G.I. Joe vs. Cobra - Nunchuk

I must freely admit that as I kid I was a ninja fan. Yup, I was one of those kids who led to the demise of G.I. Joe by demanding more ninja action until everyone and their brother was an Arishikage Ninja. I even loved the Ninja Force figures, at least until they sacrificed articulation for spring loaded action features. Those atrocious Ninja Force Snake Eyes and Scarlett figures turned me forever against the Ninja Force, but still I had a soft spot for Tjbang, Dojo, and yes, for Nunchuk.

The Brooklyn kid who became a Ninja apprentice always appealed to me, and I can always imagine his cocky American attitude driving his instructors crazy, especially because he had the skills to back it up. In my universe, Nunchuk was a brash, headstrong, cocky teenager whose credo always was "it ain't bragging if you can back it up". Even as he drove Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow crazy, his skills grew in leaps and bounds, and he ended up surpassing his fellow students.

As you may or may not know, in my Joe timeline, back in '94 the Joe and Cobra Ninja Forces had a major clash, which caused pretty much devestation in both forces. Most Ninja Force members were killed, and those who weren't were either injured greatly or forced to retire from action. Nunchuk was one of those who left after that battle. Watching his close comrades almost wiped out around him had a profound effect on the young man, and he retreated within, becoming more and more solemn. He fled to the Orient and continued his training amongst monks in different remote regions of deep Asia. From Zen monestaries to the Chinese Triad, Nunchuk picked up styles from the best of each. After several years, some of which were spent in the secret Arishikage Dojo itself, he returned to the U.S. with a renewed sense of purpose. He slowly got his courage back up and has now rejoined the G.I. Joe Team as their senior Martial Arts instructor, but also capable of handling himself in a firefight. His time with the Triad gave him some important skills with handling weapons, although he is still remise to reveal the source of that training to the Joe team.

And while his story was first worked out when the 12" figure was revealed, it works in all facets with this figure as well. Even though rumors suggest that this was originally meant to be Quick Kick (before Hasbro remembered that he was dead...) I think it matches Nunchuk perfectly.

The figure is a very nice mold to begin with. A very original head with long hair and a headband...his bare chest with green straps. His heavily bandaged wrists, hands, ankles and feet are all very cool. The martial arts pants with the Joe logo and even the oriental skirt-thing are all very nice touches and I think they compliment this guy well. Even though his shoulders are a touch on the large side, the figure is fitted with the O-Ring almost seamlessly. He has swivel wrists and swivel calves, enabling the figure to be posed in numerous cool positions. Hasbro even seems to have reworked his waist piece as well, and he can do a full split, which even the older Joes are not capable of!

He is adorned with some cool guns as well as some trademarked Nunchuka-type weapons. He is a great figure, and I am THRILLED that Hasbro retrofitted him with an O-Ring and made him all the more great to me.

Nunchuk was always my favorite Ninja Force member and I'm glad to see he's back on the active roster for the G.I. Joe Team.