X Ray Eye (Power Commandos) - Around The Web

The Power Commandos have become one of the more recognized series of G.I. Joe knock-off toys.  This is, entirely, a function of them becoming relatively available in the last 10 years.  Since they're kind of weird and have cool gear, it makes sense that they would have been accepted by collectors.

X Ray Eye isn't one of the more recognizable Power Commandos.  But, he's in line with the aesthetic of the line.  And, he makes for an interesting side villain to accompany your Cobras.  The figure is fun to have around and can be very useful in the right setting.

With the newfound popularity of the figures, you can actually find some content out there that showcases them.  So, take some time to stop by each link and see how others have used X Ray Eye.

X Ray Eye Profile

Power Commandos Wave Breakdown & Release Info

X Ray Eye by thedragonfortress

X Ray Eye by toysandtomfoolery

X Ray Eye by nightforcetunnelrat

X Ray Eye at Toys of the Past

Power Commandos by nijirain

X Ray Eye by jaredscoolcollection

X Ray Eye by toysandtomfoolery

Metal Hawk - Power Commandos

G.I. Joe was a hugely successful formula for selling toys.  Between the military/fantasy theme and the size and articulation of the toys themselves, Hasbro found a winning combination.  Naturally, competitors used Hasbro's initiative to produce many toys that were knock offs of the Joe line.  Some were purely military based.  Some were fantasy based.  And, some of the better ones, combined both.  All used the 3 3/4" size and most replicated the articulation of at least the straight arm Joes from 1982.  In time, though, some adopted the swivel, evolved beyond simply mold reuses and into full fledged toy lines on their own.  Some were more popular than others.  And, decades later, some have found themselves highly sought after by Joe collectors.  One such series is the Power Commandos figures by Lucky Bell.

Power Commandos took a more fantasy/sci-fi approach to their toys.  Their tagline was: "Those guys from the other galaxy.".  The characters that appeared were aliens, monsters and a few human good guys who battled against them.  While the most famous figure from the line is Mummy Mask, it is his packmate who draws my attention today.  Metal Hawk is a complex and interesting sculpt that features massive amounts of colors.  He's also still very much a knock off and doesn't have the polished look of a classic Hasbro release.  But, he's someone for which you can find a use.

Metal Hawk's bio card is just fantastic.  He was born on the Ironrock Comet.  And, his specialty is Out-numbered Combats.  No, that is not a typo.  That is his real specialty.  I have no idea what it means.  His bio mentions that Metal Hawk has skin as tough as steel.  (Metal)  But, he is still quick as a hawk. (Hawk.  Metal-Hawk, get it?)  He has both a lightning sword and a non-reflective black sword.  Lightning for power and the black one for stealth.  There's a scan of his bio below where you can read all about Metal Hawk and see the absolute glory that is his origin.  It should be noted, though, that Metal Hawk is one of the Power or good guys in the Power Commandos universe.  So, my placing of him among Cobra probably doesn't make sense.  But, I just can't see the figure as anything other than a villain.

Usually, when companies produce multiple waves of figures, the first wave is small and the second expands the line.  In the case of the Power Commandos, though, it was the opposite.  It turns out that the original set of 12 figures is actually the first wave of figures.  The more common repaints (of which this Metal Hawk is one) came later, as a second wave.  That is why this later Metal Hawk appears on a card that features the alternate coloring of the first Metal Hawk released.  The first wave of figures are actually very hard to find and some have risen to ridiculous heights.  This second Metal Hawk is much more common.  But, he's probably the second best figure among the six behind only Mummy Mask, his packmate.

Metal Hawk is a mishmash of contrasting colors.  He features red, green, dark blue, gold, black, a weird orangish hue, silver and light blue.  That's 8 colors.  Which is more than than pretty much any vintage Joe features.  Really, though, the figure has very little paint.  And, the colors are achieved through clever uses of different plastic colors on different parts.  Many details were spared paint applications.  So, Metal Hawk still has potential for improvement through customization.  But, all of the colors make the figure visually interesting, even if the colors are a perfect complement for each other.  Some of the contrast is odd enough that is really helps Metal Hawk stand apart from other figures.

While Metal Hawk is supposed to be a good guy, I just can't see him that way.  He just seems like he better fits with Cobra.  The helmeted head is very much in line with oddball Cobra headgear.  The amount of red and blue on him also better fits with a Cobra motif.  But, it's tough to find a real role for him.  The best use is probably Star Brigade.  But, that's a bit too on the nose for me.  I've posed him with BATs and a few other Cobra Troopers.  But, it's never felt right.  So, my best use for him is just a random sub contractor who Cobra hires out at times.  I've got a lot of these characters lying around now.  The characters are not really important.  But, they can fill a role while also making the Joes think that Cobra's roster is much larger than it really is.  It's a fairly small role.  But, as the figure is somewhat brittle and not something that I want to use all that often, a smaller role works for Metal Hawk

Metal Hawk's gear is among the weakest among his subset of 6 figures.  His gear includes a stick that was made from the end of Lady Jaye's javelin launcher and a handle that I don't recognize.  It's similar to the handle of the vintage Kenner lightsabers.  He then includes Torch's torch with the lower nozzle removed as well as the stock missing.  It looks like a pistol and is pretty weak.  He includes a backpack that's based on the 1986 Low Light's pack that's cast in silver plastic.  The final accessory is a massive sword.  It is not based on a Joe accessory.  I tend to give Metal Hawk gear from other Power Commandos as I think it looks better than his real gear.  

Quality wise, Metal Hawk (and, Power Commandos in general) are OK.  The paint applications are solid.  The joints are tight.  And, the parts fit together well.  The main issue is that the plastic is more brittle than vintage Joes.  It is close to that found on figures made by Estrela.  This more brittle mixture means that the thumbs and crotches of the figures are weak and very susceptible to breakage.  I'm hesitant to put any accessories in the figure's hands.  But, other collectors have been very successful in doing so.  But, the thumbs will snap with less pressure than it takes to break a vintage, Hasbro figure.  So, the quality is display worthy.  But, it tough to pose any of the figures with their gear without risking some damage.

Metal Hawk was released twice in the Power Commandos line.  This is the second, and more common, release.  The first release features an identical upper body, head and arms as the second release.  But, it has different legs and a different waist.  These are also a green color that matches the green on the second Metal Hawk's arms.  In my view, the first figure is probably better.  But, I like more green.  So, not everyone may agree with that assessment.  The first figure can also have green accessories.  Be aware of the differences as you seek out loose Metal Hawk figures.

Like all the second series Power Commandos, Metal Hawk is very available these days.  Huge amounts of overstock were found in Mexico and have been sold, cheaply, to Joe collectors over the past few years.  Now, though, the original source is starting to dry up.  While it's doubtful that this will lead to massive inflation on Metal Hawk figures, I also never considered the possibility that collectors would shell out three figures for the common Funskool figures that clogged every online toy dealer's inventory in the early 2000's.  So, the time to pick up this figure is probably now.  I got this guy on the card for under $10 in just 2019.  Now, though, the same carded package will run around $60.  Loose, mint and complete figures will top $30 or more.  That's probably a higher price than the figure is worth.  But, the Power Commandos are among the more interesting Joe knock offs that appeared over the years.  So, that, alone, makes at least one of them worth acquiring.

Rarities - Power Commandos 2022 Update

I've looked at Power Commandos several times in various Rarities Months.  And, in that time, I've learned a great deal about these figures, how they were released and a general timeline of the various series.  Through discussions in the comments in the past couple of years, it became apparent that there is a different release cadence for the Power Commandos than I had previously published.  What I thought was the first Wave of figures is more likely the second wave.  And, the second is actually the first.  Plus, I have some new info on the ultra rare third wave.  And, then, the mystery of the origin of these figures deepens, again.  As, the molds show up on an obscure line of figures from Argentina that no one would know about aside from the fact that they were packed with overstock Comandos Heroicos figures from the Plastirama line.

Wave 1 - 12 Figures (1992)

Originally, I thought that the wave of 6 figures was the first wave of Power Commandos.  It was marked 1992 and has no mention of the other 6 molds that are part of the series.  However, what I had thought was the 2nd wave is more likely to have actually been the first.  Confused?  Yeah, me too.

Below is the cardback from a wave of 12 Power Commandos set.  You'll notice that all 12 figures are shown.  And, the six figures that are the most common molds are actually shown in their alternate paint schemes.

This is where it gets confusing.

Below are two carded samples from this wave of 12.  You will note that each of the figures was both available in a different paint scheme in the series of 6, but also that their paint scheme on this cardback actually matches the card art.  Mummy Mask has dark blue sleeves and Metal Hawk has green pants.  You'll even note that the green accessories match up with the green color shown the card art.

This wave also includes these 6 figure molds who would not be carried over or repainted until 1995 or so.  Again, these figures feature the green weapons shown on the card art and the figures' colors and construction also matches the artwork.

Wave 2 - 6 figures (1992)

It is likely that the 6 repainted figures that are most known to collectors are actually a second wave of repaints.  This series tends to have the black weapons.  But, more importantly, each of the 6 figures is repainted and they no longer match their card artwork.  (This is especially notable on Condor Strike as the character in this wave features a different chest construction than the one in the original wave.  The card art still shows his original chest.)  As the packaging wasn't really changed aside from some minor cosmetic details, it's possible that the 1992 date on these figures was a carry over from the 1st wave.  That would help explain the odd gap with 18 figures being released in 1992 and the final 6 not appearing until 1995.  If these repaints were actually released in 1993 or 1994, the gap in production timeline is better explained.

Wave 3 - 6 Neon Figures

The Wave 3 figures feature a 1995 date on the cardbacks.  These figures were sold on single cards.  There were 6 figures in the set.  The fact that the six figures included happen to match up to the 6 who were excluded from the Wave 2 repaint set is both awfully convenient and also sensical.  You will note, though, that many of the figures feature construction changes from their Wave 1 appearance.  Some info indicates that the 6 molds from the 1st wave that weren't carried over to the 2nd wave was due to lost or damaged molds.  It's possible that the parts changes on these figures versus their original use was due to the mold issues.  

Argentina Johny Quest - Single Figure

So, here's where it gets even weirder.  G.I. Joe collectors have long known about the figures released by Plastirama in Argentina.  Tons of overstock came to the US in 1999-2000 and was widely available.  Among these finds were these oddball Johny Quest two figure packs.  Each included a Johny figure as well as a random Plastirama G.I. Joe figure.  The packaging is similar to that used by Galoob for the US release of Johnny Quest figures.  But, the Johny figure is different.  This one uses parts from the Power Commandos.  The Johny figures all appear to be the same.  But, the appearance of Lucky Bell parts is odd and doesn't make much sense unless an Argentine toy company imported Johny figures from China and then paired them with Comandos Heroicos figures that were made in Argentina.

So, what do we know?  Not much.  We know there are 24 unique figures produced with these molds under the Lucky Bell name.  Then, there is the oddball Johny Quest figure.  It's very possible that the molds could have been used in other obscure lines in South America or Asia and collectors will never find them as they have no real connection to G.I. Joe or the Power Commandos.  But, the overall story of how these figures came to be is likely lost to time.  

But, the fact that so many molds were created and that the both the figures and packaging were high quality indicates that someone spent some money to produce these figures.  The first wave was heavily sold in the US at discount and liquidator type stores.  The second wave overstock has mostly been traced to South American and Mexico.  Though, the packaging indicates that this surplus was originally intended for sale in the US.  The 3rd wave's overall rarity makes it difficult to pin down.  The appearance of the mold on the Argentina release shows that these molds were there for other uses if someone wanted to spend the money to make some toys.  But, how they found their way to match up with Jhony Quest and the G.I. Joe overstock will likely remain a mystery.

Power Commandos Sound Speed and Sniper

One of the most popular posts from the 2020 Rarities month was on the later series Power Commandos figures.  In that profile, though, I did not have an example of Sound Speed and Sniper from the middle series of figures.  Now, though, you can see a sample of what the figures looked like.  

Sniper is an interesting military themed figure.  Decked out in green camo, Sniper would fit into any Joe squad.  As Power Commando figures go, he's actually kind of boring.  The whole point of this series was outlandish figures.  And, Sniper doesn't fit with that.  But, as he's unique to the line, he does provide a nice juxtaposition from the more off beat characters.

Sound Speed is the more interesting of the two figures.  He's obviously based on the Cobra Eel mold.  But, instead of flippers, he appears to have skis and ski poles.  I'm not sure why.  But, his gear makes as much sense as rocket skates or a Mummy Man who also appear in this line.

There are both green and black versions of the Power Commando weapons.  This pack is different in that Sniper includes black weapons while Sound Speed has green accessories.  You see that the weapons are recycled molds from the earlier series and remain the kitbashed version of G.I. Joe weapons.

This middle series of Power Commandos figures is tough to find.  Unlike the common first series, overstock of these has not been found.  So, you'll pay a substantial premium for them over the first 6 figures.  But, all the Power Commandos are fun figures that are nice additions to a Joe collection.  

The Top 10 - 2020

 So, 2020 was a weird year.  It was bizarre in that Joe was popular, but also not.  Items that, historically, collectors showed interest in were simply ignored.  Yet, common items that no one would ever care about now get massive attention.  And, in all this, the most popular post in the site's history debuted this year.  Yes, there is a new number one post in this site's long life.  And, you'll never guess what it is.

With that, here's the top 10 posts of 2020 on the site.

10. European Force Tonnerre

The European Force figures have always been solid performers during Rarities Month.  This year, I focused on the one figure that I see the least: Tonnerre.  This orange repaint is weird and odd and lots of fun.  I'd love to someday own one.  Until then, though, Rarities write ups like this one will have to suffice for me.

9. 2006 Viper

Army builders are always popular.  This Viper Pit set, though, has turned into a dud due to the poor quality of the figures.  Despite that, this figure got a lot of page views just due to the Viper name and the fact that it's been 14 years since he was released.  

8. Black Major Cobra De Aco

Black Major figures tend to perform well.  Especially when you consider that I can't promote the profiles of them in many of the largest social media groups.  Despite this blackout, people find the write ups of the figures.  Other Joe bloggers report the same.  The De Aco is a famous figure in its own right and people were interested to see how the Black Major release compared to one of the first foreign figures to really capture the community's attention.

7. 2020 Retro Hiss Tank

This isn't really a surprise.  A classic and iconic vehicle re-offered at retail for the first time in a long time was certain to draw in viewers.  Naturally, you see video reviews from large toy sites that have massively more numbers as they pull in the retail only collector crowd.  But, even Joe collectors wanted to see this one and it dropped into the top profiles of the year.

6.  1987 Fast Draw

I never considered Fast Draw an overly popular character.  But, his profile garnered a lot of attention.  It wasn't the time of year or anything.  In fact, the two profiles the surround Fast Draw (1984 Chameleon and 1997 Ace) were among the lowest performing posts of the year.  So, the popularity is entirely attributable to the Fast Draw figure.

5.  Sgt. Savage P-40 Warhawk

The Warhawk is an incredibly obscure item of which most fans had little recollection.  So, it getting a prominent post attracted viewers.  Some loved the design.  Others hated it.  But, the reality is that Sgt. Savage toys are almost as forgotten as G.I. Joe Extreme and it's getting rarer and rarer to see them in any capacity. 

4. Terror on the Tundra Mail Away Promo

I don't look at a lot of paperwork.  But, little items like this Terror on the Tundra promo tend to be popular.  Most collectors have these things lying around.  But, they aren't something that they take the time to look at.  And, now that some of the items in them have reached astronomical prices, it's interesting to look back at what you could have bought when they were released.

3.  Rarities - Later Series Lucky Bell Power Commandos

While I had a good crop of Rarities posts this year, only two really broke through.  This look at the later series of Power Commandos, though, was the most popular Rarities post of the year.  Again, this showcased a bunch of figures that most collectors were not aware of and, in many cases, had never seen.

There still lots about this line I don't know.  But, there will be at least one more new post for Rarities month in 2021 that relates to the Power Commandos, though.

2.  2006 Operation Flaming Moth Range Viper

The Flaming Moth figures have been left behind by collectors.  Those of us around at the time of their release remember the acidic taste of the Club's disdain for us upon the figure's release.  And, we also remember the figures being clearance fodder for years as the club struggled to move them.  But, 14 years later, these figures have become obscure.  So, this profile hit a nerve with the generation of collectors who don't have bitter memories of how truly awful the G.I. Joe club really was.

Despite this figure being the 2nd most popular post of the year, it was viewed more than 2,000 fewer times than the number 1.

1. 1984 Manta

I know, I can't believe it either.  But, the Manta is the most popular post in the site's history.  And, it wasn't due to a viral moment or a spike in popularity in a social media group.  No.  The Manta's rise to the top was simply a sustained excellence over the year.  Even 8 months after it's original publication date, the Manta was still among the weekly leaders in site hits.  It never had a huge surge of visitors.  It's just steadily performed for months.  (If you scroll to the bottom of any page on the site, you'll see the top 5 posts visited in the past week and the MANTA was almost always there in 2020.)  And, in September, it overcame the Rarities post about the unproduced Cobra Island Infiltrate set to become the most viewed post since I returned in 2015.

I can't explain why.  Manta's don't seem all that popular.  The photos for it weren't out of the ordinary.  There's just something about the Manta that's kept it consistently drawing viewers since it first appeared.

So, that's it for 2020.  It was a hell of a year.  Let's hope 2021 is less eventful on all fronts.  I've got some fun stuff ahead for the new year.  Aside from Joe, I'm going to take a look at Spinmaster Batman figures, some new Star Wars releases and, or course, tons of Joe items.  I'll be back to my regular cadence next week and already have the posts mapped out into April.

As always, thanks for spending time here, reading my stuff and leaving your thoughts in the comments.  I appreciate all of you!

Rarities - Later Series Lucky Bell Power Commandos

The Power Commandos were an obscure brand of Joe knock offs that few collectors really paid attention to.  However, after large quantities of the first series of 6 figures were found in Mexico and were cheaply sold to Joe collectors, they became a bit more famous.  Lost in the weirdness of a Mummy man and his friends, though, is the fact that the figures are spectacular rip offs of Joe...even going so far as to kitbash Joe weapons.  Beyond the first series of 6 figures, though, are at least two other waves of Power Commando figures.  The first additional wave contains repaints of the original assortment as well as a couple of new sculpts.  The second additional wave, though, features some interesting sculpts for Joe fans as you will see below.

The second wave of Lucky Bell figures included repaints of the 6 figures from the first wave.  Some of the new colors are subtle.  Others are not.  This series also saw the introduction of green weapons with the figures.  Along with the repaints, there are also 6 new figures that were introduced.  Among these are some releases that any Cobra fan will both recognize and instantly want.  So, we'll start with the good stuff first.  A HUGE thanks to the Black Major for these pics.

Below are Nite Serpent and Communicator.  You will see that Communicator is, essentially, a Cobra BAT.  He has an arm attachment (though, that was released in the first series) and his head is a dead ringer for the famous Battle Android Trooper.  Nite Serpent is even more blatant.  The figure's head is a near twin of the 1985 Crimson Guard and his body (also re-used from the 1st series) is a straight homage of the 1986 Viper.  Then, there's the colors.  He is Cobra blue and red.  Honestly, Nite Serpent is more Cobra than pretty much any figure Hasbro released after 1986.  

The cardback shows all 12 of the figures released in the 2nd series.  You see all the repainted figures as well as the newly sculpted parts.  Here are additional photos of the other figures where you can see the differences.  (To this day, I have never seen a Soundspeed or a Sniper figure from this series. The molds do show up in Wave 3, though.)

These six figures from top to bottom, left to right are: Condor Strike, Mummy Mask, Red Raven, Nite Serpent, Communicator and Metal Hawk.  This variant of Condor Strike features different parts than the original figure  He appears to be the only first series figure to now have major construction differences.  Mummy Mask is notable for his dark blue shirt and white pants.  Were his head colored in the same blue, this would definitely be a candidate for Cobra indoctrination.  Red Raven's upper body appears very much the same as his first series coloring.  He now, though, features white/tan pants.  Nite Serpent and Communicator were showcased above.  Metal Hawk (who might now be my favorite of the first six Power Commando figures) now has a lighter blue chest and the green pants.  Overall, if you're only casually interested in these figures, the fact that there are variants may slip by you.  It wasn't until I researched Mummy Mask a while ago that I realized these repaints existed at all.

Here are two photos of Lynx Eye Jack: another of the newly released figures in the second wave.  You'll note the color differences.  But, these are likely just due to age and improper storage.  The grayer figure is likely just a sun/heat damaged version of the light blue original.  Light blue plastic does not hold up well over time and is very prone to discoloration and that's the likely culprit of the visual differences in the figures below.  In the 2nd photo, you'll see the variant X Ray Eye figure.  His main difference is the orange boots.  Though, there may be other slight shading differences on the reds and greens as well.

Here you can see Lynx Eye Jack's packmate, Laser Cut.  This figure features a new, robotic looking head.  The dark blue and red body makes for another figure that would be easily integrated into a Cobra army.  You can also see a better photo of the Mummy Mask repaint.

A better photo of the Metal Hawk repaint as well as the second wave Submarine figure.  Submarine appears to be a lighter blue color than the first wave (though, this could be heat/sun damage) and now features blue pants.

Better photos of Condor Strike and Red Raven.  Condor Strike now features a different chest and arms.  Though, his legs appear to be the same as his original release.  Red Raven also now has white pants.

Some more photos, including some of the green weapons.  (Note, the 1996 POTF II era Tie Fighter Pilot rifle is just in the photo.  It was not included with these figures.)  There were no new weapons sculpted for the later wave figures.  Even the new figures included gear that was recycled from the original releases.  The green color, though, is new.

Here's a carded image of Mummy Mask/Metal Hawk.  You'll note the darker blue on Mummy Mask and his white pants.  Metal Hawk has green pants and red boots.  You see the green weapons in the package, though.  The molds of the accessories are the same as the Wave 1 figures and it doesn't appear any accessories debuted in later waves as they were all carry overs from the original releases.  But, the green color is distinct to the repainted figure wave.  You will note that the figures actually better match the card artwork.  The first wave figures featured the same card art, though, so the original releases didn't really match the coloring of the art like they did in the second series.

The third wave is the rarest and most desirable of all.  These figures were single carded.  You'll notice even more familiar parts in this series.  The bright colors really add to the bizarreness of the designs.  But, as "Space Age Soldiers", the overall ensemble works quite well.  There were at least 6 figures in this series and they rarely appear for sale.

The first figure is the same mold as Sound Speed from wave II.  He now has new, very 1990's colors.  This figure is very close to the Cobra Eel and even includes flippers.

Next up is Laser Cut.  The purple colors are new to this single carded wave. 

Lynx Eye Jack also got a brightly colored makeover.

I don't know who this figure is.  He uses the Condor Strike head, but different body parts from the other two Condor Strike releases.  I guess Condor Strike liked to have a variety of outfits and not just the same style in different colors.

Next up is Communicator.  (Again, I'm guessing at the names based on the figure's head.)  Again, the nice purples and browns appear and would be a great complement to the purple Cobras that debuted in 1986 and later.  I love that this figure features a robotic head and hand, but also flippers for use underwater.

Finally, we have the Nite Serpent figure.  Now, though, he features a different chest that's derived from the 1985 Tele Viper.  This figure doesn't appear all that useful.  But, he's just so weird that he'd be fun to have around.

In all, the Power Commandos are a great little subset of figures for a Joe collector to find.  There's at least 24 of them.  There could be more or there could be less.  But, all of them sans the first wave are pretty tough to track down.  I'd love to see more and better photos of these guys...especially side by side comparison shots.  But, this is the best I can do for now.