Rarities - Pre-Production 1987 Knockdown

BattleForce 2000 was a late 1987 release.  The figures were among the final ones I acquired when I was a kid.  But, the actual products were meant for wide release in 1988.  So, they first appeared in the 1988 Toy Fair catalog.  The figures in that publication, though, feature a lot of differences.  Knockdown is the most notable.  Below, you'll see some of the photos featuring the pre-production figure.  

You'll note an even more barrel torso with a rounded collar.  I'm not sure if the chest piece is just a repurposed piece from another figure like Payload.  (The Secto Viper in the 1988 catalog is just a repainted Payload.)  The effect when his helmet was fully affixed  made Knockdown's uniform look more like it was a single, unified piece instead of a helmet on top of a jumpsuit. 

In the photos, you can see paint wear on the front of Knockdown's helmet.  So, it wasn't anywhere near production level for these promos.  You can see the wear in both photos.  So, Hasbro reused this piece time and again.  It's doubtful anyone thought the photos could be blown up and scrutinized by someone at thirty five or more years in the future.  But, it's an interesting detail to see in official photography that was meant to sell the toys to retailers.

I actually like this pre-production design for Knockdown more than I do his actual production pieces.  The helmet seems more like a part of his overall uniform instead of just a head piece.  It gives the figure more cohesion than was present in the final form.   I'm not sure why he was changed.  But, it does appear that the figure underwent more refinement in the final months before his release.  And, we ended up with the production figure that had a very different look.

Rarities - Estrela Reaktor - Brazilian Exclusive Fastdraw

Estrela released about 150 unique figures in Brazil.  Most of them were very similar to the Hasbro figures.  But, every figure had subtle differences.  (With the exception of the figures that Estrela made for release in North America like the Slaughters Marauders and some mail aways.)  In the old days, these differences were often ignored.  But, in the past two or so decades, collectors have come to appreciate the subtle color nuances that exist between Hasbro and Estrela made figures.

The biggest difference is often the Brazilian green color.  It is a richer and deeper green color.  It appears on many Brazilian figures from the earliest years through the end of the Estrela line in 1995 or so.  

Below, you can see the Brazilian release of Fast Draw that's named Reaktor.  First, Reaktor is a great name...even if it would seem at home on a He-Man character.  Secondly, you'll note that Reaktor was a member of the Brazilian Battle Force 2000 subset.  He replaces Dodger, whose mold was retained by Hasbro for use in the Sonic Fighters line.  

The most notable difference on the figure is the Brazilian  green on both the figure and his accessories.  There are other color modifications, too, especially the hue of red on his accents.  Overall, though, the figure is darker than the Hasbro made figure.  It allows for easy visual distinction between the versions.

1987 Blocker - Around the Web

Back in 1987, I picked up 2 BattleForce 2000 figures: Blaster and Knockdown.  My brothers got Maverick and Dodger.  I always wanted to pick up a Blocker.  But, by the time I saw him again,  he was only sold in a two-pack with the Maverick figure that we already owned.  So, it was not until nearly a decade later that I acquired my first Blocker figure.  Since then, he's been my favorite BattleForce 2000 figure.  Though, to be fair, that's a relatively low bar to clear.  Here's some of the best content featuring the figure from around the web.

1987 Blocker Profile

Brazilian Blocker Weapon Variants

1987 Blocker by jogunwarrior

1987 Blocker by thedustinmccoy

1987 Blocker by bruxovigo

1987 Blocker by 1_18th_scale_skirmishes

1987 Blocker by nightforcetunnelrat

1987 Blocker by andrewofsengir6

1987 Blocker by specialmissionforce

1987 Blocker by thedustinmccoy

1987 Blocker by Slipstream80

1987 Blocker by Plastic Battles

1987 Knockdown - Battle Force 2000

In December of 1986, I had lucked out and found several brand new 1987 G.I. Joe releases at the local Toys R Us store.  As 1987 wound down, I was hopeful that the situation would repeat.  Sure enough, one December day, I found a few new figures on the pegs.  Labeled with the moniker of Battle Force 2000, the figures had a science fiction slant.  But, I was fine with this.  Really, the only issue with the figures was that when I turned them over, I didn't find the brand new 1988 releases for which I was hoping.  Instead, I found the same old 1986 and 1987 characters on the back with a new offset featuring the six new figures in the Battle Force 2000 series.  The store had all six.  My youngest brother got a Maverick.  My younger brother picked out Dodger.  And, I bought Blaster and Knockdown.

By 1987, my Joe world was pretty much my own concoction.  It wasn't based on the comic or cartoon, though it did have some elements from each.  In the early part of 1987, my Joe toys were in the basement.  Over the years, the toys migrated between my room, the toy room and the basement depending upon a variety of factors.  But, as it was just after Christmas, we were playing in the basement as there was space and we could leave our toys out each night to pick up the battle again the following morning.  

There were two key points of the basement that worked together to make Knockdown a key figure in my collection for a short time.  First, we had one of those old, oval rugs that was spun in multi-colored rings around a white center.  For us, the rug could be seen as a island with a lake in the middle, just a lake, various circular roads or rivers.  In this case, I was using the center of the rug as a poisonous lake of either lava or mud.  The second piece of kismet was than many of our now outgrown toys were stored in a storage room off the playroom.  This room had been the home of the coal furnace from the 1940's when the home was built.  That was long gone, though the walls were still stained black from the coal.  On a shelf in this room was my old Slave I.  For some reason, I dug this out.  At the time, I didn't have many aircraft for my Joes.  So, the spaceship was attractive as an option for flying forces.

All of this lead to my pulling out the Slave I, finding most of the pieces and now having a new weapon to be used in my adventures.  As Knockdown was the most sci-fi of all my figures, he quickly found himself in the cockpit of the iconic ship.  I couldn't call him Boba Fett as he looked nothing like Boba Fett.  So, instead, he was just named Fett.  (Yes, super, duper original.)  Of course, he was not affiliated with Joe or Cobra.  And, instead, would play both sides much like Kwinn.  Slave I was a devastating weapon since it was heavily armored and had two massive cannons.  And, once outside of his ship, "Fett" had an insanely powerful handgun (Knockdown's stupidly oversized pistol.)  that was capable of blowing up a Mauler or Hiss Tank.  

For several weeks, I had great adventures with Knockdown and his Slave I ship.  He would blow vehicles into the mud/lava lake.  Or, he'd shoot in front of ground troops and leave them the choice of dying in a hail of massive bullets or being incinerated in the lake.  Eventually, I had hand held artillery weapons damage Slave I.  Fett was defeated and I lost interest in the entire concept.  Before too long, my figures migrated back up to my room.  When they did, Slave I stayed behind in the basement.  And, it would not come off the shelf in that basement storage room until 1997 when I dug out all my vintage Star Wars toys that were left from my childhood.  

After that Knockdown was an afterthought at best.  When Cobra would attack the Joe base that was in my room, Knockdown might be involved.  His hand held weapon was still seen as overly powerful.  So, he was handy to have around on occasion.  But, I never really developed a character for him outside of "Fett".  Blaster did have some characterization.  So, it wasn't just Knockdown's late appearance in my collection.  He had a purpose, but not much more than that.  As 1988 progressed, Joe fell out of my daily routine.  I had aged out.  And, once I get a Nintendo in June of that year, the era of toys in my childhood was over.  

Knockdown features a lot of differences.  But, none of them really add up to anything all that interesting.  From a carded figure perspective, there are two separate releases of Battle Force 2000.  The early figures released in late 1987 were on single cards.  For 1988, Hasbro packaged the figures in two packs.  The figures are not different.  But, the single cards didn't see a long release window as they appeared very late in 1987 and featured 1987 cardbacks.  There are two different filecards.  The single pack version is different than the two pack version as it has more detail on Knockdown's specialty.  There is also a variant on Knockdown's gun.  It can have a thick handle or thin handle.  When you see all the Knockdowns out there with broken thumbs, though, you realize that either version can be tough on the figure's hands.  

From a mold perspective, Knockdown didn't get a lot of use from Hasbro.  There was just the one Knockdown figure released in 1987 and 1988.  The figure was released on a single card in various European countries.  Knockdown's head appeared on the Super Trooper and his repaint, Rapid Fire.  Knockdown then went to Brazil.  There, though, Estrela got some mileage out of the mold.  First, the full Knockdown figure was released on a single card.  Named Detektor, this figure is based on the Hasbro color scheme.  It features a darker green helmet, darker blue body and slight shading differences.  Then, Estrela used Knockdown's waist and legs to make Albatroz for the Patrulha do Ar subset.  If that weren't enough, Knockdown's entire body was painted neon and paired with a 1986 Sci Fi head and released in Forca Eco (Eco Warriors) set as Biologico.  This is a neat figure that was once common but has now gotten expensive.  The mold never appeared again.  With not much demand for the character, that's unsurprising.  But, if you like Knockdown, there's at least hard to find figures from Brazil to track down.

Dealers will sell mint and complete with filecard Knockdowns in the $20-$25 range.  Be sure to check these carefully, though, as Knockdown is very susceptible to paint wear on his eyebrows, hair, chest and thumbs.  Some dealers will keep the helmet on to hide the wear on the figure's head.  Left to the market, though, the same Knockdowns are about $10-$15 figures.  If you are OK without a filecard or a bit of paint wear, you can drop them below $10 without too much issue.  Personally, this seems like a lot for a figure that isn't all that interesting, has ill fitting gear and offbeat colors.  But, it's also in line with the current market where there are almost no mint and complete figures that routinely sell below that $10 line.  If I didn't have the childhood connection, I wouldn't own a Knockdown.  He doesn't carry enough panache to justify existing in my collection.  But, due to his short, but memorable, tenure in my childhood play, he's kept around.  He's never been the subject of many photos.  And, I don't really see that changing as we go forward.

1989 Dee-Jay

Dee-Jay!  Really, Dee-Jay!?!  As figures and characters go, there aren't many who are treated with as much disdain as the final Battleforce 2000 member.  His figure is pretty much reviled and his character traits (A DJ who became an electronics expert and was recruited into Battleforce 2000 for this expertise!) are pretty ridiculous.  Most collectors pass this figure by without much of a thought.  That was his fate in my collection, too.  However, the Dee-Jay mold actually has some decent sculpting and the figure, in the proper setting, can be a useful addition to any collection.

Dee-Jay's most legitimate claim to fame is the fact that his head and body were used to make two of the most distinct Brazilian Exclusive Cobra Villains: Abutre Negro and Corrosao.  His other claim to fame is that Larry Hama introduced him into the comic book, only to kill him on the same page.  The real question with Dee-Jay is why was he released as a member of Battleforce 2000 in 1989?  The first 6 Battleforce 2000 members were released at the tail end of 1987.  They were still in the rotation in 1989.  But the addition of one new team member in 1989 really didn't add anything to the team.  The original series was 6 figures, 6 vehicles.  So, Dee-Jay was the odd man out from the get go.  Maybe the designers thought his futuristic look was better suited to an existing sub team than as part of the regular carded Joes from that year.  But, his late release just makes Dee-Jay even more of an odd duck.

When you really look at the Dee-Jay mold, you see why it was so popular on South American Cobras.  His eyes are covered with a villainous visor.  His helmet seems overly ornate for a simple communications officer.  And, he has a random communications device coming out of his helmet.  His entire outfit is bulky and detailed in a way that makes his appear more evil than good.  Beyond that, though, the mold is, in total, fairly strong.  The white and olive green isn't a color combo that should work, but it's actually not terrible.  If not for the splash of blue that protrudes from his grey leg armor, Dee-Jay would be fairly strong figure.  There is definite potential in the mold...even if most of it would be better suited for Cobra.

Dee-Jay's accessories are interesting.  He has the helmet antenna which should, due to its propensity to be lost, should drive up Dee-Jay prices.  But, the antenna actually affixes to the helmet quite well and isn't as loose as those of Heavy Metal or Worms.  So, it is much easier to find.  His backpack is large and not overly detailed.  It doesn't add to the figure's quality, but doesn't really detract from it, either.  The hoses from Dee-Jay's head to his shoulder really make no sense.  Since his face is open, why would he need this type of attachment?  The hose is too big and either restricts movement of the figure's head, or gets in the way of his backpack.  The white attachment points for the hose are nice additions that help differentiate Dee-Jay from many other figures with hoses.  But, the whole apparatus is clunky and rather non-sensical.  Dee-Jay's gun is futuristic and maroon.  I'll say it again...maroon.  Fortunately, black versions of the weapon were available with a few figures from the mid 1990's.  So, it's easy to give him his weapon in better colors.  But, out of the package, the maroon space gun is an awkward fit.

The Dee-Jay mold got a lot of use, just not in the U.S.  After he was released in 1989 and 1990, the mold was sent off to Brazil where it was used for the aforementioned Patruhla do Ar and Forca Eco figures.  In 1993, Estrela produced a final Dee-Jay figure for Hasbro.  This neon colored addition to the mail away Arctic Commandos Set was the final appearance for the Dee-Jay mold.  (This figure was bagged separately from the other three polar figures since it was made in Brazil whereas the rest of the set was made in Asia.  To this day, you most often see the Arctic Commandos Set sold with the three Asian figures together and Dee-Jay either missing or sold separately.)  The mold then died out, mercifully, and has not appeared since.  In the modern line, a Hasbro take on Abutre Negro or Corrosoa would have been cool.  But, that would have been the only reason for the Dee-Jay mold to make a new appearance.

I never had a Dee-Jay figure as a kid.  He came out after I had moved on from Joe.  As an adult, he was a figure I never really pursued.  Since he was so unpopular, I figured I could always get one cheap so there was no hurry.  When I finally did acquire one, it was for completion's sake.  He stayed in the baggie in which he was shipped to me and has not really emerged in years.  With both Corrosoa and Abutre Negro being such large parts of my collection, I had no reason to find a niche for Dee-Jay.  With this profile, though, I have a new appreciation for the figure.  It is of much higher quality than I ever remembered.  That doesn't mean, of course, that Dee-Jay will take on new prominence in my collection.  But, if the opportunity to display him ever arises, I will take advantage.

Dee-Jay figures are not hard to find.  Even with a small antenna and two small, white end caps to his hose, the figure is easy to track down complete.  The figures do tend to discolor, though, so that can be a problem when finding a truly mint figure.  But, since the figure is pretty much hated, even that's not really an issue.  Mint and complete with filecard Dee-Jay figures run under $8 and can be had much cheaper than that with a little looking.  For the price, Dee-Jay isn't a bad pick up.  The Brazilian figures have gotten hard to find and expensive.  So, cheap Dee-Jays make for perfect customizing fodder.  Even beyond that, the figure isn't terrible.  On the right vehicle or in the right playset, Dee-Jay is actually acceptable looking.  For a cheap figure that's over 25 years old, that's a respectable position.  Really, I only own the figure for completion's sake.  But, I have at least a passing appreciation for the figure.  It's not the worst lot in life for a Joe figure and, to me, makes Dee-Jay worth having around.

1987 Maverick

As a kid, I made sure that every December I was a frequent visitor to the local toy stores. It started in 1984 when the Dreadnoks were early released before Christmas. I don't recall finding anything in 1985. In 1986, though, I found the new armored Cobra Commander and Falcon in late December. As such, in December of 1987, I was very happy to find some new figures hanging on the pegs of my local Toys R Us store. These new figures were all more sci-fi type toys who were members of a new subset named Battleforce 2000. They used more hi-tech weaponry and featured molds that were covered with technological trappings. But, they also featured solid, muted colors that kept them in line with many of their contemporary Joe releases. Upon finding those 6 new figures, I purchased a Blaster and Knockdown (Don't ask me why. To this day I have no explanation as to why Knockdown was my 2nd choice.). My younger brother purchased a Dodger and my youngest brother brought the subject of this profile into our household: the 1987 Maverick.

Maverick was Battleforce 2000's pilot. On that level, he is quite successful. The figure mold looks like a pilot, albeit a futuristic or experimental one. His colors make sense for a flight suit and his removable helmet easily fits the pilot motif. Honestly, this figure could very easily have just been a newer version of Ace and no one would have thought differently of the figure. The mold is well done, just detailed enough and featured sensical colors that mesh well with each other.

Battleforce 2000 was one of Hasbro's early attempts at using a gimmick to sell figures. Each of the 6 original members of the team were intended as vehicle drivers for a series of futuristic vehicles. The selling point was that if you owned all 6 vehicles, you could transform them into a mobile fortress. My guess is that the idea was born in the popularity of Transformers and this was the best way to cross pollinate the lines without being too blatant about it. The execution was fairly poor, though, as I've always found the vehicles to be pretty much crap. They look clunky and fall apart easily. The figures, though, were a different story. While intended to be futuristic, they all featured solid color schemes that made the figures useful in venues outside of their intended focus. As such, the line has some use in the modern collection, even if it is only for the figures.

In this day and age of copyright infringement and lost names, it's pretty much unfathomable how Hasbro was able to produce a pilot figure named Maverick so soon on the heels of the Top Gun movie. But, they did it. The only way this guy would have been a more blatant rip off would have been if they included him in a re-release of the Skystriker at the same time. But, the name does work for a pilot, even though Maverick's filecard seems to paint him as more of a square rather than a bold, daring individual whose personality would fit his moniker. It does, though, help reinforce my personal notion that all of BattleForce 2000 was kind of a throw away gimmick. While the toys were cool upon their initial release, the who schtick got stale rather quickly and Larry Hama's summary elimination of almost all of BattleForce 2000 in the comic really reinforced my opinion that the entire subgroup really had little purpose beyond selling a few extra toys one holiday season.

In my collection, I don't have much use for the Maverick character. Instead, I have long used this figure as an army builder. He would be a nameless pilot or a firefighter. Where the figure truly found it's niche, though, was as a jet pack trooper. I never felt that Starduster's design really fit a jet pack soldier. He simply didn't have enough protective gear. The jet pack would produce burning hot exhaust that would require a flame suit. It would also generate gases that would be hazardous to breathe. Plus, anyone flying face first at a high speed would find it difficult to breathe. Thus, I found that Maverick's mold lent itself perfectly to the vision I had of a jet pack trooper. His thick uniform was fully insulated against errant jet plumes and his strategically placed body armor offered him some protection from debris in the air. His helmet locked in fresh air and also gave him a quiet environment from which he could communicate with his fellow jet pack troopers or the ground control. In sum, it was the perfect outfit for what I wanted my jet pack troopers to be.

Now, I use Maverick as the nameless jet pack troopers who soften up Cobra installations. They are a foolhardy, but brave crew who have a survival rate in the low 20% range. They are danger merchants who really don't understand that they are flying at low altitudes using a pack that is difficult to maneuver over a group of highly armed, ruthless villains who find humour in turning a jet pack trooper into a streaking ball of fire. They don't really fathom that one shot turns their liquid fuel jet packs into flying bombs. Nor do they really realize that their helmets will not protect them should they crash into the ground, a tree, a mountain, each other or just about anything else headfirst. What they do understand, though, is that they have a feeling of immense freedom as they come as close as is humanly possible to individualized flight. They relish in this and feel a great surge of superiority as they swoop over their enemies and rain automatic weapon fire upon them. This more than makes up for their remorse when less than half of their crew returns from any mission alive.

Maverick's mold saw release in the U.S. However, in Brazil, the mold took on new life as it was used multiple times in several Brazilian exclusive ways. The entire Battleforce 2000 squad was released in Brazil in colors very similar to their American counterparts. Blaster, Blocker and Dodger all then reappeared in India. Avalanche showed up in the US in 2005 when he was used in the Winter Operations set. Knockdown never appeared in his original form again even though his body was used on the Biologico figure. Maverick's mold was used for several Brazilian figures. His entire mold was repainted in the Forca Eco series as Biomassa (which you can see in the photos below). Maverick's chest and arms later appeared in the Patrulha Do Ar series as part of the Aguia Comando figure while his head and helmet were used on Albatroz. After that, the mold pretty much vanished. It is not known if this mold is available to Hasbro or has simply been written off. But, Maverick fans do have a nice variety of figures they can use to represent the character.

Surprisingly, Battleforce 2000 figures aren't all that common. While they are no where near as scarce as contemporary subsets like the Night Force or Mission to Brazil, they are also not as ubiquitous as their regular retail brethren. They likely had a truncated production run since the carded figures did not appear until late 1987 and the 1988 releases were lesser produced 2 packs. Of course, none of this translates to expensive figures. Back in 2001 and 2002, you might have paid $12 for a complete Blaster or for the variant Blocker. Now, though, all of the Battleforce 2000 figures can be had for half of that. At that price, I think Maverick is a good pick up. The figure is a solid pilot mold and looks good in most of the higher quality Joe aircraft. His colors make sense and his accessories are fun and useful. There's not much more you can ask out of a Joe themed figure.

1987 Blocker

Back around Christmas time of 1987, I went to a Toys R Us. The previous year I had found several new 1987 series figures who had been released early at around the same time. This time, I was lucky, again. The store was fully stocked with a new subset of the G.I. Joe team: Battle Force 2000. There were six figures in the set and all of them, except for Avalanche, looked really nice. I purchased Blaster and Knockdown for myself and considered this a successful toy run. As 1988 dawned, though, my interest in Joe severely waned. I only purchased 2 more Joe figures the following year. As such, many figures of exceptional quality never made it into my collection. As the years passed, I returned to Joe collecting. In those early days before the Internet was available as the collecting tool it is today, I would pick up a figure or two in odd places. (A friend might find one in an engineering lab, I'd take a day trip to Trader's World in Ohio to find old Atari 2600 games and end up with a couple of Joes, etc.) Back then, figures were really cheap and I was only interested in what I didn't have or thought was really cool. At one such random find, I picked up a nicely colored figure who I recognized from the comics. He was done in subtle grey and brown and had a helmet molded to his head. I figured he would make a decent addition to my collection and I purchased my first Blocker figure.

There are two distinct variations of Blocker. The first one you can see in the pictures below. The figure has a clear visor covering his eyes. Later versions of the figure did not include this visor. The visored version of the figure is much tougher to find. Personally, though, I've always found the unvisored version to be more versatile. I've often used this figure as a combat pilot in my Razorblade helicopter. I give him Lifeline's air mask to amplify the visual effect and have found him a figure that I could really use. As such, in those early days of my return to Joe in '95 and '96, Blocker got a lot of use. He piloted my favorite small aircraft and was involved in many memorable crashes. He became my primary combat pilot who was heavily utilized against my resurgent Night Raven Drone and AGP Cobra air armada.

Back in those days, my collection was pitifully small and most of what I had was rolled up in little baggies and stored in a shoebox buried in my closet so that my brothers couldn't find them and continue to lose and break what was left of my once large childhood collection. As such, figures who I did have available to me then, like Blocker, still hold a special place in my collection. I've said before that I think I got more enjoyment from my collection when it was much smaller. While that may be true in some respects, I do still find my collection to be an entertaining diversion and appreciate it as a whole. However, one of the reasons I started the Forgotten Figures archive was as a way for me to remember individual parts of sum total.

As my collection grew, Blocker's found his role changing. The 92 Ace gave me the combat pilot I had always wanted and left Blocker without a job. I soon found him, though, as a tank crew member or gunner. The look that I had originally associated with flight was now more suited to being a member of an armor team. He was perfect as a turret gunner or second man in my Mauler. He was a figure that looked good, but didn't fit the infantry role that the figures I had previously used in the armor capacity could. He has the bulky sculpt of a tank operator and looks like someone who would be on the front lines, but not without some sort of armor around him. As such, he currently occupies the role of a gunner or secondary operator in a large piece of equipment. It isn't a glamorous role, but it is one that needs to be filled by one of the Joe lines filler characters. In that capacity, Blocker excels.

If you like the Blocker mold I've got some great news for you. There is a Blocker figure that is currently available from Funskool. You can get them all over the place for about $4.00. The figure's basic color is a little darker than the American version and the color patches are a little brighter. If you are a fan of the American version of the figure, you are still in luck. The unvisored version of Blocker is very easy, and very cheap, to find. You can get them in lots, or by themselves for not much money at all. If you are looking for the visored version of this figure, though, you are in for a much tougher time. The visored version is one of the more difficult variations in the vintage Joe line to locate. The good news is that most people don't know anything about the variation and collectors as a whole don't tend to care. This means, if you can find a visored figure, he still won't cost you a lot of money. Blocker is really just another mundane, under appreciated Joe figure who really is worth some attention. He has some great potential that can be utilized in a variety of ways. Again, these are the qualities I look for in a figure. As such, Blocker is a guy who I enjoy having in my collection. If you are willing to give him a chance, I think he will find a nice home in yours as well.

While the concept of Battle Force 2000 doesn't really inspire me, I felt that several of the figures were excellently done. What are your thoughts? Email me.

1987 Blaster

By late 1987, I was getting too old for Joes. I was in eighth grade and really couldn't be seen playing with them anymore. (Stupid peer pressure!) I had kept up my buying binge throughout 1986 and into 1987, but, by the end of the year, my purchases were falling off. I would get the Mamba helicopter for my birthday in December of that year, but that would be about it. I wouldn't get any more Joe vehicles until the mid 1990's. I had managed, though, to pick up a complete set of the 1987 figures. I figured I could still buy a couple of figures in 1988, but really hoped to get some before my birthday. Imagine my surprise when I went to Toys R Us around Christmastime and found 6 new Joes on the shelves. The 1987's had been released a bit early and I kind of expected it to happen again. Sure enough, Battleforce 2000 (It doesn't sound all that impressive now that we've actually reached the milestone, now, does it?) were the early bird figures for late 1987. The first figure I grabbed was Blaster.

Green has always been my favorite color and I think that was why I instinctively grabbed for Blaster first. In the meantime, my brothers grabbed Dodger and Maverick. They were the next best two, so I was stuck with Knockdown as my second figure. (I don't know if they had Blocker or Avalanche. I like to think I would have chosen Blocker had they had him, but it has been a few years and I'm not sure what my mindset of the day was, exactly.) Blaster, though, more than made up for that disappointment. He is an awesome figure in a great color scheme. His little mask is a frustrating accessory to find, but is great fun to have. He quickly rose to the top of my play list. (It seems that whatever was new was always my favorite figure. It still continues to this day as I tend to use my latest acquisitions more than some of the guys I've had around for a while.) At this time in my life, I loved science. For that reason, I tended to use science themed figures more than others. I made the nerds heroes. (There's no psychological reason here. Really.) As such, figures like Blaster became science officers who were capable of creating fabulous devices that transformed the face of battle. The normal, military themed figures also got a lot of use, but the science officers were the ones who came up with new machines and weapons. Since Battleforce 2000 sort of fit this genre, it only made Blaster that much more an attractive figure to use.

Blaster was originally a Transformer. I loved the name and his specialty of gunner. As such, I made a custom figure that I named Blaster. Much like the situation with Falcon, though, I managed to explain it away by having this guy be an older mentor and the younger character, portrayed by my custom, was paying homage to his elder. How Hasbro was able to use the same name on toy lines that had similar buying demographics but now can't seem to keep a trademark for more than 6 weeks is another mystery I will leave to minds greater than mine. Part of the mystique of this character was that I made him older, but also the victim of a serious injury. I made up a back story where one of the Cobra bigwigs had almost burned Blaster to death.

He escaped, but with severe lung damage. I let my Star Wars influence take over here and made Blaster's mask imperative to his survival. If he lost the mask, he would become very weak and die within a matter of hours. It was a nice way to give this guy some characterization outside of the regular Joe realm. Since he had such an intricate background, Blaster remained a favorite figure of mine until my youngest brother lost his mask. Blaster sat for in excess of 5 years without being used. One day, in either 1995 or 1996, I finally dug out my old Hovercraft shell. When I did, I checked out the main cockpit and was amazed to find Blaster's mask lying in the bottom. How I had missed this accessory in this open and easy to check place I will never know. The result, though, is that my Blaster regained his mask and once again found use in my collection.

Blasters aren't terribly tough to find. His mask, though, does sometimes pose a problem. He is not a figure, though, that will set you back a great deal. Not too many collectors have overly fond memories of Battleforce 2000. They did get killed off in the comic and I think that was indicative of their popularity. As such, I don't ever foresee any of the Battleforce 2000 figures ever being overly desired by the collecting community. Still, these figures are actually very good. I still use Maverick and Blocker a great deal. Dodger was a favorite of mine, but his popularity waned after a year or so. Blaster has found new use in my collection, but he is no longer a major player like he used to be. He is still, though, a nice figure to own and have as part of any collection.

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