Tracker is one of those figures that you don't think to use all that often. But, when you do dig him out, you find a figure who is way better than his color scheme would suggest. Tracker was often mentioned as one of the 1990's figures who most needed a repaint. In recent years, though, collectors have warmed to the original figure. And, he's become a relatively expensive addition to a collection. I've had the figure since the late 1990's. And, really, haven't used him as much as I should have. But, in the last 10 years, I've found him a fun subject for photos. He can be outfitted with a variety of non-traditional gear that makes him far more interesting than many of his contemporaries.
But, if you're going to be objective about the Tracker mold, it has some warts. The red and yellow color scheme is the most glaring issue. But, his sculpt has some limitations. His weird moon-boots are the most glaring problem and are difficult to unsee once they've been pointed out. The fact that he's wearing white popcorn shinguards doesn't help the overall appearance of his lower legs. These are the most glaring issues and can call the whole figure into question. After them, though, the figure improves substantially.
The rest of Tracker's body sculpting is very strong. It's not too big and features tremendous details hidden throughout the various parts. He has one of the better sculpted heads of his era, too. It's both distinctive and non-descript at the same time. This allows you to use it for customs. But, also makes it distinctly Tracker's. It's a weird trick to pull off. But, Hasbro managed to do it a lot in 1990 and 1991. It sits perfectly on his chest. Tracker has a lot of blank space on his torso. But, it works. Sometimes, less is more and Hasbro was a master at making a figure with the just right amount of detailing.
Tracker's calling card is his gear. Like many figures from the 1990/1991 timeframe, he includes a massive amount of accessories. The hallmark piece is the rubber raft. Instead of being molded plastic like the Night Landing or the 1989 Stalker's kayak, Tracker's raft has an air tube and is inflatable. I've never had one that was really able to hold the air for very long. Usually, the stopper pops out and the thing deflates. But, the idea of the raft was strong and it's a fun inclusion. To go with the raft, Tracker includes two orange oars. They are difficult for him to hold in realistic positions. But, they look great. He was one of the earlier figures to include a battle stand, too. He also has a weird visor that he wears. It's black and works well with the figure. But, I'm not really sure of it's real purpose. It's one of those bizarre accessories that works, even though you're not really sure how it would function in the real world.
Tracker was also the origination of the MP-5 inspired rifle that would become ubiquitous with 1993 and 1994 figures. I've written about how it's one of my favorite accessories in the line. I have a goal to be able to give a version of it to every single 1993 figure release. (It's not a serious goal. Though, I'm closer than I thought I would be.) It works perfectly with Tracker, even though it's orange. Since it's so available in black, though, it's easy to outfit Tracker with a differently colored version to give him a little, subtle difference from the real release. Back in the late 1990's, this rifle was the only real reason anyone paid attention to Tracker. But, it was enough to get collectors to come around on his sculpt and ask for a repaint.
Another fun aspect of Tracker, is that he works with a plethora of accessories form other 1990-1992 figures. Helmets, hats, backpacks, airmasks and other gear all fits on him much more seamlessly than it tends to on most figures. If you scour the photos on this site, you'll find Tracker with a variety of accessories from other figures. You'll even seen my favorite alternate, the 1991 Eco Warrior Flint helmet, posed on the the figure in one of the photos below. It's one of those little things that makes Tracker fun for me. You can configure him in different ways for different purposes. And, that versatility helps to offset any limitations caused by the maroon and yellow.
Tracker was criminally underused. The 1991 figure just saw a single year of production. From there, Tracker was supposed to go to the Brazil. He appeared in a Brazilian catalog and his art even appeared on Brazilian cardbacks. But, Correnteza was never actually released. Tracker did make his way to India, though. There, Funskool started releasing him around 1999 or 2000. The figure is similar to the Hasbro version. He has a yellow or red accessory variant on his gun and paddles. The Funskool figure's visor is blue. His raft is, too. Despite the fact that the Funskool version was available from U.S. based dealers for years, he's gotten expensive.
In 2003, Hasbro got the mold back and promptly released it in the 2004 Toys R Us exclusive Night Force set. This character was originally planned as a Tracker release in a nice palette of green and white. But, Hasbro changed him to Action Man and released an orange vested figure with black pants. It's a nice figure. But, it's not a great Tracker. Fortunately, the actual Night Force Tracker figure was available from Asia for a bit. He's gotten scarce these days. We never got a full retail release of a nice Tracker repaint. It's an unfortunate result for a mold with more potential that was unrealized.
Trackers are stupidly expensive. Dealers will try to convince you that a mint and complete version is a $60 figure. But, those don't sell. You will see some dealer stock move at $50. But, left to his own devices, Tracker is a $30-$40 figure. The bulk of the value seems to be in his visor, though. You can get figures with a rifle and paddle for about $15. The raft will run another $5 or so. It's tough to find a visor without the rest of the figure, too. But, mint and complete Trackers aren't all that rare. They're just still commanding a premium these days.
