The Characters Of G.I. Joe - IRON GRENADIERS, part 1

A NEW ENEMY

THE CHARACTERS OF G.I. JOE

    "Tired of the fanatical ravings of Cobra Commander and Serpentor, Destro goes it alone!"  Iron Grenadier commercial, 1988.

IRON GRENADIERS

Destro's Elite Troopers - IRON GRENADIERS

File Name - Various

Birthplace - Various

Specialties - Sabotage, Marketing Development, Accounting, Small Arms, Terrorism.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION...

    As Destro splintered off from the Cobra Organization in 1988, he assembled an army of his own from his trusted personal bodyguards now called the Iron Grenadiers.  Each Iron Grenadier is highly-trained in the use of small arms, explosives, and hand-to-hand combat, but they are equally skilled in marketing development, accounting, and sales.  A combination that makes for an extremely dangerous adversary on many fronts.

    The Iron Grenadier troops are sent into different countries to create turmoil and unrest, thus setting up the perfect scenario where Destro can sell his weapons - to both sides!  A powerful incentive to the Iron Grenadiers are that they are paid on commission from Destro's sales.

    For their first conflict with both G.I. Joe and Cobra, Destro took his new army to Cobra Island while Serpentor and Cobra Commander were in the middle of the Cobra Civil War.  The Iron Grenadiers were successful in invading the island, rescuing the Baroness, and leaving.  All without firing a single shot!

A NEW ENEMY...

    When I found out Destro had left Cobra and started his own army, I thought "Of course!  That sounds like something that would happen!"  Adding a third faction to the Joe/Cobra fight was going to be an awesome sub-plot!  I was totally on-board with this direction!  I picked up all the Iron Grenadier figures and vehicles that were available in 1988, even though my Joe collecting was slowing down.

    The Iron Grenadier soldiers have a great look!  The awesome helmet and mask, the cool color scheme of black, red, and gold, as well as the excellent accessories of the uzi, laser pistol, and the ceremonial sword.  These troops looked outstanding!

    Strangely, I can list a few things with the original figure I wish were different.  I would have liked the figure to have come with a backpack.  Also, I wish the sword was removable from the sheath... it does a whole lotta nothing just hanging on his hip.  Despite those minor complaints, the original figure was solid!  

    To represent the Iron Grenadiers here, is the Iron Grenadier from the 25th Anniversary line.  This figure was part of a comic 2-pack which included Destro!  This figure is a nice, slightly updated figure, but it isn't as great as the original version.  First, I don't like how his body is clearly a repaint of Battle Armor Cobra Commander.  Second, he is very thin looking.  He needs to give up his no-carb diet and hit the drive-thru at Burger King a few times!  Third, I prefer the more "rounded look to the original helmet, to this "blockier" style.  Finally, poor body construction of the 2007 figures means he will get all loosy-goosey after any significant amount of play.  On the plus side, he DOES have a removable sword!

    Rating this 2007 version of the figure, he is going to catch a 3 out of 5 Accounting Degrees.  The original Iron Grenadier would have caught 5 out of 5 though!  Bottom line:  The original figure has a charm that is hard to beat!

    (Information on the character's lore was taken from the Sunbow and DIC cartoon series, including the Movie and the figure's original File Card.)