SCC Figure Spotlight - RECONDO (Versions 1 and 2)
JUNGLE TROOPER - RECONDO (Version 1)
If the Joes are sending their boys deep into the jungle to accomplish some objective, Recondo is a guy you want on that mission! Many Joes are versatile and can handle various environments, but Recondo understands the depths of this particular environment more than many of his teammates.
Recondo is wearing a bush hat, tan shirt and camouflage pants. He is dressed perfectly for his specialty as his color scheme of tan and olive drab will keep him well concealed in the jungle. He even has a machette molded onto his leg so you can imagine him hacking through the thick branches and vines.
Recondo came with two accessories. He came with a rifle which appears to have a cloth wrapping molded onto it. He also has a backpack with a handle sculpted onto it. This is a nice touch where he can carry it by hand or on his back. Both accessories were in a nice olive drab color, perfect for his specialty and even matched the color of his hat.
This was the first figure I bought from Series 3. I still remember seeing him at the Target Store that was close to my house. I think he was the only new figure there. That didn't matter though, finding that FIRST new figure of the new line was always a big moment! Not only do you have a new figure, but you finally get to see the new line-up from the back of the package! I don't doubt I had arrived late and the more high profile characters were already gone. There were some heavy hitters in 1983... Roadblock, Firefly, Storm Shadow, Duke and so on...
Recondo may have flew under the radar for many fans, but was a cool figure!!! He was universal, he looked good on many of the Joe vehicles and of course he was a good one to have outside in your Mom's flower garden!!
Recondo came with two accessories. He came with a rifle which appears to have a cloth wrapping molded onto it. He also has a backpack with a handle sculpted onto it. This is a nice touch where he can carry it by hand or on his back. Both accessories were in a nice olive drab color, perfect for his specialty and even matched the color of his hat.
This was the first figure I bought from Series 3. I still remember seeing him at the Target Store that was close to my house. I think he was the only new figure there. That didn't matter though, finding that FIRST new figure of the new line was always a big moment! Not only do you have a new figure, but you finally get to see the new line-up from the back of the package! I don't doubt I had arrived late and the more high profile characters were already gone. There were some heavy hitters in 1983... Roadblock, Firefly, Storm Shadow, Duke and so on...
Recondo may have flew under the radar for many fans, but was a cool figure!!! He was universal, he looked good on many of the Joe vehicles and of course he was a good one to have outside in your Mom's flower garden!!
How do you improve on this figure? You don't! It's basically perfect. I can't come up with any way to make it better. Great sculpt, great colors, great accessories... I have no complaints! Recondo here scores a 5 out of 5 bush hats from me!
TIGER FLY PILOT - RECONDO (Version 2)
In 1988, we got a second version of Recondo, but things had changed quite a bit. The mold for the original figure was recolored and he was now a member of the G.I. Joe sub-group - Tiger Force. Now, instead of being a Jungle Trooper, he was the Tiger Fly Pilot. He was packaged with a re-colored Dragonfly helicopter (the Tiger Fly). The original version of the helicopter came with the Wild Bill figure, but for some reason they replaced him with Recondo.
His new file card says he has been a pilot since he was 17 years old, yet there was no hint of such abilities on the first one. The new file card also lacks any information of his original specialty. The name and birthplace are the same but the rest of the information is completely different.
The figure was the same mold but now with Tiger Force colors. His green bush hat was now dark blue as was his shirt. His pants were now green with yellow tiger stripes.
The figure was the same mold but now with Tiger Force colors. His green bush hat was now dark blue as was his shirt. His pants were now green with yellow tiger stripes.
Even though he was now a vehicles driver, he still came with his accessories! This was a nice bonus! His gun was now dark blue like his hat and the backpack was a darker shade of green then the original.
The figure, a remake of an already great figure, is still great. The colors are a little wilder than the original, but this is Tiger Force and that's what we get with Tiger Force. He still has the great sculpt, good colors and the accessories - which I think was a nice addition! Can you improve on Recondo (v2)? Not really. The ONLY improvement I think would have been to adjust his file card...
The figure, a remake of an already great figure, is still great. The colors are a little wilder than the original, but this is Tiger Force and that's what we get with Tiger Force. He still has the great sculpt, good colors and the accessories - which I think was a nice addition! Can you improve on Recondo (v2)? Not really. The ONLY improvement I think would have been to adjust his file card...
The file card really changed gears on us. Going from a guy who is right at home in the dark and dangerous jungle, to a guy who is a great pilot and has been all his life. Not that he couldn't BE both, but neither file card really makes any attempt to connect with the other one. But hey, if you don't like him being a pilot, you can put on his gear and put him in the field with the others!
This was probably my favorite of the Tiger Force figures! Again, the looks was just cool! Recondo (v2) racks himself up a nice score of another 5 out of 5 bush hats! Nice job Recondo!
Recondo's installment of the Through The Years series is not as spread out as some of the other Joes. He still had two distinct versions, however, even if they shared the same mold. Obviously the progression works... they used the same mold, so there is no updated head sculpt to contrast and compare on.
Recondo's installment of the Through The Years series is not as spread out as some of the other Joes. He still had two distinct versions, however, even if they shared the same mold. Obviously the progression works... they used the same mold, so there is no updated head sculpt to contrast and compare on.
I am a bit surprised we didn't get a Battle Corps Recondo with the huge spring-loaded missile launcher in the 90's. Maybe we would have gotten one in the cancelled Battle Rangers line??? I don't know... Lucky for us, the two figures we got were top-notch!
Behind-the-scenes and useless trivia:
--- The jungle Recondo is navigating through in the above pictures is actually my garden... both versions separated by about 7 years though. Yeah, I know, it has a lot of weeds.... but those weeds gave it that "jungle-y" feel!!!
--- Thanks again to my good friend, Deathwish, for letting me borrow Recondo (v2)!!!
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