1991 Crimson Guard Immortal

My friend, RTG of the Attica Gazette, has long observed that the vintage Joe line tended to run in three year intervals.  After three years, the line would take on a slightly different shape than the previous three years.  The blocks are 1982-1984, 1985-1987, 1988-1990, 1991-1993 and 1994 (which would have set the tone for the 1995 line for sure and probably into 1996 had that happened).  One of the demarcation lines is 1991.  And, the figures from that year have a different tone than those from 1990.  1990 was more muted in terms of color and Hasbro oversaturated figures with accessories.  1990 could be swapped with 1986 and no one would be the wiser.  But, in 1991, Hasbro changed their approach.  The 1991 series features brighter colors, larger and fewer accessories and, of course, the advent of the spring loaded weapons.  Lost in all of this, though, was a single anachronistic release: the 1991 Crimson Guard Immortal.  

The Immortal stands out among the 1991 figures because he is a throwback.  The figure features classic colors, a smaller, sleeker design and monochrome accessories that make him seem like he was released in the heady 1980's and not the dawn of a new decade.  When you look at the roster of 1991 Cobras, the CGI stands out.  His crimson, silver and black look dull compared to the oranges, greens, purples and yellows of his contemporaries.  His sculpting is tighter and more compact.  He lacks the technical accoutrements that adorn the uniforms of his brethren.  If you didn't know any better and found a lot of 1991 figures, you'd think the CGI to be a figure from the prior decade rather than a brand new release for that production year.  

There's no official story on this figure came to be.  We don't know if he was a design that kicked around for a while and finally found a slot in 1991.  Or, if he was specifically designed for that timeframe to bring the Crimson Guards back into the Joe pantheon.  But, the fact that he was so closely tied to the coloring of the original Crimson Guard from 1985 was a feature unique to the 1991 release year.  You are hard pressed to find any two other versions of a Cobra character that better complement each other while retaining the same, fundamental look as do the 1985 Crimson Guard and the 1991 Crimson Guard Immortal.  It was an obvious homage in a year that introduced a drastic change to the look and feel of Joe figures from the 3 prior years.

It has always amazed me that the Crimson Guard Immortal isn't more popular.  In the early days of collecting, collectors were loathe to venture beyond 1987 for any figures.  But, they made a few exceptions.  (1988 Hit and Run, etc.)  Despite that, the 1991 Crimson Guard never caught any fire among collectors.  Everyone appreciates it.  But, it's extremely rare to find a collector who has more CGI's than he would 1985 Crimson Guards.  The CGI is an afterthought.  The wonky accessories and brittle construction are factors in the figure's obscurity.  But, everything else about the CGI suggest it should be among the most desired Cobra figures from the 1990's.  

My first introduction to the CGI came via some early pictures on Evilface's old site.  These photos pre-dated the digital camera age.  He took some photos of his Cobra army out in the rain.  And, riding the back of one of the Hiss Tanks were two Crimson Guard Immortals. (IIRC, he mentioned, in the captions, that he "only" had 5 of them.)   At the time, no one used figures made after 1989 in any Joe content.  And, if you did, it wasn't Cobra army builders who were the focus.  So, seeing these figures being used as basic Cobras was novel.  The next major usage of them that I recall was the old Cobra Command Online site.  He was known for his massive Cobra dioramas.  He had purchased over 100 sets of the 1998 Cobra Infantry.  And, his show of force photos became the standard bearer for the army building craze that dominated the hobby during the early 2000's.  (You'll still see some of his photos floating around.  But, the attribution to him is long lost.)  In some of his early pics, Crimson Guard Immortals stood in places of prominence as Cobra Commander's personal guards.  The hallmark of the photos, though, was that the CGI's were given the accessory complement from the 1985 Crimson Guard.

Despite these early appearances, though, it was the 1985 Crimson Guard that ascended into prominence.  With that version readily available (but, sure, expensive!) collectors let the CGI slip into obscurity.  Part of this was just due to the fact that Crimson Guard Immortals didn't become readily available until well into the 2000's.  If you looked for them between 1999 and 2003 or so, you just didn't find very many.  The kids who had them hadn't liquidated their collections, yet.  As they did so, though, the CGI's became acquirable.  By then, though, the 1985 Crimson Guard had taken hold and was going to remain the de facto standard for any Crimson Guard charater.

The CGI features weapons that were designed as a "finger-flick" accessory.  First introduced in 1990, these are weapons designed to "shoot" their projectiles by a person flicking the butt of the missile that protrudes from the end of the launcher.  That motion will set the missile into flight.  Only a handful of figures feature these types of accessories.  And, it's obvious that Hasbro simply decided to cut out the middle man and introduce spring loaded weapons to the line that fired larger projectiles rather than rely on kids to figure out an esoteric gimmick.  It does help place the CGI or, at least his weapons, as an earlier design since it wasn't intended for the spring loaded treatment.

The entire CGI accessory complement is an exercise in fantastic engineering that resulted in a lackluster toy.  The figure includes 6 missiles, a backpack, two guns and an ammo belt.  The idea is that they all combine into an amalgamation that gives the character some serious firepower.  The practicality, though, is that the ammo belt doesn't stay attached, the missiles flop all over the place and the two guns are just weird.  If you can find spare '85 CG accessories, that's the way to go in order to make the CGI usable.  I suspect that his bizarre weapons play a part in his lack of popularity.  It's tough to get the figure to hold his gear in any way that looks great.  And, the awkward ammo belt and missiles make it easy for a well placed figure to either fall over, or just lose some gear before you snap a photo.  

I always had great intentions when it came to the Crimson Guard Immortal.  One of my earliest photos taken in the summer of 2000 was of the 1993 Cobra Commander flanked by my two Crimson Guard Immortals.  It was a grainy photo taken with a disposable camera as digital cameras were still super expensive at the time.  I had plans for the Commander to have a mighty army.  But, that just never came to be.  Over time, I lost focus on the CGI.  And, once the Funskool version became available in 2001, it simply made more sense to buy extras of those for $4 each rather than try to find additional Immortals.  I was able to find a couple at a toy store in Phoenix.  At the time, they were still of the "anything made in the '90's is bad and no one wants it" mindset.  And, I acquired a ton of '90's army builders for a song from them.  

Since then, though, he CGI has been largely absent from my photography.  A big part of this was that all the o-rings in my 1991 Cobra drawer went bad.  So, for a long time, none of my figures could stand up.  And, when taking the one photo for the 2012 profile of this figure, I managed to snap the figure's crotch.  So, I've been loathe to take the figures out for some fun.  Again, I can substitute the Funskool version to good enough affect and not have to worry about breakage.  Each time I look at my CGI contingent, though, I lament that they are used more often.  Now, I've fixed all the o-rings and know to be cautious with the figures.  I'm not sure if they'll start appearing more often.  But, they make great background filler for shots of Cobra hierarchy.

As a kid, I viewed the Crimson Guards as the third best fighters in Cobra.  The best CG's were recruited into the Eels.  And, the best Eels became Snow Serpents.  But, as my Cobra Troopers wore out, the Crimson Guard figures became the de facto ground troops for my Cobra army.  (It helped that we had three of them!)  Despite them being so prominent in my childhood play, the functional CG's didn't carry forward into adult collecting.  Now, I like the idea of the Crimson Guard moreso than I like using the actual figures.  I just can't see dress uniformed guys in red being front line troops.  I see them more as the political class on Cobra Island who creates lots of drama just because they can.  This lead to my Crimson Guard Rebellion story line in the mid 2000's where the CG's were rounded up and mostly destroyed after they tried to assassinate Cobra Commander.  That's been long enough ago, though, that the CG's are back to their old shenanigans.

The CGI, though, gives me that more functional combat Crimson Guard.  While their coloring doesn't make a lot of sense for the battlefield, they look really cool.  And, their heavier armor is more conducive to combat than the classic CG.  They work very well with the various crimson and red Hiss Tanks.  And, are a good match for the 2004 ASP and the SMS.  I do have a display shelf full of crimson vehicles as well as Tomax and Xamot.  I need to get some museum putty for their feet.  But, once I have a way to get the figures to stand, reliably, I can see my CGI's simply joining this shelf where they can be permanently enjoyed.  I think that's a better fate for them than sitting in a drawer, hoping I'll have the temerity to actually accessorize them all and get them out for some photos.  Finishing up my display case should be a priority for me this year.

In terms of the paint job, the Crimson Guard Immortal features just three colors: silver, red and black.  It is the application of those colors that gives the figure its powerful look.  Instead of concentrating the colors in specific areas, they gave the design layering that makes the figure appear far more intricate than the three base hues would suggest.  Each arm features all three colors.  The head does, too.  And, the figure's chest is the same.  The crotch also has details across the spectrum.  It's only the legs where the silver disappears.  The utilization of all three colors over so many body parts gives the figure a depth far beyond what you'd expect.  It allows the CGI to perfectly complement the 1985 Crimson Guard while also standing out as something slightly different.  It's a subtle trick with the paint applications that Hasbro didn't use all that often.  But, in this case, the three color limit is perfect for the figure.  

The Crimson Guard Immortal mold has a long and sordid history.  He was released by Hasbro for just one year in 1991.  The standard figure was released in Europe, too.  However, there is also a very rare European variant figure that uses the 1990 Rock Viper head.  This figure was heavily faked in the early 2010's.  So, be cautious if you're after one.  His weapons were also colored in grey and given to the European General Hawk figure.  At some point in the timeline, the CGI was supposed to be sent to Brazil.  There, Flagelo appeared in promotional catalogs and even on cardbacks.  But, this figure was never released in Brazil.  In 1993, the figure's head was used on the Create a Cobra mail away figure.  In 2001, Funskool released a highly anticipated version that was similar to the Hasbro coloring.  It was one of the most popular Funskool releases of that era and remains relatively available today.  Hasbro recalled the mold, though, in 2003 and promptly used it as the pack in figure for the KB Toys CAT Tank.  This dud lingered online for years and was clearanced out.  Large lots of overstock figures were available from Asia for another decade, too.  Finally, the figure's entire body was used on the lame 2005 Convention Destro figure.  Different factory custom makers have teased CGI's for years.  Black Major did release the heads as part of his Crimson Guard figures in the early 2020's.  But, the entire figure has yet to appear from the factory custom market.

To say there's untapped potential in the CGI mold is an understatement.  Of the army building molds that haven't been redone by factory custom makers, I'd argue that the CGI is the most prominent figure who is missing.  There's a dozen or more excellent repaints that could be extracted from the mold.  And, there's dozens more that are niche or interesting that have appeared in concept artwork over the years.  The limited popularity of the original figure makes me question the market for some of these great ideas, though.  The CGI exists in the perfect world of matching his previous figure and remaining true to the designs of his concept.  Straying from that is only going to diminish usefulness, even if the resulting figure is spectacular.  So, while I'd love a Dreadnok Skyhawk colored CGI, I'm not going to pay $30 for one.  And, I don't think it's going to be a figure that would permeate the community beyond a quick, superficial layer.

Over the years, Crimson Guard Immortals have experienced some heavy rises and falls in terms of pricing.  In the late 1990's, they were far less desirable than a 1985 Crimson Guard and you could get them cheap...if you could find them.  That scarcity lead to a time in the early 2000's when CGI's outpaced their 1985 brethren in terms of pricing.  For a while, they scratched at nearly $35 for a mint and complete figure.  But, as the Joe world cratered in the late '00's, the CGI's went with it.  And, they, once again, dipped below the 1985 figure in terms of pricing and popularity.  The only difference was that, now, you could actually find some if you wanted an army.  

Now, CGI's remain underappreciated.  You can get mint figures for $10-$15: which seems cheap.  As you add accessories, the price goes up.  But, mint and complete with filecard figures tend to run in the $25 range.  Which, again, doesn't seem bad for a figure that has a brittle crotch, easily rubbed paint and a plethora of small, easily lost accessories.  Other 1991 army builders are substantially more expensive.  But, 1991 figure availability is weird and uneven.  The fact that Immortal is available is good.  During my heyday, that simply wasn't the case.  Otherwise, I'd have a LOT more of them.  The upside is that factory custom Crimson Guard accessories are now available.  So, you have some nice options to upgrade your loose figures.  This profile proved to me, though, that the figure's quality still isn't enough to get the figure a lot of use in my collection.  I love the look of him.  But, I just don't use them at all.  Their fragility is a big part of that.  But, I need to make it a point to move the Crimson Guard Immortal into a position of greater importance in my Joe collection.