1984 Slugger - Around The Web

The Slugger is one of the vehicles that really works well in photos.  It's small, but distinctive.  It has some fun details and can work with a variety of figures.  I use it quite frequently.  But, lots of others do, too.  I found a ton of Slugger content out there.  Sometimes its the subject of the photo and, other times, it's just a backdrop.  But, it works remarkably well in both settings.  So, take some time to check out all the guys who use the Slugger to great effect.

1984 Slugger Profile

1984 Slugger by atticagazette

1984 Slugger by CorpsCommanderCody

1984 Slugger by steelbrigade

1984 Slugger by jogunwarrior

1984 Slugger by thedustinmccoy

1984 Slugger by Slipstream80

1984 Slugger by steelbrigade

1984 Slugger by tituslester32

1984 Slugger by rnrhero

1984 Slugger by larebear_73

1984 Slugger by 3rd_wave_sabotage

1984 Slugger by joe_hunter73

1984 Slugger by steelbrigade

1984 Slugger by thedustinmccoy

1984 Slugger by 3rd_wave_sabotage

1984 Slugger by steelbrigade

1984 Slugger by mrmikevinthepit

1984 Slugger

In 1984, my younger brothers and I were all in on collecting G.I. Joe.  Star Wars had been all but purged from our house and Joe dominated our toy room.  We had most of the 1983 vehicles and figures.  And, 1984 had been equally good to us.  But, there were still many toys we didn't have as we headed into the fall gift giving season.  It was in October that my younger brother acquired a Slugger for his birthday.  While not as impressive as the MOBAT, the Slugger was the first heavy artillery vehicle in our collection.  And, it quickly found itself in the center of play.

The Slugger itself isn't all that complex.  There's a top and bottom of the tank.  And, it has the huge cannon.  It features very few parts.  There's just a stabilizer, hatch door, machine gun and engine cover.  But, these parts alone take a relatively boring tank and make it something much more useful.  The cockpit allows for the driver to sit both above the hatch to operate the machine gun and under the hatch to keep the driver protected.  The engine cover is pretty good as it allows for some play with repairs, etc.  The colors are muted and in line with vehicles produced prior to 1985.  In short, it's a neat toy for the middle price point vehicles.  There's some molded details that would have been nice to have been real.  But, that would have jumped the price on the Slugger beyond what parents in 1984 would have likely paid.  

I have three main memories of the Slugger.  Each are specific instances where the Slugger was featured in a memory.  Beyond them, most of my general memories of the Slugger were of frustration.  I liked vehicles that could hold many figures.  The Slugger just held one figure in the driver's seat.  I made attempt after attempt to sit other Joe figures on the rise opposite the engine.  But, figures didn't really hold their seats very well.  And, if you moved the Slugger, the figs positioned on the back would fall off.  This limited the Slugger's use.  And, as our Thunder arrived damaged, he wasn't a figure that I really tried to get into my rotation.  

My main memory of the Slugger comes from that October in 1984 when the vehicle first came into our collection.  For some reason, there was a small hole that had been dug in our front yard.  I don't recall the circumstances of it being there.  But, I noticed it was the perfect size for the Slugger to fit into.  I put the Slugger into the hole and, from here, it could command the entire right side of our front yard.  The tank was lowered enough to be difficult to hit with small arms fire.  But, the cannon and the driver mounted machine gun were above ground and could rain fire down upon Cobra.  In order to better hide the Slugger, I pulled some green grass and laid it over the top of the vehicle.  The Slugger stayed in this position, destroying Cobra for three or four days.  Then, the grass on top of it had started to yellow so I took the Slugger out of the hole and back inside for more adventures.

My second Slugger memory would have had to have occurred in the summer of 1985.  I was visiting my Grandfather in Buffalo, NY.  For some reason, as I was picking which vehicle I would take with me, the Slugger spoke to me.  I guess I hadn't played with it in a while.  So, it got the honor of going on the trip.  I've mentioned playing at my grandfather's house before.  But, nearly all our adventures were on the stone steps in front of his house.  One day on this trip, though, I decided to play in his small backyard.  Here, he had a flower garden that had a small trough in the dirt between the garden and the grass.  Cobra had to cross this treacherous area.  So, the Joes installed a Slugger between the giant flower plants.  I remember playing this out one afternoon in the bright sunshine.  So, the next morning, I went out to continue the adventure.  However, as the garden was shaded in the morning, it was too cold to be outside and I had to wait until the sun moved before I was able to resume my story.  It was the only time I used his backyard as the setting for battles, though.

My final Slugger memory was one of those dumb childhood acts of hubris.  Being older than most of the kids who played with Joe in the neighborhood, I liked to show off how smart I was.  So, one day, as one of the neighborhood kids had his Slugger out, I decided to show him and some other kids how the stabilizer worked.  I stuck the spikes on the stabilizer into some soft dirt.  I then pretended for the Slugger to fire.  However, I didn't just yell "BANG".  No.  I decided to simulate the force of the cannon firing and pushed the Slugger back against the stabilizer as hard as I could.  The stabilizer did not give ground.  Instead, the force split the Slugger in two and pulled the top half from the bottom half of the tank!  Fortunately, none of the tabs were broken.  But, they were strained and that poor kid's Slugger was never the same.  I learned not to screw around like that as the last thing I wanted was to have to replace the kid's toy with my hard earned lawn mowing money.

The Slugger was released the world over.  After the Hasbro release debuted in 1984, it then appeared in Brazil and Argentina.  Sometime after that, Hasbro offered the Slugger as a mail away.  However, the mail away version was missing the cammo pattern of the original release.  This is a highly desired variant of the Slugger.  Hasbro then dropped it one final time in 1997.  This brown version was a decent update to the Slugger and is also a must have for the mold.  That was the end, though, as the Slugger didn't reappear again in the 2000's.  So, there's 5 major variants of the mold that are worth tracking down.  Though, I'd have quickly bought another Slugger design during the repaint era.

There was a time when Slugger's were the bane of any collection acquiring collector's existence.  They were stupidly common and no one wanted them.  Slowly, though, in the last 20 or so years, things have changed.  Now, the Slugger is fairly popular.  Fortunately, it's still really easy to find a mint Slugger.  There's not much to them, so they're usually in good shape.  What they are not, though, is complete.  The Slugger features 4 removable parts from the main base.  Three of these, the machine gun, the hatch cover and the hatch peg are a pain in the ass to find.  And, as such, you'll pay for them.  Sans these three items, Sluggers are a couple of bucks each.  You'll probably pay more in shipping than you will for the body of the vehicle.  

Complete Sluggers sell in the $30 to $40 range.  But, you'll add another $10 to $12 for shipping.  The hatch cover and pin will run you at least $20.  And, the machine gun usually sells for $25 or so.  So, it's definitely worth just buying a complete one.  The upside is that the machine gun mold was used both for the 1997 Slugger as well as the Cobra Surveillance Port.  While both of these uses are in different colors, they still look good with the original Slugger and fit the slot for the weapon.  So, you can economize if you are a bit scrappy.  I'm not sure this vehicle will give you $50 of enjoyment, though.  While it does look good, it still only holds one figure and takes up a lot of space.  But, for the right price, it's a classic piece and is an essential part of an early Joe convoy.

1998 Thunderwing - Around the Web

The 1998 Thunderwing is a fairly obscure release.  He was unpopular in his time and was even more unpopular when he was repackaged for release in 2000.  But, the figure is very well done.  The odd hue of green is unique among Joe figures and helps him stand apart from other, early molds.  Plus, the paint details are convention level.  He's turned into one of my personal highlights from the post vintage eras of Joe.  Here's the best of him from around the web.

Thunderwing Profile

Thunderwing Dio 1

Thunderwing at Half the Battle

Thunderwing Dio 2

Thunderwing and MOBAT Video Review

Thunderwing Dio 3

Thunderwing on Instagram 01

Thunderwing by Roboid

Rarities - Unproduced Cobra Island Infiltrate 3 Pack

At the 2003 G.I. Joe convention, Hasbro gave collectors a collective heart attack at their booth.  Aside from the early samples of the figures upcoming in the regular retail line, Hasbro also showcased their planned army building sets that would round out late 2003 and early 2004.  Collectors were agape at newly constructed Crimson Guards, Cobra Troopers and Cobra Officers.  There was no limit to the excitement as banners thanking Hasbro were created in the zeal of them finally listening to what collectors wanted.  One of the upcoming sets was the Cobra Island Infiltrate set.

The premise was that three Joes dressed as Crimson Guards were going to infiltrate Cobra Island.  The set included the infiltration raft and three figures: Gung Ho, Duke and Snake Eyes.  The selling point, of course, was that each figure included a removable helmet that would allow collectors to simply buy the sets en masse and use the figures as helmeted Crimson Guard army builders.  (The early set showed a Thunder head, but the test shots of the actual figures later included the Duke head.)  The catch, though, was that the figures would not be sold at mass retail.  They would, instead, go to a designation of retailers known as "Market 6".  This meant that Wal Mart, Target and Toys R Us would not stock the set.  In their stead, non traditional retailers such as Walgreens and smaller, regional retailers would have access to the product.  This also meant that online G.I. Joe sellers would also be able to offer the product and sell it.  Joe dealers having access to the set quickly ignited the dealer world and most quickly put up pre-orders for the set and began to collect money in anticipation of coming sales.

Lost in all this enthusiasm for the new army builders, though, were a couple of troubling signs.  First, the BAT pack from earlier in 2003 had been a retail dud.  They didn't sell like Hasbro was hoping and Hasbro ended up having to clearance them out discount and overstock retail stores.  Even online Joe dealers, who were dialed in to the online army building community were sitting on thousands of unsold BAT 6 figure sets.  Simultaneously, Toys R Us was reducing their orders on the 6 figure packs from 25,000 units to 20,000 units after Tiger Force and Python Patrol sold somewhat slowly.  On the flipside, Joes were flying off of retail shelves and Hasbro could not keep up with the demand for Waves 7.5 (the army builder wave) and Wave 8.  So, there were mixed signals.

As 2003 wound to a close, collectors began to grumble about the timing of the Cobra Island Infiltrate set.  It wasn't showing up, even while all of the other toys shown for release in the same time frame were.  Collectors got worried that it would come out over Christmas and they wouldn't have enough money to buy all they wanted.  Still, though, there was no word on the set.  Then, quietly, Hasbro cancelled the set.  Dealers got notice and communicated to their customers and the collecting world in general.  Collectors were extremely disappointed.  But, the coming waves of army builders in early 2004 quickly diverted attention away from the Infiltrate set's cancellation.

The aftermath of this set's cancellation hit on a few levels.  For most collectors, the failure of this set to garner any retail support was the first real sign that the G.I. Joe renaissance of the early 2000's was far more fragile than they believed.  Within a year of this set's failure acknowledgement, the Joe line was cancelled.  The other reality is that this set bankrupted several online G.I. Joe dealers.  In some ways, this was bad.  But, it had some good side effects.

A few dealers had pre-charged people and collected money on this set.  They used that money for the $10,000 retainer with Hasbro to secure their order.  However, Hasbro had the right to keep that money and allocate it for other merchandise if specific items were cancelled.  So, when the set was cancelled, the dealers did not get their money back from Hasbro, but they had to refund it to their customers.  For most of the dealers who were part timers, this was too much of a financial burden and they went bankrupt.  A few managed to work out credits with their customers.  But, the items that collectors most desired were not available to these small sellers and the whole situation left the selling world smaller.

This wasn't a terrible thing, though.  From the ashes rose stronger and larger dealers.  While they weren't Joe specific, they had the financial wherewithal to weather blips like the Infiltrate set.  Also gone are the days where you pre-order something and pay up front.  That's good for consumers and creates a healthier market.  So, that is a positive legacy for this set.

At the time, not getting this set at retail seemed like a huge missed opportunity for collectors.  While Agent Faces was around to get some cheap Crimson Guards, this set would have been a quick hit for many of the deepest pocketed collectors to quickly build large armies.  But, in late 2004, Hasbro released the Operation Crimson Sabotage set that gave collectors three legit army builders.  That was followed in early 2005 with a Toys R Us exclusive Crimson Guard set that featured 4 Crimson Guards.  So, collectors ended up with many, better ways to get modern Crimson Guards into their collections.

This set made it very far into the production process.  But, not as far as some other abandoned concepts.  Full body, unpainted figures exist for Gung Ho, Duke and Snake Eyes.  So, Hasbro had the molds ready to go.  But, there are no factory painted examples out there.  So, it's unlikely they made it to a pre-production run.  (The samples below are hand painted proto types and kitbashes.)  Hasbro made packaging mock ups to showcase to prospective buyers.  So, they committed some decent resources to this set and fully expected it to take off.  Had this set happened today, it's likely that an online dealer or two would have been able to bankroll the run and get an exclusive.  But, in 2003, dealers didn't yet have that wherewithal and Hasbro still didn't believe in giving low production run items to non traditional retailers.

When taken against the later releases, the value of this set greatly diminishes.  Agent Faces was a cool novelty to have a Joe in Cobra disguise.  But, getting a bunch of Joes in Cobra uniforms seemed like a lazy headswap...especially since the Duke and Gung Ho heads had recently been used.  The real loss was the V1 inspired Snake Eyes head with a ball joint.  Hasbro got this head to pre production level.  But, it was never used.  It could have been used to create an awesome amalgamated figure using some of the swivel arm Snake Eyes bodies that Hasbro had in the 2000's.  This is another of those baffling choices that Hasbro made during that time.  Collectors were given Snake Eyes figures to death.  Yet, Hasbro had something new that actually would have pleased said collectors available, but then chose to not use it.  It's just odd.

At a proposed retail price of 9.99, this set would have been a huge bargain.  (Though, it's likely that no store would have actually charged that low since these were non traditional toy retailers.)  Three figures and a raft would have been a good deal even at a marked up price.  But, considering the releases that Hasbro did give to retailers in the subsequent years, collectors aren't really missing anything from this set's cancellation.  Sure, more figures are better than fewer and I would have loved a few extra Snake Eyes heads.  But, that's about the extent of the set's value.  It is certainly an interesting look into what could have been.  But, collectors didn't really lose anything too unique or interesting by not seeing this set released to retail.

1984 Thunder - Around the Web

Thunder's a high quality figure from the line's early years.  He would have made a great repaint of a Cobra Driver in the 2000's.  But, Hasbro wasn't keen on thinking like that.  But, we got two good uses of the mold and a classic vehicle driver that's at home in any piece of Joe armor.  Here's the best of Thunder from around the web.

Thunder Profile

1984 Thunder

In the first three years of the Joe line, there were a good number of figure releases.  Not too many as to be overwhelming.  But, enough that a child could always get something new no matter what time the year.  (Unless you were of generous parents who just bought it all at once and gave one massive gift every year....)  In my childhood, the progression always seemed to be the acquisition of carded figures first through the school year and then transitioning into vehicles as the summer season started.  This was likely the function of me having more money in the summer to buy my own vehicles.  But, I have few recollections of seeing the vehicles from any given year in the stores as early as I found the figures.  (This was probably due to the seasonality of ordering where stores weren't going to buy expensive vehicles in January to have them sit on the shelf until December.  They could sell just as many by getting them in June.)  This has lead to the bulk of my new vehicle memories being focused outside in the summer.  1984 was no exception.  I had most of the figures early in the year, but started getting vehicles later.  Just before a summer trip to see my grandparents, my younger brother was given the Slugger.  While this vehicle left me somewhat cold, I thought the driver was cool.  This brought Thunder into my collection.

When my brother opened his Slugger, he found something that occurred from time to time in the vintage line.  His Thunder figure was damaged out of the box.  The screw hole was broken.  As such, Thunder fell apart right out of the bubble.  My father, though, had a solution.  He re-drilled the hole in Thunder's back and replaced the screw with one that was much larger.  The benefit was that Thunder was whole and could be used again.  The drawback is that he could not wear a backpack and he had the stigma of imperfection that bothered me even as a child. As such, this prevented Thunder from being a major player in my childhood collection. Rather than get a full characterization, Thunder was left relatively untouched and was even a character who could die from time to time since I had no real attachment to him.

Around 1986, though, another Thunder figure came into our childhood collection. Finally having a nicely conditioned version allowed me to use the figure more freely. Thunder quickly found a home as a generic Joe driver. He helmed the APC, would join Tollbooth on the Bridge Layer, man a gun turret on the WHALE or, most commonly, ride shotgun in the Mauler. This Thunder, though, still wasn't much of a character. Mostly, he remained a figure who was a Joe army builder. He might have a major role, or he might perish on any given mission. The figure was cool enough to warrant use. But, the damage from that original figure out the box prevented Thunder from ever attaining the characterization that made figures important to me.

The Thunder mold is extremely well done. The head is greatly detailed with a chiseled facial expression. The body has layers of armor and protective gear that driving a tank would necessitate. The figure is colored remarkably well. The hues of brown and green are a great combination that tie Thunder the line's roots, but give more character than was seen in the first wave of figures. The mold is full of painted details, from belt loops to the chest holster and buckles for his chest harness. Thunder is a richly textured figure that shows the level of detail Hasbro was willing to put into even vehicle drivers whose vehicles allowed them to be completely hidden from view. In the line's first few years, there was no real differentiation between a vehicle driver and carded figure except for the quantity of accessories. In time, that changed. But, Thunder is a great example of Hasbro's dedication to the line and their commitment to quality in those beginning waves of toys.

That quality serves Thunder well today. The figure is a staple of my vehicle driving corps and can be most often seen in the HAVOC or Mauler. The strong colors and great mold make for a figure that is perfect background fodder for dioramas or manning secondary stations on many classic vehicles. Thunder has the complexity that makes for a visually appealing member of a collection along with the simplicity that blends him perfectly together with figures from 1982 - 1984. His accessories give him personality that allows him to extend beyond the limited role of Slugger driver and into a more ubiquitous job as a general vehicle driver. This versatility makes the figure that much better and helps to expand the Joe ranks without straying too far from the norms of the time.

The 1984 Joes seem to be split into two camps.  The first group includes Thunder as well as Duke and Roadblock.  These three figures seem like they are just an extension of the 1983 line.  They use the standard helmet from 1982 and have scale and details that make them more akin to the 1983 releases.  (Which makes sense for Duke as he was released in late 1983 via the mail away offer.)  The rest of the carded '84 lineup (Spirit, Blowtorch, Mutt, etc.) seem like they benefited from the lessons learned in 1982 and 1983 and featured beefier sculpts with greater detail as well as accessories that were more custom tailored to their individual figures.  It could be that the first group was just a cost saving measure meant to squeeze a bit more life out of the earlier designs.  But, we do know that Hasbro was designing figures very early on (The 1983 Destro artwork is dated 1981.) and it's possible that Thunder was a holdover from an earlier design.  Whatever the story, it is an interesting view into the yearly transitions Joe made as the line evolved.

Thunder was given decent accessories.  While he included the standard 1982 helmet, Hasbro went a step further to give him new headgear.  In lieu of the played out visor, Thunder was equipped with menacing black "goggles" and earmuffs to shield his hearing from the Slugger's massive weapon's noise.  As if that weren't enough, he was also given a field monocular glass to target his quarry.  (To make up for the fact that my Thunder was broken out of the box, he actually included 2 monoculars.  Pure coincidence, but something I recall.)  All of this allowed Thunder to be more than many other vehicle drivers since he had accessories that matched his specialty. (It should be noted that Thunder's goggles are not the same as were included with Starduster. There are dealers who often confuse the two. Thunder's goggles only work when applied with the headgear as well. Though, in the old days of Joe, it was not uncommon to find a Thunder figure with Starduster's visor. Those were great finds!)

The Thunder mold was infrequently used.  After this figure's retail run was done in 1985, though, Thunder continued on as a mail away for most of the rest of the vintage line's run.  In 1988, Thunder's head and accessories were used on the Tiger Force Skystriker figure.  After that, the entire mold was repainted in green and released as Thunderwing the MOBAT driver in 1998 and again in 2000.  After that, the figure disappeared.  (Though his arms would make appearances from time to time on various figures.)  I would have liked to have seen Hasbro use the body mold with a Cobra Trooper or Hiss Driver head to make up a new Cobra vehicle driver later in the line.  But, thinking like that was gone by the time Hasbro could have done it.  But, Thunder exists in two high quality figures.  So, you can't say that mold was squandered.

Thunder figures aren't too hard to find.  But, mint and complete versions have gotten somewhat pricey in recent years.  You will see mint and complete with filecard figures sell upwards of $20 from time to time.  But, Thunder was available for a long time via mail aways.  And, he was one of the filler figures that was sent to collectors from Hasbro Canada in 1999 as a replacement for any other figure you ordered who was now out of stock.  So, there are lots of them out there. As a figure, Thunder is very high quality and he looks good as second fiddle in a variety of vehicles. That is versatility that is worth adding to any collection.

1998 Thunderwing

Back in 1998, Hasbro released a small assortment of figures that were the follow ups to the modestly successful 1997 15th Anniversary figures. Among these figures are several gems that are currently highly desired by collectors everywhere, some decent figures that are nice updates to old molds, a few new characters that collectors have warmed to, and a slew of forgettable vehicle drivers who really offered little to the overall line. While I first thought that Thunderwing might fall into the final category, my further examination of the figure has lead me to a different conclusion.

Thunderwing is a straight repaint of the Thunder figure from 1984. However, he is a totally different character who was introduced due to the copyright loss on the Thunder name. While this, in itself, is forgivable, the Thunderwing figure really lacks any defining characteristics that would elevate him beyond forgettable status. He is cast is a solid dark green color that, while aesthetically pleasing, makes him rather indistinct. The figure is also lacking one of Thunder's most dominating features; his red hair. Thunderwing's hair is black and just doesn't have any flair. As such, this figure has found himself as a non-descript armoured vehicle operator.

However, when I pulled this figure out to profile him, I realized that the paint scheme isn't that bad. The grey vest offsets the green very nicely and this figure showcases a very nice level of painted detail that was usually lacking on any figures released between 1997 and 2001. Truthfully, this figure reminds me more of an original run Joe than just about any other figure from the re-release era. He has brighter, sharper colors that actually complement each other and create a nice overall package. As I started to examine the figure, my appreciation for him grew and I'm starting to think that Thunderwing may become a more important part of my collection.

I've chosen to profile this figure for another reason than just to showcase him. He is simply a catalyst for something of which I think people need to be aware. You see, as Joe collecting has become more popular, the demands by online collectors for up to the minute information about upcoming releases or new product has grown exponentially. As such, a few avenues of "inside" information have opened up. While this is a good thing, collectors must be cautious of which information they believe and act upon. There are many people out there who's motives are less than scrupulous and who do not care if they dupe Joe fans into doing something they would not otherwise do. As such, I've found it wisest to know the source that information is coming from.

However, even that can be problematic. Earlier this year, I found out the five figures Funskool had planned for release this year. (Wild Weasel, Cross Country, Major Bludd, Grunt, Metal Head) However, when it came time for Grunt to appear, Funskool produced a Law figure instead. (If you don't have one of these guys, get one. He's a really nice figure!) The Grunt figure has disappeared with no word as to what happened to him. Did I receive bad information? Well, I don't know. However, I believe the source of the information to be reliable. As this info was obtained in nearly 6 months before the figure was planned for release, though, my personal feeling is that the Grunt figure was intended for release but was changed to Law. (The Law packaging and accessories cross sell about 6 different figures so the marketing opportunities were attractive.) However, company plans can change, especially when information is proffered forth so far removed from the actual figure release.

The end result of this is that people need to be cautious before they raise their expectations too high for a newly announced product. There will be lots of information coming out in the coming months. Most of it will be reliable. Some of it will be utter crap. Collectors just have to be careful that they don't get excited about the crap and know that the reliable information is what they should pay attention to.

As a recent release, loose Thunderwing figures haven't really penetrated the second hand collector market, yet. However, as most current collectors have had a an opportunity to pick him up, he is not highly desirable. As such, you can usually find him mint and complete for under $7 or $8. For a fig like this, I'd suggest you just spend the extra buck or two and get a nice, original Thunder. He is a better looking figure and is a lot easier to find. Beyond that, this fig may have a use as an updated Thunder, but I don't see the Thunderwing character ever becoming a fan favorite. All told, I'm kind of undecided on this figure at this point. He has some merits, but I still think that the original Thunder is better. However, if I did not have this guy in my collection already, I highly doubt I would spend any time or effort to track him down. He's okay to have, but not so nice that I would recommend him as a new acquisition to anyone's collection.

I'm set for the 1998 figures save for the Ace that came with the Conquest. If you have him available for trade, email me.