2000 Undertow - Around The Web

The A Real American Hero Collection debuted in 2000.  At the time, it was an amazing assortment of figures.  The lone Cobra army builder, though, was the oddly chosen Undertow.  At the time, he was an obscure figure that not many collectors even owned.  But, that made him desirable as the new releases showed collectors just how great the Undertow mold was.  And, the colors that were chosen carried over to the Lamprey and Sub Viper, too.  Here's the best of him from around the web.

2000 Undertow Profile

2000 Undertow by scarrviper

2000 Undertow by GIJoe_Rama

2000 Undertow at General's Joes Reborn

2000 Undertow by thedustinmccoy

2000 Undertow by relena_warcraft

2000 Undertow by elevatemetoahigherhumanform

Funskool Pepsodent Undertow by The Dragon Fortress

2000 Undertow by Relinquished1979

A Real American Hero Collection - 20 Years

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

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

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

2000 Undertow

2000 Dialtone

2000 Law and Order

2000 Chameleon

2000 Dusty

2000 Lamprey

2000 Wild Bill

2000 General Tomahawk

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

2002 Gift Set Exclusive Undertow

2002 was 16 years ago.  When Hasbro released the 2002 8 figure Gift Set pack, the 1986 series of figures were 16 years old.  Those '86 figures were considered vintage and were already commanding premium prices.  In 2018, though, the 2002 figures are still considered "modern" and most of them sell for a pittance.  That's the difference when a toy line only depends upon original, childhood adopters of a property to continue it's relevance. Hasbro's 2002 releases were a mixed bag.  At the time, they were trying to mix both JvC style figures along with vintage style figures in the retail offerings.  This lead to some great figure pairings as well as some clunker ideas.  One of the ideas that wasn't a great success was the 8 figure Gift Set that was given mostly to the BJ's Wholesaler line of stores.  (A few other chains were able to get some, but BJ's was the primary reseller.)  The set featured 8 vintage molds.  But, the character selection, accessory choices and packaging left many collectors dissatisfied.  Looking back, the set had some really nice repaints.  It had some really bad figures.  And, it had this all red version of Undertow.

Simply put, this figure makes no sense.  I can get behind a crimson diver as a general idea.  Hasbro, at the time, was hell bent on repainting every Cobra army builder in red.  And, while boring, it somewhat works to establish a cohesive army. But, this Undertow is just bright.  The red is so stark that there's nothing to break up the color in any way.  You just see this eye gouging red.  Under the water, the color might be more muted.  But, that doesn't help when the toy would be out of the water.  The grey highlights are too dull to really distract from the overall redness of the mold.  There's nothing to break the figure up and showcase the mold's details.  It's just a mass of color with no defining characteristics.

The biggest atrocity with this Undertow, though, was the figure's accessories.  Undertow did not include any dive gear...including his mask.  So, this figure is just meant for use on land.  If you can find some spare 2000 Undertow masks, they work great on this 2002 version.  But, those are not easy to find, either.  So, you're really left with a diver with no way to dive.  In addition to this omission, Undertow includes a massive Sound Attack chainsaw based on the 1985 Buzzer's weapon.  It's big and clunky and, again, makes no sense.  The figure also includes a black 1985 Snow Serpent backpack.  It's nice to get this pack in a color that can be used outside of the Arctic.  It doesn't work for Undertow.  But, it nice for use with the 2004 Cobra Troopers who lacked decent gear.  The final weapon is a 1992 Destro pistol.  I've never really liked this weapon. (Which is ironic as it was a huge draw when I first saw the 1992 Destro at retail.)  But, at least you can make a case that this weapon works with the figure.  Finding decent gear for this Undertow is nearly impossible.  And, the figure really isn't of the quality that justifies spending that kind of time and effort to outfit him correctly.

For me, this figure never really held any significance.  I had all the Undertows I wanted from the 2000 retail release.  I had no desire for a crimson version.  And, the lack of gear certainly doomed the figure.  As I was a completist at the time (more obsessively than I am, now) I wanted the figure and acquired him to check him off the list of figures I needed.  But, that was the end of my thoughts in regards to this Undertow.  The main thing this figure brought up was how the Undertow mold seemed a lot cooler than it is.  On the surface, the figure looks cool.  But, he's a poor man's Eel at best.  Even the Hydro Viper has substantially more personality than Undertow.  It's not that Undertow is bad.  It's just that other divers are better.

Looking back, though, this figure actually holds a lot of associated memories.  2002 was a pretty fun time to be a Joe fan.  The community was vibrant with many active communities: all with their own personality.  It was easy to find a place for any collector to fit in and be able to contribute.  Hasbro released a ton of toys to retail.  So, there was constant news about upcoming releases.  The community was engaged because there was a lot of content being created: be it by fans, licensees or Hasbro themselves.  The Joe convention turned into a mostly 3 3/4" affair in 2002.  In short, fandom came of age.  Must of the nonsense that would pop up in later years had yet to rear its head.  Collectors, generally, helped each other out.  Personally, I had a lot of friends from the collecting world.  It was, in my opinion, the best time to be a collector as vintage was plentiful and cheap and Hasbro was making some effort at getting products collectors wanted into their hands.  Even the divisiveness of the JvC sculpting style changed didn't have the long term detrimental effects that the switch to anniversary sculpts did in 2007.

The Undertow figure had a decent life.  He first appeared in 1990.  That figure is probably the best Undertow.  His grey, black and red coloring hearkens back to the 1985 Eel and works well in Cobra aquatic vehicles.  The 2000 version is also very nice.  The paint wipes can be problematic.  But, the blue coloring is a decent repaint of what was an obscure mold at the time.  During the 2000 release window,  the Undertow mold was changed.  Originally, the hose from the mask connected to a peg on the figure's chest.  It was then changed to a hole in the air tank.  It is not known why Hasbro did this.  But, all future releases of Undertow featured this mold change.  This 2002 release is far and away the worst.  The Undertow head was used for both the 2001 and 2002 Fast Blast Viper figures.  Then, in 2009, the club produced an Iron Grenadiers Undertow figure that was painted in the style of the 2005 Iron Grenadiers convention set.  It's an interesting figure and works well with his intended associates.  (It also has a red mask that might work with this 2002 version, but I've never attempted to see how close the colors actually are.)  But, the Iron Grenadiers lack any underwater vehicles so that Undertow version stands as a display type item more than a valued part of an army.

Upon his release in 2002, the Undertow got a bit expensive.  Collectors were bonkers over anything army builder.  And, as Undertow was somewhat difficult to army build (being part of an 8 figure set with only 2 army building figures), he commanded a premium for a while.  But, between 2003 and 2006, Hasbro released tons of better army builders.  And, large quantities of this figure became available from Asian sellers for a fraction of the cost of a local figure.  This dropped the Undertow's price to a couple of bucks or less for a figure.  Now, though, must of that surplus has dried up.  And, because the figure's accessories kind of sucked and so many of the figures were brought in from Asia, it's actually kind of a pain to find a mint and complete with filecard figure.  When you find them, though, you'll only pay around $6-$8.  That's still a lot for a figure that has terrible gear and isn't all that useful.  But, as a oddity of the era and a reminder of the army building craze that defined 2001 through 2004, this Undertow has a quaint charm.

Rarities - European Exclusive Firing Weapons Figures

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

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

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

Next up is the Night Creeper you see below.

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

Next up is Ambush.

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

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

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

Next, we have Bullhorn.

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

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

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

The 1991 Low Light follows the Dusty.

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

Up next is the Laser Viper.

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

Pathfinder shares a detail with Laser Viper:

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

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

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

Metal Head brings us back to exclusive gear.

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

The final four figures are all Cobra army builders.

Range Viper:

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

SAW Viper:

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

Desert Scorpion:

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

Undertow:

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

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

2000 Undertow

In May of 2000, news broke that Hasbro would be bringing Joe back to retail shelves.  Joedom was rife with rampant optimism and speculation of how spectacular the new releases could be. Soon thereafter, pictures of the figures surfaced.  While the choices weren't all universally classic characters, the anticipation of Joes being available at mass market again excited the collecting world to the point where some of the more obscure figure choices could be forgiven.  About six months after the new first broke, collectors began finding the new figures. Favorites emerged among the collecting community and many people purchased large quantities of the figures just because they could. Sadly, in under a year, though, the Joe rebirth had collapsed under poor figure choices, terrible case pack ratios and general retail apathy. This lead to the first generation of newly sculpted Joes in 2002. But, within the A Real American Hero Collection from 2000 - 2001, there were a few figure gems. Among them is the 2000 Undertow repaint.

Originally released in 1990, Undertow was the final Iron Grenadier aligned figure in the vintage line. Called Destro's Frogmen, the Undertow were divers who specialized in murky waters. While the figure was given to Destro, his colors did not match the typical palette of the Iron Grenadiers. This 2000 version, though, brings the character fully into the Cobra fold. Emblazoned with a red Cobra sigil on his forehead, there is no doubt that these Undertow belong to the world's most fearsome organization. The blue color is not a match for the traditional Cobra blue, but it is reminiscent enough that it works for the character's new alignment.

There are actually a couple of variants for this figure. The most noticeable is that the figure either has a protruding peg onto which the hose that connects to the airmask attaches. Or, there is a hole in the figure's chest into which the hose will plug. The variants with the pegs seem to have been the earliest releases and are a bit tougher to find than the version with the hole. In addition to this, all of the wave I figures featured paint wipes. This controversial application of paint in an effort to make the figures look "worn" was not well received by collectors. As such, you can find Wave I figures with substantial paints or minimal paint wipes. (The differences are subtle in Wave I releases, but more more pronounced in Wave II figures.) This is nice as it allows for a display of Undertow with just enough differences to add some realism. But, it's also a pain for OCD collectors to track down the variants and try to get a good sampling of the figure's various incarnations.

The blue base color for this figure isn't a match for the classic Cobra version of the color. But, it is a perfect match for the 2000 Lamprey and 2001 Sub Viper figures. Hasbro threw collectors an Easter Egg by making these three figures in colors that complement each other perfectly. So, while this figure isn't a match for the classic Eels. There is a full contingent of Cobra aquatic troopers that do match him. If you can find one of the blue Moray decks from the 2004 Convention, it is also a nice match. One of those hydrofoils outfitted with Lampreys, Sub Vipers and Undertows from this era is a great display piece and integrates well into even the most staunchly vintage collection.

The overall paints masks for this figure are convention quality. The A Real American Hero Collection figures did not skimp on the paint applications like the figures from 2002 onward did. Undertow features his lighter blue base, grey, red and dark blue colors. While this isn't the 7 colors Hasbro would use on some figures, the Undertow makes up for it in the applications. All of the figure's details are highlighted. He even features fingers on his hands that are a different grey color that offsets them from the blue wetsuit. The overall result is a blend of color that is not too busy and is realistic enough to use, especially for a diver figure.

Undertow's accessories are holdovers from the vintage figure. (Except for the molded Barracuda that did not make the transition into the modern line.) Sculptwise, they are fantastic. But, they are also a bit lacking. Undertow's mask is a malleable plastic that fits tightly over the figure's head. It is well detailed, though could stand from paint on the eyes like that seen on the vintage figure's mask. A hose attaches to the mask and will affix to the air tanks molded onto the figure's chest. This hose, though, can also be attached to the well detailed underwater sled included with the figure. This device is meant to allow for faster underwater travel. It also features a blue missile underneath it. The figure has the requisite flippers required for any diver. His only weapon other than the sled's missile, though, is a thin handled spear. The large, pointed head atop the thin body makes it look like the spear was intended to fit into some type of launcher. But, if that was the case, the launcher never saw the light of day and the spear leaves Undertow vastly unarmed when dealing with Torpedo or Shipwreck. The inclusion of even a single spear gun would have saved the figure. The upside is that silver Eel or Torpedo spearguns aren't terribly hard to find and can make all the difference when arming the Undertow.

In my collection, these Undertows took the place of Eels for a while. Their greater availability, Cobra coloring and modern, pliable plastic made them a great alternative to vintage Eels...especially if I wanted to take them out into the pool. However, this novelty eventually wore off and the Eels regained their rightful place as the pre-eminent Cobra underwater specialist. Still, this Undertow retained some use. Without the mask, the figure can be used as a land based trooper who arrived at a location via water. So, they became basic commandos who would swim up rivers or canals to attack locations with little warning. This remains the primary Undertow function to this day. It is a more limited role, but these guys are definitively inferior to the classic Eels. So, that leaves them with more limited functions since the Eels are the figures of choice for any true underwater missions.

The Undertow mold got a bit of use in the modern era. After this 2000 figure was released, Hasbro revisited it again in 2002 when the mold was colored red and included in the 8 figure Gift Set release. This figure had the makings of a solid repaint. But, the red was not crimson, it was bright, fire engine red. But, the most glaring issue was that the figure was not given Undertow accessories. With no air mask or flippers, the figure was rendered basically useless and has fallen on the scrap heap of repaint era failed figures. In 2006, Master Collector dusted off the mold and released an Undertow with his full complement of accessories in colors that matched the 2005 Convention Iron Grenadier set. It was a neat idea that pretty much fell flat. Despite low production numbers, the figure is generally ignored by collectors and can be had for next to nothing today. The 2002 release pretty much soured collectors on the Undertow mold and there really is no clamor for it to return. The 1990 and 2000 releases gave collectors two options for the mold that are both high quality and useful. There really isn't a need for more.

In late 2001, the market for this figure was ridiculous.  Collectors were in a frenzy for both the woodlands Firefly and this Undertow army builder.  In the fall of that year, I sold two MOC packs of Firefly/Undertow for $75 each!  Naturally, this was an unsustainable price.  Within a year, the cost had fallen.  But, loose, mint and complete with filecard Undertows still managed to fetch almost $20 for a few more years.  Slowly, though, the release of other, better army builders combined with the decline of the army building craze has rendered this figure basically moot.  Today, those same mint, complete figures can be had for between $4 and $7 with carded versions available for around $10.  Considering that TRU charged $7.99 to get the figure new in late 2000, that's not too bad a price over a decade later.

Personally, I still like this figure. Aside from the fact that he's a high quality repaint of a decent mold with his original accessories, I find an attachment to this figure because of his release date. I was an adult collector at the time, but still young enough that something like new Joes at retail was really exciting. I bought a large quantity of these figures because I had the money and it was a lot of fun to army build at retail. I still think this is the best version of the Undertow figure and he is a great addition to a Cobra army. For the price of acquisition, it's not unreasonable to still army build these figures today. When looking back at the repaint era, there are terrible figures, good figures and great figures. I'd classify this Undertow as between good and great. He has everything collectors tend to appreciate and isn't expensive. Those factors have left him a valued member of my collection and reinforce the notion that he's a worthwhile pick up for any collector.

1990 Undertow

Not since the Eel had Hasbro produced an enemy diver as cool as the Undertow. While this figure is fantastic, it maintains a low profile among modern Joe collectors. Since he is, though, one of the figures that will be re released any day now in the 2000 assortments (They must have lost the Eel molds. What a shame.), I felt compelled to showcase one of the few remaining 1990 enemy figures.

Undertow has many things going against him. 1st: he is, technically, in the Iron Grenadiers subset. 2nd: he doesn't come with any sort of gun. He has a spear thingy, but it's pretty lame. Had he only come with a spear gun like the Eel or the Hydro Viper, I think he would enjoy a little more popularity. 3rd: he followed in the footsteps of the fabulous Eel. Like most figures whose specialties mimicked those of the immortal class of '85's, Undertow is nice, but just can't measure up to the original. 4th: this guy was released in 1990. There were tons of other Cobras available at the same time. Most of them are held in the highest regard. Like the Range Viper, this guy never really had a chance to be the featured Cobras on the shelf. Finally, in 1990, no Joe divers were released. In fact, the only Joe diver on the shelf with this guy is the 1989 Deep Six. Hardly a formidable foe for a figure of this magnitude.

Undertows are a great figure. They have a fantastic mold and great color scheme. He is highly reminiscent of the success Hasbro had with the original Eels and again with the highly sought after Mission to Brazil Wet Suit. I usually give these guys the original Torpedo's spear guns. It looks very nice with them and allows for some difference in the weaponry of different ranks of divers. I really like the molded air tanks and detail of the figure's wetsuit. This guy just looks like he would cause his targets all sorts of trouble. Their only drawback is the hose that attaches the mask to the figure. It is a bit large and obtrusive. Something more along the lines of what they did with the 1994 Shipwreck would have been much nicer. Couple that with his lack of weapons, though, and this figure will, most likely, always languish in obscurity.

I think the reason we are seeing a 2000 Undertow is because the Eel molds are lost and collectors tend to be rather aloof when it comes to the very nice Hydro Viper or Eels Version 2. He is, though, an excellent choice. Should he come with new weapons that more mimic the Eels, I think this guy could be the class of the 2000 Joes. He has all the makings of a winner. It is both good and bad that he will be packaged with the new Firefly. Good because I like the Firefly and won't mind have about half a dozen of this set. Bad because everyone else feels the same way and these guys will be tougher to find in the numbers I want. Hopefully, though, Hasbro will produce more than enough of these, like they did the 1998 releases, and we all will be able to fill our army building needs.

Undertows aren't too tough to find. You can usually get complete ones for under $8. The mask, flippers, and spear, though, can be a hard to track down combination. Most of the Undertows you pick up in lots will be missing at least one of these accessories. While the figure is good, he needs at least the mask to really be useable. Unlike most of the 1990 figures, though, this guy isn't scarce and regularly appears for sale. He is an excellent companion to, or supplement for the oft mentioned Eel. I've picked up three of these guys and wanted more. After I see how much I like the new 2000 version, I'll let you know if I'm still going to be after additional Undertows. In any capacity, though, he is another lost 1990 figure that has gotten lots of use in my collection.

After I judge the 2000 Undertow, I'll let you know if I want more. Until then, who's your favorite enemy diver? Let me know.