1992 Road Pig (Super Sonic Fighters)

In my early years collecting Joe, I really didn’t like the later Dreadnoks all that much. For me, the Dreadnoks stopped at Buzzer, Ripper and Torch. So while I was collecting 25th figures and the tail end of the New-Sculpt era, Dreadnoks other than those three were something I didn’t put a lot of energy into acquiring. My opinions on a lot of topics haven’t changed that much over the years, but Dreadnoks are something I found myself increasingly open to, including zany figures like Sonic Fighters Road Pig.

Dreadnoks work for me a lot more now than they used to. At a time, I saw them as goofy, Mad Max crossed with the Garbage Pail Kids type characters. Figures like Road Pig, Zarana or Gnawgahyde seemed to me more like some kind of gross-out toy, much more on the cartoonish end rather than the extremely serious and at all times realistic military drama that was GI Joe. My thinking about Cobra has changed a lot over time though, and frankly, the Dreadnoks and how they operate seem a lot more fun and really-stuck now than it used to. In particular, I like them for acting as mercenaries that seem less elite or polished than your typical Cobra with a face. They also account for about half of all Cobra’s that aren’t army-builders, which is nice when Computer-Nerd Viper V3 gets boring.

In recent years, this has become my favorite version of Road Pig. The colors are harsh, and it’s not as detailed as the ‘88 release, but at the same time he sees some benefits from being a neon repaint. First, he really stands out; the obnoxious orange skin-tone coupled with the rest of his colors leaves him instantly noticeable in any environment. It also suits the character a good deal, as Road Pig’s supposed to be a gaudy, nasty looking guy, so the neon colors make sense and work well with him. I think the last thing I really like, is just how distinct the figure is next to his respective peers. A lot of the Dreadnoks often feel like retreads of similar designs and colors, but this one doesn’t fit with much besides maybe Ninja Force Zartan.

Of course, that subjective reasoning aside, this Road Pig is an UGLY figure, and there’s not much disputing that. The skin-tone is such a weird and unnatural color, that also has the misfortune of contrasting poorly with his orange hair. There’s also something that bothers me about the crossbow bolts on his leg, seeing as how he no longer includes the accessory that’s in reference to (although, you can fix that by giving him the parts from the Night Creeper Leader).

His accessories are something else that received an overhaul, and once again I don’t at all mind this. Included with Sonic Fighters Road Pig is an orange machine gun, an orange flamethrower, his original shoulder pad in orange, a backpack that makes lights and sounds, and a figure stand. So besides the shoulder pad, the original hammer, crossbow and arm-shield are gone, though personally I don’t see this as much of a loss. While these guns aren’t marvelous, they do the job decently and even look alright with a few other 90‘s figures that have orange colors. Similarly, ‘88 Road Pig’s parts never really worked well for me; the clip-on on parts in particular always felt cumbersome and fell off too much.

A complete ‘91 Road Pig should cap out around $25, but $20 is probably a more reasonable price. Typing that feels weird to me, as this used to be a figure nobody wanted. I only bought one for doing silly things with, until he grew on me some large amount. Of course, we’re also at the point where $20 really isn’t a lot of money, so in that regard I think it’s a nice figure and probably worth it.