Tag Archives: Destro

1997 Destro

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1997 Destro

At one point in life, I had two Destro toys I found superior to most others: ‘92 Destro and ‘97 Destro. With these, I didn’t feel like I needed any other o-ring Destros, until I changed my mind and decided ‘83 was the best. For the most part, I still like the ‘83 figure more, but the V3 sculpt has it’s charms, and the ‘97 repaint is a great representation of it.

I often forget that this figure is the retail-release version of the infamous Pimp Daddy Destro. It’s funny really, that that figure gets so much press, either just for it’s sheer absurdity or for the fact that it’s rare, while this one remains an obscurity like virtually every other repaint from the ‘97 – ‘98 line. That’s a gimmicky part of collecting I’ve never seen the appeal of, but then again, I’m glad that not everyone likes everything as much as I do, or GI Joes would be more expensive than they already are.

Destro V3, which this figure is a repaint of, features a very bulky sculpt. At a glance it looks quite a lot like Destro’s original design, but it’s fairly different in a few ways. He’s picked up some shoulder-pads, some bulky shin-guards, some leggings more reminiscent of the Iron Grenadiers figure. Still, most of the important details like his little medallion remain the same (well, it’s a different necklace now, but it’s there), which is interesting given that not so many ARAH redesigns kept much from figure to figure.

I quit liking ‘92 Destro quite as much once I realized how poorly his proportions match up with anything. His tiny head in particular tends to bother me, though the massive muscle-guy-90‘s shoulders limit him a bit too. At one point this bothered me an awful lot, but I realize that most of these issues just seem more apparent because of the transition in sculpting styles. Next to ‘84 Cobra Commander, he looks silly and rather out of place; next to ‘94 Major Bludd, he looks pretty decent. It’s a very exaggerated looking figure, but he has a home among his contemporaries.

Of course, this post is about the ‘97 repaint. He came in the “Cobra Command Team” set with Baroness and a blue battle-armor Cobra Commander. As the story goes, originally him and Cobra Commander were going to be the V1 molds, but like with so many others from this point, the molds were gone. From what I can see of the prototype, the V1 Destro repaint they were planning was a lot more boring than this one, so I guess I’m glad it never happened in that way.

This is a nice set of colors for Destro and the V3 mold with it’s added details does really well with it. The heavy use of burgundy with black, red and silver for details is eye-catching, and also a fairly inventive new color-scheme that manages to look appropriate for the character while also seeming totally new. For an added bonus, they chromed his head, which I think makes him look a lot more interesting overall than if it were just silver paint.

Like ‘92 Destro, he comes with a big, bulky pistol, a disk-launcher (with three disks) and a stand. Some of those disk-launchers are black, some are pink. As a kid I really liked his pistol, just for the way it looked. As far as looks go, it is fairly decent, but it’s hard to ignore how badly scaled it is when considering the fact that it’s a handgun. Of course, I can’t place what kind of gun it is exactly, and while I think it’s probably an original design, some of those 90‘s Joe guns were based on some very obscure firearms, so maybe it’s better than I think. The disk launcher is alright for a missile launcher, it’s fairly fun since it’s a stationary item. Oddly there’s no spring in this one, I think that’s universal on this release, but I’ve never been sure since no one says much about it.

Most of the ‘97 Destro’s I see loose are missing the launcher, which I’d guess is because most of the adults that bought these probably tossed that aside while contemplating the real and present danger of the Y2K bug. Without it, you can get a nice example for around $7, which is nice. Carded Cobra Command Team sets seem like they’re coming down in price, so with a little waiting you might get one of those for around $35.

gi joe 1997 pimp daddy destro viper tru toys r us
gi joe 1997 pimp daddy destro viper tru toys r us

1997 Destro Links:

Forgotten Figures

Half the Battle

Destro V1, 1983

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When I first got into completing my vintage ARAH collection in the late 2000‘s, many of my early acquisitions were vehicle drivers such as the Lampreys and other oddballs like Techno Vipers, partly because these figures were cheap and helped me grow my fledgling Cobra army. I did have some characters I sought in high priority for one reason or another, and one of said characters was V1 Destro.

GI Joe vintage action figure action force Destro Iron Grenadiers ARAH Hasbro 1983 version one

As a kid, I had V3, V4, and V5 who were all frequent players in my childhood battles. In fact, Destro would more often be leading Cobra than Cobra Commander, as I preferred any villain with a robotic appearance and Destro fit that bill nicely (especially his Armor Tech toy). I also really enjoyed his appearances in the Sunbow cartoon, so he was essentially my favorite Cobra in my early days.

As such, his V1 figure was one of the first I set out to acquire after V1 Major Bludd. The ones from my childhood were nice, but the appeal quickly wore off of the Armor Tech figure, and I was never fond of the small head on the V3 mold. Most later Destros were derived from that mold as well, leaving me with only the V2 Iron Grenadier figure and this one as palatable alternatives.

Destro’s design is fairly eccentric with his open-chested jacket and medallion he wears, but the absurdities of his appearance are something I’m somewhat numb to. Compared to other early Cobras like the Cobra Troopers and Major Bludd, this is a pretty silly look for a character. But, it works for Destro and there’s no other design for the character I prefer over it. It’s odd, but when you look at him as being an 80‘s comic book antagonist, he’s far from out of place.

There are some weaker areas in V1 Destro’s sculpt. Namely, I feel as though the chest and waist details are a little on the soft side, even when compared to his contemporaries. The best element of the figure is by far his head. It’s one of the few Destro toys that wears an appropriately sized mask, and the use of chrome on it made for a very unique figure.

For accessories, he included a laser pistol, and a backpack/ gun case. I still only own the accessory pack version of his pistol, but I really dig the look of it. Not a lot of figures came with pistols in the early part of the line, so it seems to carry a sort of distinction that denotes the importance of a character. The backpack opens up and reveals a disassembled M16 in storage, a very nice detail that added a little more play value to the part, though personally I’ve always thought he looks a little strange wearing it.

Complete Destro’s range from from $20 to $30 dollars, but it’s more common you see them run towards the later. If you sacrifice the pistol, the figure can be had more easily for about $8 to $10. If you go the cheaper route and don’t care about his pistol, there’s a dark blue accessory pack version that makes a decent stand-in.

GI Joe vintage action figure action force Destro Iron Grenadiers ARAH Hasbro 1983 version one GI Joe vintage action figure action force Destro Iron Grenadiers ARAH Hasbro 1983 version one

Destro V1, 1983 Links:

Destro by RTG at ARAH Gallery

Yo Joe

Forgotten Figures

3D Joes

When It Was Cool

Destro Diorama by Outrider

Destro Diorama by Scarrviper

Destro Diorama by Xander

Destro

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Destro Iron Grenadiers POC 30th Anniversary Pursuit of Cobra 50th GI Joe CobraDestro personally sees to the delivery of new tech and weapons for Cobra.

This 50th Anniversary Destro figure is quite nice. I recall fans being disappointed by the construction of his knees or  some such, but generally speaking this is a fantastic figure. The sculpting is awesome, he’s made mostly out of new tooling, and most of all, he LOOKS like Destro. I really dig his briefcase and modular riffle too.