2002 Snake Eyes (BJ’s 8-pack)

Posted on July 29, 2019 by mwnekoman

2002 Snake Eyes (BJ’s 8-pack)

There’s a lot of interesting classic sculpts I’d like to talk about on this blog. There’s a lot of interesting modern sculpts I’d consider talking about on this blog. Yet, every now and then I have to break things up and just talk about something weird and obscure, both of which accurately describe this Snake Eyes figure.

My first Snake Eyes figure was Ninja Force Snake Eyes, who was among my motley collection of 1994 figures that were truly mine as a kid. But, of characters I had back then Snake Eyes resonated with me the least. Personally I think to be a big Snake Eyes fan, you had to be someone into the comics in the early eighties, and not a GI Joe fan by other means.

BJ’s Snake Eyes is a repaint of 1989 Snake Eyes, who I already dislike quite a bit. It’s funny since overall I’m a big fan of ‘89 figures, but Snake Eyes firmly falls into the category of figures from that year that appeals to me less. The mold was reused one other time for a less interesting ARAHC repaint, and never for something that wasn’t black or Snake Eyes… Which seems like a bit of a waste.

With those things in mind, I have a lot against this figure just from the premise. However, if you want a version of this Snake Eyes sculpt, I personally think this is the best release. Compared to the other two releases, the paint applications are more detailed on this release. Besides the obvious gold and silver details, many of the mold’s pouches and grenades are painted a very subtle gray color. The sculpt also shows off it’s details better on this release which is cast in charcoal gray plastic as opposed black. The GI Joe logo on his leg is dumb and a bit distracting, but overall the figure is well decorated for one as a discount-chain’s store exclusive.

The parts with this figure are comically terrible, but he’s from the BJ’s eight-pack, so you might already have known that. Included is the three-sectioned staff from the original, Big Bear’s AK-88, and a “Sound Attack” uzi painted silver. Of all the parts from ‘89 Snake Eyes they could have kept, the three-sectioned staff is the one I liked the least. For a commando this weapon just feels silly and it’s cumbersome to pose too. The AK-88 is a totally random inclusion that Hasbro had a habit of just chucking around back then. Oddly, it seems like it would’ve been a better fit with the Firefly from the set, who included Beachhead’s gun. Maybe the parts were packed with the wrong figures?

Finding one of these can be tedious just by virtue of how many Snake Eyes figures there are to sort through, but this figure is common and easily acquired complete for $5. I forgot I owned this figure. I got him in a box of random Chinese surplus ages ago and forgot him in a corner of the house. Upon further inspection though, it’s a nice figure, just one that’s so unneeded he’s easy to overlook.

2002 Snake Eyes (BJ’s 8-pack) Links:

Yo Joe

Forgotten Figure (Unproduced Colors)

Generals Joes

1985 Frostbite

Posted on July 15, 2019 by mwnekoman

1985 Frostbite

Frostbite is a curious figure. As an arctic figure and a vehicle driver, he doesn’t seem to do much to draw any particular interest, but he’s got some elements I find valuable to point out. Or course, as a fan of polar climates I’m biassed, but I’ll admit to his boring parts too.

On the surface Frostbite’s not a particularly interesting figure. He’s a grinning guy who’s almost entirely white and is meant for sitting in the Snow Cat. However, I think that at least as a sculpt he might be more interesting than the single carded Snow Job and Iceberg who surround his release. There’s a lot of detailed centered around his torso with his pistol holster, fur collar and black undershirt. Little things like the shirt stand out a lot to me, and there’s a pretty comparable amount of paint on him to Snow Job, which is good for a vehicle driver.

But besides just liking to use him I don’t have much to say about him other than that. He’s a minor figure and mainly an accessory to his vehicle. The quality of him is good and what you’d expect from an ‘85 release. For me personally, he’s really just something I sought out early in my collection for being an arctic specialist.

It’s sort of interesting Hasbro thought he was an worthy character of bringing back twice. One of those times was just for a Tiger Force repaint, but the second time was as a single carded figure for Battle Corps. Those are figures I’ll save for another post, but his recurrence in ARAH is a curiosity I’ve yet to figure out.

When I decided to write about this figure, his one accessory was my main motivation. It’s an M16 with a night vision scope. I think a lot of collectors don’t recognize that optic immediately, but it’s a really cool and curious detail for the designers to equip him with. It adds some nice flair to Frostbite, partially implying he might get selected for night-ops a lot. I also find it a great weapon to distribute to other Joes like Night Force members and Lowlight, since the scope really lends itself to their specialties.

V1 Frostbite’s are about as cheap as a figure gets. Typically they run $5 to $8 complete, but if you look you can find them for less than that, commonly. Between his gun and his usefulness as custom fodder, I’ve found that he’s a figure that’s nice to pick up some extras of from time to time.

Frostbite snowcat polar battle bear PBB Iceberg gi joe cobra arah hasbro vintage 1985 version 1

1985 Frostbite Links:

Yo Joe

3D Joes

1984 Recondo

Posted on July 1, 2019 by mwnekoman

1984 Recondo

In the overall story of GI Joe, Recondo seems pretty unimportant. I can’t remember a major moment in the cartoon or in the comics that had a lot to do with him, but despite that his figure is still one of my favorites.

I think a large part of Recondo’s appeal is that he’s a fun and broadly usable figure. As a Jungle Trooper, his area of expertise is fun and relatable to most who would acquire him as kids or adults, and he isn’t alienated from the rest of the cast in a way like Snowjob. It’s a completely different motif, but the underlying charm is quite similar to Footloose.

Growing up I had almost no attachment to the character. The most obvious reason for this is because he had no more figures past the ‘88 Tiger Force repaint. But another reason could be because he didn’t get much screen time in Sunbow. Overall, he received less screen time than characters like Cross-Country and Wild Bill (thanks to Half the Battle for a convenient chart showing this) and only had a major role in about two episodes. So I didn’t ever have much interest in him until I got into collecting vintage more, and I still forget him a lot.

Recondo has a few small variants out there, which is an interesting obscurity to look out for. There’s at least four color variants on the paint used for his camouflage and watch. The hue of the paint ranges from olive to a vibrant green, and the thickness of the stripes can vary as well. Nothing major, but something to look out for should you ever acquire an extra from a lot.

His parts are few, but pretty cool regardless. He comes with a rucksack and a M14E2X, which is basically an M14E2. The gun has a nice wrap sculpted on to it for some added detail and it’s a pretty unique look, especially for a 1984 figure. Meanwhile the backpack features a nicely sculpted handle that can even be held by the figure, which is a nice touch.

Mint complete Recondos should run around $10, which isn’t very much for a cool figure that’s this old now (35 years!). With that said, his camo can be prone to wear and it’s quite common he’s erroneously paired with his Accessory Pack riffle and listed as complete, so these things can complicate finding a decent example.