Vibora - Brazilian Exclusive Python Cobra Trooper

Two decades ago, Hasbro managed to convince the collecting community that most of the classic Joe molds were "lost".  Usually, the culprit was that they were not returned from Brazil or India.  In most cases, this excuse was pure bullshit designed to shut collectors up and get us to stop demanding figures that would have required Hasbro to spend extra effort to find and produce.  One such case was the classic Cobra Trooper.  It was, simply put, the most requested army builder from the turn of the century collector base.  Hasbro, though, was able to put collectors off by saying the mold was gone.  And, the blame for that went to the Brazilian Vibora figure.

The reason is that Vibora was a 1993 release in Brazil.  And, Hasbro's line was that they had never gotten the molds back.  So, collectors went without a Cobra Trooper and watched as Ebay prices for the (arguably) most desirable army builder of the time climbed higher and higher.  In 2004, Hasbro remade the Cobra Trooper body and released it in a Toys R Us exclusive set that was amazingly received even though the weapons just sucked.  Then, later in the year, Hasbro miraculously found the original Cobra Trooper mold and used it for the Comic Pack and Night Watch figures.  Turns out, the molds were in Hasbro's possession but they just never looked for them.  So, collectors didn't get repaints of Vibora's contemporaries like the 1987 Gung Ho, Voltar, Rampart and Hit and Run.  Looking back, knowing the extent of the mold library that Hasbro actually did have, the collector themed releases of the era seem even more like antagonistic ploys that were meant to drive away adult collectors who demanded products that the Hasbro team of the time simply didn't want to make for what was later revealed to be rather selfish reasons.

All of this leads us to Vibora.  At his core, this figure is the 1989 Python Officer.  Only, he has slightly brighter paint and more brittle construction.  Toss in some different accessories and you have a figure that's not really different enough from the Hasbro version to be a necessary addition to your collection.  But, we know I'm a sucker for barely repaints that were released outside the U.S.  So, Vibora was a quick target for me to add to my collection.

Back in the mid 2000's, carded Viboras were everywhere.  So, I picked up a cheap one (a carded Vibora cost less than a mint and complete Python Officer) and promptly opened him up.  In hand, the small differences between Vibora and the Python Officer became even less significant.  The two figures were, basically, the same.  And, as Python Officers were slowly becoming a more common army builder in my collection, I lost any real desire to develop Vibora as a stand alone character.  So, the figure went into a plastic container and has rarely ventured out for any significant usage.

In the late 1990's and into the early 2000's, I was hell bent on creating new Cobra characters.  This stemmed for a boring afternoon at work in the summer of 1994 where I dreamed up a new crop of Cobra leaders and wrote their info down on some index cards.  As the 2000's turned to the 2010's, though, I had lost much of this zeal.  My Joes had gone from a relic of childhood and turned into a full fledged collectible.  I was less interested in retconning a figure into something of my design than I was just enjoying owning something foreign, bizarre or rare.  Vibora fell into that time trap.  He was among the last Brazilian exclusives to enter into my collection.  I really wanted to do something with his character, though.  I needed some figures that could represent very early Cobra operatives (like the bald or eye patch wearing Cobras from the first issues of the Marvel Comic) and Vibora was of the proper construction do fit that motif.

With the figure in hand, though, I simply couldn't come up with anything interesting for the character.  I had little use for a figure who was the same as one of my preferred army builders.  So, the development of Vibora's character was dropped and the figure just because a piece in my Brazilian trays of figures.  It was a sad fate for him.  But, he really didn't even get used with Gatilho and Relampago who were also early mold exclusives from Brazil.  While he matched up with them, I preferred to use those figures with an army of Python Officers.

So, Vibora was lost for about a decade.  In 2018, though, the character popped back up.  Red Laser Army made a Vibora figure that was colored like this Brazilian release, but used the body mold from the classic 1983 Joe.  This slight difference allowed Vibora to stand out as more of a character and he could be used to lead the Python Officers.  I anxiously awaited the arrival of my Vibora so I could flesh out this character.  When I got the figure, though, he had two right arms....rendering the figure useless.  For whatever reason, Vibora is not meant to be in my collection.  And, to this day, the character has not evolved because I can't seen to get a figure for him that works.

Vibora's gear is drastically different from any Cobra Trooper.  He included a Hit and Run rifle.  This seems like a great choice for Vibora.  But, the handle will snap the brittle Brazilian plastic thumb and is, essentially, useless with the figure.  He also includes the 1990 Range Viper grenade launcher.  He did not include the grenade, though.  So, the launcher is meant to represent a pistol of some sort.  (You can see this on the card artwork.)  Sadly, the thinner handle on this piece makes it somewhat useful for Vibora.  He can hold it with no fear of thumb breakage.  The final piece with Vibora was a repainted 1992 Destro disk launcher.  The fact that this appeared in Brazil in 1993 is odd.  Destro was one of the few figures from 1992 that didn't get a repaint in 1993.  His launcher being sent to Brazil could mean his mold was, too.  But, the entire figure and launcher was released in 1997.  So, it seems more likely that there were multiple launcher molds with one going to Brazil and the other staying with the figure mold that would appear just 4 years after Vibora was released.

In the early 2000's, Vibora figures were very common.  Many dealers had imported massive stock of them and could not move them for even $15 for a MOC figure.  Then, even more stock was found and collectors were able to acquire cases of them for ridiculously cheap prices.  Today, carded Viboras can be had cheaply.  While you'll see some figures priced at $250 and even higher, you can buy carded figures for about $70 and even less if you pick up a couple of other figures with him.  Loose figures, though, sell for around the same price just because they're harder to find than the carded samples.  For the price, pick up a Red Laser Vibora and an extra Python Officer.  You get the best of both worlds and will spend less.

1993 Eel - Around The Web

The 1985 Eel is one of the best figures in the history of the G.I. Joe line.  Because of this, his follow up design that was released in 1992 is often denigrated as it's so different from the classic look.  But, the 1992 figure is a strong design on its own.  The 1993 repaint is not really better or worse than the 1992.  It's missing a paint application and has very different weapons.  But, that allows it to be used either in conjunction with the 1992 figure or as a separate unit of Cobra's frogmen.

I like the purple 1993 version, though, just because it's not a figure you see all that often.  Despite that, I've been able to find some decent content featuring him.  He's never going to replace the 1985 Eel in collector's minds.  But, he can be a fun figure that really works well with his contemporaries.

I haven't done much with him for quite a while.  I need to get them out again this fall and get at least one more in action shot of these Eels either working with the Bugg or taking out some Joes.  They work really well in those contexts.  Until then, enjoy all the creators below:

1993 Eel Profile

1993 Eel by Relena_Warcraft

1993 Eel by thedustinmccoy

1993 Eel by gijoe_c4_panama

1993 Eel by thedustinmccoy

1993 Eel by Joerizzo2025

1993 Eel by yojoe_collectibles

1993 Eel by gijoe_c4_panama

1993 Eel by thedustinmccoy

1993 Eel by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1993 Eel by thedustinmccoy

1993 Mail Away Spirit - Random Photos of the Day

 The 1993 Mail Away Spirit remains one of my favorite figures.  The colors are different, but work on the mold.  He has a solid sculpt.  And, he looks good with a variety of 1992 or 1993 accessories.  This figure was once very available.  But, he's gotten pricey in recent years as more and more collectors forget his ubiquity and desperately try to prove that every figure they own is a piece of unrequited gold.

In the case of Spirit, though, the figure really is golden.  It's a great update to the character and gives you a choice when you want to use Spirit among later release figures.  I've photographed him quite a bit over the years and you'll find him in both backgrounds and forefronts of photos dating back to the early 2000's.  He's actually tied with several other figures at #7 on my list of most photographed figures.  So, he's definitely found good usage through  the years.

Usually, during Rarities Month, I spend my time refreshed and write up a good half dozen or so profiles to keep the content flowing through the rest of the summer.  This year, that didn't happen.  I've lost a bit of inspiration and haven't had much to talk about.  I'm barely taking any photos of Joes for a variety of reasons.  And, so far, I haven't really missed it too much.  Some of the recent Super7 releases have sparked a bit of my interest in Joe again.  So, we'll see if that gets me more motivated to get some profiles out the door.  I have about 30 of them started, with most being about 2/3 done.  But, each time I look at one, I just can't muster the energy to complete it.  So, I'm going to get some old features that showcase some of my favorite figures out there.  Usually, that's enough to break the malaise and produce something interesting.

Rarities - Pre-Production T'Gin Zu

The 1993 vehicle assortment wasn't much.  Most of the entries were pretty bad.  And, the Ninja Force vehicles were among the worst.  As such, the drivers of those vehicles, T'Gin Zu and the Red Ninja are relatively hard to come by.  Few people collect them in earnest, though.  So, their scarcity is largely offset by lack of demand.

It is that disinterest in the figures that allows for oddities like the original paint job on T'Gin-Zu to slip by collector's eyes.  And, the fact that it's prominently displayed on the back of the 1993 Pile Driver box just shows how little of an impact a figure like T'Gin-Zu has on the collector zeitgeist.

Below, though, you see T'Gin-Zu's original paint job.  It is much more orange than the production figure.  It appears to be a straight re-use of the 1992 Stormshadow paint masks, just in orange in yellow.  And, frankly, it makes for a better figure.  This all orange version would have leaned into the neon-ness of the '90's and created a figure that would have found at least a few fans among the more accepting collectors who grew up in the '90's.  Instead, Hasbro kind of chickened out and gave us a more muted T'Gin-Zu offering.

As a bonus, the pre-production figure also appeared in the 1993 Toy Fair catalog.  The more you look at it, the more you realize it's a shame we didn't get this coloring.  The production T'Gin Zu isn't a figure anyone really prioritizes.  So, having him be even more outlandish would have made him more fun.  Maybe we'll get a factory custom that's like this.  It's out best hope for ever seeing an homage to this unproduced design.

1993 Mega Marines Gung Ho

I have few memories of buying Joes in 1993.  In fact, I'm not sure I have any.  In 1993, I wasn't around much.  I was busy at school in the first part of the year.  I went overseas for half the summer.  And, when I returned, I worked constantly to earn money for when I returned to school.  When I went back to school, I had little interest in anything beyond my school life.  I'm sure I went to Toys R Us over Christmas break in 1993.  But, I don't remember it: even though I had to have bought some figures.  My main memories of 1993 Joes, therefore, come not from their release year.  But, instead hunting them down as the dregs of the line remained at retail and shipped to offbeat retailers through 1995 and into 1996.  

In the summer of those two years, I'd go to Toys R Us several times per week.  I worked near the local TRU store.  And, if you wanted to have any chance at finding some of the new POTFII figures from the Star Wars line, you pretty much had to go to the stores multiple times per week.  But, also, during the week, I was bored to tears.  All my friends lived out of state.  So, I had nothing to do on most nights of the week.  So, a quick trip to TRU was a way to pass some time and, maybe, get lucky in finding a new figure or two.  

As I didn't have much money, I'd limit my purchases to a couple of figures per week, max.  As there was still a decent supply of figures, I'd wait to find new figures that I didn't already own instead of buying duplicates of figures already in my collection.  At the local TRU, there were lots of Ninja Force, Street Fighter, Armor Tech and Shadow Ninja figures.  The Battle Corps selection was usually sparse.  But, every now and again, a new case would show up.  Among the dregs of prior years that were left on the shevles, though, were a couple of Mega Marines: Clutch and Gung Ho.  Both figures were somewhat intriguing.  They were characters I had loved as a kid.  Both of them included black weapon trees with some of my favorite molds.  The colors were bright.  But, that didn't bother me.  What did stop me from buying them, though, was the price point.  $5 for a figure was just too much.  I could almost buy two Battle Corps figures for that price.  So, I let the figures linger for weeks.

On my trips to the store, they were always there.  There were at least 2 Gung Hos.  Probably 1 Clutch.  They never moved and stayed on their solitary peg.  After a few frustrating weeks where I had not found any new figures to buy, I decided I was going to bite the bullet and pay the premium price for a Mega Marine.  I'm pretty sure I landed on getting Gung Ho since he had a removable helmet.  So, I went to the Toys R Us, ready to overpay for a figure.  But, when I got there, the Mega Marines were gone!  After weeks of no movement, they had been purchased: just as I decided it was time to buy one.

This development amped up my frustration at finding Joes at retail.  But, it also changed my approach.  I no longer felt I could leave any new Joe behind.  (Well, to a point, I guess.  I still skipped Ninja Force, Street Fighter, Shadow Ninjas and Armor Tech.)  I'd never see the Mega Marines at retail, again.  And, it was not until 1999 that both Clutch and Gung Ho finally entered my collection.  As they were acquired at a time when I was amassing new figures at an alarming rate, I didn't really give them their due.  And, they were infrequent subjects of any photos.  I liked the figures.  But, they had disappeared into the sea of 1992 through 1994 figures that were expanding in my collection.

It was only in the past decade that I've really started photographing the Mega Marines.  It helps that the Monster Blaster APC is among my favorite vehicles.  So, Clutch and Gung Ho appear with it.  The bright colors on both Gung Ho and Clutch really pop in photos.  This visual cue usually makes the photos popular as people stop to check out the colors.  Outside of that, though, this Gung Ho doesn't have a lot of specific backstory.  Had I gotten him in the summer of 1995, he would have found a much more important role in my collection.  Just pushing him back a couple of years, though, drastically changed how important he was to me, though.  

Mega Marines definitely had a shorter production run than other 1993 figures.  Even back in the days when no one cared about 1993 figures, you'd find them with much less frequency than you'd find the Battle Corps series of figures.  That's resulted in them also being harder to find today.  They're not rare, by any means.  But, you won't find them with the ubiquity of the Battle Corps 1993 figures.  The higher retail price point didn't seem to have the popularity that the cheap vehicles of the line's early years had enjoyed.  

Mega Marines are a series of figures that were ideal candidates for repaints.  And, in 2002, Hasbro proved it when they released an amazing Mirage figure.  They then topped it off with an even better version later that same year.  Sadly, though, that figure was packed with a Viper.  And, as such, collectors hated the figure since they had to get so many of them to army build the Viper.  This hatred was misconstrued as backlash against later molds being used in the Joe line.  In fact, most collectors of the early 2000s really loved the Mirage repaints.  They just hated having to buy two dozen of them in order to also get the Viper army they wanted.  Hasbro didn't return to the Mega Marines well for any retail figures beyond even more Mirages.

The club, though, was a different story.  They did like the molds.  They used the Mega Viper to great effect in 2003.  And, in 2005, they repainted this Gung Ho in a dark grey and black motif.  Overall, the figure is...OK.  It's kind of too busy.  But, at the same time, it showed that the Mega Marines molds did have potential.  The upside is that the 2005 release of this mold didn't sell out at the show and remained cheap for many, many years.  So, it was attainable for collectors of that era.  And, for many, it was their introduction to the Mega Marines Gung Ho.  The club dusted off the Blast Off and Clutch molds for use on some of their kitbashes, too.  Unfortunately, none of these figures really took off among collectors.  Some of that was that the color schemes or characters that used the molds weren't great.  Part was that convention items were always passe after their release.  The biggest aspect, though, was that it takes a particular kind of repaint to really make these molds pop.  Overly dark base colors and poor accent color choices quickly render these molds mundane.  The reality is that many of the 1993 figures were sculpted with bright colors in mind.  So, taking that part of their development away actually brings out limitations in the mold.  It's a weird paradox.  But, one that played out with later uses of the Mega Marines.

Gung Ho included the classic weapon tree that became ubiquitous in 1993.  Fortunately, he came with one of the best trees and, it was colored black.  These black weapons alone were usually enough to get me to buy a figure.  But, Gung Ho's higher price point and the fact that I had the tree in black from other retail figures, deterred me.  I actually like the commonality of the black MP-5 inspired weapon of this era.  It gives the Joes a bit of uniformity.  Having grown up with diverse weapons for every figure, seeing several of my favorite new figures including the same weapon was actually kind of fun.  The only reason I didn't buy Gung Ho was his higher price point.  As a broke student, I economized as much as possible.  It's why I missed many figures as I just didn't have the money to buy more when I'd find a stash.  Eventually, I wore down, though.  And, I made up my mind that I was going to buy Gung Ho and Clutch.  I had seen them for so long I had justified the extra cost.  So, I went to my local TRU where I'd seen the figures hanging for months.  They had been there just a couple of days prior.  But, now that I'd decided to buy them, the figures sold out.  I found only empty pegs at the Toys R Us store. 

Thinking back, I wish I'd scoured the store for a closeout section.  Toys R Us didn't do that often during those days.  But, it's possible the stock was reduced and moved.  In later years, this disappearing act would also occur with Street Fighter, Shadow Ninja and even Armor Tech figures.  Maybe they were boxed up and sold off to close out stores.  I'll never know.  But, I've never forgotten that hesitation with the Mega Marines.  It lead me to more impulse purchases with the POTFII Star Wars line.  I didn't want to end up passing something by for a long time and then find out it finally sold on the day I decided to buy it.  

Gung Ho's helmet is the closest thing to a classic fireman's helmet that we'd see in the vintage Joe line.  This similarity, though, was never explored.  I felt you could easily make a classic BBQ using the helmet and some of the body molds that were around.  In fact, in my early collecting days, I managed to snag a lone Gung Ho helmet expressly for the purpose of customizing it into a fireman character.  I never did that.  In fact, that helmet still sits in a bag of extra helmets from 1982 through 1984.  A lone, neon reminder of unfulfilled ambition.  Maybe I'll get around to it when I retire.

The Hasbro Joe team was big on color theory.  Even starting from the first wave of Joe figures in 1982, they approached each year as a retail experience unto itself.  They mixed, matched and combined various colors to create an attractive display in the store.  Figures were given complementary colors so that parents felt they matched.  It was a subtle way to sell more figures.  It was also a way to quietly convey quality.  You may not have realized why Joes looked so good.  But, you did notice that the toys really seemed to tie together.  This practice continued through the line's demise.  And, within subsets, the same practice was applied.  

When you look at the Mega Marines as a team, they work.  When you look at the Cobras as an enemy, they also work.  You see many of the same colors used across he figures.  Gung Ho uses an olive green that's incorporated into his base.  Mirage uses a similar base.  Gung Ho's orange accents tie him to Clutch, Mirage and Blast Off.  His yellow makes him appear unique.  But, the other colors faintly tie him to the rest of his team.  You know they are coherent while maintaining their individuality.  You see this throughout the line's history.  And, it's why you can find near perfect Joe pairings among figures that were released a decade or more apart.  This approach died on o-ring figures after 1994.  But, Hasbro did utilize it to a lesser degree on their early waves of the JvC figures in 2002.  

One of the great things about the Joe world from about 2015 onwards was that the anti-neon crowd had mostly moved on.  The smaller collector base who remained tended to appreciate the neon figures.  By the early 2020's, neon figures were seeing a resurgence and had gotten actively expensive and desirable.  In the past year or so, though, you've started to see more takes of "neon ruined the line!".  Most of them are driven by click-chasers who are vying for attention.  You see some that are just older toy collectors who are dipping their toes back into Joes and think their tired '90's takes are still relevant.  It's an unfortunate development.  I hope it's a passing fad.  But, it's a facet of the online Joe world that's rearing its ugly head, again.  

Gung Ho's mold was used twice.  The Mega Marines figure saw release in 1993.  A dozen years later, in 2005, the figure was repainted for a convention attendee exclusive set.  That was the end.  Hasbro used the 1992 Gung Ho mold far too many times.  And, you really wonder if this 1993 mold would have worked in a TRU set during the repaint era.  If you painted this mold up in the blue that is similar to the 1983 Gung Ho, the sculpt would likely work.  I don't think I've ever seen anyone attempt a V1 Gung Ho color scheme on the Mega Marines mold.  I think it could work.

Pricing on these Gung Ho's is tough right now.  The market is cooling pretty fast for non-premium items.  So, you'll see some mint and complete with filecard figures sell for more than $35 while others will remain unsold for $20.  It seems the biggest draw to increased prices is the canister of playdoh.  And, as the playdoh is certainly a dried ball of compacted dust, it really makes no sense to pay a premium for a can that probably belongs in the garbage.  As a figure that, likely, exists in lower numbers than almost all of his retail contemporaries, this Gung Ho isn't a bad buy at $20.  But, he's better at $15.  For me, this figure conjures up college age memories.  So, I find value in him that others may not.  But, he is cool and makes for a can't miss display item.

1993 Mace

What's in a name?  You can argue that a name is your most valuable asset.  But, in some cases, it has no value, at all.  Take Mace.  As a character, he's a forgettable 1993 release who lacks any media to support his personality.  When you look at Mace, though, and consider his specialty, you can't help but wonder how the figure would have been received had it been a second version of Chuckles.  While it would not have had much of an impact on sales of the figure back then, it is likely that a simple change like that would have lead to this figure being much more accepted in 2026.  It doesn't change the fact that Mace isn't nearly the terrible figure his reputation suggests.  Instead, he's a more nuanced release that is indicative of the 1993 line.

Mace was the 9th figure I profiled back in 1999.  At the time, this figure was only 6 years old.  I had bought him at retail just under 4 years prior.  Taking photos of a "neon" figure simply wasn't done in 1999.  Much less, taking the time to write about him.  One of the things that's been, thankfully, lost in the Joe community was that definitive sense of age.  Guys who grew up with 1982 through 1985 figures were adamant theirs was the "true G.I. Joe".  But, those who came of age in the cartoon years of 1985 through 1987 also staked a claim to this mantle.  Those younger...well...they didn't matter.  Now, though, those schisms are gone.  And, the only real criticism you see of the later years of the Joe line are from people outside the hobby who try to comment on it with no knowledge that their dated opinion was drummed out of the hobby over a decade ago.  

Mace was originally intended to be included in a second series of DEF figures.  There are carded samples of the figure with DEF markings on the cardbacks.  He was included in a case with other new for 1993 characters that would have been members of DEF as well as repaints of 1992 DEF figures.  Mace was even released in Australia with DEF badges on his card.  I'm not sure of the reasons why DEF was cancelled for 1993.  The 1993 figures lacked the light up weapons that raised the prices of the 1992 figures.  Ostensibly, there was no reason to remove the added denotation from the cards except to streamline the overall carded line and provide a cleaner, retail presentation.  While carded samples of 1993 DEF exist, the '93 Toy Fair catalog clearly marks them as a Battle Corps assortment.  As they have their own page, though, it's apparent that this was still a last minute change.  (The Shark 9000 is still named the Shark BC-1 in the catalog and it clearly has DEF stickers on it.)  As the figures were unchanged, though, it's really a footnote to Mace, overall.

My original Mace write up was brief and somewhat positive.  This stems from the fact that I've always kind of liked the Mace figure.  I acquired him as an adult collector.  At first, his head mounted missile launcher was as ridiculous as it sounds.  But, with that removed, the figure had some merit.  He fits the law enforcement motif.  His sculpt is very strong.  He has a lot of features that I would have loved as a kid.  The sculpted holster across his chest is among my favorite looks for Joe figures.  He has a radio sculpted on the opposite side.  It's a neat feature that balances out his appearance.  And, as a kid, a detail that would have made Mace extremely useful as I viewed small communication devices like this on a figure to be of great importance.

The sculpted gear sitting atop Mace's cool, black jacket works very well.  I don't think his arms needed any additional details.  His hands being molded, black plastic works, too.  Sure, it was a cheap way for Hasbro to save paint.  But, in Mace's case, it works.  His tan pants match his upper torso and the colors work together very well.  The real shortcoming is that he's highlighted in yellow.  Yellow's a tough color to pull off.  In neon green or blue, Mace could have worked better.  His series of 9 figures in case, though, were already awash in oranges, blues, greens and reds.  So, Mace using yellow as his primary color was just luck of the draw.  It is striking against his black background.  And, it allows the excellent sculpted details to pop off his jacket.  I wonder if he'd be more accepted were his radio, wire and pistol grip done in grey.  They'd still offset the black and would allow the yellow to make Mace visually distinctive.  I don't want to erase the yellow.  But, adding an additional paint color would go a long way towards making Mace almost perfect.

We can't talk about Mace without spending time on the headsculpt.  By 1993, Hasbro had gotten much better at sculpting heads.  The faces were more detailed and featured more expressions.  Mace has a prominent chin and nose that are light years ahead of those figures from 1982.   Heads were slightly larger than those from the '80's.  And, this allowed for more texture on the hair and eyes.  At first glance, you'd think he's sporting a pre-Beavis blonde coif.  But, it's really a tight pull on Mace's long hair that culminates in a glorious man-bun.  You can see Mace's hair better expressed on the box art for the Shark 9000.  But, the figure pulls off the idea without treading into the territory of the plastic string hair that was used for the Ninja Force Scarlett.  It was a daring choice for Hasbro.  And, when paired with Gristle and Bulletproof, you can see that Hasbro was trying to emulate hair styles of the era with their "hip" line of drug-busting or drug-dealing figures.

It's tough to reconcile the drug related fervor of the late 1980's and early 1990's.  The disastrous "war on drugs" was just a pretext for law enforcement to terrorize urban, black communities.  G.I. Joe getting involved probably seemed like a good idea in 1992.  But, let's face it, even back then, the Joes would have been used to break down the doors of poor, downtrodden drug users rather than breaking up an international smuggling ring.  So, Hasbro moving away from the concept in 1993 helps this figure's legacy.  He's a strong enough design that he can be incorporated into other ideas.  But, I think back to the pure fear campaign that I was subjected to during my junior high and high school years about drugs (and  AIDS, too, but we'll leave that for another time....) and wonder how it affected me and my generation at large.  Gen X used to be a generation defined by their best.  The '90s were a hopeful time full of promise of a better world.  But, we turned out rotten.  And, you can't help but think that our constant exposure to propaganda like the anti-drug messaging helped condition most of us to blindly accept the propaganda machines of the 2000's.

I've long used Mace as a prison guard.  It helps that I acquired multiples of him very early in my collecting days.  And, I had a small army of him at one time.  These guards ranged from sadistic sickos who would beat and torture prisoners to incompetent cannon fodder for Cobra to mow down when they freed their comrades from confinement.  His late acquisition year prevented Mace from ever developing as a character.  And, I don't see that changing.  These days, he appears in my photos as an individual.  But, that's a result of conformity to a Joe community that sees all Joe figures as the individuals they were designed as.  I've lost some of the originality that separated my view of Joe from others.  I used to get inquiring into why certain figures were doing things "out of character" in my photos.  But, those have died off as I've become more conventional in my usage of most figures.  It's something that's starting to bug me and has gotten me thinking about how I should be approaching my collection and if I was happier with in the days before I knew how other collectors handled their Joes.

This leads us to the idea of Mace being Chuckles 2.0.  Chuckles is a throw away character who was meant to be a Magnum P.I. ripoff.  Instead, he found life as an ambiguous spy whose loyalties were unknown.  Larry Hama started this with his filecard and first comic appearance.  And, later comic writers have taken Chuckles to new, though somewhat cliched places.  But, Chuckles has found a solid second life and become a more popular character than his origins suggest.  Seeing Mace as an alternate look for Chuckles works, too.  The undercover hair and more tactical gear allows you to use Chuckles in a different way.  While I'm not sure that being Chuckles would make this figure any better, it would have certainly given it an inroads to the collecting world that was cut off due to it being a new, bland character.

Mace's accessories were fine and preposterous.  His weapon tree was perfectly acceptable. While the weapons were yellow, the designs were good.  He included a 1992 Shockwave rifle (not to be confused with a Hit and Run rifle that is similar), a 1990 Updraft pistol, a 1990 Ambush rifle and a knife from the 1991 Low Light.  It's one of Hasbro's better weapon trees and the accessories work well with Mace.  In addition, Mace included a bizarre helmet that covered one eye and left the other exposed.  To this affixed his spring loaded missile launcher.  It's just silly to attach the missile launcher to Mace's helmet.  But, it can be done and you get a totally 1990's action figure as the result.  Mace is rounded out with the requisite battle stand and yellow missiles that fired from his launcher. 

Mace had a short life.  After his Hasbro production run was complete, the mold went to Brazil.  There, Brazil released a figure in nearly identical colors to Mace as Cerebro.  Cerebro features grey pants instead of tan.  And, he includes a yellow version of the rifle that was included with Bulletproof.  Then, in 2004, Mace's chest, legs and waist appeared on the Comic Pack Double Clutch figure.  It was a surprise to see molds that were supposedly "lost in Brazil" return in such a fashion.  But, that was the end of Mace's life.  For a 1993 sculpt, that's not a terrible legacy.  Cerebro figures are pretty common.  Though, they aren't the $10 MOC purchase they were a few years ago.  So, getting all of Mace's uses isn't difficult.  

Mace has never been and is not, now, popular.  You'll see dealers clinging to 2021 optimism as they ask $30 for a loose figure.  You will see some carded figures sell in that range, just due to low supply.  But, open market carded prices remain under $20 and loose, mint and complete figures can be had for around $12...on the rare occasion that they are offered for sale.  Prices remain propped up by limited supply and massive hoarding by many who are still hoping that pandemic pricing prevails.  We'll see what gives first: their desire to store a ton of stuff in their basements or the need to liquidate for some quick cash.  Until then, Mace is a figure you can wait out.  He's cool.  But, he's not necessary.  For cheap, he's a great acquisition.  But, once the price rises, his value is quickly exhausted.  

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes - Around The Web

The 1993 Ninja Force  Snake Eyes is actually a solid figure.  He has a strong design and great colors.  And, he has the best Snake Eyes head that Hasbro ever produced.  It's just a great look for Snake Eyes that gives him the aura of commando badass as well as fiery ninja.  Sadly, the entire figure is hindered by poor articulation.  And, that ruins the figure as he can't be posed like a standard Joe.  

It's too bad as this Snake Eyes is a great match for other 1992 through 1994 figures.  He allows you to use the character in a form that is complementary to his contemporaries.  You can really see the care that went into his creation when you pose him among other 1993 figures.  His colors blend, accentuate and pop.  It's a rare feat and proves that, sometimes, bad action figures can still be really fun collectibles.  Check out all the great content on this figure form around the web for more.

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes Profile

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes at Nekoman's Viper Pit

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by thedustinmccoy

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by gen_liederkrantz

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by HCC788

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by toysandtomfoolery

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by codename.steve

1993 Ninja Force Snake Eyes by gijoe_c4_panama

1993 Cobra Commander - Around The Web

As a kid, I didn't really have a Cobra Commander figure for a long time.  My originals got beaten up.  And, I used our three Hooded versions as Cobra gunners in the Hiss Tank and Asp.  It wasn't until the 1987 version came along that I had a childhood version of the Commander.  He worked well enough.  But, the lack of a solid Commander figure lead to my view of Cobra as an organization.  To me, the Commander was an elected position within Cobra.  And, it was a position that changed.  Some guys would aspire to the position.  Others, like Destro, turned it down to retain his own interests.   I'd never really thought about why the Commander wasn't a huge part of my childhood when it came to figures.  

The 1993 version remains my preferred Cobra Commander.  He's perfect in most situations.  He looks great with any figures after the 1984 swivel heads.  He was a perfect update to the character.  I'm among the few who really appreciate this figure, though.  He's among the least used Cobra Commander figures.  Below, you'll find some content on him that I've saved over the years.  I'm sure there's more out there.  But, it's tough to find and buried by horrid algorithms that have rendered much of the Joe community completely useless.

1993 Cobra Commander Profile - 2000

1993 Cobra Commander Profile - 2016

1993 Cobra Commander by dru.bu_86

1993 Cobra Commander on Reddit

1993 Cobra Commander by toysandtomfoolery

1993 Cobra Commander by HCC78

1993 Cobra Commander by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1993 Cobra Commander by toysandtomfoolery

1993 Cobra Commander by codename.steve

1993 Cobra Commander by misteriouscollector

1993 Cobra Commander by go.joes.go

1993 Frostbite - Random Photos of the Day

Last year was a great snow year.  We get a ton of snow that lingered for over a week.  During that time, I took hundreds of photos...getting many figures outside in the snow that I've always wanted to photograph in that environment.  Some were just normal figures that looked great against the white background.  Others, like the 1993 Frostbite, are meant for the snow.  And, I took advantage of that to get several different photo shoots using the figure.

I found the 1993 Frostbite at a KB Toy Store in the mid 1990's.  They had, Backblast and Keel Haul: figures I had never seen anywhere else at retail.  From the moment I opened the figure, I found this updated Frostbite a more than worthy successor to the original.  The design just spoke to me.  He was the exact type of figure I was interested in during my early adult foray into toy collecting.  And, to this day, he holds a special place for that reason.  So, check out the photos below as I await the weather this year to see if we get another great week of snow photos.

1993 Roadblock

In 1992, Hasbro did a soft reboot of the Joe line.  They didn't carry forward most of the 1991 series.  And, the 1992 lineup featured an array of top characters.  Almost all of them were excellent updates to the character while still holding some basic traits that were key to the figure's persona.  A full 75% of the basic retail line was heavy hitter characters from the line's heyday.  Among them was a new version of Roadblock.  This new design gave Roadblock the heft that was appropriate for his character.  And, created the best Roadblock figure released up until that time.  In 1993, the sculpt got a repaint.  This update incorporated some brighter colors.  But, they also really accentuated the mold and created an alternate look for Roadblock that's somewhat obscure.

The sculpting on this figure is extremely solid.  The main thing is that Roadblock is bulky.  The character is supposed to be a massive person.  And, this sculpt really gets that across.  Hasbro loved really short sleeves in the '90's.  On Roadblock, they are a design feature that allows his arms to appear larger and more muscular.  But, the real achievement is the head sculpt.  Roadblock's head is the best for the character.  It shows the determination you'd expect from Roadblock.  His furled brow shows that this a character of intensity.  And, as a final bonus, Roadblock features a golden earring.  It helps sell the head sculpt as something just slightly more interesting than what knock off toy lines would do.  The head was also used on both Star Brigade Roadblock versions.  So, it's appeared more than any other Roadblock head and earned its way to the de facto standard for the Roadblock character.

As I hunted down the scraps of the Joe line available at retail stores in the mid 1990's, there were figures who taunted me from the cardbacks of figures I was able to find.  This Roadblock was one of them.  Roadblock was a childhood favorite character from the comic.  I never liked the 1986 version.  And, my 1984 version had been devastated by broken parts and accessories.  So, a new version of the character was something to which I looked forward.  But, like many 1993 releases, Roadblock was simply gone from retail. I never saw one.  And, it was not until I was an adult collector that I was able to finally track down a 1992 version.  With it, I had a Roadblock that was befitting the character I had come to enjoy.  Roadblock quickly filled in as the missing machine gunner in my various photos.  He was the perfect match for the '90's figures that I had come to enjoy.  And, he was also a nice fit with '85 and later figures, too.

The downside to this late acquisition date is that I have no childhood memories of this figure.  Nor do I have associations of memories for when I found him at retail while I was in college.  The first version of the mold to come into my collection was during my heavy acquisition days of the early internet.  He was among a large lot of contemporary figures that just showed up in the mail one day.  The upside, though, is that this figure has always seemed "new" to me.  He was the last version of Roadblock to appear in my collection.  So, I can never really use him enough.  And, more than 25 years since his appearance in my collection, this sculpt remains my preferred Roadblock appearance.

The 1993 coloring is striking.  The dark blue shirt juxtaposed against the neon green highlights makes for a compelling color palette.  The black highlights and details help give the entire visual package some depth.  I'm not a huge fan of the light blue pants.  But, they do work well enough against the figure's dark upper half. The main thing is that the color work and are visually interesting.  This figure pops in photos and has the added benefit of being seldom used by other in the community.  So, his appearance always stands out.  Despite relatively few paint applications, Roadblock makes the most of them and features far more layered coloring than many of his 1993 contemporaries.  I suspect that the mold reuse allowed for a higher paint application budget.  So, the figure didn't get the two-tone treatment that was reserved for many brand newly sculpted parts that debuted in 1993. 

Roadblock's accessories are both good and terrible.  They're terrible because he doesn't include a heavy machine that defines his character.  It's an odd omission.  Especially, since there was a tree in use that featured the overly large 1992 Gung Ho machine gun that would have worked for Roadblock's specialty.  But, if the figure wasn't going to include his "ma deuce", then Hasbro at least chose a weapon tree with solid accessories.  Roadblock got the tree with Hit and Run's rifle and knife, Bullhorn's rifle and Shockwave's pistol.  There is the required spring loaded launcher and missiles, too.  The accessories may not make sense for Roadblock, but it's good gear that's useful for many other figures.  And, it was cast in black plastic.  Making it a solid release, all around.  

My most liked aspect of this figure, though, is how well he meshes with other 1993 releases.  Through the end of the vintage line, Hasbro was intent on producing toys that looked great when posed together.  The real reason was that it made the walls of retail figures on sale at you favorite store look good and prevented the figures from all blending together.  The result is that Roadblock looks amazing when posed with his contemporaries.  You can set him with Mega Marines, Eco Warriors, Star Brigade and even Ninja Force and the figure blends right in.  It's a line cohesion that was lost after the vintage years.  And, with toys not really mattering at retail any longer, it's unlikely we'll ever see anything like it again.  Even the various kickstarter lines fail at this and produce too many toys that look alike in terms of colors.  It's not about boldness just to be bold.  It's finding a way to make strong, bright and powerful colors work together with bland tans, blacks and greys.  In 1993, Hasbro was still doing this.  And, the line meshes perfectly well together.  That makes figures like this Roadblock even more useful since he's a perfect companion for so many of his release year brethren.

This Roadblock mold ended up with plenty of uses.  The sculpt debuted in 1992.  In 1993, some 1992 figures were released with new accessories.  So, you can find 1992 Roadblocks on 1992 or 1993 cardbacks.  Then, the coloring shifted to the paint job that's the subject of this profile in 1993.  Hasbro sent the mold to Funskool where it was released in India for many years.  The upside being that the Funskool figure included the discontinued 1992 machine gun.  Hasbro got the mold back from Funskool in 2003 and released Roadblock repaints in 2004 and 2005.  Every version of this mold is useful, fun and great for the character.  You have solidly vintage paint jobs, fun neon paint jobs and very useful, muted paint jobs.  There's something for everyone with this sculpt.

The 1993 Roadblock isn't a terribly common figure to find.  All of the 1993 repaints of 1992 molds tend to be less common than the other, new figures for the year.  It's much easier to find a 1993 Star Brigade Roadblock than it this repaint.  This leads to insane dealer pricing where some ask for up to $45 for a mint and complete figure.  These don't tend to sell, though.  Just the figure seems to sell in the $17 range.  And, the accessories aren't too hard to track down or expensive on their own.  The high price is a function of the limited supply.  And, you don't see this figure being used all that often.  So, it's not popularity driving his pricetag.  I'm torn as to whether the 1992 or 1993 figure is better.  But, that's mostly moot since the 2004 Anti Venom and 2005 HAS repaints are superior to both the vintage colorings.  But, this 1993 is the most fun version of this Roadblock sculpt.  And, that's worth something.

1993 Beach Head - Around The Web

I really like the 1993 Beach Head.  I find the design fun and the colors work.  Despite this, I find it difficult to use the figure all that often.  This is mainly due to the heavy use of blue in  the coloring.  It makes him Cobra adjacent and prevents him from meshing well with many other figures.  I've long liked him as a crew member on the 1984 Whale hovercraft.  But, I haven't had mine out in more than a decade.  So, I'm left trying to match up the figure with some of the vehicles that I do have available.  And, the results never live up to the idea of this Beach Head that I have in my head.  

The figure could use one more paint mask.  A little silver would to a long way towards bringing out the details on the mold.  Even a paint mask on his goggles would add a lot to the head.  But, I still like the figure as it is.  I long used him as an army builder.  But, those days are passed and I mostly just pose him as Beach Head among some of his contemporary figures.  

1993 Beach Head Profile

1993 Beach Head at Nekoman's Viper Pit

1993 Beach Head by purple_cobra75

1993 Beach Head by 1990s_gi_joes

1993 Beach Head by HCC788

1993 Beach Head by evilface

1993 Beach head by viper_space

1993 Beach Head by ptytoys2021

1993 Beach Head by Nekoman

1993 Beach Head by Dok Sewage

1993 Beach Head by thedustinmccoy

1993 Beach Head by fun_time_at_serpentorslair