depths of the Joe cartoon for obscure characters and offbeat paint jobs.  It was the most diverse Joe line released since the vintage days.  So far, the ReAction+ line seems to be following that formula.  Cover Girl, Tomax and Xamot are all cartoon icons.  Supposedly, this BAT was from the comic.  Upon first glance, I would have guessed it a cartoon paint job.  But, the this is the BAT coloring from its first appearance in G.I. Joe #44.  So, technically, it's a comic figure.  (I'm going to have to write about G.I. Joe #44 at some point because it's been mined so deep for figures that have actually seen release even though some of the best ideas from the issue have yet to be considered.)  If Super7 continues a mix of comic and cartoon figures, they'll do well.  And, to be sure, I'm invested in the line if only for the possibility of both a Dr. Venom and a proper Kwinn figure in both his cold weather gear and the khaki shorts.  I assume we'll get at least one of these in the line: along with a multitude of other figures that will exist in no other form.

ReAction+ figures are $20.  That's a lot for what you get.  But, it's a boutique line with low production numbers.  So, you're going to pay for that.  Historically, the first wave of figures of a new line is overproduced and, eventually, ends up on clearance.  This isn't an indicator of success or failure, it's just the nature of an exuberant launch.  So, I fully expect you'll be able to get this BAT for a discount at some point in the next few months, especially as future waves roll  out.  Like the ReAction Joe line, these o-ring figures are available at all online retailers as well as Target's brick and mortar stores.  It's nice to be able to buy a figure on the pegs.  And, were it not for this retail presence, I would not ever have purchased one of these figures.  Target was pretty committed to the ReAction line.  So, I hope that partnership will not only continue, but also bring us weird foreign repaints that are exclusive to the retailer.

I have no real prognosis on the future collectability of these figures.  I never thought the Toys R Us repaint figures would be anything more than late line oddities.  But, now, some of them command substantial premiums.  And, it's pretty likely that these Super7 figures will have similar or lower production runs.  So, in time, they'll disappear.  It's just a question of whether collectors disappear at a faster rate.  If they do, it won't matter.  But, if they don't, there might be some future interest in these figures.  For me, my interest in these will be as a supplement to my collection.  I'm not going all in on them as they still aren't a close enough integration with classic Joes for me to do so.  But, you can be sure I'll pick up some characters who appear in unique paint jobs or have never been otherwise released in ARAH Joe form.