I’ve been dying to write this article ever since news starting breaking earlier this afternoon. By all accounts, a few assorted online retailers started receiving word this afternoon that Hasbro would be releasing 6″ G.I. Joe action figures in June, with the first assortment being the following:
Snake Eyes (2 per case)
Duke
Roadblock
Scarlett
Destro
According to a post on HISSTank.com, the new line will be called G.I. Joe: Classified and the current hypothesis is that it will be similar in style to the Marvel Legends, Power Ranger Lightning series and the Star Wars: Black series, with an assortment of highly articulated and accurately accessorized figures.
Nobody knows much about the line yet, but my own speculation is that these will be vintage in style, resembling the most familiar, iconic looks for the characters represented. A Twitter post from skinnyjoefan seems to agree with this, astutely pointing out that these figures are many of the same exact figures that were released at the beginning of the 25th Anniversary line back in 2007.
Of course, much of this news broke courtesy of The Full Force, and thankfully my work schedule was such that Chris and I could throw together a quick News Burst on this exciting new rumor!
There appear to be enough sources confirming the information for me to assume some validity, but until official confirmation arrives from Hasbro, let’s keep this in the rumor category. I have no doubt this information (and more!) will be fully revealed at Toy Fair 2020 in New York City. Stay tuned for more exciting news, I suspect this is just the tip of a huge, exciting iceberg for 2020!
I’ve been going to JoeCon for a long time. My first visit was in San Francisco in 2003, and I’ve been going, more or less, ever since (besides three or so shows that I missed along the way).
The panels and panelists all deserve a huge amount of credit for taking time out of their busy schedules to talk to fans and provide information that isn’t always available elsewhere. Every once in a while, too, a panel appears at JoeCon that completely changes my perspective and entertains me in a way that I haven’t been entertained recently.
The Behind the Scenes of G.I. Joe’s first Micro Movie was one of those panels. Carson from 3DJoes spent the entire panel with G.I. Joe marketing guru Kirk Bozigian, showcasing never before seen behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the 1990’s live action commercials, all interspersed with other information about the commercials, while making sure to show the actual commercials along the way as well. The result was a panel chock-full of laughs, cheers, and a real appreciation for the work that went into making G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero the landmark, retail-altering brand it was back in the 80’s (and 90’s).
There was fantastic insight from Kirk Bozigian himself, unbelievable behind the scenes footage, and so much great stuff along the way. I can’t give Carson enough props for what he worked hard to put together. This was one hell of a way to celebrate JoeCon’s last harrah, and I truly hope there’s more to come. Carson has put a terrific video up on YouTube. You need to stop what you’re doing and go watch it right now. It’s just incredible.
So another whirlwind weekend at JoeCon has come and gone, and as many folks have likely noticed, I didn’t spend a whole lot of time reporting news from this last JoeCon (mostly for my own sanity).
However, there were some exciting announcements at the “Last Panel” today that I wanted to touch on because I’ve seen some folks who are a little confused about how it all works.
1) The previously announced Night Stalker 3-Pack is still being released in the 4th quarter this year, with three different ethnically diverse head sculpts, using the same builds as the GIJCC female COBRA Troopers
2) There is a new Ninja Force Zartan w/ motorcycle exclusive coming out, which Dave Lane specifically mentioned should make the choice for the 13th figure in FSS 8 more evident. From the looks of it, Zartan will be using the same head sculpt as the Con set’s Sgt. Smasher.
3) Along with these, Hasbro and the Club have worked out a way to release a special “Final Twelve” assortment. While these will be 12 figures like the FSS, this is NOT an FSS. The figures will be packaged in two-packs in similar themes, and available for standard pre-order, then shipped in FSS-style boxes. The Final Twelve 2-Packs are as follows:
Slaughter Marauder’s Barbecue and Low Light
Modern style figures with the classic Marauder’s paint apps to blend with the Con set
“Black Spider” Rendezvous Adventure Team vs. Coils O’Doom
Another Adventure Team figure (since the past ones sold so well) along with a brand new Coil character (with ties to Crimson Asp) who is inspired by a character spoken about on the “Regular Joes” podcast
Sonic Fighter Dodger vs Sonic Fighter Viper
Dodger and COBRA Viper in Sonic Fighter deco
Sonic Fighter Falcon vs Sonic Fighter Road Pig
Falcon and Road Pig in Sonic Fighter deco
Euro Tiger Force Hit & Run (AWESOME!) and Euro Tiger Force Psyche Out (Fetal position Christopher McLeod not included)
Modern style figures in the vintage UK exclusive Tiger Force deco’s
Euro Tiger Force Tunnel Rat and Euro Tiger Force Blizzard
Modern style figures in the vintage UK exclusive Tiger Force deco’s
I know I’ve been pretty clear in the past that I’m not especially enamored with constant vintage revisitations, but I have to admit, one final burst to fill in a few slots in the vintage line is a pretty cool idea, and I am THRILLED to get one last Hit & Run figure, especially in this awesome paint scheme. This was a really nice surprise for that last panel, and I’m glad they did it, and especially happy for Chris McLeod from The Full Force, because I know how much he loves those UK Tiger Force figures.
Speaking of The Full Force, be sure you’re checking their Facebook page as they have been live streaming and posting videos straight from JoeCon. FUUUULLL FOOOORCE!!
There have been many rumors and tales told about what “could have been” for the past year’s 50th Anniversary line from Toys “R” Us, many of them involving vehicle sets that were canceled due to the retailer’s request for a more scaled back exclusive line.
YoJoe hits us with some tangible proof that many of these items were in the production chain when canceled. An anonymous YoJoe supporter has uncovered what looks to be an early sample of a Rock n Roll figure with many similarities to the concept case version from a few years back.
Using parts from G.I. Joe: Pursuit of COBRA and G.I. Joe: Retaliation, the figure looks very cool and I love the camouflage pattern on the legs. He’s got a new head and a pretty cool aesthetic, all told.
With the Collectors Club slates to release their own version of Rock n Roll v2 as a membership figure for 2018 it will be interesting to see how similar or different it is to this one. Check out the YoJoe forums for the full details, I’ve mirrored a couple of images below, but you’ll find many more over there.
No doubt, from a G.I. Joe perspective one of the most exciting things we learned about ComicCon this year was that Hasbro would be releasing a spectacular Revolutions Boxed Set featuring G.I. Joe scaled figures of several different characters throughout their properties, including MASK, Visionaries, Transformers, Rom, and Micronauts.
Well, good friend of GeneralsJoes and noted author James Kavanaugh, Jr. managed to get his handsome mitts on one of these Revolutions sets early and has been kind enough to put together an early review and look at the set!
You can find the review right here and eventually I’ll pop it up in one of the menus above, as soon as I can figure out where it belongs.
Humongous thanks to James for taking time out of his busy life to grab some pictures and do a fantastic write up of this great set. As an added bonus, here are some images of the COBRA Missile Command Center he sent along as well, featuring better looks at the COBRA’s within and filecards!
