G.I. Joe thread - 09/13/2024: Pulsecon - Dreadnoks, Dogs and Cereal

Powered Convoy

Randy
Citizen
A local Walmart had about 30 of the first wave of the Snake Eyes movie figures. I don't see these flying off shelves. I have all three, I really don't like Storm Shadow. Mainly due to the color they chose for his outfit.
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Steevy Maximus

Well known pompous pontificator
Citizen
Mine hasn't replenished Ninja Core, but seems like mine got a couple case of Snake Eyes (maybe the second wave in there?) and the Flint/LJ case. By and large, either people aren't buying, or have given up on Walmart stocking and have gone to Amazon or something.
 

Telly

Sack of monkeys in my pocket
Citizen
or have given up on Walmart stocking and have gone to Amazon or something.

thats what ive done. ill still look if im already going to a walmart, but i dont make special trips. though surprisingly they actually put out the bw retro line. they even had the tr headmasters in the retroboxes
 

electricidad

Active member
Citizen
Got my Breaker! His legs made a sickening sound as I tried to adjust him to sit on the cycle. Joints appeared to be OK after a hot-water bath, but, man, that was a tense moment.

Solid representation of the character. The original RAM cycle was my first Joe vehicle, so this is a nice wave of nostalgia.
 

electricidad

Active member
Citizen
Lined up my Classified Joes under the new LED lights I "installed."
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Favorite Joe so far this year is Snake Eyes with Timber. Roadblock is a VERY close second. Amazon Roadblock is the perfect Roadblock, and they can stop making him for a while.

I think I like the Flint and Lady Jaye combo just a bit more than Breaker and the RAM. Akiko is a solid figure, too. Good, posable body, with a great portrait. In my Joe-verse, she's an Arashakage family member who's sworn to wipe out the Red Ninjas.
 

Steevy Maximus

Well known pompous pontificator
Citizen
Today was probably the biggest push on GI Joe since…a LONG TIME now. Hasbro revealed the mass retail BAT (which is MIA right now due to shipping issues), but we are getting the Python Patrol iteration (might have to steal the head for a cartoon BAT…). Speaking of, the Target theme this year is Tiger Force vs Python Patrol. TF Outback looked solid, though maybe too accurate to the original figure. Python Viper looked great. All 3 are Target exclusives going up for preorder (oh lord) at 4pm CST.

Joining them for preorder are Storm Shadow and Spirit Iron Knife. Storm Shadow is clearly based on a “de-escalation” of the Evergreen design. Spirit follows Flint in being a faithful remake with some flair (including a freedom with swappable and articulated wings). We also have the next deluxe figure being Croc Master, with a massive 12” articulated Fiona.

Big news was the reveal of the return of o-rings, starting with a SE vs SS set. Figures seem to follow the STar Wars Retro or Marvel Legends Retro as being modern tools made to look like older tools. I could see some tell-tale details (especially on Snake Eyes’ head) that betray them as new sculpts that are trying to look like the originals. If they keep the price point around $10 (like Star Wars and Marvel), I might go all in. My fear is we’ll get the “same old, same old” and the opportunities with new tooling will be largely wasted. Imagine a Haslab offering of a set of Battle Corp Rangers figures!
The first GI Joe HasLab was revealed as massively redone Skystriker. Full manufacturer license, adjustable stand, variable load out with effects parts, numerous stickers for customization. Plus a fuel support and missile transport vehicles. In addition to Ace, his mysterious co-pilot, Wayne Ruthel, finally gets his own figure for the first time. $229 with a goal of 10K.
The stretch goals are:
At 13K- Pilot Scarlett (Ace body with new head in a Glenda deco)
At 16K- Night Force Ripcord will be produced
At 18K- Two Ground Support crew. New molds that I’m sure owners of Flaggs will be chomping to get ahold of.

Panel went longer than planned, but it was generally full of good stuff. I feel GI Joe is really on cusp of actually moving on a path again, instead of the holding pattern it seems to have been stuck in since 2014
 

Kup

Active member
Citizen
I’m sure it was answered in the panel, but is this a reissue, remold or something of the toy from 6-7 years ago? The one that cost around $50 from Target?

I’m trying to understand the $229 price tag and how this is Haslab worthy? Is it utterly massive compared to before? Surely raw materials hasn’t gone up 4-5?gold since then?
 

Telly

Sack of monkeys in my pocket
Citizen
i find it amusing that the first stretch goal is touting a scarlett figure "Clad in the iconic flight suit she wore when she first burst onto the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero scene", which is an outfit she never wore (at least not that i remember. sure didnt wear it in the original 5 parter)
 

ZacWilliam1

Well-known member
Citizen
I think it's a pretty awesome deal for the price. Big all new Skystriker. A frankly ridiculous number of missiles, blast effects, customizable tailfins, cockpits and stickers. Ejector seats. Cloth parachutes. A big and really awesome fully articulated stand that I love. Two accessory ground vehicles and 2 to 6 80s style action figures, several of them new molds.

Hasbro wants these projects to succeed, they're not gonna charge way more that they literally have to. Given current manufacturing prices and reality, and a fairly low production run $230 is entirely reasonable for that. There was a time when this price would have been high for this, but 2021 this seems pretty on target.


ZacWilliam, I don't know that I have the money for this, but if I somehow do I'm absolutely in.
 
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Steevy Maximus

Well known pompous pontificator
Citizen
I’m sure it was answered in the panel, but is this a reissue, remold or something of the toy from 6-7 years ago? The one that cost around $50 from Target?

I’m trying to understand the $229 price tag and how this is Haslab worthy? Is it utterly massive compared to before? Surely raw materials hasn’t gone up 4-5?gold since then?
The entire o-ring run that is being introduced is new. All new tools all around, likely due to the move to Vietnam for manufacturing. Even the Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow are new tools based on the originals.
And as Zac said, it’s not fair comparison to prior releases once you factor in things like the stand, license, cloth parachutes, new figure(s), extra accessories and blast effects, etc.
 

Blot

Well-known member
Citizen
I’m sure it was answered in the panel, but is this a reissue, remold or something of the toy from 6-7 years ago? The one that cost around $50 from Target?

I’m trying to understand the $229 price tag and how this is Haslab worthy? Is it utterly massive compared to before? Surely raw materials hasn’t gone up 4-5?gold since then?
You'd think the product page would list some dimensions or something, considering that would be a huge selling point for Hasbro. Heck, they have the Rancor listed as "17.5 inches BUT IF YOU RAISE HIS ARMS UP HE'S EVEN BIGGER"
 

electricidad

Active member
Citizen
Managed to get the Python Patrol characters pre-ordered. Whether or not they arrive is out of my hands.

Also pre-ordered Spirit and Croc Master through Amazon.
 

Steevy Maximus

Well known pompous pontificator
Citizen
I got my order for the Python Viper in through Pulse. I have VASTLY more confidence I’ll get it from them, even if I have to wait. You never know what kind of shenanigans Target might do with preorders these days.

I’m in a weird spot right now. There isn’t a lot calling to me. With the reveal of o-ring’s return…I’m more excited to see what Hasbro does in that format. And because o-ring is a thing again…it’s causing me to reconsider some of my potential purchases from Classified. I was going to get Zartan…but I decided he wasn’t essential to me. At least not that iteration. If they did a cartoon coloring with green eyes…maybe. I’m obviously still game for things like the Python Viper and the forever MIA Alley Viper…but it feels like I can step back a bit.
Still plan on getting Croc Master though.

While o-ring is catching my attention…I just can’t quite justify the Skystriker. The cost and size are the biggest factors. Plus, coming from the later years (89-92), I just don’t have the attachment some do for the plane, regardless how amazing an offering Hasbro is presenting (not helped by my backing of Victory Saber). I also couldn’t quite stomach the $40 asking price for a “remade figure 2 pack” of guys I already have a bunch of from when Hasbro was rerunning those originel molds to the death in the early to mid-2000s. I’m really hoping that future single figures have a more…forgiving price point. For me, going above $10 is going to kill my (and many others) interest REAL quick.
 

Dake

Well-known member
Citizen
I'm pretty sure the Sky Striker is the same size as always (just look at the two figures in the cockpit - if it was significantly larger it wouldn't need to keep the bulbous canopy to fit them). It's just completely redone/remolded with better/additional sculpting, paint, mechanisms (wings and gear move separately now), and two-place cockpit.

It is a hefty price tag, but I'm tempted. The little vehicles will look great on the deck of the Flagg.

I have no need or desire for a bigger version. I'd prefer it fit in with the rest of the fleet.
 
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lastmaximal

Administrator
Staff member
Council of Elders
Citizen
I think this HasLab thing really cements how little I understand the apparent actual GI Joe fandom. This is not the sort of thing that would entice me in the least to jump on -- from the "more expensive version of thing we've gotten a dozen times, just with more stuff" to some of that stuff being o-ring figures I have never really had any interest in. But again, I am likely faaaar on the periphery of the people they're actually trying to reach with this, so that just makes sense. It's not for me at all. I do hope it gets funded decisively, of course, so that it keeps the door open for more things.

I am likewise utterly lost with this push for o-ring Retros. I wasn't able to catch the stream due to work, and haven't gotten filled in, so idk if these are replacing the modern-sculpt Retros they were doing (which frankly were treading the same "who needs new ideas for the new tooling, let's just do the same damn stuff" ground anyway).

The Classified stuff looks really nice, especially Croc Master and that Tiger Force Outback.
 

Powered Convoy

Randy
Citizen
i find it amusing that the first stretch goal is touting a scarlett figure "Clad in the iconic flight suit she wore when she first burst onto the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero scene", which is an outfit she never wore (at least not that i remember. sure didnt wear it in the original 5 parter)
Pilot Scarlett is based on the Glenda figure from Argentina. https://www.yojoe.com/action/int/arg-glenda.shtml
They did a Pilot Scarlett in 2008. https://www.yojoe.com/action/08/scarlett10.shtml

I think the Classified stuff (short of maybe Python Patrol BAT) all looked really great. Didn't care about the 3 3/4" stuff but the Skystriker is certainly something that I would have wanted 10 years ago.
 

MrBlud

Well-known member
Citizen
I think this HasLab thing really cements how little I understand the apparent actual GI Joe fandom. This is not the sort of thing that would entice me in the least to jump on -- from the "more expensive version of thing we've gotten a dozen times, just with more stuff" to some of that stuff being o-ring figures I have never really had any interest in. But again, I am likely faaaar on the periphery of the people they're actually trying to reach with this, so that just makes sense. It's not for me at all. I do hope it gets funded decisively, of course, so that it keeps the door open for more things.

I am likewise utterly lost with this push for o-ring Retros. I wasn't able to catch the stream due to work, and haven't gotten filled in, so idk if these are replacing the modern-sculpt Retros they were doing (which frankly were treading the same "who needs new ideas for the new tooling, let's just do the same damn stuff" ground anyway).

The Classified stuff looks really nice, especially Croc Master and that Tiger Force Outback.

What the fandom wants and what the franchise needs are often diametrically opposed.

Joe needs a Beast Wars or 2021 MOTU level reimagining but the fandom wants $230 Haslab Skystrikers and Hasbro would rather keep pumping the captive market until they physically can’t which is still likely another few decades away.

It is by far their weakest legacy brand since they’ve done pretty much zero outreach beyond people who grew up on RAH and are now consuming adults.
 


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