Snoova's Top 10: WEIRD JOE FIGURES I ACTUALLY LIKE
It's no mystery that the 90's era Joes had more "zany" elements then the 80's Joes. There was just a lot of over-the-top situations... We went from Joe vs. Cobra, to Joe vs. Cobra, drug lords, mutants, aliens and dinosaurs... We got the addition of spring-loaded missile launchers, playdoh, and nerf rockets. And color? Break out the neon! We are going to see some of these figures from a mile away!!!
As I say this... I'm not saying it was bad. Okay, maybe some of it was. We all have different views on this era, but seriously, the 80's had their own level of crazy too! Through it all though, from 1982 to 1994 there are some of those wild G.I. Joe figures I really liked!!! Sometimes it doesn't even make sense to me...?
This Top 10, we are going to look at a list of those type of figures. Maybe some people might consider them unpopular, a little odd, a bit off-the-wall or even completely outlandish... but, yet for some reason, I think they are great!!! Let's see what we got...
1.) BIG BOA - Cobra Trainer, 1987
I'll start off easy... The 1987 assortment of Cobra's was certainly eyebrow raising. Crystal Ball... Croc Master... Raptor... Cobra-La...? Some of these guys have their fans, but all have gotten their slice of ridicule as well.
I liked the idea of Big Boa! To me, he wasn't out there leading missions and hatching Cobra's next devious scheme. He was, however, helping build a stronger army for Cobra. In my imagination, he mainly operated on Cobra Island, doing his job, but doing as such... wasn't well-known to the Joes. So, if a group was inflitrating a Cobra Base, and they accidentally ran into this guy... there is going to be some problems. I mean, how do you fight him? He has a helmet... you can't punch his face. You can't easily wrestle him, he has all the spikes on his chest and back. I just saw him as an unexpected adversary that would be tricky to take down!
2.) STARDUSTER - Jet Pack Trooper, 1987 (mail-in)
I've been a fan of Starduster since BEFORE he was even released! When the comic, Marvel Age, had a feature on "Meet The New Joes", there was a character named "Hedge Hopper". There was no picture, just his file card. I thought the concept was great and couldn't wait to see him on the pegs. Yep, that never happened...
A year or two later we get Starduster as a mail-in and for whatever reason - I NEVER ORDERED HIM!?!?!? What the world...??? I have no idea what I was thinking back then. Maybe it was the Pocket Patrol Pack he came with that I didn't want... Maybe it was the cereal you could order him from, that I didn't feel inclined to buy... I don't know. What I DO know is I recently saw him at a collectibles shop for $450!?!? No thanks... I'll enjoy the figure from a distance. ARGH!!!
3.) SGT. SLAUGHTER (v4) - Slaughter's Marauders Commander, 1989
Okay... he's sporting a lot of blue, I know, hang with me here. I have always thought this guy was cool, and I think I know why. Follow me on this wild rabbit trail... Does anyone remember the video game Gauntlet? You could play 4 players at the same time - Elf, Wizard, Warrior and Valkyrie. Okay, now remember Gauntlet 2? Where your 4 players were divided by color instead? For example, you could play Green Elf, Red Elf, Blue Elf and Yellow Elf if you wanted. Alright, so my friends and I LOVED this game and Blue Wizard was the coolest in my opinion! The original Wizard now with blue highlights looked awesome!!
So I think this is a big piece of the puzzle of why I like "Blue" Sgt. Slaughter, even down to the blue sunglasses. Silly huh? Oh well, I thought it was a little wild but still strangely cool!
4.) GENERAL HAWK (v3) - G.I. Joe Commander, 1991
The way I see it, Cobra Commander upgraded himself to a new level with the Battle Armor in 1987... and now Hawk is doing the same! He may not be able to repel bullets, but he can survey the battlefield and strike at the enemy from the skies now. I just thought it was a really interesting concept. I don't imagine he was doing a LOT of fighting in this suit... he is the Team's leader after all. My thoughts are that he would observe from above and if he happens to get in a fight, he has the firepower to protect himself!
Oddly enough, I have never owned this figure as a kid or collector... This figure was released when I was done collecting and I was never able to find him when I returned...
5.) EELS (v2) - Cobra Underwater Specialist, 1992
The original Eels were off-the-charts awesome!!! This version was WAY different! They went from sneaky underwater saboteurs to "you can see them a mile away" saboteurs. But there was something I still found interesting in these guys. I thought they still had a sinister look... like they were dangerous enough that they didn't worry about being seen. Plus, they had the robotic shark to back them up which I thought was a really cool idea!!
In the comic, their color was gold and blue, rather than the figure's yellow and blue. That would have probably been hard to translate onto a figure, but that would be interesting to see!
6. BANZAI - Rising Sun Ninja, 1993 (Ninja Force)
Is that pink on this G.I. Joe ninja? Or some kind of purple...? Magenta??? Whatever the case... he may be quite easy to spot by his enemies. But yet again, there was something I liked about this figure! I thought the mask was cool, despite looking like it was made by Crayola! I also like the black pants with the "I just got done painting the living room" look to them. The rooted hair, blond ponytail was another nice touch. He certainly has an odd look... but not bad. Maybe we should give him some credit, where many Ninja Force Joes have little to no black... at least he has some!
On the file card... I thought it was interesting to make him blood brothers with Bushido. I liked the idea of drawing some connections between characters we aren't very familiar with.
7. PAYLOAD (v3, 4, 5) - Astro-Pilot, 1993/94 (Star Brigade)
In 1993, Hasbro released the first Star Brigade Payload that was now a repaint of the Eco-Warrior Barbecue mold rather than the original Payload figure. The first one was green and black. I actually thought this figure was pretty cool looking! The following year they re-released the same figure in white and then again blue and black... and I thought they were cool too!?!?!
I don't know if it has anything to do with the fact that I had never even SEEN the original Payload figure and/or held it in my hands. But I was totally fine with the Barbecue repaint. I actually think the 3 Payload color schemes are a little better then the ketchup and mustard colors of Barabecue...?
8. NIGHT CREEPER LEADER - Cobra Ninja Supreme Master, 1993/94 (Battle Corps)
It is strange that the SUPREME Leader of the Night Creepers doesn't get a name... just a title. It's also strange he doesn't get put in the sub-group Ninja Force, who were available the same year. It's strange that his file card doesn't give any NEW information, rather it repeats the Night Creeper's file cards. It's strange that on his weapons tree, he got some of the Dreadnok - Road Pig's gear. It's strange that the first version of this figure wears orange and black while his troop's primary color is purple. It is strange that the second version, that wears some purple like his troops, also wears bright yellow and gold. It's also strange that for as weird as this figure is - I still like it!
9.) Cobra Commander6 (v7) - Cobra Supreme Leader, 1994 (Star Brigade)
Cobra Commander in space??? Okay, why not?? I don't know... when this figure came out, I just thought it was so cool looking!!! He has some Cobra-accurate colors, the elongated helmet, the snake skin-like suit AND... his helmet came off!!! Alright, that's where Hasbro really rocked this figure!!! Much better than the "disco" 1991 CC with the red, see-thru visor, that somewhat "revealed" what he supposedly looked like. Take off this figure's helmet and you see his face, but he's still wearing a mask (in very similar fashion to the 12 inch CC figure). Very clever!!!
The green gun was okay. The suction-cup wall-walker was strange... but I'll take that over a generic, rehashed "weapons-tree" any day!!! At least they were trying! And in all fairness, it is kind of neat in its own way!
10.) Sci-Fi (v4) - Star Brigade Pilot, 1994 (Star Brigade)
The guy went from being the Joes' Laser Rifle Trooper in bright green to a pilot with a neon yellow space suit and a Gatling gun on his arm??? Kind of a weird transition... but this figure was TOTALLY COOL!!! The helmet alone was awesome enough to warrant picking him up in the store!!! Another big plus - no accessory tree! Not that his gear is ALL original, but he does have some new, unique equipment.
I was not totally sold on Star Brigade the first time around in 1993. All the repaints, dull weapons trees and the clunky Armor-Tech figures... But in 1994, Hasbro had really stepped things up. At least they were trying to bring something new to the table!
And that's that... Top 10 Weird Joe Figures I Like... So what do you think? Do you like any of these as well? What are some figures that maybe you think are a bit wild, yet you still think they are great? Drop your own list in the comments below!!!
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