1987 Psyche Out - Around The Web

The weather's been crappy and  I've been busy with real life things, lately.  So, I had no profile to go today.  (I've got a really cool figure that I had to pull down because her write up wasn't where I wanted it to be.  She might come next week.  Or, the week after that.  Will depend upon my mood since the profile planned for the 6th of Feb. is mostly a thinly veiled rant that will further cement my status as a curmudgeon.)  I really didn't  have anything ready to go for today.  So, I did some quick looking and found some surprisingly easy to find content on the 1987 Psyche Out.

Psyche Out isn't a popular figure or character.  The fact that both his Night Force and Tiger Force variants sell for a fraction of the other figures in the series speak to just how unpopular he really is.  But, this 1987 figure is a visual treat.  The bright colors work in the context of the character.  And, his ridiculous gear can be held in suspension of disbelief due to the overall background that was given to him.

So, take some time and peruse the links below.  Leave them a comment or something just to pull the older items back into the creators' timelines.  Back to normal next week...maybe.

1987 Psyche Out Profile

1987 Psyche Out at Nekoman's Viper Pit

1987 Psyche Out by MrMikeVinthePit

1987 Psyche Out at JoeADay.com

1987 Psyche Out by yovalleyjoe

1987 Psyche Out Variants by Hit and Run

1987 Psyche Out by HCC788

1987 Psyche Out by gi_jokers

1987 Psyche Out at Serpentor's Lair

1987 Psyche Out by Flint

1987 Psyche Out by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

Rarities - Funskool Halibna Promotional Figures

Funskool did a lot of promotional cross overs.  (There are the Maltova, Pepsodent, Calcium Sandoz, Complan and even one with Kentucky Fried Chicken!)  One such synergy project was with Halibna.  Funskool released a set of, likely, 15 unique figures in Jordan and Lebanon.  (There may be a different number of figures or additional release locations.  Info is super spotty on these guys.)  I've been able to find photos of 4 of the figures and have seen info on at least two others.  So, there's much more to learn about these releases. 

The big difference with the Halibna figure is that they are swivel arm figures.  Gone are the weird straight arms from the Calcium Sandoz and Maltova figures.  That alone makes these figures far more worthwhile to track down and open up. These figures also included accessories.  Sometimes, they match the gear for the figure mold.  Sometimes the gear appears to have been randomly applied.

Budo:

This unique release features an all brown body.  The highlight is the bizarre white boots.  But, overall, not a bad looking figure at all.

Eel:

The Eel doesn't appear to be all that different from the production Funskool Eel.  The gear is different, though, with the inclusion of a General Hawk rifle.  

Psyche Out:

We've seen this Psyche Out before.  Similar figures have appeared as bagged Funskool vehicle drivers.  And, the figure is available with straight arms in other Funskool promotional series.  He also includes the recolored Dodger rifle that was available with the Funskool Incinerator.

Big Brawler:

Brawler is pretty similar to his common carded release.  The lower arms are different and he's not as polished.  So, it's different enough to frustrate the completist collector.  He has a Deep Six rifle instead of his Brawling Sword.

There are additional Halibna figures beyond the ones shown above.  There is a red Toxo Viper that was also available in the Calcium Sandoz series.  There is also a red and black Ozone figure that is unlike any other Ozone ever released.  It's likely that there are more figures in the series that will come to light in coming years.  We're really still uncovering a great many Funskool mysteries and obscure offerings like these Halibna figures will prove to be a source of interesting new items in the future.

1988 Night Force Psyche Out - Around The Web

Night Force is super popular.  Psyche Out is not.  So, you are left with a figure that's part of a stupidly expensive sub set but remains relatively affordable.  This 1988 release, though, is the best Psyche Out figure and shows that the mold was solid when done up in better colors.  This figure is my go to Psyche Out.  But, I don't really use Psyche Out all that often.  So, despite being a good figure, he's rarely out of his drawer and in photos.  Here's the best of him from around the web.

Night Force Psyche Out Profile

Night Force Psyche Out at JoeADay.com

Night Force Psyche Out at 3DJoes.com

Night Force Psyche Out by Ed Speir IV

Psyche Out Variants by Hit and Run

Night Force Psyche Out by Dreadnokdread

Funskool - Maltova Promotional Figures

Maltova is a chocolate drink marketed towards kids.  Funskool makes toys directed for the same market.  So, it was only natural that the two would team up for a cross promotion.  Funskool made some exclusive figures in the vein of the Calcium Sandoz figures that were either included with Maltova products or as a premium.  (Based on the ties on the packages, I lean towards them being attached to some product.)

I have no idea how many figures there might be.  Below are pics of a few of them.  Sadly, these figures have the same issues as other Funskool promotions in that they have crappy straight arms that make the otherwise exclusively terrible paint schemes less valuable for a loose collector.  But, for collectors in general, they are highly desirable and some will fetch stupidly high prices.  Each figure has a new code name included on the bio card.

Dial Tone (Navigator):

Here you have a 1994 Dial Tone torso and head that are colored similarly to the Funskool release of the figure.  It looks like he has Dodger legs.  But, I didn't look them up and am going from visual memory.  So, please offer corrections in the comments.

Cutter (Tracker):

This figure is one of the more interesting concoctions.  The figure uses the body of Cutter, but the Countdown head.  The coloring is reminiscent of both Cutter and the Funskool Grunt figure.  With swivel arms, this figure would simply be a must have.  It looks great and would be a perfect addition to either a Whale or Flagg crew.

Here's another oddball: a Quick Kick body with a Budo head.  The figure's name starts with Karate, but I can't see the rest.  I've never seen a Quick Kick custom using the Budo head and the design is kind of ingenious.  I'd easily buy this figure (if he had swivel arms) and I hate Quick Kick.  Sometimes, though, you strike gold.

Decoder:

The colors here are just iconic Funskool.  You have a Red Blocker head with an orange Psyche Out chest.  I'm not sure about the legs.  But, the whole ensemble is a great way to enjoy Funskool.

Croc Master (Snake Shadow):

This is probably the least interesting figure since it's a barely painted Croc Master.  Every other Croc Master release is better.  So, this figure would be an easy pass.

Budo (Scorpion):

Looks like Budo was a cheap mold to get into production.  This version isn't painted much at all, even though the colors of the base plastic are decent.  But, again, the production figures are better and this guy's value is as an oddity.

With all things Funskool, it's probable there are more variants out there.  But, all of these promotional figures are interesting looks at Funskool's attempts to entice new customers through other products.  Hasbro rarely did this in the Joe line.  But, they did go it.  And, Star Wars had an exclusive figure available with Fruit Loops cereal as recently as 1996.  So, there is ample precedent for such cross promotion. 

As a kid, my parents weren't too keen on tie ins if they were with brands that they did not, normally, buy.  But, I ate a ton of Fruit Loops in 1996 to get a couple of the Han Stormtroopers.  And, were even poorly articulated figures like these released as promotional items in the U.S., I'd most likely buy enough to get a full set.  But, that's what collectors do. 

Rarities - Funskool Calcium Sandoz Figures

Funskool is notorious for producing their figures for a variety of corporate tie ins.  As they are owned by a rubber company who makes its fortune in tires, they have a bit different approach to product tie ins that a major American toy company may have.  In many ways, Funskool's corporate partnerships in the 1990's and early 2000's were reminiscent of Hasbro's and Kenner's from the 1970's and 1980's.  Along with Pepsodent, Complan and TV marketing deals, Funskool also worked with Calcium Valdoz for a series of figures based on G.I. Joe molds.

I'm not sure what Calcium Sandoz is.  It's a supplement of some sort that was discontinued in the UK in 2015.  But, in an effort to get children in India to take it, the company that produced the product worked with Funskool to offer some G.I. Joe figures as a promotional opportunity.  The figures were different from classic Funskool releases in two ways.  First, most of the figures are unique color schemes to the Calcium Sandoz premium.  But, more interestingly, all of the figures have a new pair of straight arms on them.  Below you can see some samples of the figures and the exclusive color schemes that go with them.

Hydro Viper:

The Hydro Viper is one of the best recolors of the line.  This blue version would be a great crew-member on a Moray.  The terrible arms, though, mostly ruin what should be a classic repaint.  It's too bad that this color scheme was never offered with the swivel arms on the standard cardback.

You can see a sample of Stormshadow in the photo below.  He is missing the classic cammo pattern from the 1988 mold.

Funskool Calcium Sandoz Stormshadow Figures

You see that the arms are not the original Hasbro molds for straight arms.  For some reason, these figures were all given these new arms.  This is odd as the copyright for these figures is from 2003: a timeframe when we know that Funskool was still producing carded G.I. Joe figures and had full access to the original molds.  Below you can see a Captain Grid Iron figure with the exclusive coloring as well as the back of the insert card showing not only Grid Iron's bio, but the copyright date, too.  Also note that his colors are drastically different than the carded figure variants.

Funskool Calcium Sandoz Captain Grid Iron Figure

Funskool Calcium Sandoz Captain Grid Iron Insert & Bio

There are a lot of different figures in the set.  I'm not sure of the entire roster.  I have included the figures of whom I am aware in this post.  But, please let me know of additional figures in the comments below.

Blaster:

Here you will see Blaster with a body colored like the "Vehicle Driver" Blaster that was found bagged inside of specific vehicles in the early 2000's.  It's appearance here actually helps us understand how such a variant came to appear in vehicles.  But, this figure also uses the color scheme from the 2001 Funskool General Hawk.

Deep Six:

Deep Six is colored very similarly to the single carded figure.  There are some variants on this figure with plastic that's more translucent or opaque.

Desert Scorpion:

This Desert Scorpion is an interesting combo.  He has unique lower arms that are still the straight arms.  The figure's general base colors are similar to the single carded figure.  But, the figure lacks highlights and has some color differences such as the color of the figure's head/antenna.

Star Brigade Sci Fi:

Again, Sci Fi has unique lower arms.  But, the figure is colored almost identically to the single carded version of the figure.

Lifeline:

Lifeline uses base colors similar to the carded figure.  But, this version is missing all the paint applications.  The Funskool Lifeline has very intricate paint masks an their absence here makes the figure look unfinished.

Psyche Out:

Like Blaster, this Psyche Out is in the colors of the mysterious "Vehicle Drivers" set.  But, this version has the terrible straight arms.  This color scheme for Psyche Out, but with the swivel arms, has been found in Funskool Halibna and Maldova promotional figures, too.

Big Boa:

Big Boa is blue.  As a figure, this is probably his best base coloring.  The head is also more silver than the grey version from the single carded figure.

The Calcium Sandoz figures have gotten to be stupidly expensive.  Bagged versions can run upwards of $500.  But, like most foreign Joes, these guys were easier to find just a couple of years ago.  And, now, many characters have all but disappeared.  However, as these were 2000's era releases, it's likely that there are more of them out there that will show up as kids from that time start looking to liquidate some toys. Until then, though, these guys are hard to find and expensive.

1987 Psyche Out

I have two younger brothers.  Growing up, they played with Joes.  But, they were not nearly as interested in them as I was.  They would casually pick up figures while I definitely had a plan of which new releases were my priority.  In short order, I learned how to use this.  Even as a kid, I wanted to be a completist and have every Joe released in a given year.  From the catalogs, it was easy to see what all was available and get a general idea of which toys I liked and which ones I didn't.  It was the ones I didn't really like where I used my brothers' relative lack of interest in the line.  When my parents would agree to buy us each a figure, I'd pick out the "best" one for me.  I'd then encourage my brothers to pick out one of the lesser figures in which I had little interest for themselves.  This would allow me to cross the lower priority figures off the checklist without wasting my resources on them.  I was most adept at this in 1987, which was when I got my youngest brother to choose Psyche Out as his figure purchase.

The 1987 Joe line has a major schism.  There are spectacular figures like Falcon, Outback, Tunnel Rat and Law.  But, there are a lot of terrible figures like Raptor, Bog Boa, Crystal Ball, Psyche Out and Gung Ho.  Of course, my definition of awesome and awful were defined by my 13 year old self in 1987.  It was the last year I collected Joe and it was probably a year or two too long for me to be doing so.  But, I was still heavily into the comics and played out adventures every day before and after school.  My room was full of toys, saved packages and comics.  In retrospect, the space was small.  So, having all of that packed into the area was quite impressive.  But, all of my Joe collecting and playing peers had moved on to other things.  So, I was also alone.

This solitude, though, proved a creative spark for my adventures.  While I didn't really want to own a Psyche Out figure, I was able to come up with a story and use for him.  My childhood realm was heavily shaped by Star Wars and then supplemented with Marvel comic super heroes.  As such, the more sci fi bent of the 1987 Joe line didn't bother me as much.  I saw certain accessories as super hero like inventions or creations.  Crystal Ball's hypno shield was indestructible: just like Captain America's.  The green tentacles from the Cobra La pack were given to the Royal Guard, who could then fly.  (He was still a human encased in armor, though.)  And, Psyche Out's gear was part defensive gear and a powerful weapon.

Psyche Out quickly became a science officer inside my Joe HQ.  Here, he would rarely venture out into combat.  But, the staple of my adventures was Cobra overrunning the Joe base that was my room.  So, from time to time, Psyche Out would be forced to fight.  As such, his gear was designed to aid him in those rare instances.  His armbands and shields doubled as Wonder Woman-esque wrist gauntlets that were bulletproof.  He could use these to protect himself.  But, they also shot out electricity beams capable of killing anyone who was hit.  His hand held case shot even more powerful blasts that could disable or destroy Hiss Tanks.  The weapons were short range and were very inaccurate.  So, their usefulness as anything other than a weapon of last resort was limited.

Naturally, this played itself out and, today, Psyche Out is a relic from the final days of my childhood collection.  But, his bright colors are still fun to use in the HQ.  And, in the modern world, his specialty is more useful than ever before.  Of course, having a guy psycho analyze the makeup of a team or try to softly interrogate a villain isn't much of a play pattern.  So, the figure would still be boring were kids today into Joes.  The main problem is that there are a lot of better figures from the time that can also fill Psyche Out's role as scene filler.  With just one vintage HQ, the coveted spots will go to those figures first: leaving Psyche Out slowly rotting in his plastic bag.

The Psyche Out figure is not good.  His body is cast in bright, lime green.  He is covered with a patterned shirt and a large cadre of silver electronics.  He has poofy '80's hair that's buoyed by a red lined headset with an antenna on the back.  For some reason, the knife on his leg is unpainted, despite the multiple paint applications on the head.  There is some quality in the general design, though.  The Tiger Force and, especially, Night Force repaints showcase that the mold can be redeemed.  His gear is odd and a bit goofy.  Except for the pistol.  Psyche Out's pistol is one my favorites and was found its way to a good number of figures in 1987.  When I returned to Joe collecting in the late '90's, the pistol was one of a couple of accessories that I stockpiled (I, maybe, had three extras!) to give to other figures because I liked it so much.  Some of that luster is gone, of course, but the pistol is still top notch and is, to me, the highlight of the figure.

Psyche Out had a pretty good run.  This figure was released in 1987 and was quickly repainted into the Night Force Psyche Out in 1988.  That was the end of the American releases.  But, Psyche Out also has a European exclusive Tiger Force version released in the early 1990's as well as a Brazilian version that was based on the V1 American release, just in slightly brighter colors.  The Brazilian release is named Tele-Mentor.  For some reason, I love that name.  It's like he's a tormentor, but with technology: which is exactly how I used the character.  It seems that the Tele Mentor figure was released after the European version.  Looking at his series of figures, 8 of the 13 contemporaries were later released by Funskool.  The remaining figures have not appeared again.  It seems likely that Psyche Out was sent to India, but they chose to use the 1991 mold for the character instead of this 1987 version.  In the end, you get one foreign Psyche Out with a cool name and two well done repaints in highly popular subsets.  So, collectors got pretty much all they could from this mold.

Psyche Out figures are not expensive or rare.  His radar dishes can be annoying to track down.  But, there are plenty of complete figures out there and you can even buy a couple of incomplete versions to build one perfect figure for not too much money.  Mint and complete with filecard figures run in the $5 to $6 range.  Dealer pricing is about double that.  You can get carded figures for around $20, too.  The mold is the cheapest Night Force figure and the least expensive Euro Tiger Force figure.  Collectors just don't care for the character or the mold.  In the right setting, though, the figure is useful.  I like the bright green inside my HQ.  But, of the three major repaints, this original version is easily the weakest.  If I was going to choose just one version of the character for my collection, this 1987 figure would be the first to get tossed.  But, that's OK.  He's another obscure, background figure that can be useful for a variety of situations.  The line had a lot of them and they are a big part of what made it great.

1991 Super Sonic Fighters Psyche Out

Hasbro introduced the Super Sonic Fighters line of figures in 1990.  These higher price point items included light up and sound producing accessories that were designed to be more "interactive" with the children of the era.  The bulk it took to achieve the sounds is comical now.  But, was pretty decent for 1990.  The added price, though, made these figures a tough sell.  But, the overall quality of the offerings in relation to the rest of the lineup from that year was right on par.  Some of the 1991 figures, such as Zap, Major Bludd and Falcon were excellent upgrades to existing characters.  Road Pig and Rock and Roll, though, were brightly colored repaints of pre-existing molds.  The final figure in the set, Psyche Out, is a hybrid.  The figure has a strong mold, an excellent head, somewhat lame accessories and a color scheme that leaves something to be desired.  The end result is a figure that is worth a place in any collection, even if that niche is somewhat small.

The Super Sonic Fighters figures retailed for around $7 each in 1991.  That was more than twice the going rate for a standard, carded figure.  Given the choice between getting 1 figure or 2 with some change for the same price, you can bet which way most parents and kids leaned.  The result was that the figures hung around for a while and were very hard to find on the second hand market for a long time.  Even today, the Super Sonic Fighters figures exist in substantially lower quantities than the other figures from the era.  It is only their reduced popularity among modern collectors that keeps them from being substantially more expensive.  It is that lower production, though, that also helps to keep the figures obscure.  You don't often see the figures utilized in dios or photos.  At this point, most collectors are aware of the figures, and may even own them.  But, they don't consider them among the more important figures that Hasbro released.  It's a fair fate for the Super Sonic Fighters.  But, there is hidden quality in the 1991 offerings that can not be ignored.

The Psyche Out character was rather popular, being released in his original incarnation, repainted in the American Night Force subset and then also appearing as a European Exclusive Tiger Force member.  This Super Sonic Fighters version updated the character and gave him a new uniform.  This entire mold then reappeared in India where Funskool released him for many years.  With 5 distinct vintage style releases (granted, two of them are foreign exclusives), Psyche Out was far more popular than most of this 1987 classmates.  So, there are likely more versions of Psyche Out than most collectors care for.

This 1991 version, though, is a drastic departure from the 1987 incarnation.  Gone is the 1950's era headgear.  And, in its place is a much more modern helmet and uniform that brings the character into a much more contemporary appearance.  The greatness of the figure is the headsculpt.  The helmet covering one eye is visually interesting.  But, with the communications device attached, the headgear is a visual treat and something that is not overly common on Joe figures.  The figure's body is less intricate as its, basically, a jumpsuit with some pockets and a strap.  The strap, though, is well placed so that some radar dishes can be added to the figure's torso to give the body added depth.  The legs are equally barren, save for a silver leg holster.

The overall appearance of the figure becomes somewhat problematic.  You have this great head on a fairly banal body.  And, the figure's primary base color is a dark aqua blue.  So, there's something definitely "off" about the complete package.  It's certainly not a Psyche Out you would include on a field mission.  But, the uniform does lend itself to several Joe specific environments.  He works in the HQ as a technician or adviser.  But, the best use would as a companion to Hardtop: either manning the ground control of the Defiant or being onboard as a specialist.  In this setting, the figure takes on more significance since the look fits the motif.  Sure, it's a specific use.  But, it is a way to use the excellent qualities of the figure within a setting that is more plausible.

Psyche Out's accessories are plentiful and voluminous.  But, they aren't great.  The headset/microphone piece is amazing.  It, alone, makes the figure worth acquiring.  But, the rest of the accessories fall off a precipice from there.  There are two small radar dishes that attach to Psyche Out's body.  It's neat to have an attachable accessory.  But, the are bulky, tend to fall off and generally don't add much to the overall appearance.  Psyche Out's "weapon" is a massive, sci-fi E.C.M. laser rifle.  It is huge, and blocky and really only works sitting the floor.  There's no real way for the figure to handle it smoothly.  The weapon is rounded out with a large radar dish that attaches to the barrel and a hose to connect to the backpack.

Psyche Out's backpack is massive.  All of the Sonic Fighters packs are large to accommodate the light and sound technology of the day.  The nice thing is that they can be used as sort of stand alone playsets.  For more of the figures, this is a stretch.  But, for Psyche Out, it works.  His technological bent and laser rifle fit into the motif of the pack and make it somewhat usable...even if the size would make it useless as a field weapon.  The grey pack features three plug in accessories: a small radar dish, a larger radar dish and a small antenna.  With these on the pack, it takes on more of a playset vibe.  (Of course, they also make getting a complete figure that much harder!)  Of final note is that the pack has two variants: one with a peg for the hose to attach to.  And, another where there is just a hole into which the hose plugs.  They appear with similar frequency (I have acquired 2 Psyche Out's in my decades of collecting and got one of each without even trying.) and really don't have an impact to the figure's pricing.  My personal preference is the hole model as the peg is rather large and most hoses will quickly detach until you've stretched them out to the point where they are useless for other figures.

This figure's pricing and availability are problematic.  Psyche Out is actually rather hard to find if you want him mint and complete.  A figure with all his gear and filecard will cost between $20 and $25 these days.  Carded versions will be more expensive.  But, the figure isn't easy to find in either incarnation.  The small accessories and obscure release make it difficult to find this guy in mint condition and complete.  However, the Funskool version included the same accessories (though the antenna is grey instead of black) and was available for a long time for under $5 in the U.S.  It's likely that this Funskool version helps keep the price of the American figure down a bit.  Which is good as the mold is worth acquiring and the gear just makes the figure that much better.  The Funskool versions are pricier now, though, and will often run $10 plus shipping for a carded figure.  But, that's still a lot less money and hassle than finding the American version.  So, I recommend that as an alternative.  But, every collector should have a version of this figure.  He's oddball, but in a good way.

1988 Night Force Psyche Out

1987 brought us some interesting Joes. Having filled many of the military positions with figures from earlier in the line, 1987 brought us many "civilian" type specialties with the new figure offerings. Some were nicely done (like Chuckles). Other, left something to be desired. In the case of Psyche Out, the character is interesting, but not all that useful. His case wasn't helped by a bright green figure. In 1988, though, Hasbro offered a more sanely colored version of Psyche Out. It still didn't change the fact that they were asking kids to play with a psychiatrist, but at least the colors lent themselves to use.

The reality of Psyche Out is that he's a boring figure at best. Really, what's he going to do? Were kids really expected to play out a scene with Psyche Out listening while Falcon was lying on a couch and talking about how being in combat made him feel? That wasn't exactly the type of play pattern that lead to successful toy lines. But, like many characters in the vintage line, Psyche Out was made by Larry Hama and the manner in which Psyche Out was portrayed in the comics. There, Psyche Out was more of a psychological specialist who was able to get inside the head of the enemy and predict their moves. In this capacity, the character worked great. Unfortunately, even with this defined purpose, the character was rarely shown outside of a base setting. Psyche Out simply wasn't a combatant and it was difficult to use him as such.

As a kid, this was where my issue with Psyche Out lie. He simply didn't have enough of a purpose to match the manner in which I wished to play. What he did have, though, was those funky radar dishes on his arms. I used those as electronic projection devices that were able to disrupt communications, beam low level paranoia waves to Cobra troops and cause general havoc. That was fun...once. After that, it didn't make for much of a long term story. So, I had Tele-Vipers quickly figure out what was happening and then outfit all Cobra troops with helmets that filtered out Psyche Out's secret beams. After that, Psyche Out pretty much became an afterthought in my childhood collection.

Fast forward to adulthood, though, and Psyche Out has taken on new respect. Psyche Out's specialty is one that is more nuanced and appreciated as you get older and he slowly grew into more and more of a Joe commander. While he didn't actually lead missions or troops, he was a high level consultant on just about every operation. Psyche Out was involved from the beginning of each mission where he would match the psychological profile of potential Joes to the mission. He would use that info to pair Joes into units that would get along, be able to handle the mental stress of the mission as well as fulfill the skillset required to complete the objective. In that role, Psyche Out often chooses teams that look less effective than those done on pure paper. He would assign arctic specialists to jungle missions and other "crazy" ideas. But, Psyche Out's version of a team was the one that functioned best.

As such, if Snow Job and Gung Ho are perfect battlefield complements to each other, then it makes sense to pair them on a mission in lieu of more qualified Joes who don't have that type of battlefield chemistry. The result is a team that is better functioning and is more efficient in achieving mission successes. Psyche Out would also be part of the mission planning where he would learn the players who were involved on the Cobra side and then help predict their behavior. This then helped Psyche Out also pick Joe team members who often made little sense. (One such example was when Psyche Out dispatched Cutter and Wet Suit to the desert to break up a Cobra oil siphoning project. It appeared ludicrous except that Psyche Out correctly predicted the Cobras would run for the coast. They did so and the Joe aquatic specialists were perfectly placed to apprehend the fugitive Cobras.) Psyche Out's judgement is trusted, though, due to his high success rate. Psyche Out is also used as part of mission debriefing. He uses that information to flesh out personnel files of the mission members, update his notes on Cobra behavior and also ensure that there are no lingering psychological effects from the mission that are going to bother the Joes in the future. (As a note, Psyche Out has one noted failure in this regard. After a disturbing mission onto Cobra Island in 1995, Duke pretty much went off the deep end and has not come back. There was nothing about Duke that previously indicated he wouldn't be able to handle what happened. But, none of the 3 men on that mission have ever fully disclosed what, exactly, happened. So, Duke's breakdown remains somewhat of a mystery to Psyche Out.) So, while the Psyche Out character now gets more use in my collection, he still isn't actually used. The figure is always posed in the Joe HQ. Here is consults with Hawk, General Flagg, Keel Haul and other Joe officers. But, he rarely leaves the confines of the base.

Now that I have this Night Force figure, I have more combat options for Psyche Out, but I still don't see him getting much use outside of the HQ. As a figure mold, Psyche Out is actually quite good. The figure is richly detailed, yet simple enough that you can appreciate his place in the line. The Night Force version is nicely colored in blacks, greens and greys. (Psyche Out is one of the few Night Force figures who is a substantial improvement over his regular figure.) He features a nice complement of accessories, but the radar dishes and wrist gauntlets are now kind of silly. Psyche Out's pistol is one of the nicer small weapons in the line and was one of my de facto pistols for any figure who needed one for many years. Fully loaded, though, Psyche Out loses something. He is a character who I view as being there for his mind. So, he does not need the accoutrement's which are included with him. (The pistol is decent to have, though.) He simply is there to think, talk and plan. When it's time for action, Psyche Out makes himself scarce.

The Psyche Out mold saw some interesting uses. After it was released in its original incarnation in 1987 and 1988, this Night Force figure was created for a short run. After that, the timeline gets a little fuzzy. It seems that sometime around 1990 or 1991, the figure mold was used by Hasbro to create the European exclusive Tiger Force Psyche Out. Then, sometime around 1992, the mold made its way down to Brazil where it was released in colors similar to the V1 American figure and was named Tele-Mentor. After that, the figure has not appeared again. However, several of Tele-Mentor's Brazilian contemporaries ended up being produced in India. So it is possible that the mold was sent on to Funskool and they simply chose not to use it. Of course, it could still be lost in Brazil or in the control of Hasbro just waiting for another release.

Truthfully, though, even if Hasbro had the mold, I don't think we'll see the day where this figure is released again. And, with the Night and Tiger force versions out there for acceptable prices, I don't think collectors would really mind. Like all Night Force figures, Psyche Out is somewhat tough to find. But, like all other Psyche Out figures, he is substantially cheaper than all the other figures in his subset. The Night Force version, though, features a wide range of small, easily lost accessories, so it is common to find the figure missing his arm bands and the radar dishes that attach to them. Really, though, if you're looking to use the figure in your collection, these pieces are superfluous as most of the accessories from the original Psyche Out work very well. As such, you can get this figure for under $10 if you are willing to sacrifice completeness. As a part of a collection, Psyche Out doesn't offer much excitement. He can fill a diorama, but that's about it. As such, I wouldn't go out of my way to find one as, aside from completion's sake, you will be hard pressed to get your money's worth our of this figure.