Of course, I’m not the only one who got a set of Sgt. Slaughter’s last week, so other folks have started posting their own impressions, including GeneralsJoes contributor cmderinchief. Rather than do it in pictorial form, though, he fired up his EVO front-facing camera, and whipped up a YouTube video.
Check out the embedded video below!
Also, over on The Terror Drome, they’ve posted some additions to their Scoop’s Dark Room with both versions of Slaughter as well. Check them out right here!
The GeneralsJoes July Review-A-Rama continues on strong thanks to Hasbro’s Public Relations team… A nice surprise package in the mail late last week provided me with the two San Diego ComicCon Exclusive Sgt. Slaughters that are hitting lucky collectors this weekend at ComicCon.
I’ve reviewed them both and for lack of a better place, linked the review on the Pursuit of Cobra page. You can, of course, also check it out here.
The San Diego ComicCon has moved into a whole new stratosphere in recent years. Initially merely a large comic convention, it somehow migrated to a Geek Mecca where Hollywood, Comics, and Toy Companies collide to give us glimpses at what cool new things are on the horizon for our nerd pleasure. It is pretty astounding to see just what it has become.
Of course as part of the allure of ComicCon, there are the SDCC Exclusives…toys that are launched at SDCC and for sale initially only at SDCC. This has always created a conflict between the “haves” and the “have nots” which has sometimes generated some hostility not just in the fandom, but directed back at the manufacturers. But Hasbro seems to have found a balance. By offering the items through SDCC, but also at HasbroToyShop, they seem to be able to please everyone, and in recent years there hasn’t been an obvious shortage of opportunities to get what you want.
This is not the case with Mattel, who year after year generates mountains of frustration among their fans with a strange voucher pre-order system that doesn’t even guarantee you a figure if you travel all the way to ComicCon. Not to mention when they post items for sale after the fact, MattyCollector.com gets so hammered that nobody can access the retail store. In general, it seems like a mammoth cluster… you get the idea.
Now not only does Hasbro seem to have the system at least somewhat ironed out, but the numbers of cool exclusives they are getting out there is amazing. Now, most of this is probably because they’re far and away the #1 Boys Toys brand in the market, but it really is incredible just how many cool toys they can get into collectors’ hands through SDCC. Anyone reading this right now already knows about Sgt. Slaughter:
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I mean, look at this figure! Sure there are complaints about the lack of musculature and the placement of the torso joint/USA logo (which I can certainly appreciate) but there is a metric ton of new tooling, great accessories, and even new points of articulation. Any long time fan who has been clamoring for Slaughter is gonna be loving this.
And while I haven’t been keeping up with the Marvel stuff as much as I’d like to, I can’t help but drool at what Hasbro has there as well:
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Before I go on…let me say one thing. Yes that is a TWO FOOT FREAKING TALL CARDED ACTION FIGURE. How awesome is that? Not to mention the bad ass WW II Captain America and an impressive Thor figure to tie into the upcoming movie as well.
Hell, even Star Wars has my interest this year!
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Bet you thought Darth Maul was dead, eh? Hell, I’m an uber-geek and even I thought Darth Maul was dead. What the hell is this? It’s Darth frikken Maul with cyborg horse legs. ROCK.
So yeah…for G.I. Joe fans or for toy fans, Hasbro has got it going on this year. Maybe one day I’ll make it to SDCC…but until then I’ll sit back and enjoy it vicariously through the hundreds of thousands of others. Can’t wait to hear what’s on the horizon!
When Hunter PR rep Joe Moscone reported on his Twitter page last night that Hasbro’s SDCC exclusives would be featured on Attack of the Show, I was hoping the video would show up online since I don’t get G4 with my local cable package. Thankfully g4tv.com came through!
They visited Hasbro’s Rhode Island headquarters and give us the scoop on the wide array of goodies Hasbro will have available at SDCC…and yes, the Sarge is front and center. Check out the embedded video below.
So we’ve got schedules set for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and this is the way things look, G.I. Joe wise: Thursday, July 22nd
1:00-2:00 Hasbro GI Joe— The Hasbro design and marketing teams and representatives from Hasbro Studios — including Derryl DePriest (Hasbro Marketing),John Warden (Hasbro Design), Aaron Archer (Hasbro Brand IP Development), Jeff Kline (executive producer, G.I. Joe Renegades), and Michael Vogel (Hasbro Studios) — discuss new initiatives for Hasbro’s G.I. Joe brand. Fans won’t want to miss details from the showrunner and members of the creative team for the new G.I. Joe Renegadesanimated television series coming to The Hub network this fall! Also includes Q&A time. Room 25ABC
1:00-2:00 Digital Bits: Blu-ray Producers 2010— Bill Hunt, Adam Jahnke, and Todd Doogan (of TheDigitalBits.com) drill down on the latest DVD and Blu-ray developments with some of the leading special-edition producers in Hollywood! Panelists includeCliff Stephenson (Rambo: Director’s Cut, Expendables), Charles de Lauzirika (Robin Hood,Alien Anthology), Javier Soto (Predators, Mimic, The Devil’s Backbone), and Brian Ward (from Shout! Factory) (Transformers, G.I. Joe, Max Headroom). Don’t miss out on all the insider scoops, audience Q&A, and sneak peeks at great upcoming discs! Room 32AB Friday, July 23rd
12:00-1:00 IDW and Their ‘Bro— Representatives from IDW and Hasbro discuss what’s coming up next in the world of Transformers, G.I. Joe, and the impending relaunch of Dungeons & Dragons. IDW’s Andy Schmidt moderates a panel with D&D editor Denton Tipton and writers John Rogers and Alex Irvine, G.I. Joe artist Robert Atkins, writerMike Costa, and more! Room 8
4:00-5:00 Breaking into Comics— A bold first step into breaking into comics starts here. Top comics creators Mike Costa (G.I. Joe: Cobra, The Authority: Jack Hawksmoor, Transformers) and Reilly Brown (Cable & Deadpool, The Incredible Hercules) discuss the ins and outs of the comic industry — specifically, what it takes to break in and how it’s done! Get solid and sound advice on what it takes and how to get started! Moderated by Comics Experience’s Andy Schmidt (X-Men, Annihilation, G.I. Joe). Room 30CDE Sunday, July 25th
10:00-11:00 Sideshow Collectibles— The Sideshow Collectibles Design and Development Team present an in-depth look at some of Sideshow’s most popular product lines and licenses, including Star Wars, G.I. Joe, Marvel Comics, The Lord of the Rings, and many more, offering insight into the design process, sneak peeks of upcoming products, a Q&A session, and giveaways. Room 32AB
As usual, keep your eyes peeled to GeneralsJoes for updates as they occur. While I’m not sure we’ll hear a whole lot in regards to the Pursuit of Cobra, I think we might just get some cool sneak peeks at G.I. Joe: Renegades, some IDW details, and probably some Sideshow nuggets as well! It’ll be here before you know it. All schedule information courtesy of ComicCon.org.
Everyone mark your calendars! The latest issue of the Canadian G.I. Joe Collectors’ Club newsletter is hitting PDF on Tuesday, and it promises to reveal the first image from the 2010 Convention Exclusive! Whether this year’s exclusive is a single figure or some kind of set still remains to be seen, but if it’s anything like their past stuff, it’ll be a great reveal!
Check out the silhouette below, and keep your eyes peeled to JoeCanuck.com on Tuesday for the full reveal. I’m fired up myself!
