The Zeroes - Mark IX

When I started to write this Zeroes post, I thought I must have made an error.  Last year was Mark VIII...meaning this would be the 9th year I posted something like this.  There was simply no way that could be true.  But, I didn't skip any numbers and this really is the 9th year I've looked at the site's least popular posts.  

The past year has been interesting.  I get lots of daily traffic.  But, individual posts don't get nearly the attention they used to.  Before, 600 or more hits were common within a few days of a new post going up.  Now, it's well under 200.  Despite that, overall site traffic is up.  The massive archive on a currently active blog seems to help drive search results.  And, in turn, funnel some visitors to the site.  

The upside, though, is that engagement is higher.  Posts tend to get more comments.  I'd rather have a smaller, more engaged audience than a broader one who is passe.  I love seeing discussions and the points made in the comments.  (I appreciate the corrections, too.)  So, I'll take that over some fire and forget moment on a crappy social media site.

With no further adieu, here's the worsts performing new posts of the past year:

Cobra Trooper Driver (Red Laser Army) - 284 Views

The days of Red Laser Army profiles getting big views has passed.  A few years ago, they were surefire hits.  But, as it's been 7 years since he last produced figures, the popularity of his releases has faded into memory.  You rarely see the Red Laser figures used in photos.  And, those who do appear tend to be the same 5 or 6 figures.  And, this Cobra Driver isn't among them.  Which is too bad since this is a decent release.  It doesn't do all that much.  But, it doesn't have to.  You now have a driver that looks like every custom Cobra Driver that was kitbashed and painted up back in the 1990's.  But, that's OK.  This guy was supposed to fill a niche.  And, he does that admirably.

Grey Night Viper (Black Major) - 255 Views

People like the Night Viper.  And, generally, they also like Black Major figures.  But, this one was an older figure.  And, for many long time collectors, these types of throwbacks can be passe.  This is a great color scheme for the Night Viper  mold, though.  And, it deserved a better fate.

1984 Copperhead - 249 Views

This was my second look at Copperhead, the first being more than 20 years ago.  The figure has held up quite well.  But, he didn't seem to capture anyone's attention.  Copperhead appears to retain about the same level of popularity that he's always had.  Which is to say that people appreciate him.  But, they're not going out of their way to make him their favorite.

1982 RAM - 229 Views

Usually, 1982 items do fairly well.  The RAM did not, though.  Part of that may have been the time of year.  For an iconic part of the line, the RAM didn't garner much attention.  Maybe it will take on more interest the 2nd time around.

Gatilho - Python Patrol Airborne - 213 Views

I'd been trying to write an updated Gatilho profile for about 7 years.  I had to proofread it a bunch of times to make sure I got all the historical math correct as I'd talk about the original profile like it was 15 years old instead of 20.  Regardless, the days of figures like Gatilho making a splash seem to be gone.  The figure is common enough that many collectors own it.  And, the character has appeared a few times in other sculpting styles.  So, he's not as unique as he once was.  

G.I. Joe #36 - 201 Views

With my figure reserves running low, the vintage comics are an area I'll expand into more and more.  They are a treasure trove of alternate looks for many characters.  And, re-reading them is proving to be a soothsaying exercise due to Hama's writing.  As for this issue, it didn't do great numbers.  But, I still have fond memories of it.  So, comics will be a thing you see more in the next 12 months.

So, that wraps up last year's duds.  This year's Rarities Month did pretty well.  I was happy with the content.  I've got some profiles mostly ready to round out the summer.  But, I still haven't acquired any new Joe figures in over 18 months.  I don't really miss it, to be honest.  And, as I find more and more figures starting to discolor, my desire to expand my vintage collection is really waning every day.  I'm finding more interest in ephemera and looking at oddball coincidences I can find in the line.  Those are fun to work out.  Hopefully,  I'll get the photos for them before my collection goes back into storage...again.  Hopefully, that will be settled by the fall and I'll be able to get some photos before all the leaves are gone.

Until then, continue stopping by to check out new features, photos and profiles.

The Zeroes - Mark VIII

So, I completely forgot about the zeroes in 2023.  Not that it really matters.  But, the Zeroes posts used to do fairly good numbers.  The purpose of this is to showcase the poorest performing posts of the last year.  As always, some make sense as the items are obscure or not interesting.  But, in other cases, the subject seemed like it would do OK.  But, for some reason, it didn't.

Action Force Stalker - Around The Web

This is one of those cases where a figure that should be popular just didn't do numbers.  I suspect that Snake Eyes repaints have gotten blase.  

1992 Dice - Random Photos

Dice is a cool figure.  His ninja action limits him, though.  Regardless, no one really cared about some random photos of this figure.

1994 Viper (Made in Indonesia) 

This was a disappointment.  The 1994 Viper is a figure I really enjoy.  And, these days, he is relatively popular.  At least, so I thought.  But, his profile did dismal numbers and was quickly brushed to the ash-heap of this site's archives.

2001 Destro

No real surprise here.  The 1992 Destro isn't that popular a figure.  And, this 2001 repaint is barely different.  So, no one really cared about it.

1994 Beach Head 

Another one that makes sense.  The 1993 Beach Head is generally criticized, roundly.  And, adding a splash of neon yellow to his paint job doesn't make him any more popular, even if the figure is probably a little better.

1985 Bazooka - Around The Web

Around the Web features don't tend to do great numbers.  But, this Bazooka was greeted with absolute silence.  It's an obscure figure that is more joke fodder than anything.  

Black Major Tank Commander

Usually, factory custom figures perform very well.  But, this Tank Commander didn't get a lot of interest.  Upon its release, this figure was pretty ignored.  And, it was cheap for many years.  So, that translated to a flaming dud.

So, that wraps up a year's worth of duds.  Speaking of which, Rarities Month this year wasn't spectacular.  But, it had some volume.  I'm at a point where it's getting harder to find oddities and rare items that aren't part of the secret cabal.  I have some items for next year.  And, I have 11 months to find some more.  

Until then, keep coming by for more items.  I'll have more profiles as the year winds down.  I just haven't had much motivation this year.  I haven't acquired any Joes in almost 6 months.  And, I don't really feel compelled to change that: despite some really nice factory customs coming out.  I need to pull the trigger on a Baroness or two and also gear up for some of the Low-Light/Beach Head/Shockwave colorways.  Until then, though, I'll have a smattering of content.  I've found that going back and re-examining some of the figures from the earliest days of the site has lead to some inspiration.  So, I might be doing more of that as 2024 winds down.

Thanks for stopping by and leaving your thoughts.

The Zeroes - Mark VII

Another Rarities Month is in the books.  It was a lot of fun and tons of people stopped by to check out the various posts.  For this Fourth of July weekend, I'll do another tradition with the list of the "Zeroes".  These were the 10 least engaged posts in the past year.  Some make sense.  Some are surprises.  But, overall, you'll see the posts in which people just didn't have much interest.

Overall, post engagement is falling across the board.  Just a couple of years ago, a profile with under 600 page views was an under-performer.  Now, if one gets close to 300, it's a top 10 post for the year.  That's a big change in a couple of years.  My plan of going year by year from 1982 through 1994 didn't work out all that well.  It was too limiting and also didn't really tell a linear story.  So, I won't be doing that again.

There's some themes in these low performers.  Turns out that Funskool figures really aren't that popular.  I find that surprising considering how expensive these common figures have become.  But, they don't perform all that well.  Asa Negra being in the bottom is also a surprise.  Factory Customs usually are among the most viewed posts.  But, Asa Negra didn't resonate.  The biggest surprise is the 1994 Star Brigade Roadblock.  Usually, any content on that figure tops the charts.  But, this one was a dud.  Not sure why.  But, I expected him to do better.

Without further ado, here are the bottom 10 performing posts for the past year.

Funskool Ripper

While Dreadnoks are "supposed" to be popular, they never live up to the hype.  From the failure of the 2004 convention set through modern interpretations, Dreadnoks never really perform like some people think they should.

2005 Comic Pack Stalker 

The Comic Pack figures have gone from custom fodder to highly desired collectible.  It's insane to see some of the prices that poorly conceived and common figures can command today.  But, this Stalker wasn't one of them.  And, few people bothered to read about him.

1993 Outback 

No real surprise here.  While I really like this figure as Outback, I'm in the minority on that point.  Most collectors aren't big on this figure being Outback.

1983 Zap Random Photos

This is somewhat of a surprise.  Usually, original 13 figures perform well.  And, Zap has become one of the more popular figures from that line.  But, this post on Zap flopped.

Asa Negra - Red Laser Army

Usually, Red Laser figures get a lot of views.  But, Asa Negra didn't pull them in.  Not sure why as he's a neat design and works well with vintage Cobras.

1990 Sonic Fighter Dialtone

Dialtone is one of my favorite molds.  But, he's not popular and is never a big performer.  So, his most obscure release surely wouldn't perform well.

Funskool BBQ Around the Web

Funskool BBQ is a crazy looking figure.  But, his specialty allows for his colors to make sense.  It's too bad this one didn't do better as I think this figure deserves more publicity.

G.I. Joe #27

It's been a long time since I profiled a comic.  And, this issue was the first G.I. Joe comic I ever bought.  But, turns out comic reviews aren't something people were interested in.

Funskool Spearhead

This was a modest surprise.  Since this figure is very close to a Night Force version, I thought it would do better.  But, it seems that Spearhead isn't an overly popular character.

1994 Star Brigade Roadblock 

This was a surprise to see.  Usually, 1994 Star Brigade does pretty well.  And, this Roadblock is now a $100 figure.  So, you'd think he was popular.  Turns out, he wasn't.

For the 2nd half of 2022 I'll be back to profiles.  I may slow down a bit as I'm running out of figures and vehicles to write about.  I have over 420 drafts, though.  Most are Around the Web and some Random Photos of the Day posts.  So, those will be coming fast and furious through the end of the year.  The next six months are going to be very interesting.  We're seeing some signs that prices are starting to fall.  Will that continue?  Or, will there be a post summer surge?  I'm betting on the former.  But, with Hasbro starting to pump out figures, factory customs, tons of o-ring Kickstarters and catching up on what you might have missed, there's a lot to keep you busy and engaged with the Joe community for the rest of 2022.

The Zeros - Mark VI

Once again, for the July 4th holiday, I present the Zeros.  These are the least popular posts on the site in the past year.  Some make senses.  Others surprise me.  I have a theory that newer collectors are less interested in obscure ephemera of the line and, instead, are more likely to engage with a post about a toy they had has as kids.  That's far different from where the hobby was just two or three years ago.  But, you'll see that a lot of the under-performing subjects are collector based items rather than nostalgic toys.

Whatever the reasons, though, these were the worst performing posts of the past year.  So, take this long holiday weekend and catch up on some stuff you might have missed. 

1. Plastirama SOS (Doc)

This one is a disappointment.  It's the worst performing new profile I've written since 2015.  I thought an obscure repaint that's an upgrade over a popular American character would have fared better.  But, this was a complete dud across all platforms.  Too bad.  As, it's an amazing figure.

2. Killer Moth - Spinmaster Batman

This one makes sense.  This is a G.I. Joe blog and an entry about Batman figures is heavily out of place.  But, Killer Moth is one of the highlights of 2020 and is a figure well worth owning.  Plus, the Spinmaster Batman line is awesome and deserves to run for a decade or more.

3. 1982 MMS

This one surprised me.  Hawk, the figure from this set, did really well a few months later.  But, few people were interested in this origin year toy.  It's not a really exciting toy and works better as diorama filler.  But, it's still classic that every collector recognizes.

4. 1984 Chameleon

Another stunner.  I would have thought that Zartan's favorite vehicle would have gotten some good attention.  Any Zartan figure does good numbers.  But, the Chameleon was an absolute dud in terms of engagement.

5. Funskool Cutter

Cutter isn't a hugely popular character or figure.  The 1992 mold is awesome.  But, it doesn't get a lot of attention.  The Funskool figure is obscure.  So, this profile not getting attention makes sense.

6. 2001 Double Blast

Double Blast is another expected member of this list.  Really, this is a Roadblock repaint and the new character isn't one that any cares about.  So, low numbers make sense.

7. 1984 Thin Green Stripe Recondo

Recondo is a very popular character.  And, in the old days, collectors loved variants.  But, this combo of the two didn't do very well.  I can't really explain why.  Recondo seems popular all over the place.  But, some other Recondo content didn't so hot, either.  So, maybe he's not really that well liked?

8. 1991 Super Sonic Fighters Rock and Roll

I was super disappointed in this one.  I think this figure is so cool and has tons of potential.  I loved the pictures I got for him, too.  But, no one else did.  I thought this guy would find a nice audience due to his obscurity for a major character and his distinct visuals.  He didn't.  Collectors seem to love neon figures these days...except for this Rock and Roll.

9. 2002 Gift Set Stormshadow

Stormshadow is popular.  But, this red version from 2002 is pretty low on the list in terms of collector interest.  It's not a popular mold for the character.  And, this o-ring retro fitted version retains a lot of the limitations of the original.  So, he's an unsurprising addition to this list.

10. Funskool Croc Master

This one isn't too much of a shocker.  Croc Master tends to be middle of the road in terms of popularity.  Funskool's version is pretty strong but also fairly obscure.  I was also offline for a while prior to publishing this so overall site engagement was lower during that time.

Another 1/2 year down.  The Joe world has been stupid in 2021.  We'll see how the year ends.  I'm starting to see some signs that we might come out of this crazy market.  Supply is up a bit and prices of non-rare items are starting to soften.  So, those are all good signs that this hobby is returning to normal.  We'll see how that holds up in coming months, though.  

In the meantime, thanks for stopping by and supporting the site.  Lots of good stuff to come in the second half of the year.  

The Zeros - Mark V

Once again, for your 4th of July boredom, I present the Zeros.  These are the least popular posts of the past year.  I see a bit of a theme this year.  And, seeing what's really popular kind of reinforces my theory.  Obscure releases and foreign figures seem to be waning a bit in popularity.  While simultaneously, stuff that's relatively common seems to get big traffic.  I suspect it's a function of the influx of new collectors who are drastically overpaying for the common stuff they remember from childhood.  They like stuff they're familiar with, but aren't yet going into the depths that Joe collecting offers.  We'll see how that trend holds up through the the rest of the year.

Without further ado, here are the least popular posts from the past 12 months:

Tocha - Brazilian Blowtorch

Everyone loves Blowtorch.  Estrela figures from Brazil tend to be very popular.  Put them together and you get a dud of a profile that no one cared about.  I think this figure is cool.  But, he's also pretty much indistinguishable from the US release.  

2002 Convention Exclusive Crimson Viper

A somewhat obscure and hard to find army builder who's repainted in a classic way?  Check.  A profile ignored?  Check.  Not sure why no one liked this write up.  But, it's overall engagement was very low.  Generally, classic Cobra army builders do well, regardless of the color scheme.  But, this high quality figure flew under the radar.

Rarities - Unproduced Yellow Gloves Steeler

As unproduced figs go, this one is pretty lame.  The yellow gloves make no sense.  And, the 2004 figure of Steeler is generally unloved, too.  So, I get this guy's low numbers.

1992 Eco Warriors BBQ

Neon 1990's figures have finally found their popularity in recent years.  The releases from this time have gotten harder to find, substantially more expensive and appear far more frequently in fan created content.  Despite that, this Eco Warriors BBQ figure was ignored.  Few people stopped by to read about him.  I guess not all brightly colored 1990's figs can be popular at the same time.

Funskool Buzzer

Dreadnoks tend to be popular.  And, Buzzer is probably the best done of the crew.  But, this Funskool repaint didn't garner any attention at all.  In some ways, early Dreadnoks have become passe.  And, common Funskool figures don't get much love these days.  So, this profile amounted to a big dud.

Looking ahead to the rest of 2020, I have a lot more in store.  

The Zeros - Mark IV

Each year, I've looked back at underappreciated posts on this site.  2018 was a weird year in that traffic was constant for the first 6 months before it almost doubled over the summer.  Then, in the fourth quarter, it plummeted.  Supposedly, Google changed their algorithm around this time due to the demise of Google+ and it greatly affected the number of people who visited the site.  Things seem to have normalized, now.  But, the traffic patterns are interesting, nonetheless.

Below are the least popular posts of 2018 that I think deserve more love:

Mexican Lobotomaxx

Historically, foreign exclusive figures have been among the most popular profiles on my site.  Add in the fact that this was a monster whose write up was released on Halloween and you have a recipe for...failure?  Barely 200 people read this profile of a rather hard to find figure.  But, the fact that Lobotomaxx is an unpopular alien and his Mexican variant is barely a shading difference and you get a figure that didn't grab people's attention.

Rarities - Unproduced 2004 Desert Patrol Figures (Convention Prototypes)

Even Rarities month produces a dud every now and then.  When these figures were show at the 2004 Convention, the set looked like it wasn't great, but had some promise.  The final production figures, though, didn't hold up.  The excellent Ambush paint job you see here never saw the light of day and the resulting retail set faded into obscurity...just like this post.

1993 Flak Viper

Few collectors share my passion for neon 1990's army builders.  In 2017 and 2018, this figure fascinated me and I slowly built a little army of them.  Yet, the profile was super unpopular despite it being one of my personal favorites for the year.

2001 Pathfinder

With this guy, I get it.  It's a boring repaint of a character that no one remembers.  At least the original figure was distinctive.  This 2001 version was lost in the sea of olive drab banality that defined 2001.

2005 Iron Anvil

While these figures seem to be well like by collectors, they remain super cheap for convention army builders.  The profile got little attention: which is unfortunate for such a great mold that was finally painted in a proper manner.

So far, 2019 has been pretty solid.  We'll see what the rest of the year brings.  We should be in about the final 6 months of the Joe renaissance that's driven up prices.  That should take us into 2020.  If Hasbro gets the Snake Eyes movie going, that could change the landscape again: either for better or for worse.  But, I'll keep plugging along and hope you'll come along, too.  Thanks for the great year!

The Zeros - Mark III

After Rarities Month, I need to catch my breath a bit.  A huge thanks to all of you who stopped by and checked out the posts.  It was my highest traffic month, ever!  Three posts from this year are now the three most viewed in the site's history.  I'm already working on more Rarities for 2019.  But, thank you for all your interest and support.

So, to rest a bit, I've gone though the site to find really unpopular posts.  Usually, I can predict which posts are going to be popular.  But, I'm not always right.  There are several profiles over the history of the site that have very few hits.  I can find many reasons why that might be.  But, if you have a day off today, you can read some of the neglected classics:

Repaints of Popular Figures:

1986 Mission to Brazil Wet Suit

1989 Night Force Muskrat

1998 Firefly

2002 BAT

2004 Desert Patrol Snake Eyes

Obscure Characters That Are Good Figures:

1990 Stretcher

1994 Action Sailor

1987 Gyro Viper

2001 Laser Viper

Popular Figures Whose Negligence I Can Not Explain:

1985 Shipwreck

1997 Snake Eyes

1985 Quick Kick

I'll be back to my regular update schedule next week!

The Zeros - Mark II

There's over 800 profiles on the site.  Some are a lot more popular than others.  So, if you're stuck inside over the holiday due to the heat, here's some of the least popular posts on the site.  Give them a little love.

The Unexplained:

These figures should be relatively popular as they are collector favorites.  But, they don't see much attention.

1984 Recondo

1986 Mainframe

1983 Torpedo

1992 DEF Shockwave

1986 Wet Suit

Obscure Releases:

These are often convention figures or figures that have odd names that are hard to search.  You also see lots of modern takes on classic army builders in here.

2004 Crimson Guard

1988 Ghostrider

2008 Headhunter Guard

Brazilian Tiro Certo

2004 Urban Assault Night Creeper

2003 Tele Viper

2004 Night Force Tunnel Rat

2004 Cobra Squad Leader

Boring Figures:

These are figures that just aren't popular or they are the left behind construction of the New Sculpt era.

1989 Countdown

1990 Sky Patro Sky Dive

2003 Blackout

Eco Warriors Clean Sweep

1991 Grunt

1987 Gyro Viper

1991 General Hawk

The Zeros

If you're bored this holiday and want to kill some time, I present the zeros.  These are all older profiles that have not had any page views since I relaunched the site.  It's a fun way to look back and also waste some time on your day off.

1997 Alley Viper

2003 Python Patrol Rock Viper

2000 Law and Order

1989 Backblast

1991 Sludge Viper

1997 Scarlett

2002 Sgt. Stalker

1990 Metal Head

2003 Funskool Grunt

1992 Toxo Zombie

1986 Motor Viper

Silver Pads Grand Slam

1988 Hit and Run