The 1997 Toys R Us G.I. Joe releases were a mess. The extent to which they were botched is really difficult to comprehend. Hasbro's plans for the line were both drastically different and more grandiose than what actually transpired. But, all the signs of a looming iceberg were there. And, it's never more evident than with the early images of what Hasbro intended for the Stars and Stripes set.
The Stars and Stripes set was supposed to be the flagship product in Joe's triumphant return to retail. It was going to include 8 of the original 9 carded figures that had started the line just 15 years prior. (Fun fact. There's been almost twice as much time that's passed since the release of this set in 1997 as had passed between the Joe line's debut in 1982 and this set's production in 1997!) The plan was to use all original molds of the figures. But, to repaint them into a more "modern" interpretation. Some of this was a response to the collectors of the day who claimed they wanted "gritty and realistic" figures. But, really, it was a way for Hasbro to massively update the looks of the original Joes.
The idea was sound. But, the execution was, well, a problem. All of the Hasbro Joe team from the vintage days had been let go by Hasbro in 1994. And, the brand had been taken over by former Kenner employees who had been placed in charge of the action figure division. Their lack of experience with the Joe brand lead to a comedy of errors that just multiplied as the product got closer to production. But, we'll start with the basics.
Below you will see two images of the original plans for the Stars & Stripes set. You'll see some figures that look familiar to their production designs as well as some molds that were missing from the production set. .
The first image is the image that is actually on the back of the production Stars & Stripes box. It is incredibly different from the figures inside the window when you turned the box over. As someone whose first exposure to this product was when they found it on a Toys R Us shelf in 1997, this was weirdly confusing. The two figures using the 1986 Hawk head (Breaker and Rock and Roll) were obviously out of place in the set. Not only were they nothing like their vintage counterparts, they didn't fit the aesthetic of the set, at all. Also missing from the set was Flash. You can argue that Flash is the most interesting figure from the initial lineup of retail figures. He was gone. And, in his stead, was a figure not shown on the box-back: Grunt.
The choice to originally exclude Grunt is a weird one. While I'm not a Grunt fan, Grunt was the face of the Joe line for the first couple of years. If you mention G.I. Joe to a non-fan who grew up in the early '80's, it's pretty likely that their first association with the name is Grunt's cardback image. It was the brand's calling card. There's no indication of why Grunt was the original odd man out in the set. But, his inclusion was a far better choice than adding a 3rd oddball 1986 Hawk/Roadblock mashup repaint to the set.
Aside from the mold fiasco, just looking at this set, you see some other glaring issues that should have been above Hasbro in 1997. The second photo below is from a 1997 Tomart's magazine where they announced G.I. Joe's return to retail. It appears to be a different photo shoot of the Stars & Stripes set with a few, key differences from the production box back. But, many of the figures are the same, too. We'll go through each figure one by one and review all the chaos that's going on.
Scarlett
Scarlett is the least interesting figure in these images. This is because she's pretty close to the production figure actually released in 1997. The purple is more muted and darker. And, her jumpsuit is more brown. But, you see all the painted details on her mold. She is still a repainted 1983 figure in this shot. But, she's pretty close to the figure in the box.
Breaker
Here, we have our first major deviation. The Breaker in both photos isn't the classic figure. But, it's a close-enough amalgamation. The figure in both photos uses Clutch's head. This is close as he and Breaker share the same head in 1982/1983. But, the black hair makes it Clutch rather than Breaker. The figure features a tan shirt. This would have been a great addition to the set. Adding a 3rd tan Joe to the original 13 would have been a nice homage to Clutch and Grunt. The darker green pants offset him, nicely, too. This color scheme would appear on some later figures and in factory customs. Just on not on this parts configuration. Breaker's gear shows his iconic headset. But, for some reason, he doesn't have a helmet. It's a terrible, aesthetic choice as it makes the figure look incomplete. The production figure, that used 1986 Hawk and Roadblock parts, did include a helmet. But, it didn't include the headset. On top of that, this photographed figure includes Airborne's rifle while the production figure ended up including accessories from the 1982/83 Flash.
Short Fuse
Short Fuse is weird. The figure in both photos actually features Grunt's torso instead of the classic Short Fuse design. He has no cammo on his chest. But, his legs are done in an intricate pattern. The colors on his legs are very close to the production paint job that ended up on Stalker. The production Short Fuse used the correct chest for the figure. And, he didn't have any cammo pattern on him aside from a slight spray on his legs. You'll note the figure used for the sample is a repainted straight arm Short Fuse. The Tomart's photo features him wearing a 1985 Lady Jaye backpack. While the box back shows him with the correct backpack.
Snake Eyes
In the Tomart's photo, the Snake Eyes is actually an Action Force Stalker figure. Hasbro had a ton of overstock Action Force figures and both Stalker and Quarrel were dumped as early '90's convention exclusives. So, Hasbro had spare figures lying around. His unaltered inclusion is an interesting choice. It shows that Hasbro always had intention of adding painted details to the 1997 Snake Eyes figure. Hasbro's original plan was that the 1982/83 Snake Eyes was going to be included in the boxed set and the 1985 Snake Eyes mold was going to be included in the 3 figure pack with Stormshadow and Lady Jaye. When the '85 mold wasn't available, they went with two '82/'83 figures instead. Both heavily used grey as the highlight color: reminiscent of the European Stalker figure.
On the box back, Snake Eyes is posed with is back to the photographer. It's an odd pose for the most popular character in the set. It doesn't appear that the figure in this photograph is the Action Force Stalker. But, it's difficult to tell. The figure is also wearing a backpack. It's difficult for me to see. But, it looks like a Zap/Short Fuse backpack painted all black. It's just an odd choice to see Snake Eyes with a pack. And, not featuring him prominently was an interesting design choice.
Zap
Zap appears to have been two very different figures in the different photos. In the Tomart's photo, Zap is a swivel arm figure. Instead of the solid color with some overspray paint job that ended up on the production figure, he features the paint job that was, eventually, used on Grunt. His legs are not painted, though. And, appear very close to the colors of the production figure. He is wearing his backpack and is the only figure to be wearing a visor.
On the box back, the Zap figure is very different. He's heavily obscured by the figures in front on him. But, he's a repainted straight arm figure. Worst of all, he has two broken thumbs! Hasbro actually put a broken toy on the back of the packaging! Aside from that, the figure features a helmet with cammo paint. Hasbro never painted up an original helmet. Zap's entire body, including his legs, are done in the same cammo pattern. It is not a pattern that was actually used in the set. But, most importantly, Zap has painted on facial hair. It's at least a goatee and might be a full beard. The facial hair would have been a new paint application and made for an interesting take on Zap. Sadly, it was not to be.
Stalker
The Stalker figure in the two photos appears to be the same. He's even in nearly the same pose between the two photos. He's wearing a Zap/Short Fuse backpack in the Tomart's photo. The production Stalker toned down the tan portion of the cammo. And, it ended up using a darker green base. The actual colors for Stalker's cammo are pretty close to what appears on Short Fuse's legs. But, the figure in these early photos is a decent representation of what the production figure ended up being.
Flash
Flash is the biggest what-if in this set. Hasbro was never able to reproduce the classic Flash mold: despite collector calls for it to return for a decade after the Star & Stripes set's release. Flash's entire character was pulled from the set and replaced with Grunt. However, Flash's laser rifle was, baffingly, included with the Breaker figure in the set. Flash is a repainted swivel arm figure and it appears it's the same figure in both photos. The darker green base and yellow pads were a strong update for Flash's look. I'm not sure they would have supplanted his original red pads as his iconic look. But, it would have been nice to have another Flash version. On the box back, Flash is wearing the only visor. Though, in the Tomart's photo, the visor is given to Zap.) The fact that factory customs have failed to deliver this Flash version is another glaring omission. It seems like such an easy win for a figure. And, I'll opine that Flash's absence from this set is the greatest loss in the changes from concept to production.
Rock and Roll
The final figure in the set was Rock and Roll. We all know that the terrible 1986 Roadblock/General Hawk mashup figure that was released as Rock and Roll in this set happens to have a very rare, race changing variant. But, the real story is that Rock and Roll was supposed to use his original mold for the character. The figure featured in both photos is a repainted straight arm. He is armed with the 1986 Roadblock's machine gun. This gets weird because the production figure ended up using the 1986 Roadblock body but included the 1982/83 Rock and Roll's M-60 and bi-pod. The figure is wearing the Lady Jaye backpack on the box back. But, not in the Tomart's photo.
Rock and Roll would have rivaled Stalker and Scarlett as the best repaint in the set. His black shirt, cammo pants and updated bullet strap paint job would have made a striking figure. Personally, I lament his absence the most just because Rock and Roll is a figure that I use way more often than Flash. The upside is that the 2018 Hollowpoint figure from Red Laser Army is based on this 1997 Rock and Roll and is a good enough representation of the planned paint job.
From the box back, you can see examples of all the shortcuts that Hasbro took when creating the 1997 lineup. Granted, it was a low production run line that was sold only at Toys R Us. But, the vintage Hasbro team would never have created such a lackluster presentation for their packaging. It's sad that missing molds did in so much of the plans for 1997. 1983 Cobra Commander, Destro, Rock and Roll, Flash and Breaker would have been much more beloved than the figures we got. And, a repainted 1985 Snake Eyes might have been the character's definitive appearance in toy form. But, none of that happened. Instead, we have ghosts of the plans that live on in early photos like these.
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