1988 Charbroil - Around The Web

There are figures that you would never guess have some popularity.  Charbroil is one of them.  To me, he is a mostly forgotten member of the relatively ignored class of 1988.  Yet, there's a ton of content about him out there.  I suspect some of this is just that his name is easily searched.  But, also, flamethrowers are a fun subset to photograph since they can do something or be in environments that are different than your classic guy in casual fatigues.

As you might have also surmised, I'm suffering from some writer's block.  I just haven't had time to really look at my collection or get any photographs.  I've also packed most of my vehicles away as I'm getting ready to move, again.  So, I'm going to use a few of the Around the Web and Random Photo posts that I have in my drafts.  I have over 450 of them.  So, there's plenty to hold me over until the bug bites me and I can churn out something worth saying.

The upside with finding hidden gems like Charbroil is that the roster of creators reads like a who's-who of ancient Joe posters.  Many of them are no longer active.  But, it doesn't mean their accounts aren't filled with amazing work from the glory years of G.I. Joe Instagram.  So, take some time to check the links and let me know your favorite in the comments below.

1988 Charbroil Profile

1988 Charbroil by evilface

1988 Charbroil by g.i._ussr

1988 Charbroil by joerizzo2025

1988 Charbroil by corpscommandercody

1988 Charbroil by thedustinmccoy

1988 Charbroil by HCC788

1988 Charbroil by silentinterlude

1988 Charbroil by evilface

1988 Charbroil by formbx257

1988 Charbroil by gijoe_c4_panama

1988 Charbroil by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1988 Charbroil by nostalkid

1988 Charbroil by gi_jokers

1988 Charbroil by sparkysworkshop

1988 Charbroil by edwin_80s

1988 Charbroil by therealsuperman73

1988 Charbroil by kushviper

1988 Charbroil by backyardjoes

1988 Charbroil by heroeamericano

1988 Charbroil by viper_space

1988 Charbroil by plasticbattles

1988 Charbroil

I was done collecting Joe in 1988.  I bought a Hardball, Tiger Force Roadblock and Hit and Run.  But, that was it.  My younger brothers, though, managed to still acquire most of the 1988 retail figure run.  There were a couple of figures they didn't own.  Along with figures like Budo, the Hydro Viper and Spearhead, the 1988 Charbroil was also absent.  It's doubtful this was an intentional choice and was just how the cards fell.  While I missed a figure like Muskrat that was not in our collection, though, Charbroil never entered my consciousness.  

I'd sneak my brothers' figures from time to time.  And, guys like Repeater would become, basically, mine after my siblings lost or broke the original gear.  While I desperately wanted them to get a Muskrat, though, I never had any pinings for Charbroil.  In my younger days, I had used Blowtorch.  My best memory was playing with him in the lava rock pumice stone that decorated the ground under the white rose trellis that covered the limestone steps between the first and second terrace in my grandparent's backyard.  Here, Blowtorch melted the rocks onto the Cobra army and the Joes won the day.  But, after that, I found that putting out fires were more interesting play scenarios than starting them.  So, I never had much interest in Charbroil since flamethrowers weren't a big part of my Joe army.  

And, with that, Charbroil was a very late entry to my collection as an adult, too.  I just didn't have any interest in him.  It wasn't until I stumbled upon a nicely priced one at a store in Greenville, South Carolina that I finally pulled the trigger.  And, even after owning him for a year, I barely have any pictures of him and this profile waited more than a year to appear.  None of this points to Charbroil ever being much more than a checkmark on a list that closes out the figures I'm missing from 1988.  Others may disagree, though.  Charbroil does mesh well with other 1988 figures.  And, he's a nice match for 1988 vehicles, too.  So, he definitely wasn't an afterthought to Hasbro.  He's just one of those figures who simply doesn't interest me.  And, that's OK.  

Charbroil is an interesting sculpt just because his head may or may not be the same as the 1987 Knockdown figure.  The head is modified.  But, it's unclear if this was an all new head or if the Knockdown head was modified.  (I suspect it's all new since the Knockdown head later appeared in Brazil.)  Charbroil also has a variant.  He can have either black eyes or red eyes that match his hair.  They appear with similar frequency and one is not desirable over the other.  The biggest issue is that Charbroil's elbows crack.  It's becoming nearly impossible to find one that isn't damaged in this way.  And, if you have one that's still intact, it's pretty much guaranteed that they will crack should you only move the arms a slight bit.

The 1988 series of figures is notorious for being light on the paint applications.  Charbroil, though, both is and is not an example of this.  At its core, the figure features a relatively rare brown base color.  He also features yellow, silver and red accentuating colors.  It is the silver torso, though, where the lack of paints apps are noticeable.  The chest plate is well detailed.  So, having just a couple of painted details would have made Charbroil just about perfect.  Instead, though, the details are lost in the sea of uninterrupted silver.  Charbroil's color scheme isn't often seen on Joes, though.  So, that gives him some sense of individuality.  But, that's about the only characterization that Charbroil actually has.

Charbroil's gear is...weird.  His helmet has bug eyes.  And, it doesn't quite cover his face.  This would be troublesome.  The flamethrower itself is fairly well done.  I don't like it as much as I do the weapon included with the 1984 Blowtorch.  But, the weapon works as intended.  My introduction with it was actually with Ice Cream Soldier in 1995 or so.  So, I actually consider it to be Ice Cream Soldier's weapon instead of Charbroil's.  Charbroil includes a large, silver backpack.  One of the oddities of 1988 was that Hasbro included some holograms on various accessories.  Charbroil's pack was one of them.  While this hologram can be missing, it's far more common to find it still on the back than it to find a similar item attached to loose 1991 BATS.  The final piece of gear is a thick, black hose.  While the idea of a bulky hose is nice: the practicality of it is lost.  The hose is too rigid.  And, it doesn't really fit onto the gun and pack without it being somewhat awkward.  (It should be noted the 2004 is even worse and can't be confused for a vintage hose for this reason.)  So, the whole package is just odd.  Individually, the pieces are nice.  But, when added to the figure, the accessories are tough for Charbroil to use and the figure suffers for it.

Charbroil didn't get a ton of use.  He was first repainted in the Night Force series in 1989.  For a time, Charbroil was the most expensive of that set.  Now, he's even more stupidly expensive.  But, he has been eclipsed by other characters as the most expensive of the Night Force subset.  The figure disappeared after that.  Most of the 1988 figures saw release in both Brazil and India.  But, Charbroil was not among them.  He didn't return until a surprise appearance in the 2004 Anti-Venom set.  This is a solid figure.  But, the replacement helmet takes away from the Charbroil character.  There are two unproduced 2004 Charbroils: a more common light blue figure and a harder to find dark blue figure.  Since he got his gear in 2004, there's really not much more Hasbro could do with the mold.  We've got three solid versions of the character.  That's more than many other, better figures.

Dealers will ask $25 to $30 for a mint and complete with filecard version of the 1988 Charbroil.  These prices are dumb.  Charbroil isn't a popular character.  And, none of his gear is all that tough to find.  So, the only premium to pay for the figure is if he has uncracked elbows.  But, few do.  And, most of the dealers sales feature this affliction but not a commensurate discount.  Left to his own devices, Charbroil is, maybe a $15 figure.  You could piece a nice one together for about 1/2 that if you want to spend some time on it.  And, considering the expense of a 1989 Night Force figure, it's well worth it to just get the original.  But, as a specialty and a character, both Blowtorch and Ice Cream Soldier are better.  

2004 Anti Venom Charbroil - Around The Web

Charbroil isn't a very popular character.  And, his figures don't really resonate with collectors.  (Well, aside from the Night Force version that is overpriced based on its more limited availability.)  So, it was a surprise to see him return in 2004 as a member of the Anti Venom set.  Sadly, the original bug-eyed helmet was replaced with an anonymizing Steel Brigade helmet.  But, that is something you can work with.  There was a surprisingly good amount of content on this figure available.  So, enjoy the 2004 Anti Venom Charbroil from around the web.

2004 Anti Venom Charbroil Profile

Anti Venom Charbroil by wigramjoe

Anti Venom Charbroil by yojoe_it

Anti Venom Review at generalsjoesreborn.com

Anti Venom Charbroil by Gen_Liederkranz

Anti Venom Charbroil at JoeADay.com

Anti Venom Review at JoeBattleLines.com

Anti Venom Charbroil by Slipstream80

Anti Venom Charbroil by Gen_Liederkranz

Anti Venom Charbroil by alpha1creative

Rarities - 2004 Dark Blue Anti Venom Set

In 2004, Hasbro produced a Toys R Us exclusive 6 figure product named the Anti Venom set.  In it were several figures that were making a return to retail for the first time since the vintage days.  Even among the army building obsessed collectors of the day, the Anti Venom set found an audience.  It was appreciated by most collectors and the gripes with it were generally overwhelmed by the set's positives.  As the year progressed, though, variant Anti Venom figures started appearing.  Initially, these were light blue.  There was also another change, the caucasian Lifeline figure was now an African American Stretcher figure.  These figures were also well received by collectors and became rather common as they were brought over from Asia.  But then, another set of variants appeared.  These were dark blue variants that looked very Cobra.

It quickly became apparent that the dark blue figures existed in much smaller quantities than the light blue figures.   And, as such, even when these types of figures were an Ebay staple and would go unsold, the dark blue Anti Venom figures fetched much higher prices and were highly sought after.

First up is Barricade.  In addition to the dark blue, his armor is now silver.  It is a good looking figure and a very striking contrast.  But, with his helmet on, this figure would have had a very Cobra vibe.  I think that is likely the reason for the color changes.  The blue was too close to Cobra and on a figure like Barricade, his affiliation might have been lost.  You will notice the figure's head is painted flesh color: just like the production figure.  This is notable as the light blue variant of this figure had a molded flesh colored head.  The molded flesh would have had much less propensity for wear and tear as the figure's helmet was removed.  But, Hasbro went with the painted heads in both cases.

The next figure is Mutt.  In Mutt's case, though, I think the dark blue works.  I've always seen Mutt as having at least some affiliation with law enforcement and security within the Joe ranks.  So, seeing him in this darker blue fits into that image.  As such, I don't mind the Mutt in these colors and would actually like one of the figures.  Unlike the production figure, this Mutt features a flesh molded plastic head.  The production figure has a painted flesh head.  Not sure why the painted head was chosen for production as this head looks much better.  The molded flesh head also appeared on the light blue version of the figure.

The next figure is Charbroil.  With Charbroil, like Barricade, the obscure character and need for a helmet would make him appear very Cobra.  As such, I find the production figure to be better.  But, this is a very different look for the character.  Again, this Charbroil has the molded flesh head.

Next up is Duke.  I can't stand the painted sleeves on this Duke figure, just like I can't stand them on the production figure.  The only cool thing about this figure would be if you put a Cobra Trooper/Officer head on him and made him a Cobra Trooper.  But, even then, the sleeves look terrible.  Again, the flesh molded head appears here whereas the production figure has a painted flesh head.

Roadblock is the next member of the set.  It was great to see this Roadblock mold, late of Funskool, make an appearance in an American set.  This dark blue version, though, is very close to the upper body look of the 1993 figure.  The dark blue pants are also a bit too much.  Were they black, this figure might be really cool.  But, in general, I prefer the 2005 HAS version of the this Roadblock mold.  Of note is that the blue pants to match the shirt on this version were not repeated on the light blue version.  The light blue version only has light blue pants, and an upper body that matches the matches the tan production figure.

The final two figures in the set are the most interesting.  Two, you say?  I thought this was a 6 figure set?  Well, it was.  However, it appears that the last figure, Lifeline, went through a lot of changes before the final, production version.  The Lifeline figure uses the 1990 Stretcher mold.  For some reason, though, Hasbro had something against the Stretcher character.  In 2002, they released the body, but with a new head as Sideswipe.  In the Anti Venom set, they forewent the new head and simply recolored Stretcher's head as a Caucasian.  The result was Lifeline.

However, there were a couple of oddities.  In the light blue set, Stretcher was still African American and had a molded plastic head.  But, in this dark blue set, there were two differences.  The first is that Lifeline features a molded flesh colored head.  This is more consistent with the other figures in the set.  The second set of images, though, show a Sideswipe figure also released on the dark blue body.  Was Sideswipe planned for the release?  If so, why was he replaced?  Lifeline is a more popular character than Stretcher.  But, using the same body, with a different race as a different character seemed some lazy.

Of the dark blue figures, the Lifeline/Stretcher/Sideswipe figures are the most desirable.  Sideswipe is the rarest of the dark blue figures.  And, as such, tends to command the highest prices.  You will often see people selling a set of the 6 figures, including the Lifeline rather than the Sideswipe, just due to Sideswipe's rarity.

In all the dark blue Anti Venom set is interesting. But, I think the production version, minus the painted heads, is better.  This is a good insight into how sets do change over time and having access to some of these unreleased concepts is a rare way to see the evolution of a product before it reaches production.

2004 Anti Venom Charbroil

Time brings perspective.  Things that were terrible during their height are often mellowed after a few years have passed.  A great example from the Joe world is the Anti-Venom set from 2004.  When first released, collectors were lukewarm to it.  On the surface, it should have been a hit.  Sure, it had the requisite Duke figure.  But, it also featured molds from Stretcher, Roadblock, Barricade, Mutt and Charbroil.  None of these molds had been seen at retail in some time.  (Well, Stretcher minus the head had been released in 2002.)  The figures had a decent, if uninspired, color scheme, a full complement of accessories and new helmets based on the Steel Brigade.  Really, the set should have been a slam dunk in terms of collector popularity.

But, at that time, collectors were heavily focused on things like army building.  And, sets, no matter how well done, that didn't feature army building components were quickly cast aside.  As such, the Anti Venom set lingered at retail for the rest of 2004 and only finally disappeared after the holidays.  For years, the set languished in obscurity.  But, as time passed, collecting tastes changed.  With army building falling from the sole goal of many collectors, interest turned to many of the figures that had been released during the repaint era that offered something different.  The Anti Venom set achieved that in spades.  So, the popularity of the set has increased, even if the individual figures within have not seen great appreciation in value.  One of the surface gems in this set is the Charbroil figure.  But, deeper analysis spots the issues that many collectors had with this set upon its release.

As a character, Charbroil is an open book. As a figure, he is a forgotten mold whose biggest claim to fame is inclusion in the original Night Force set in 1989.  Beyond that, his flamethrower specialty is something of a bygone era while his mold design simply can't live up to the likes of Blowtorch or even Ice Cream Soldier.  He is caught in the middle of the Joe timeline and his mold shows it.  But, seeing as how collectors had not seen the mold at retail in 15 years and the fact that the Blowtorch mold was gone, Hasbro can be commended for trying something different.  They found an obscure mold, recolored it decently and, subsequently, saw collectors yawn over the release.

Personally, I was no different.  While I liked the idea of the anti venom set, the execution left a lot to be desired.  The Roadblock figure was very well done.  But, the painted heads on the rest of the figures left me wanting something more useful.  So, even today, the Anti-Venom figures rarely see the light of day in my collection.  Of them, only Roadblock and Barricade really get any display with Mutt appearing from time to time.  The Lifeline, Duke and this Charbroil sit in their baggies in a plastic tub.  Maybe, someday, they will come out and be put on display as a vehicle crew or manning an HQ.  But, until then, they remain unused, forgotten and unappreciated.

Charbroil's accessories are decent.  The flamethrower is well detailed.  But, it appearance with figures like the Shock Viper made it seem less unique to Charbroil than it was when first released.  His backpack is large and detailed.  Missing, though, is the lenticular hologram that was part of the original figure and the Night Force release.  It is a small detail.  But, it added substantial depth to the original pack.  (Though it is a good way to differentiate a hard to find vintage Night Force backpack from an easy to find Anti Venom version.)  The hose to connect the pack to the weapon, though, fails.  Instead of using flexible plastic that would have allowed the hose to have some natural look, Hasbro used rigid plastic.  The result is that the hose is basically unusable.  If you look at the photo below, you see the hose straight out, as inflexible as the day it was opened.  This is due to the plastic and further reduces the usability of the Charbroil figure.

As a concept, the Anti Venom set made great sense.  A group of specialized Joes to fight the Venomized Cobras.  Even taking away the character choices as not the best for this specialty, you are still left with a group of figures that had not been, for the most part, recently released.  The set featured mostly original accessories for the figures.  And, those who had updated accessories had acceptable choices.  But, the set suffered from some major issues.  First was the fact that the figures had painted heads.  Prototypes of the sets included figures with flesh colored head molds.  For whatever reason, this was changed to the painted heads in production.  The result are heads that are easily chipped, worn or damaged.  When you add the fact that each figure (except Lifeline) included a helmet, the set was designed to ruin the figures in it.  The helmets were the second issue.  While the Steel Brigade inspired helmets have their merits, the reality is the the original Mutt, Barricade and Charboil figures all included distinct helmets.  Replacing these with the generic Steel Brigade stripped the Joe characters of their personalities and reduced them to nameless army builders.  This struck at the essence of Joe.  Joe is about character.  Take that away and the line has little to differentiate it from most other toylines from its vintage days.

The Anti Venom set's most compelling claim to fame is that it had two sets of unproduced variants.  The first set of variant figures were cast in a very dark blue color scheme.  It's likely that this palette was too close to traditional Cobra colors.  The next take is a light blue set.  Again, this was abandoned and Hasbro finally released the colors you see below.  Both of the dark blue and light blue sets were available from Asian Joe sellers, though.  The dark blue sets are extremely rare and will cost a substantial amount.  The light blue sets are much more common.  A light blue Charbroil will likely sell in the $40 - $60 range.  So, if you're in the market for something additionally different for Charbroil, these unproduced figures are a great way to get more takes on the character.

Anti Venom sets have gotten somewhat popular in recent years.  Mint and complete with filecard sets have sold for as much as $50.  Individually, the figures are a lot harder to find than they were a few years ago.  But, prices aren't terrible.  Charbroils tend to sell in the $5 - $6 range when offered by themselves.  That's not a terrible price by any means for the figure.  But, it is still Charbroil and with the figure's shortcomings, I still wouldn't consider this a must have figure by any means.  As part of a broader set of figures, the inclusion of an obscure character like this is fun. The figure isn't perfect and has substantial shortcomings.  But, Hasbro should be lauded for at least trying something different.