As I was driving down to New Jersey this weekend, my phone started buzzing, indicating some serious social media activity going on. Obviously waiting until I was in a safe place to stop, I checked out what all the hub bub was about and discovered that indeed, big G.I. Joe news had broken on the weekend, and it was a weekend that I wasn’t going to be near a computer.
Ah, well.
So along with the last two figures of FSS 2.0 (two excellent figures, which have been unfortunately overshadowed by the drama surrounding figure #13) lucky recipients also got their hands on the mysterious “thirteenth figure”. And like every other G.I. Joe fan on the Internet, I will push aside Dragonsky and Big Bear, and focus my crosshairs on #13. However, I will do so after the jump so as not to reveal any spoilers.
Still here?
So, along with two more members of the intrepid Oktober Guard, the G.I. Joe Collectors Club shipped the final figure, and fans seemed dismissive at best, and downright heated at worst.
The thirteenth figure is an original 13 version of Grand Slam.
I’ve been getting several personal messages about the revelation, asking for my thoughts, and to be honest, I’m pretty bummed out. I can see all sides of the argument. Yes, the 13th figure is technically the “freebie” so one might expect a little less pizazz to go along with it. However, on the flip side, in my view, the 13th figure is also supposed to be an incentive to subscribe. I would imagine that without significant full subscriptions from Joe fans, the future of the entire FSS could be in doubt. If folks can continue to cherry pick a few figures they like and don’t feel compelled to subscribe, then one might imagine the impact of the FSS as a whole is lessened.
But, as I said, I can see both sides.
My own reason why I’m bummed? I dunno, I just don’t think the choice is very exciting.
We’ve had like three different versions of Grand Slam since 2007, and yes, I know none of them were of the red pad variety, but we still had Flash, who was pretty close. Heck, we just got Bombardier last month, and construction-wise he’s the same exact figure that we got in #13. I know I’m in the minority when I say that I crave new and exciting elements in the G.I. Joe mythology, but frankly, a Grand Slam figure is neither new nor exciting. I know there has been demand for this figure’s release from some vocal elements of the fan base, but I would think that even most of them would agree that the 13th “mystery figure” was not necessarily the best place for it. I know this isn’t really what the 13th figure was built for, but in my mind, it would represent at least an element of a “grand finale” for that particular FSS series as a whole, and in my opinion, Blackout offered some of that. Grand Slam simply doesn’t.
I’m not going to skewer the Club over this one, but I will be honest and say I was disappointed, and I can only hope that perhaps FSS 3.0 will build on this and offer some more cool new items to look forward to.
Someone said you were at NJCC, I looked around but didn’t see you. I would have loved to have met and said hi.
More than anything else, it strikes me as a really uninspired choice. Even among the Original 13, I can think of more desirable figures (Rock N Roll or Clutch with decent arms).
I’m in the same boat as you. This is a figure that should have been released at retail with the first of the 25th A line. I like the inclusion of Scrap Iron’s missile launcher though since a 25th HAL had never been released, and it sort of fits with Grand Slam’s MOS. I remember a lot of the speculation for the 13th figure going to be Bombstrike to round out the Stahl family or even Munitia for the third member of the HISS leadership. But a figure anyone of us could make with a bottle of red paint leaves a lot to be desired. Will this deter me from signing up for FSS 3? Not at all, as long the regular figures are of the same quality as the previous two Subscriptions. Not all were winners (TNT, Bombardier, Skull Crusher, I’m looking at you), but most were really good and welcome additions to my collection. Looking forward to your reviews of the final two installments.
The 13th fig should be that special enticement to get someone to commit to the next sub. This fig absolutely did not do that.
I had a hearing this morning, but when I got back to the office I flipped on Hisstank and scrolled my way down…
… and promptly checked the calendar to make sure it wasn’t April 1st.
Just a boneheaded move. If this was one of the regular 12, and, say, Cesspool was the 13th, people would be fine. But after the big success with Blackout last year, people expected that level of innovation again. It might have been an impossible standard (although not really; Bombstrike with the new Lady Jaye body would’ve been fine), but this seems like they gave up.
I get that there wasn’t technically a Grand Slam like this released, but I don’t know if anyone really wanted one. This is the equivalent of Tan Grunt being the 13th last year – and we all know that if that’d happened, this experiment would’ve died on the vine.
Haven’t got mine yet, but an accidental search on eBay showed me what it is. At first I thought it was horrible, but now I can see why some people would want this. None of the other 25th Grand Slams were ever carded and this is the original version. I was happy with silver pads GS, but I am a little younger (born in 83) so I never had the original 13. Some people probably cared to have 82 figures done in original colors the same way I care about the 88 Night Force guys being done in their original colors.
I just hope the secret figure for FSS 3 is not Tan Clutch or Listen ‘n Fun Tripwire.
I can see why folks might be a little peeved about this, after paying however much the club is charging for this series.
All in all the subscription is an easy opt-out for me. Half the figures are straight repaints (I still say that the “international” figures would have been better as retail-exclusive, value pack fodder during the 25th line), and I’m ok with living without the rest of them. There were 1-2 that I liked in each wave, but not at Club prices.
I’d probably be more interested if there were more frankenjoes in subscriptions. I know they have a limited budget for new tooling, but I think they could use existing tooling more creatively. Like I mentioned before, half the figures are straight repaints of figures I already have.
When I realized the two Oktober guard figures were going to wrap up series 2.0, I thought for sure, based on series 1.0, that the 13th figure would be Lt. Gorky, who I believe is the only Guardsman to not get a figure in the new 25A style. Bombstrike, Munitia, or the Red Shadows sleeper agent alluded to in Bombadier’s file card also hit me as possibilites. So I guess I can give the club credit for surprising me. But yeah, a repaint of another figure in the same series does seem weak. To be fair, the earlier Grand Slams were not super common due to their status as exclusive vehicle pack-ins, so that coupled with the original paint job may make him appealing to some fans. I was one of the few fans of Tan Grunt, but even he had an improved head sculpt from the TRU exclusive version. So I guess I’m okay with him, but after Blackout he does seem oddly anti-climactic.
We’re also missing Misha.
As with many of the fans I am a bit bummed about the selection of Grand Slam as the 13th. Is it gonna deter me from signing up for FSS 3. Hell no, even if the selections tie into having zombies to go with the clubs convention set. Why… because joe as 3 3/4 scale may be all but dead after Joe 3 and like the 12 inch scale before, may only have the club to keep it going. The 50th line yes may be small and exclusive to one store but its something, and I will through my money in to keep what there is going.