1985 Dusty - Around The Web

1985 is full of high profile figures.  Flint, Snake Eyes, Lady Jaye and Shipwreck are among the most popular characters in the line.  There is then the second tier of characters who supplement the release year and really make 1985 the special year that it was.  For some collectors, Dusty will be considered an equal to Flint.  To others, he's below Bazooka.  Regardless of where the characters falls for you, though, the 1985 Dusty figure is pretty solid.  It's probably the best representation of a real desert trooper in the Joe line.  (You don't wear short sleeves in the desert!)  The cloth piece attached to his helmet was the first appearance of non-plastic material with Joes.  (Though, Kenner had used it in Star Wars for many years by this time.)  It has become such an ingrained piece of Dusty's look that any figure missing the cloth just looks out of place.

The upside with a figure like Dusty is that a great many content creators have been able to use him in amazing photos through the years.  Sure, they are all desert themed.  But, that's what you'd expect from Joe's seminal desert trooper.  You'll find a wide array of content below.  Personally, I underutilized Dusty when I lived in the desert.  I somewhat lament that, now.  But, I'm sure I'll find a way to get him worked into future photos, too.  Until then, enjoy the best of Dusty from around the web.

Dusty Profile

Dusty at the Attica Gazette

Dusty by backyardjoes

Dusty by evilface

Dusty at Nekoman's Viper Pit

Dusty by scarrviper

Dusty by ronnie_trickshot

Dusty at JoeADay.com

Dusty by el_main_man

Dusty by gijoebarcelona

Dusty by HCC788

Dusty by 73larebear

Dusty by Falcon Chile

Dusty by gi_joeisthere

Dusty by nickynostalgia

Dusty by dantedmc37

Dusty by dashiellrfaireborne

Dusty by bruxovigo

Dusty by dekkard

Dusty by rutbullet

Dusty by hobieshinobie

Dusty by savage21

1991 Dusty Around The Web

The 1985 Dusty figure is one of the line's iconic looks.  When Hasbro revisited the character in 1991, they created another strong entry to the line's desert forces.  But, the obscure release year and general ignorance of the release by early collectors has doomed the later version to a lifetime of being forgotten.  In recent years, more collectors have found value in the mold, though.  Here's the best of him from around the web.

Dusty Profile

Dusty by toysandtomfoolery

Dusty by thedustinmccoy

Dusty by funtimeatserpentorslair

Dusty by thedustinmccoy 02

Dusty by tituslester32

Dusty by 7inch_gang

Dusty by thedustinmccoy 03

A Real American Hero Collection - 20 Years

20 years ago this week, we learned that G.I. Joe was returning to retail with the A Real American Hero Collection.  We didn't have much info at the time.  But, within a few weeks, we learned the roster and then saw initial mocks ups of the figures.  Collectors of the day were overjoyed at Joes coming back.  And, the enthusiasm carried over to when the figures finally showed up in October of that year.

What's more amazing to me is that when we learned about Joe coming back in 2000, 1982 Joes were only 18 years old.  Really, Joe had only been gone from the vintage run for 6 years.  Now, it's been two decades since Joe's "return".  These figures are older than the original Snake Eyes was when he appeared.  Yet, these figs still seem somewhat new...if only because they were released to a burgeoning collector community that would see exponential growth in the next 18 months as tons of early 20-somethings discovered they could collect their childhood favorites.

Through the years, I've reviewed many of the first wave of releases from the A Real American Hero Collection.  I've got a few more coming up in 2020 and 2021, too.  In no particular order:

2000 Undertow

2000 Dialtone

2000 Law and Order

2000 Chameleon

2000 Dusty

2000 Lamprey

2000 Wild Bill

2000 General Tomahawk

This series of figures has aged relatively well.  The colors in the overall collection got redundant in 2001 and beyond.  But, in general, the 2000 series of figures was the best overall set of figures that we saw in the 2000's and later releases devolved in some way or another.  It's hard to believe these figures are now that old.  But, time marches on....

2000 Dusty

October of 2018 was very rainy in my part of the country.  This was unusual as the month is typically very hot and dry.  In the rain, though, I was reminded of a specific memory from October of 2000.  Having just read that the newly released G.I. Joe figures were showing up at retailers around the country, I used my lunch hour to sojourn down to the local Toys R Us where I found my first two pack: Chameleon and Cobra Commander.  It was raining on that day, too.  This caused heavy traffic: which would have been hugely frustrating had I not found my first Joe figure pack at retail.  In fairly short order, I acquired the rest of the first series of ARAHC figures.  Then, I proceeded to buy them in bulk through the end of the year: especially when they showed up for $5.84 per pack at Wal Mart.  In some cases, this proved fortuitous.  In other cases, it was less so.  But, I was happy to able to quickly grow my collection at retail prices with figures that I really liked.  In the ensuing years, though, a combination of additional releases, wider availability of later year vintage Joes and my foray into International Joe releases all combined to relegate the ARAHC figures to lower status.  Many of my once favorites lost favor and faded into the background.  This was the fate of the 2000 Dusty figure.  But, 18 years later, this guy still stands out as something completely interesting and unique in the Joe line...even if the design doesn't make much sense for the character.

In 2000, the 1991 Dusty figure was incredibly obscure.  Few collectors owned it and there really wasn't even a debate as to whether the 1985 Dusty figure was far superior.  So, it made for a perfect choice to be included in the first wave of repaints that returned Joe to retail shelves.  Dusty had a familiar name.  And, the mold wasn't one that collectors really knew.  Of course, this forward thinking completely failed.  Collectors both hated the fact that Hasbro hadn't used the 1985 mold (we didn't really understand Hasbro's unwillingness/inability to track down desirable molds at the time) and that the colors for Dusty were not in any way, shape or form related to his desert specialty.  In reading reviews of the time, it was apparent that this Dusty made the least sense of any release.  But, at the same time, his blue, red and green color combo was something that had never been done with a Joe.  He was visually distinctive, even if he was non-sensical.

In looking back, collectors would have been relatively forgiving had this figure represented a character other than Dusty.  As someone new, the color scheme could have been forgiven: maybe even enjoyed.  But, by tying the bizarre colors to the Dusty character, there was no way that collectors would accept them.  This figure also served as the canary in the coal mine for Hasbro as it proved that collectors would reward neither ingenuity nor creativity when it came to repainted vintage Joes.  

For me, though, this figure was just about perfect.  I had a 1991 figure to represent Dusty.  So, this repaint provided something new for me.  I have used army builders for my Joes since the 1980's.  The entire purpose of the Mission to Brazil repaints was to have nameless, faceless army builders who could fight Cobra and suffer the consequences of war.  This Dusty was a way to bring those roles back to my collection with a figure that wasn't exclusively tied to a beloved character from my childhood.  I built up a small army of them and had this Dusty become foot soldiers, base guards, security officers and vehicle crew who could augment the Joe forces.  For about 18 months, the figure thrived in this role.  But, with the 2002 releases of Mirage, things started to change.  Mirage slowly replaced Dusty and the figure simply hasn't returned to the glory it originally enjoyed.

In looking at the figure again, though, the same cleverness that attracted me to the figure in the first place still exists.  While the blue shirt could be construed for a Cobra color, the overall appearance of Dusty makes that a less probable leap to make.  The red beret feels like dress uniform designed to be worn around the HQ.  The marbelized green pants help to ground the figure in more military colors.  It is offset by the dark blue shirt to create a conflicting, yet appealing color scheme.  You also get the white undershirt, black straps and metallic grenades to fully show off the array of paint applications that were given to the figure.  There's just something about him that clicks for me.  I'm pretty much alone in this assessment, though, since the figure is common and worthless.

We know Hasbro had the original accessories from this Dusty.  The pack, pistol, rifle and stock had all been included with the 1998 Cobra 3 figure pack.  This 2000 Dusty included the original pack and pistol, though now in black.  His contemporary, Dial Tone, included his original rifle and stock.  Even the coyote would show up in 2003 as a repainted Timber with Snake Eyes.  But, this figure only had the pack and pistol and he feels drastically under-equipped due to those choices.  I took the silver rifle from extra 2000 General Tomahawk figures and gave them to this Dusty.  I thought it looked good and I've never been a fan of generals carrying massive weapons into battle.  A bit of kismet worked to give the same rifle (though in different colors) to the 2002 Mirage figures.  And, as I used Mirage and Dusty as different types of the same army builder, my original re-accessorization of Dusty worked out nicely.

It was a treat to see this mold in 2000.  And, unlike many other repaints of that era, this mold didn't get used to death.  The original plan was for a "chocolate chip" version of this figure to be included as the driver of the 2001 Desert Striker.  For some reason, though, this was changed to a repaint of the Eco Warriors Flint.  This unproduced Desert Striker Dusty is stupidly rare and there may not even be a single version that belongs to a private collector.  In 2002, the club surprised convention go-ers with an all green repaint of this figure as the Paratrooper Dusty.  It is an amazing figure and is superior to this 2000 version.  It remains relatively cheap, though it can be problematic to track down.  In 2002, the figure's head with a black beret appeared on a Dial Tone body as the driver the Night Rhino.  This parts combo doesn't work as the Dusty head is too large for the slimmer Dial Tone body.  The mold disappeared from there.  In some ways, it's a shame that we never got another desert repaint of this Dusty.  But, at the same time, the 1991 figure remains solid and any repaint would have faced a hard road to surpass it.  

Yeah...this figure is worthless.  While Wave I of the ARAHC sold out all over the country over the holidays in 2000, Dusty was carried over into Wave II cases.  Wave II was massively overproduced and quickly packed the pegs in every retailer around the country.  So, Dusty was easy to get for well over a year and could be found without too much trouble for another year after that in discount and overstock stores.  This availability has carried over and, nearly two decades later, this figure remains both cheap and easy to find.  You can get carded packs for $10...which is a deal since you also get the amazing Law figure.  Loose, you'll pay a couple of bucks, tops...especially if you can find a lot of character figures from this era.  It's too bad as the figure deserves a better fate.  But, if you are a desert trooper, wearing a uniform that's neither desert nor, really, anything else isn't going to help your popularity.  The upside is that you can still get a fun figure for less than his retail cost.  Those are rare these days.

Rarities - 2004 Desert Patrol Set (Convention Prototypes)

At the 2004 G.I. Joe convention, Hasbro showcased some upcoming Toys R Us exclusive sets.  One such set was the Desert Patrol.  This five figure set showed some promise.  It included the long missing 1991 Snake Eyes figure as well as a spiffy looking version of Stalker and Ambush.  (Though, with Low Light's head.  Tunnel Rat and the odd hybrid figure that would be named Dusty weren't all that exciting.  But, it was enough to get collectors interested.

When the set finally showed up at TRU in 4th quarter of 2004, there were a couple of small differences in the actually released figures.  In addition to Gung Ho being added to the set, the Ambush figure went from a solid cammo pattern (like Stalker) to a combo of the agave green and desert colors that matched Dusty, Tunnel Rat and Snake Eyes.  It took a solid set and turned it into a dud.  But, overall retail sales of the set were strong as Christmas of 2004 saw TRU sell out of most of its exclusive Joe products.  (That the set only had around 16,000 total units produced also helped.)

Today, the production set has actually gotten somewhat hard to find.  There is a ridiculously hard to find set of unreleased Desert Patrol figures, too.  But, these photos from the 2004 San Diego Comic Con show a set that still had promise before Hasbro made it worse.  This was a theme in 2004 and really carried into 2005 as the line died at retail.  The DTC offerings that used ARAH molds turned the tide a little bit.  But, it was too late.

You'll note that the photos below have a combo of what appears to be production figures as well as hand painted samples.  I am not aware of any full cammo Ambush figures actually making their way into the collecting world.  The version below could be hand painted or it could be production.  I can't tell from the old photos.  But, it is a massive upgrade over the figure that was actually released.  With the "final" Joe convention occurring this weekend, it's kind of sad to look back at a time when a convention meant seeing lots of cool, new stuff.

Rarities - European Exclusive Firing Weapons Figures

Everyone is familiar with the European exclusive Action Force G.I. Joe repaints, the 6 European Tiger Force exclusive figures and even the more obscure European variants of Mutt and Spirit.  But, there were actually many more European exclusive figures.  Some are just minor color differences.  Some are date stamp discrepancies.  And, some are exclusive accessory variants.  It is the last category that is the focus of today's profile.  In the 1990's in Europe, Hasbro released 15 figures who featured exclusive accessories.  They are defined by the fact that the most identifiable characteristic is that most included spring loaded, firing weapons.  But, these are a lot of interesting tidbits hidden within these figures that we'll look at below.

The 15 figures are all 1990 and 1991 figure molds.  It should be noted that most, if not all of these figures were also released in Europe with their American accessories.  But, these altered releases were exclusive to the continent.  I'll start with my favorite of the bunch, the Rock Viper.

As you can see in the photo above, the Rock Viper now includes gear from the 1991 Snake Eyes figure.  The backpack is in an exclusive dark maroon color.  But, the thing that I really like is the neon green gun and missile.  The green is a nice color offset for the Rock Viper and I don't mind neon accessories in some cases.  But, this colored missile and gun are exclusive to this European version of the Rock Viper.

Next up is the Night Creeper you see below.

The main reason I like this version is because I like the Night Creeper in general.  This version, though, includes the backpack and launcher from the 1991 Mercer figure in a dark purple to match the Night Creeper figure.  He also includes an exclusive silver missile.

Next up is Ambush.

The obvious difference in Ambush is his accessories.  He now includes the backpack and missile launcher from the 1991 Snow Serpent in an exclusive light tan color.  He also have the Snow Serpent missile in red.  But, if you look closely, the figure itself is different.  Instead of dark brown cammo on his body, this Ambush features a brighter, lighter brown that has an orange-ish hue.  It is definitely a variant to Ambush.  Though, I'm not 100% certain that this cammo variance was exclusive to Europe or was also available elsewhere.  This European figure also features exclusive card artwork.

The 1991 jet pack General Hawk stands out because he does not include a spring loaded weapon.

As you see above, Hawk includes the launchers and missiles from the 1991 Crimson Guard Immortal figure.  They appear to be in the same color as the CGI weapons.

Next, we have Bullhorn.

Bullhorn is still the same great figure.  But, this version includes the 1991 Snow Serpent missile launcher in an exclusive maroon color.  He also has a neon green missile.

The most famous figure from this crop of missile launching figures is the 1991 Dusty.  This is because Dusty was also released in Asia with the same accessory configuration.  (There were some other figures in this series that also saw Asian releases with the alternate gear including Range Viper, Laser Viper and Desert Scorpion.)

You see Dusty includes the 1991 Red Star AK-47 and missile launcher.  The figure also features unique card artwork that showcases his alternate inclusions.

The 1991 Low Light follows the Dusty.

Low Light also includes the 1991 Red Star launcher and missile.

Up next is the Laser Viper.

This Laser Viper variant includes the missile launcher and missile from the 1991 Sci Fi figure.

Pathfinder shares a detail with Laser Viper:

Pathfinder also features the 1991 Sci Fi missile launcher.  These accessories appear to be unchanged from the American Sci Fi figure release.

Captain Grid Iron makes the Sci Fi launcher reuse a trifecta.

Captain Grid Iron, though, also features exclusive card artwork to help make him a little more interesting than just the reused launcher.

Metal Head brings us back to exclusive gear.

Metal Head includes a golden launcher from the 1991 Cobra Commander figure.  He also includes the standard 1991 Cobra Commander gun.

The final four figures are all Cobra army builders.

Range Viper:

The Range Viper also features Red Star's AK-47 and missile launcher.  He includes an exclusive golden missile, though.

SAW Viper:

The SAW Viper includes the gear from the 1991 Incinerator figure.  He also features exclusive card artwork that showcases his different accessories.

Desert Scorpion:

The Desert Scorpion includes the backpack and missile from the 1991 Mercer figure.  The only exclusive part of the figure is the card artwork that shows an oddball configuration for the new gear.

Undertow:

The Undertow figure also uses the gear from the 1991 Snake Eyes figure.  But, it's in an exclusive red color meant to mimic the Undertow's colors.  He also features an exclusive grey missile.

As accessory variants don't tend to command great attention as opposed to figure variants, these European figures remain very obscure.  But, they are generally hard to find and carded figures can command a premium in the right setting.  I'd love to track down a few of them as the offbeat colors are right up my collecting alley.  But, the general rarity of them makes them another fun subset in foreign Joe collecting.  One final picture is from a European catalog that showcases several of the figures in their alternate accessory configurations.

Diorama - Hiss Attack

In the fall of 2002, I came home every day at lunch to let my dogs out since I didn't have a doggy door.  One mild fall day, I came home in a gentle rainstorm.  I saw the lighting in the yard was good and that the rain was bringing out the green that was left in the leaves.  I got out some recent figures and vehicles and took some pics.

The scene is heavy on 2002 figure releases since they were new at the time and still somewhat exciting.  The Night Rhino was one of my de facto Joe vehicles of the time and has remained so ever since.  My favorite part was getting the Convention Paratrooper Dusty out and into action.

The scene is quaint today.  But, it was a lot of fun at the time and reminds of the lusher locations I used to have available for dios.

Rarities - Alternate 2004 Desert Patrol Figures

In late 2004, Toys R Us released the exclusive 6 figure Desert Patrol Squad set.  Featuring Stalker, Snake Eyes, Dusty, Ambush, Gung Ho and Tunnel Rat, the set was fairly well received and pretty much disappeared from retail during the Christmas shopping rush.  The set had some great figures, some boring figures and some terrible figures.  But, with under 17,000 units produced, it didn't languish at retail like the 2005 sets would.  Like most of the Toys R Us sets of that era, though, the Desert Patrol Squad had a set of variants.  The most famous, of course, is the Caucasian Stalker figure.  But, the rest of the set had equally difficult variants, even if they were not as pronounced.

The first figure is the race changing Stalker figure.  I've covered it in depth a few years ago.  Note the blonde hair.  The other change is the leather-brown highlights.  This will repeat itself on future figures.

Next up is Ambush.  At the 2004 G.I. Joe convention, this Ambush figure was shown in full body desert cammo where his upper body matched his lower.  This was, likely, a hand painted sample as full production versions of the figure will the full body brown and tan has not been seen.  But, the figure below does have differences from the production version.  Basically, it's just the leather colored bandolier and belt.  Not overly exciting, but still unique.  I think it gives the figure more depth.  But, the figure generally sucks, so even this small improvement does little to help it.

Next up is Snake Eyes.  Again, the unproduced figure features the leather colored highlights.  With more surface area changed by the leather, the Snake Eyes does appear substantially different than the production version.  He also sports different colored goggles.  In the case of Snake Eyes, I'm not sure which version I actually prefer.  The production version is fairly strong and fits in with the desert motif.  The unreleased version, though, has a richer color palette that gives the figure a bit more texture.  Really, I'd have liked either version were it released and would not have minded both variants having made their way into production.

The final figure is Tunnel Rat.  Here, you see a slightly brighter green grenade on his chest and the richer browns on his straps, belt and holster.  For Tunnel Rat, I actually prefer the brown on the unreleased figure to the released version.  But, the figure is generally not all that good, so it's kind of a moot point.

We know that the Gung Ho figure had a production tattoo size variant.  But, like these other four figures, there is also a version in the leather brown.  The same goes for Dusty.  I lost the photos of them many years ago.  But, the entire set has the subtle differences.  As the color changes, aside from Stalker's race, were slight, they were lost in the more flashy changes to the Anti Venom, Urban Strike, Night Force and Wal Mart figures.  But, these variants are out there, waiting for the enterprising collector to track them down.

Edit: found some more pics: