Rarities - Unproduced 1997 Stars & Stripes Set

The 1997 Toys R Us G.I. Joe releases were a mess.  The extent to which they were botched is really difficult to comprehend.  Hasbro's plans for the line were both drastically different and more grandiose than what actually transpired.  But, all the signs of a looming iceberg were there.  And, it's never more evident than with the early images of what Hasbro intended for the Stars and Stripes set.

The Stars and Stripes set was supposed to be the flagship product in Joe's triumphant return to retail.  It was going to include 8 of the original 9 carded figures that had started the line just 15 years prior.  (Fun fact.  There's been almost twice as much time that's passed since the release of this set in 1997 as had passed between the Joe line's debut in 1982 and this set's production in 1997!)  The plan was to use all original molds of the figures.  But, to repaint them into a more "modern" interpretation.  Some of this was a response to the collectors of the day who claimed they wanted "gritty and realistic" figures.  But, really, it was a way for Hasbro to massively update the looks of the original Joes.

The idea was sound.  But, the execution was, well, a problem.  All of the Hasbro Joe team from the vintage days had been let go by Hasbro in 1994.  And, the brand had been taken over by former Kenner employees who had been placed in charge of the action figure division.  Their lack of experience with the Joe brand lead to a comedy of errors that just multiplied as the product got closer to production.  But, we'll start with the basics.

Below you will see two images of the original plans for the Stars & Stripes set.  You'll see some figures that look familiar to their production designs as well as some molds that were missing from the production set.  .  

The first image is the image that is actually on the back of the production Stars & Stripes box.  It is incredibly different from the figures inside the window when you turned the box over.  As someone whose first exposure to this product was when they found it on a Toys R Us shelf in 1997, this was weirdly confusing.  The two figures using the 1986 Hawk head (Breaker and Rock and Roll) were obviously out of place in the set.  Not only were they nothing like their vintage counterparts, they didn't fit the aesthetic of the set, at all.  Also missing from the set was Flash.  You can argue that Flash is the most interesting figure from the initial lineup of retail figures.  He was gone.  And, in  his stead, was a figure not shown on the box-back: Grunt.

The choice to originally exclude Grunt is a weird one.  While I'm not a Grunt fan, Grunt was the face of the Joe line for the first couple of years.  If you mention G.I. Joe to a non-fan who grew up in the early '80's, it's pretty likely that their first association with the name is Grunt's cardback image.  It was the brand's calling card.  There's no indication of why Grunt was the original odd man out in the set.  But, his inclusion was a far better choice than adding a 3rd oddball 1986 Hawk/Roadblock mashup repaint to the set.

Aside from the mold fiasco, just looking at this set, you see some other glaring issues that should have been above Hasbro in 1997.  The second photo below is from a 1997 Tomart's magazine where they announced G.I. Joe's return to retail.  It appears to be a different photo shoot of the Stars & Stripes set with a few, key differences from the production box back.  But, many of the figures are the same, too.  We'll go through each figure one by one and review all the chaos that's going on.

Scarlett

Scarlett is the least interesting figure in these images.  This is because she's pretty close to the production figure actually released in 1997.  The purple is more muted and darker.  And, her jumpsuit is more brown.  But, you see all the painted details on her mold.  She is still a repainted 1983 figure in this shot.  But, she's pretty close to the figure in the box.  

Breaker

Here, we have our first major deviation.  The Breaker in both photos isn't the classic figure.  But, it's a close-enough amalgamation.  The figure in both photos uses Clutch's head.  This is close as he and Breaker share the same head in 1982/1983.  But, the black hair makes it Clutch rather than Breaker.  The figure features a tan shirt.  This would have been a great addition to the set.  Adding a 3rd tan Joe to the original 13 would have been a nice homage to Clutch and Grunt.  The darker green pants offset him, nicely, too.  This color scheme would appear on some later figures and in factory customs.  Just on not on this parts configuration.  Breaker's gear shows his iconic headset.  But, for some reason, he doesn't have a helmet.  It's a terrible, aesthetic choice as it makes the figure look incomplete.  The production figure, that used 1986 Hawk and Roadblock parts, did include a helmet.  But, it didn't include the headset.  On top of that, this photographed figure includes Airborne's rifle while the production figure ended up including accessories from the 1982/83 Flash.

Short Fuse

Short Fuse is weird.  The figure in both photos actually features Grunt's torso instead of the classic Short Fuse design.  He has no cammo on his chest.  But, his legs are done in an intricate pattern.  The colors on his legs are very close to the production paint job that ended up on Stalker.  The production Short Fuse used the correct chest for the figure.  And, he didn't have any cammo pattern on him aside from a slight spray on his legs.  You'll note the figure used for the sample is a repainted straight arm Short Fuse.  The Tomart's photo features him wearing a 1985 Lady Jaye backpack.  While the box back shows him with the correct backpack.  

Snake Eyes

In the Tomart's photo, the Snake Eyes is actually an Action Force Stalker figure.  Hasbro had a ton of overstock Action Force figures and both Stalker and Quarrel were dumped as early '90's convention exclusives.  So, Hasbro had spare figures lying around.  His unaltered inclusion is an interesting choice.  It shows that Hasbro always had intention of adding painted details to the 1997 Snake Eyes figure.  Hasbro's original plan was that the 1982/83 Snake Eyes was going to be included in the boxed set and the 1985 Snake Eyes mold was going to be included in the 3 figure pack with Stormshadow and Lady Jaye.  When the '85 mold wasn't available, they went with two '82/'83 figures instead.  Both heavily used grey as the highlight color: reminiscent of the European Stalker figure.

On the box back, Snake Eyes is posed with is back to the photographer.  It's an odd pose for the most popular character in the set.  It doesn't appear that the figure in this photograph is the Action Force Stalker.  But, it's difficult to tell.  The figure is also wearing a backpack.  It's difficult for me to see.  But, it looks like a Zap/Short Fuse backpack painted all black.  It's just an odd choice to see Snake Eyes with a pack.  And, not featuring him prominently was an interesting design choice.

Zap

Zap appears to have been two very different figures in the different photos.  In the Tomart's photo, Zap is a swivel arm figure.  Instead of the solid color with some overspray paint job that ended up on the production figure, he features the paint job that was, eventually, used on Grunt.  His legs are not painted, though.  And, appear very close to the colors of the production figure.  He is wearing his backpack and is the only figure to be wearing a visor.

On the box back, the Zap figure is very different.  He's heavily obscured by the figures in front on him.  But, he's a repainted straight arm figure.  Worst of all, he has two broken thumbs!  Hasbro actually put a broken toy on the back of the packaging!  Aside from that, the figure features a helmet with cammo paint.  Hasbro never painted up an original helmet.  Zap's entire body, including his legs, are done in the same cammo pattern.  It is not a pattern that was actually used in the set.  But, most importantly, Zap has painted on facial hair.  It's at least a goatee and might be a full beard.  The facial hair would have been a new paint application and made for an interesting take on Zap.  Sadly, it was not to be.

Stalker

The Stalker figure in the two photos appears to be the same.  He's even in nearly the same pose between the two photos.  He's wearing a Zap/Short Fuse backpack in the Tomart's photo.  The production Stalker toned down the tan portion of the cammo.  And, it ended up using a darker green base.  The actual colors for Stalker's cammo are pretty close to what appears on Short Fuse's legs.  But, the figure in these early photos is a decent representation of what the production figure ended up being.  

Flash

Flash is the biggest what-if in this set.  Hasbro was never able to reproduce the classic Flash mold: despite collector calls for it to return for a decade after the Star & Stripes set's release.  Flash's entire character was pulled from the set and replaced with Grunt.  However, Flash's laser rifle was, baffingly, included with the Breaker figure in the set.  Flash is a repainted swivel arm figure and it appears it's the same figure in both photos.  The darker green base and yellow pads were a strong update for Flash's look.  I'm not sure they would have supplanted his original red pads as his iconic look.  But, it would have been nice to have another Flash version.  On  the box back, Flash is wearing the only visor.  Though, in the Tomart's photo, the visor is given to Zap.) The fact that factory customs have failed to deliver this Flash version  is another glaring omission.  It seems like such an easy win for a figure.  And, I'll opine that Flash's absence from this set is the greatest loss in the changes from concept to production.

Rock and Roll

The final figure in the set was Rock and Roll.  We all know that the terrible 1986 Roadblock/General Hawk mashup figure that was released as Rock and Roll in this set happens to have a very rare, race changing variant.  But, the real story is that Rock and Roll was supposed to use his original mold for the character.  The figure featured in both photos is a repainted straight arm.  He is armed with  the 1986 Roadblock's machine gun.  This gets weird because the production figure ended up using the 1986 Roadblock body but included the 1982/83 Rock and Roll's M-60 and bi-pod.  The figure is wearing the Lady Jaye backpack on the box back.  But, not in the Tomart's photo.  

Rock and Roll would have rivaled Stalker and Scarlett as the best repaint in the set.  His black shirt, cammo pants and updated bullet strap paint job would have made a striking figure.  Personally, I lament his absence the most just because Rock and Roll is a figure that I use way more often than Flash.  The upside is that the 2018 Hollowpoint figure from Red Laser Army is based on this 1997 Rock and Roll and is a good enough representation of the planned paint job.  

From the box back, you can see examples of all the shortcuts that Hasbro took when creating the 1997 lineup.  Granted, it was a low production run line that was sold only at Toys R Us.  But, the vintage Hasbro team would never have created such a lackluster presentation for their packaging.  It's sad that missing molds did in so much of the plans for 1997.  1983 Cobra Commander, Destro, Rock and Roll, Flash and Breaker would have been much more beloved than the figures we got.  And, a repainted 1985 Snake Eyes might have been the character's definitive appearance in toy form.  But, none of that happened.  Instead, we have ghosts of the plans that live on in early photos like these.

The Rankings - 1983 Original 13

Everybody loves rankings, right?  There's no better way to start a pointless argument than to rank items that hold unique, special places to each collector.  Once upon a time, I tried to write up a completely objective ranking of the original 13 Joe figures.  But, even with the stated goal of erasing childhood nostalgia from the equation, the list was pretty much my personal favorites with a few guys bumped up a spot or two.  So, why bother with any of that pretext?  Instead, I'm going with a straight ranking of my favorite figures: starting with the original 13.  I'm only using swivel arm versions as I don't collect straight arms.  And, I'll do the "new" 1983 figures some other time.  I'm not sure I'll get to every year because I'll get bored of it long before I would ever endeavor to slog through all the 1993 releases.  But, I'm going to start with the year that's sure to elicit some opinions.  

The thing is, there are no wrong opinions about these figures.  If Short Fuse holds dear, core memories for you, that's a story worth telling in the comments.  The point of this isn't to challenge your beliefs.  Instead, it's to memorialize mine and prompt a modicum of discussion.  So, on with the show....

#13 - Short Fuse

I just can't get into Short Fuse.  He was never a player in my collection.  He didn't have much of a characterization in the comic other than being an annoying hot head.  And, his weapon wasn't conducive to childhood play.  But, really, he's kind of boring.  His chests harness isn't the greatest design.  But, he's also in a green that's similar to other figures.  So, you don't really feel like you're getting anything special with this figure.  Zap is a better use of the mold.  Hawk is a better use of the head.  I know we had one when I was a kid.  But, mostly, I remember him from the fact that I noticed his mortar mold changed and it was also knocked off by, I think, Galoob for some of their action figure lines.  That's not much of a legacy.

#12 - Grunt

I'm not a Grunt fan.  Never have been.  I've always found him to be boring.  To be fair, I missed the silver knife on his chest...a feature that captivated me when we got a Tan Grunt in 1983.  But, I still see this guy as just a basic infantryman.  His M-16 never clicked with me, either.  It broke thumbs in 1982.  I did love his backpack.  I gave it to Clutch so I didn't waste it on Grunt.  There's not much too him and he lacks the skills to really set himself apart from his more specialized team mates.  At some point in late 1982 or early 1983, we buried a bunch of Joes behind some bricks that lined the stairs up the hill in our front yard.  I remember pulling a well worn Grunt and Stalker out of the space a few years later.  That's about the extent of his use.  He and Short Fuse remain my least used figures of the original series of Joes.

#11 - Hawk

Let's face two facts.  Visually, Grunt is a better figure than Hawk.  And, the debut figure of Joe's leader kind of sucks.  But, I give Hawk the edge over Grunt due to the silver trim dominating the figure.  It gives him a more commanding presence.  And, the over abundance of silver does give Hawk a defining look.  There's not much else going on here, though.  So, he ranks pretty low.  I snapped the thumb of my 1982 Hawk when I tried to give him a Battle Gear M-16.  After that, the character disappeared until the amazing 1986 upgrade came around.  Hawk looks good.  But, if I want to use Hawk, I'll almost never choose this figure.

#10 - Grand Slam

Grand Slam and Flash  share the same mold.  The darker green on Grand Slam is a definite downgrade over the brighter green that Flash uses.  As a kid, we only had a straight arm Grand Slam.  The Silver Pads version was my Grand Slam.  I used him as a derivative of Flash, though.  The lack of accessories drops Grand Slam down a bit.  But, this figure does get a lot more use from me now.  Mostly, that's due to the fact that Grand Slam has remained pretty obscure over the years.  And, he's a guy who holds a certain, undeserved reputation for being rarer than other figures.  This is a function of the Silver Pads version.  But, photos with this original Grand Slam tend to do well since people don't see him all that often.  I definitely use this guy more than this low ranking would suggest.

#09 - Breaker

Breaker was my first Joe.  It pains me to rank him this low.  But, Breaker kind of marks a point in the line where every figure from here on out is pretty strong.  I ended up ranking him lower because there's not a lot of paint on him and he lacks a firearm.  That's made up for by his strong accessories, though.  His communications headset might be my favorite single accessory from the original 13.  And, it was a staple of my Joe world: even long after Breaker had fallen apart.  He's a mainstay in my HQ: helming the computer console.  And, I even use him as the second passenger in the VAMP.  Breaker remains a nostalgic favorite.  And, his low rank is just indicative of how strong the first wave of Joes was.

#08 - Snake Eyes

Yeah, I get it.  The "all black" was a design choice.  But, it's also limiting on this figure.  And, the 1997 and later repaints that added just one or two paint applications showed that just a little bit of color would break this guy up and make for a better figure.  But, Snake Eyes also features some unique parts.  The bomb on his leg is a feature that's really ignored and speaks to the figure's intentions of being a commando instead of a super human ninja.  His gear was also pretty strong.  The Uzi is synonymous with Snake Eyes and remains a mainstay of the character to this day.  There is something about the all black appearance of the original design that is lost when you paint up some details.  But, were this figure not super popular and somewhat expensive, he'd have little reason to be used over the later repaints of this mold.

#07 - Zap

My youngest brother got a Zap when he went to visit my grandparents in early 1983.  Before the figure came home, both Zap's thumbs were broken.  So, Zap wasn't a part of our childhood collection.  But, he's a figure whose importance grew as an adult collector.  Very early on in my collecting journey, I got obsessed over Zap.  So, he was among the only early figures I sought out to add to my collection in 1999-2000.  He didn't disappoint.  His unique color and strong gear add up to a fun figure.  Were mine not suffering from a snapped o-ring and stuck back screw, I'd use him in photos much more often.  No later homage to this original Zap was able to live up to this original version. (Though, the Super Sonic Fighters Zap is among the better character upgrades Hasbro ever did.)  The swivel arm version remains expensive due to the ubiquity of snapped thumbs.  But, he's worth having around.

#06 - Steeler

If you were missing just one of the original 13 figures back in 1982 and 1983, it was probably Steeler.  Being the driver of the line's most expensive vehicle meant he was often absent from otherwise complete collections.  Steeler features a unique chest piece.  That alone makes him useful.  But, he's also a great match for the Mauler and Slugger, giving him some versatility among later vehicles that was often lacking from his contemporaries.  His binocular helmet attachment was neat and gave him more visual distinction.  And, he even included an Uzi, something also unique to him as a vehicle driver.  I use Steeler more than most of the other original 13 figures.  Though, that's also because I have a spare that's easily accessible.  But, he's deserving of his spot.

#05 - Scarlett

Scarlett's a tough one.  From a sheer design standpoint, she might be the second best figure in the original lineup.  Her sculpt is amazingly detailed.  And, that's often glossed over.  Her unique color really stood out among the sea of Green that was the original wave.  And, it allowed her to evolve with the line and remain complementary with figures that were released years later.  It's tough to find a Scarlett that hasn't discolored.  And, that really limits her.  And, the 2003 repaint of this mold was better.  Even the 1997 is strong, though, it's very different from the 1982 coloring.  So, her lower ranking here is a function of those later figures being more interesting than the first design.

#04 - Clutch

Clutch was my favorite Joe right from the get go.  His unique chest with the holstered pistol was a drawing point.  I gave him a visor, Stalker's gun and Grunt's backpack to make him the most badass fighter the Joes would ever see.  Years later, even a straight arm Clutch retained relevance in my collection because he was so well done.  He's at home when he's behind the wheel of any early Joe vehicle.  And, you can use him sans vehicle as well.  I still refer to this head sculpt as the "Clutch" head as I feel he owned the design the best and made it his own.

#03 - Stalker

Stalker stands out due to his cammo pattern.  It was a unique look among the original figures.  And, it gave him depth beyond the reuse of the standard grenade and knife torso.  His head also featured a sculpted head covering with his green beret.  It made the figure a quick favorite.  The prominence of the character in the comic helped hold him over and made Stalker among the more popular characters in the line.  Stalker had a ton of great character updates.  (I'll maintain the '89 Stalker is one of the best updates any character ever got.)  But, none of them treaded over this original version.  Even today, an original Stalker can intermingle with figures from all years and not look out of place.  I wish the Comic Pack versions had been better.  But, we have the 1997 figure, which might be even better than the 1983.  Any way you look at it, though, the combo of figure and character puts Stalker near the top.

#02 - Flash

Flash is the best designed figure of the original 13.  He features a nice shade of green on his base layer.  He is then accentuated by a brilliant red chest, leg and arm pads.  These give him a startling appearance among his peers.  Were that not enough, though, the entirety of the red is outlined by a silver trim.  All of these colors carry over to his back, too.  In short, the sculpting was miles ahead of what other toy lines were doing.  And, then, Hasbro gave us the real kicker: his accessories.  Flash got the standard helmet.  But, you really get the impression that the standard clear visor was actually designed for Flash first and then ported to other figures.  His backpack is an intricate mess of technology.  And, it all culminates in a laser rifle that can plug into the pack.  The combo of sculpting, color and gear makes Flash tough to beat.  In fact, he should be number 1.  But, he's beat out for one simple reason that you'll see next.

#01 - Rock and Roll

Rock and Roll isn't the best figure among the original 13.  But, he's the one I use the most.  Part of it is that his simplicity works for his specialty.  But, he also features a unique torso and an amazing weapon.  I happen like the character, too.  I remember Rock and Roll as the crazed madman from "Hot Potato" in the first issue of the comic.  But, he later became a bit more mellow.  And, this made him interesting.  He was supposed to be "replaced" by Roadblock.  But, he stayed on the team and remained an integral part of the story until the very end.  The gold bullets really make Rock and Roll stand out.  And, it gives him more bulk, even if he's the same size as the rest of his friends.  I use this figure constantly.  I bought a spare just so I could use him more often.  It happened to the mail away version, which was a nice surprise.  (Things like that used to happen all the time.)  So, Rock and Roll gets my top spot just because he's a guy who resonates with me and gets used all the time.  It's no more complicated than that.

So, there you have it.  That's my ranking of the first 13 G.I. Joe figures.  What are you thoughts?  The great theme of the Joe line is that was designed to appeal to every kid.  So, different parts grabbed then attention of different kids as the time.  I have plans to continue this series.  It won't be chronological.  But, you'll see them pop up and we can discuss some of the different years and how the figures stack up.

2001 HQ Rock and Roll - Random Photos of the Day

I had plans for a different profile, today.  It was about 40% ready to go.  Or, so I thought.  I sat down to finish it and discovered that I had a lot more to write about than I had realized.  And, rather than post it without any narrative of how I use the figure, I decided to postpone that one until January so I have time to do it right.  This has become a theme as I have several profiles of figures I really enjoy in the same state.  I have them started.  But, haven't finished them as I feel I have a lot more to say about the figure.  So, they should get 2026 off to a strong start.

In the meantime, I decided to post some photos of this 2001/2002 Rock and Roll/Flint.  Confused?  Yeah, this figure is a mess.  And, it all started when Hasbro couldn't find the 1989 Rock and Roll mold they had recently recalled from Funskool.  So, this HQ figure was supposed to a 1989 Rock and Roll repaint.  Which might have been OK.  Instead, it is a 1994 Flint repaint that is...just OK.  

The base colors green, dark brown and grey make this figure, basically, a vintage Night Force figure.  He uses the same palette and is the only figure released in the 2000's to feature this color scheme.  In writing this right now, it dawns on me that I need to appropriate this figure as the driver of the Night Rhino instead of the crappy Dusty/Dialtone mash up that discolors the instant it's exposed to air.  You'd have a real Night Force vehicle driven by a real Night Force figure.  When it warms up, again, I'll have to match them up and see how that works out.

Until then, this figure is one of the stronger releases of his era.  The colors are different.  And, they work well on the mold.  The biggest issue is that this figure was designed with a helmet back in 1994.  But, this 2001 version doesn't include one.  I just tried out a 1994 helmet on this 2001 version a couple of days ago.  The result isn't as bad as I thought.  While colors that match the green, brown or grey on the released figure would be better, the tan and black helmet from 1994 doesn't look terrible.  It adds quite a lot to the figure.  And, seeing the body with the intended helmet allows you fully appreciate what the sculptors were going for back in the 1990's.

This figure was packed with a G.I. Joe HQ that was a repainted 1991 HQ.  It was a Toys R Us exclusive and released in different packaging in 2001 and 2002.  It was not popular among collectors of the day.  You'd be hard pressed to find any photos of it in use.  It's one of those disappearing releases from that era that simply vanished due to collector disinterest.  The only reason this figure isn't impossible to find is because massive amounts of overstock were available from Asian sellers in the mid 2000's.  You could get lots of 5 of them for under $10 shipped.  It was a deal.  Some dealers brought over a few and resold them for a couple of bucks each.  Collectors bought some lots to customize.  And, that's made this figure much more possible to find.  

And, frankly, he's worth tracking down.  The colors are nice and Flint should be in Night Force.  This mold is a better match for the 1987 and 1988 repaints than the 1985 Flint mold would be.  And, the colors coincide with the vintage design.  As he's not expensive, he's a worthwhile addition to your collection.  He's a guy I don't use that often.  But, I probably should.  And, if the Night Rhino thing works out, he might see a lot more use.

1991 Super Sonic Fighters Rock and Roll - Around The Web

The Super Sonic Fighters Rock and Roll is one of those figures that, on the surface, seems bad.  But, upon a deeper review, it's a surprisingly good figure.  The base colors are amazing.  The orange is a lot of fun, too.  His gear is excellently sculpted and should be more popular.  In total, he's an underappreciated gem from later in the line.  Here's some of the best of him from around the web.

1991 Super Sonic Fighters Rock and Roll Profile

1991 Rock and Roll by corpscommandercody

1991 Rock and Roll by thedragonfortress

1991 Rock and Roll by ronnie_trickshot

1991 Rock and Roll by slipstream80

1991 Rock and Roll by thedustinmccoy

1991 Rock and Roll by 1990s_gi_joes

Funskool Rock and Roll - Rarities

1991 Rock and Roll by fun_time_at_serpentorslair

1991 Rock and Roll by sintechness

1991 Rock and Roll by relena_warcraft

1991 Rock and Roll by ptytoys2021

1991 Rock and Roll by 73larebear

Rarities - Funskool Rock and Roll

As Funskool figures become famous in the early 2000's, it lead to a trailblazing group of collectors whose mission it was to track down earlier Funskool releases.  In their acquisitions, it appeared that an unpopular repaint of the 1989 Rock and Roll was one of the more difficult figures to track down from India.  In the ensuing decades, the figure became more common.  But, it has remained a mostly obscure pre-mass import Funskool offering.

This figure is based on the 1991 Super Sonic Fighters repaint of Rock and Roll.  It has a few key differences.  First, the backpack does not create sound.  Second, the figure's weapons are a lighter tan color than the Hasbro figure.  And, finally, this figure also includes the Shotgun that appeared on the Hasbro card art in 1991 but, was completely missing from the actual figure release.

We'll start by looking at some carded figures of the Rock and Roll.  As you can see, the packaging art is the same as the Hasbro release of the figure.  However, the artwork is cropped differently so that it fits on the smaller cardbacks that were Funskool standards.

 

Below are some close ups of the figure and his accessories.  The actual figure is fairly similar to the Hasbro release of the same figure.  This is likely due to the cartoon reruns airing in India during the time of this figure's release that featured this look for the classic Rock and Roll character.  Of course, the figure is slightly different from the Hasbro version.  And, it's likely there are slight color variants among Rock and Roll figures released in India over the various production years.

The big difference is in the figure's gear.  While this Rock and Roll does include the sonic backpack from the Hasbro figure, the electronics and sound from the pack have been removed.  So, you get all of the size of the buffoonish pack without that pesky extra weight.

Rock and Roll includes the large machine gun, weapon stand and mortar from the Hasbro release.  They are in a nice, medium brown color that's probably preferable to the Hasbro colors of these stronger than you might realize weapons.  However, the figure includes one other piece that was included with the Hasbro mintings of this figure: the 1989 shotgun.  This weapon appears on the Hasbro card artwork.  But, it was not included with the Hasbro figure.  But, it is here on the Funskool release.

What's also odd is that the other weapons that were included with the 1989 Rock and Roll were also released in India with other figures.  The twin gatling cannons, backpack and ammo belts were used on various figures through the years.  They were continued on figures produced in the 2000's and not returned to Hasbro with this mold.

Below you will a couple of cardbacks for this figure.  One was made in 1996 and other in 1997.  This was kind of a dark period of Funskool releases when modern collectors started to chase down Funskool variants.  It has since become more understood.  But, this Rock and Roll was discontinued in the 1990's.

And, that leads to the most interesting part of the story.  It seems that when Hasbro recalled molds in 1997 or so, this Rock and Roll was among them.  With the mold in hand, though, Hasbro didn't rush to use it.  (Which is odd considering how terrible the 1997 Hasbro Rock and Roll figure is.)  They did, though, finally plan to use the mold with the 2001 HQ.  The figure in the set is even called Rock and Roll.  However, Hasbro returned the mold to Funskool before it could be used.  With the mold back in hand, Funskool planned to release a new paint job on Rock and Roll as a brand new figure for their line in 2003 or 2004.  But, the Funskool line was cancelled before it came to be and this 1990's figure remains the only Rock and Roll released in India.

Today, this figure remains expensive, especially if you want him complete.  But, he is findable and the days of there being only a handful of them in the collecting community are two decades in the past.  As an oddity, this figure is fun.  His gear is better than Hasbro's.  So, that's something worth tracking down.  But, really, no one cares much for this look for Rock and Roll.  So, the figure remains fairly obscure, even today.

1983 Battle Gear #1

After Christmas of 1982, I owned four G.I. Joe figures.  But, between Snake Eyes, Clutch, Hawk and Breaker, I had just one gun.  Three of the four figures did not include weapons.  This greatly limited my play options.  I went so far as to find an HO-scale coupler for train cars that kind of looked like a pistol and used it for Breaker.  I desperately wanted additional accessories so that all my figures could not only have at least one weapon, but even a choice of some of my favorite weapon designs.  My wishes came true one day when we were in Buffalo, visiting my grandparents.  We were there for a short trip early in the year.  We hadn't taken many toys, confirming the trip was shorter than our normal week.  But, when out shopping, I found a new pack of G.I. Joe accessories at a local store.  It was the original Battle Gear pack.

The pack was cheap enough that my mother bought one for both my younger brother and I.  With these weapons, I now had the ability to give Clutch a visor as well as offering a spare Uzi to Breaker.  I could choose any weapons I wanted for Hawk and Clutch, too.  Of course, Clutch got Stalker's M-32.  But, I also added some accessories to the VAMP.  The new Breaker headset would fit behind the seat with the wire tucked into the seam between the seat and the bottom of the vehicle.  So, this allowed for anyone riding shotgun in the VAMP to be able to communicate with the rest of the team.  I also placed a spare Uzi on the same spot.  This way, the VAMP had a backup small arm if it crashed or just ran out of gas.  Hawk, well, I learned a hard lesson with him.  I tried to get Grunt's M-16 into his hands and it immediately snapped his thumb.  That was the end of that Hawk figure.  And, it's part of what pushed me back to Star Wars figures as 1983 crept on.  

The odd thing about the Battle Gear pack was that the accessories were colored differently from those included with figures.  The weapons themselves are a lighter grey color than the original gear.  Even in 1983, I could easily tell the difference between the Battle Gear and original weapons.  But, the weapons are close enough in color to be useful.  The visors are identical to the originals, though.  The helmets and backpacks, though, were very different.  The helmets were dark brown and did not match any figure.  The packs, though, were worse.  They were a tan color.  Again, they matched no figures until the 1983 Falcon Glider Grunt was released.  There was no explanation for the color changes.  In fact, the 1983 promo catalog showed original gear in the set.  So, the color change was a later decision that was never explained.  

The 1983 Battle Gear set includes every accessory from the 1982 line.  There are 4 visors, two Uzis and even Snake Eyes' ammo pack.  There were three exceptions, though.  Short Fuze's mortar and stand were omitted as was Zap's bazooka.  These three pieces would later show up in white in the 1984 Battle Gear set.  But, again, there was no explanation as to why they weren't included.  It was made weirder by the fact that their shared backpack was included with the 1983 set.  The fact that both those accessories underwent design changes could explain it.  But, both the 1982 Snake Eyes Uzi and Stalker M-32 are different from the 1983 releases of both accessories.  So, other weapons were modified, too.  The exclusion of these weapons remains a mystery nearly 40 years later.

The biggest new feature of the Battle Gear set is the battle stands.  These little rectangles of plastic brought a whole new element to Joe collecting.  The stands allowed kids to pose their figures and stand them up in any pose they desired.  The Battle Gear included two stands.  Starting in 1984, differently colored stands would be included with several small playsets.  By 1993, every figure included a stand on their weapon tree.  This ingenious idea allowed kids to display figures.  But, it also allowed them to put their toys away on a shelf using vertical space and keeping their gear on.  

In the early days of Joe collecting, the ubiquity of 1983 Battle Gear weapons allowed customizers to accessorize their creations with great aplomb.  They were free to paint, slice up and otherwise modify the Battle Gear weapons without worrying about their original accessories.  For dealers, though, the 1983 Battle Gear provided a great way to bilk unsuspecting collectors out of their hard earned money by offering them as original gear with original 13 figures.  Even today, you'll see many seller "mistake" Battle Gear weapons for the original.  But, the colors are blatantly different and there's no excuse for any mistakes by a seller.  

The value to a collector today is that this Battle Gear is an excellent option to properly outfit factory custom figures.  Many of Red Laser Army's figures are obvious homages to various foreign and unproduced characters from the Joe line's earliest days.  They, though, lacked gear that was a perfect match for them.  Battle Gear allows you to give these characters the weapons they deserve.  And, while the 1983 helmets and packs aren't great for many figures, the weapons are a great way to update the homages.  Having some cheap alternatives for that purpose is a definite plus.

Back in the early 2000's, before people got stupid with Joe prices, it was relatively easy to put together a small team of original 13 figures in a tan style.  With Grunt, Clutch and Doc bodies, you could make a tan Breaker, Hawk and Stalker.  If you were handy with a little paint, you could put together a decent Snake Eyes, too.  And, the Battle Gear weapons are a perfect match for this set.  To this day, I store my Tan Grunt with the Battle Gear backpack and M-16 since they are so closely aligned in color to the figure.  The tan works with Scarlett, too, as a way to better accessorize her.

For me, the real value of the Battle Gear came many years after its initial release.  In 1986 and 1987, I often had third faction terrorists or freedom fighters (really, they're the same thing just with different marketing depending upon which side they battle against) who would interject into the Joe vs. Cobra conflict.  My favorite was having them drive up to a ceremony in the A-Team van, open the door and pop out with small sub machine guns and mow down the dignitaries in attendance.  As small weapons were not overly common in the Joe line (and, most of the ones that did exist were in use by their original owners!) the Battle Gear Uzis were a great means of making these civilian fighters a more formidable force.  I'd toss in some of the larger rifles, too, as part of their getaway plan.  

My other random memory of the Battle Gear weapons comes on a cold winter's day, probably in either 1984 or 1985.  It was a Sunday and I had been playing with my Joes in the garage.  (It was warmer in there than outside, but still counted as outside play.)  I picked them all up and took them in.  A few hours later, right before dinner, I went back out to put away some bikes or balls and happened to find a Battle Gear M-60 on the floor.  It wasn't part of my team that had been in the garage that day.  And, it was a neat find as we didn't have a regular Rock and Roll and this Battle Gear version was the only copy of his weapon in our possession.  I took the weapon inside.  Really, though, it's not finding the weapon that was memorable.  Instead, it was the feeling I had as I picked it up off the floor.  For some reason, I got an overwhelming feeling of sadness that it was Sunday night and I was back to school on Monday.  To this day, I get the same feeling on some Sunday afternoons as the sun goes down.  Every time I do, I think back to that day in the garage, finding Rock and Roll's gun and then being saddened by the fact that my fun was over and it was back to work early the following morning.

You'll see some dealers command premiums for various accessories in this set.  The Uzi tends to command the highest price and sells for around $7, even as dealers ask double that.  But, the real value in the set is the visors.  As such, you'll usually find sets that are sold sans visors.  A whole loose set with no visors will run about $20.  On their own, though, visors sell for around $20.  So, getting the visors, too, will be expensive.  You can get carded sets in the $85 range.  Which, with 4 visors is a little lower than the loose price.  For just the weapons, the price is probably decent.  Original Uzis aren't easy to find and this is a cheap way to get them.  My only real lament is that the other Battle Gear packs in subsequent years didn't follow the close coloring of the originals like this first attempt at additional accessories did.

Rarities - Auriken Rock and Roll Vehicle Driver Variant

In general, the Auriken line from Mexico is rather poorly documented.  While you can find some info on the boxed figures that were once somewhat common, the information regarding vehicles and later releases is sporadic and haphazard at best.  I'm still not aware of a published list that is anywhere near complete of the Auriken releases.  So, this makes some of the figures in the line incredibly obscure.  One such example is this hybrid Rock and Roll figure.  I no longer recall which vehicle with which he was included.  But, it's not a common figure and didn't first really make itself known until around 2003 or 2004.

What makes this figure interesting is mostly the green color.  This lighter green appeared on a few different Auriken figures and is a fun shade that's different than anything Hasbro produced.  The darker hair makes for a stark juxtaposition when you are expecting to see Rock and Roll's trademarked blonde hair.  Beyond that, though, the figure is pretty much as is.  It's fairly difficult to find and you'll pay a premium for a nice one.  Though, most of the ones you see for sale are drastically overpriced and don't actually move.  

I really wish factory custom makers were able to match the Auriken green.  It's a neat shade and would have allowed for some simple, but effective repaints of several figures.  I'd love a solid group of original 13 figures in this shade and with swivel arms.  But, those never came to pass.

Please leave comments if you are aware of the origin of this figure and which vehicle included him.

1989 Rock and Roll

In 1989, G.I. Joe toys were nothing but a memory.  While you can read my shameful story of the 1989 Snake Eyes to see how he came into my possession, the only other 1989 figure that was acquired by even my younger brothers was a 1989 Scoop figure.  After dominating our house for 6 years, G.I. Joe was done.  That didn't mean, though, that I wasn't keeping and eye on the brand.  While visits to toy stores were far fewer and there were scant opportunities to check out the retail releases, I was actively buying the Joe comic.  And, as such, I had a knowledge of the new figures and characters that would be released that year.  While the Cobras of 1989 now gobble up most of that year's attention, it was the new Joe figures that most intrigued me.  Downtown, Stalker, Recoil and Backblast all looked like amazing figures to own.  But, it was a new version of Rock and Roll that really captured my imagination and remained a figure that got away...kind of.

I worked out an entire backstory for this new version of Rock and Roll.  I imagined he was older and had destroyed his knees on a mission.  As such, he was still strong, but unable to carry his heavy gear on foot.  So, Rock and Roll had to be supported by a vehicle.  His preference was the APC as he could carry his large weapons and plenty of ammo.  I created all of this in the back row of my Spanish class.  I had enough background in the language to easily pass my first year.  So, I spent my time writing down mission specs and story outlines in a notebook instead of paying attention.  I had pages and pages of notes.  It was a way to build a creative outlet for me since playing with toys was pretty much something I could no longer do.  

In 1989, I went full in with baseball cards.  I had a couple of friends who collected and we were focused on finding Ken Griffey Jr. cards or the Bill Ripken Fuck Face error card.  (I remember my two friends calling me and boasting they'd found a box of Fleer with the error at a local store and hidden them.  They bought them the next day and didn't get a Ripken.  But, I'd pull one from an overpriced pack at a card show later that year.)  My collecting impulses and focus were spent on collecting cards instead of playing with toys.  It's something that has dogged my life.  I need something into which to throw myself for entertainment and distraction from boredom.  It was toys, then sports cards, then rugby and then this website.  As I've found this year by year, chronological accounting of the Joe line tedious (and, I'm only at 1989!!!!) I do think I'm starting to drift into something new.  I'm not sure what that will be, yet.  And, when I do, I always usually keep a finger in the pot of the hobby left behind.  

1989 was a reboot year.  There were 10 standard carded G.I. Joe figures (the other 7 were Cobras).  Among them, though, were 4 updated designs of existing characters: Rock and Roll, Stalker, Snake Eyes and Deep Six.  I argue that Downtown could easily have been a new Short Fuse and Backblast a new Zap.  And, I'll go so far to suggest that Dogfight could have been a new Wild Bill.  It seems that Hasbro was making at attempt to maintain some of their relevance with a stream of existing characters to supplement their new releases.  We know that 1987 was a turning point for the brand and that 1988 took on some different forms to hide some of the brand damage done in 1987.  So, it is possible that 1989 was a way to get the brand back on track.  And, I will admit that it was a strong strategy to keep a disinterested teenager around.  New looks for some of my favorite characters was a strong enticement to stay connected to the brand.  Even if it wasn't enough to get me to actually buy any figures.  

Once I fast forward a few years, though, I was back to collecting as an adult.  I had money to spend and the internet offered many opportunities to buy items I had always wanted.  One of my top priorities when returning to collecting was to acquire a 1989 Rock and Roll.  I hadn't been able to own one as a kid.  But, I wasn't going to let that opportunity pass me by as an adult.  And, I sought out the figure early in my online buying days.  While there were a few Rock and Rolls for sale as individual figures, it was far more cost effective to get one in a lot.  Back in the late 1990's, most lots that were for sale featured most mint and complete figures that were taken care of in someone's childhood.  You could get them for $1.50 to $2.00 per figure and the lots were full of army builders, mail aways and other goodies.  I sought out a lot with Rock and Roll, bought it and had the whole world of post 1988 Joes opened up to me.  Rock and Roll was the gateway to exploring the later years of the line.  And, I spent my early collecting years not rebuying toys from my childhood but, instead, buying up the Joes I had never owned.  It was counter to the thinking of the time.  But, to me, something new was always better than something I had owned before.

As a new sculpt, this Rock and Roll is gorgeous.  It is the true to the original character with the blonde beard and heavy machine guns.  But, the 1989 design brings a whole new element to Rock and Roll.  You can argue between he and Stalker as to who was the better upgrade in 1989.  But, both were near perfect ways to bring a character from 1982 back to life in 1989.  You'll notice that Rock and Roll has wrinkles sculpted around his eyes.  It shows a weariness from stress and age that you'd see in an old warrior like him.  This new depth in his facial expression helped mold the character I created for the new release.  The figure, though, has some issues.  While the entire body is covered in amazing sculpted details, Hasbro didn't choose to paint most of them.  The only thing that discerns this Rock and Roll from the sparsely painted 1988 releases is the camo pattern on his legs.  His chest and leg details, though, are left to blend into the base plastic color of torso and thighs.  It's a shame as the details would have popped with some silver, brown and black paint.  But, the cost of Rock and Roll's accessories likely diluted the budget that was available to him for additional paint masks.

When it comes to accessories, Rock and Roll is fully decked out in his heavy machine gunner role.  He includes a nicely sculpted, but largely useless, shotgun that affixes to his right leg.  It's a neat detail.  But, something that's difficult to get the figure to hold.  He then includes an ammo backpack.  It's not greatly detailed, but works for its purpose.  It has tabs on the left and right that are used to attach the two straps of bullets to the pack.  These flexible, grey pieces then connect to tabs on the underside of Rock and Roll's dual machine guns.  He has two of these weapons, one for each hand, and each weapon has two barrels positioned beneath a neatly designed pistol grip.  Rock and Roll is a walking wall of firepower.  Oddly, he does not have a right and left weapon.  Each of his two machine guns are the same.  This makes attaching the bullets somewhat awkward.  But, the overall size and bulk of whole setup is tough to use and the bullets easily detach in play.  So, it's easier to just take Rock and Roll with one gun and his pack.  

The Rock and Roll mold had three uses.  After this 1989 version was released, the mold was repainted in 1991 for the Super Sonic Fighters line.  This orange highlighted figure features excellent base colors and is a fun addition to a Rock and Roll collection.  Hasbro then sent the mold to India where Funskool released a figure very similar to the 1991 version for a few years.  After that, the mold kind of moved around.  Funskool returned it to Hasbro sometime in the 1990's.  Hasbro planned to use it for the 2001 Headquarters pack in figure.  But, for some reason, they returned the mold to Funskool before they could do so.  Funskool didn't really know why they got it back.  But, they planned a new repaint of the 1989 Rock and Roll for a late 2003 or early 2004 release.  Sadly, the Funskool line was cancelled before that could happen and there were no more uses of this mold.  There's tons of repaint potential in the sculpt, though.  Maybe Hasbro can revisit it in the 2020's.

1989 Rock and Roll figures are very common.  He must have been owned by nearly every kid in 1989 as they are easy to find today.  While his ammo belts aren't always seen, they aren't rare by any means.  Mint and complete with filecard Rock and Rolls are about $15-$20 figures.  If you sacrifice the ammo belts, though, you can get them for under $10.  That's a travesty for a figure of this quality.  But, it's also nice since newer collectors can get an excellent upgrade on a classic character for a cheap price.  That's getting harder and harder to do.  There was a time when I had more than half a dozen of this figure.  While those days are gone, the lone sample remains a vital part of my collection and has specific memories from two different eras of my collecting journey.

1983 Rock and Roll - Around The Web

 Rock and Roll is one of the few original 13 figures to feature unique parts.  His bullet strapped chest was an amazing look and has made him a fan favorite after all these years.  He remains one of my most used early figures as he holds up with later releases without some of the baggage that other early figures feature.  Of course, he's popular.  And, I only scratched the surface of the Rock and Roll content out there.

1983 Rock and Roll Profile

Rock and Roll Diorama

1983 Rock and Roll by R.T.G.

1983 Rock and Roll by General Liederkranz

1982 Rock and Roll by masterbungle

1983 Rock and Roll by Cobra_the_Enemy

1983 Rock and Roll by slipstream80

1983 Rock and Roll by scarrviper

1983 Rock and Roll by BrazilianRecondo