GeneralsJoes Exclusive Review-A-Rama Special Feature
So when I kicked off this nearly month-long review fest, I posted a public plea for any guest reviewers who wanted to pitch in…and someone has stepped up in a big way.
Although not a traditional review necessarily, Gyre-Viper took this opportunity to do something very cool. Through his time as a Joe fan, he’s made some connections, and one of those connections was with Bill Merklein. Bill Merklein is probably not a name most folks know, but believe me, you absolutely know his work. This is the man who sculpted somewhere in the neighborhood of 60 2-ups of some of the most treasured figures and characters in the vintage G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero line up.
Probably one of his most infamous works, though, was a sculpt that he did for Rocky Balboa, another planned mail away exclusive that never came to pass.
Well, just for GeneralsJoes, Gyre-Viper called up Bill Merklein and spoke with him about his experience with Hasbro, and specifically his experience with the Rocky Balboa project, and he has decided to share this with the audience here. A very, very cool move, and one that I’m happy to be able to spread the word about.
Sometimes I don’t feel like there is enough appreciation of the “time gone by” and the history of G.I. Joe or the people involved. It is so awesome to get a behind the scenes look like this, and I really want to thank Gyre-Viper for making it happen. Click the “Read the Rest of this Entry” link below to check it all out, YouTube links and all. Just as a note, the YouTube videos are audio only, but still crammed with very cool information.
I could listen to this over and over…a huge thanks to Gyre-Viper and especially to Bill Merklein for not only taking the time here, but for lending his awesome talents to sculpting and designing some legendary toys that have created a devoted following nearly three decades later.
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