So throughout the whirlwind of reveals at Toy Fair today, it’s been a bit tough to get everything sorted out and really figure out what these new items represent and what the original genesis or inspiration of these items was.  Interestingly, a lot of these things come from fan-centric sources, including concept cases and short ship Pursuit of Cobra offerings.

The full low down is after the jump, with in depth descriptions of each 2 or 3 pack as well as the source figures and where the inspiration might have come from.

Hopefully this will shed a little bit of light on this particular situation:

Battle Pack 2 Packs

• Low Light vs. Night Viper (Night Marksmen)

Source:

1. Low Light was a very short release Pursuit of Cobra figure from Wave 4, and many folks who did have it lost some of the very small pieces that came with him.
2. Night Viper was a short release from G.I. Joe: Retaliation Wave 4, that is being re-released in an altered (and extremely cool) red and black color scheme.  LOVE this.

• Baroness vs. Lady Jaye (Social Clash)

Source:

1. Baroness was a figure from the final 25th Anniversary 5-Pack that was widely regarded as the best version of the character.  From all appearances, it’s a straight re-issue.
2. Lady Jaye was from the 2012 Concept Case at JoeCon in New Orleans, LA.  A modified version was released as a Convention Exclusive Night Force version at the 2013 JoeCon.  Survey Result: #4

• Blowtorch vs. HEAT Viper (Heated Battle)

Source:

1. Blowtorch was released in the final wave of single pack 25th Anniversary figures, and re-released a second time in Pursuit of Cobra Wave 5.  Neither one of them is especially rare or hard to find on the secondary market, which makes this choice a curious one.  It’s possible that the final version may end up being the green repaint that was a tail end variant from Pursuit of Cobra that ended up unreleased.
2. HEAT Viper was a Cobra High Explosive Anti Tank Trooper initially seen in the 2012 Concept Case at JoeCon in New Orleans, LA. Survey Results: #6

• Snow Job vs. Arctic B.A.T. (Arctic Ambush)

Source:

1. Snow Job was released in the first wave of Pursuit of Cobra figures.  He wasn’t especially difficult to find, but comes with many small accessories that collectors might find interesting.  He appears to be close to a straight re-release.
2. Arctic B.A.T. is a new concept using the 25th Anniversary B.A.T. base figure.

Three Packs

• Beachhead, Cobra Trooper, Cobra Viper Officer (The Vipers Pit)

Source:

1. Beachhead was in the Concept Case shown at the 2012 JoeCon in New Orleans, LA.  He utilizes many of the same parts and deco as the Hall of Heroes version, but with some newer Pursuit of Cobra Snake Eyes parts. Survey Results: #8
2. Cobra Trooper was originally released in both the Pursuit of Cobra and 30th Anniversary, but collectors can never get enough Cobra Troopers.
3. Cobra Viper Officer was shown in the Concept Case at the 2012 JoeCon in New Orleans, LA.  The figure is based off the Toys “R” Us Exclusive from the 1998 Cobra Viper 3-Pack.  Survey Results: #5 (Pursuit of Cobra segment)

• Leatherneck, Destro, and General Hawk (The Eagle’s Edge)

Source:

1. Leatherneck was originally shown in the Concept Case at the 2013 JoeCon in Indianapolis, IN.  He uses many of the parts from G.I. Joe: Retaliation Roadblock with a new vest and new head.
2. Destro was originally shown in the Concept Case at the 2013 JoeCon in Indianapolis, IN.  He is pretty much an entirely newly tooled figure.
3. General Hawk is a straight re-release General Hawk from Pursuit of Cobra Wave 5.  He was a short shipped figure that is fairly desirable on the secondary market and comes with a number of great accessories.

Vehicle Packs

• Cobra Snow Wolf w/ Ice Viper vs Arctic Skyhawk w/ Snake Eyes (Battle Below Zero)

Source:

1. The Cobra Snow Wolf is a pleasant surprise, not based on anything recent or known.  The foot pegs in the image almost make this look like the vintage tooling still exists, though many samples of 80s and 90s tooling were reported destroyed.  The Ice Viper looks like a new concept figure very strongly based on the 1987 original with some Snow Serpent/Arctic Snake Eyes parts as well as some other new parts not previously seen, like the thigh sheaths for the two sais.
2. The Arctic Skyhawk is a new concept using the mold from the 25th Anniversary Skyhawk.  Snake Eyes is based on a canceled Rise of Cobra “Arctic Snake Eyes” that was also the inspiration for a Pursuit of Cobra Desert Strike version (but the arctic version had slightly different colors).

• G.I. Joe VAMP MK II w/ Flint vs. Cobra Night Landing w/ Cobra Eel (Battle By The Docks) COMICCON EXCLUSIVE???

Source:

1. The VAMP MK II is based mainly on the tooling from the 25th Anniversary VAMP with what appears to be a new missile launcher and a color scheme reminiscent of the classic VAMP MK II.  Flint is from the Concept Case initially shown at the 2012 JoeCon in New Orleans, LA and uses the familiar colors with some new Pursuit of Cobra and 30th Anniversary era parts.  Interestingly, the vintage accurate Flint and VAMP MK II apparently come with the non-vintage accurate Night Landing w/ Cobra Eel and vice versa.  Further confusing this situation is that according to the file name of this image, this could be a ComicCon Exclusive with the urban VAMP/Blue Night Landing being the Toys “R” Us Retail exclusive. Survey Results: #1
2. The Cobra Night Landing was rumored for release in the G.I. Joe: Retaliation line, but has twice ended up unreleased. Hopefully the third time is the charm.  The Cobra Eel was also shown in the Concept Case at the 2012 JoeCon in New Orleans, LA.  Interestingly, the vintage accurate raft and Eel appear to come with the non-vintage accurate VAMP MK II and vice versa. Further confusing this situation is that according to the file name of this image, this could be a ComicCon Exclusive with the urban VAMP/Blue Night Landing being the Toys “R” Us Retail exclusive. Survey Results: #7

• G.I. Joe VAMP MK II w/ Flint vs. Cobra Night Landing w/ Cobra Eel (Battle By The Docks) (TRU Retail Release)

Source:

1. Like mentioned above the tooling from the VAMP MK II is mostly 25th Anniversary VAMP/Stinger with the new rocket launcher.  However, one distinct difference is that this vehicle (and figure) are urban themed instead of the more familiar vintage look.  The file name of the standard design VAMP image would seem to indicate that one is a ComicCon exclusive, with the version you see above as the Toys “R” Us retail release.
2. Again, this is based on what we were going to see in the G.I. Joe: Retaliation line (twice!).  While the black one with the black/red Eel seems to possibly be a ComicCon exclusive, the one you see above is the likely Toys “R” Us release.

Keep in mind these are early images and color schemes may change in final release. This is all going off of early preliminary press images, which do occasionally differ from the final release.

Whatever the end result is here, it is sure to be an exciting next couple of months leading to JoeCon and convention season!