G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Snarler w/ Rollbar & Beachhead

I saw this vehicle several times on store shelves at the regular retail prices, and just couldn't pull the trigger. I loved the look of the motorcycle, and I was absolutely infatuated with Rollbar, but I couldn't do it. Beachhead was the big downer in the set. As nicely as the Joe Army Ranger had evolved in the Anniversary line, going back to his initial release for the movie line felt like a step backwards, and the colors just didn't ring true.

Well, when these vehicles started hitting discount stores, I decided to take the plunge. And damn, I wish I'd done it sooner. The bike is even cooler than I thought, Rollbar is still a dreamboat, and Beachhead is a much better figure than I initially gave him credit for.

In the spirit of the Silver Mirage, the Snarler is a sleek gray and black roadbike, giving the Joes a nice speed edge in an urban environment. It's a fantastic looking speed bike that doesn't resemble anything military in the least, but it looks great, and that's good enough.

The gray color scheme with a nice hint of sporty red gives it a really cool look. It really is an awesome looking bike. Now, of course, being a G.I. Joe vehicle, it needs some offensive capabilities, and the removable sidecar provides that nicely. With a large, but not obnoxious spring-loaded rocket launcher in the front, and a very cool looking twin barrel machine gun on the side, the Snarler has some punch to go with its speed.

It's not often that you see a speedbike used by a special forces military group...only G.I. Joe could take something like this and make it work! Yet, as cool as the Snarler is, the figures make it even cooler.

Beachhead

Yes, at first glance I thought this figure looked terrible. In fact, the inclusion of this version of Beachhead drove me from purchasing the Snarler. I hated the figure that much.

And this is why sometimes getting a figure in hand makes all the difference in the world. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm still not sold on the fact that an obviously urban themed motorcycle and driver as a jungle uniformed co-pilot, but I'll tell you, the co-pilot looks pretty darn cool on his own.

Using the original 25th Anniversary tooling was an immediate down side to me, as I much prefer the comic pack or Hall of Heroes version. Yet, by pulling from this older tooling, Hasbro is able to somewhat differentiate the Rise of Cobra Beachhead from the more traditional looking version, and you get a figure that fits the Rise of Cobra feel pretty nicely.

The base uniform is obviously dark black, which offsets the green camouflage to perfection. The shade of green used on the vest is just awesome. It's not your traditional olive drab, it's a bit brighter, but it's not too bright by a long shot. It's just a very nice, appealing color that really works in the Rise of Cobra world, and contrasts with the much darker black to excellent fashion. The camouflage on the legs is also really nicely done with a very realistic pattern throughout and intricate paint apps up and down both legs.

The accessories are a bit "ho hum" just because we've seen them before, but the removable crossbow is still an excellent touch, and I am a fan of this machine gun as well.

Nothing striking, but some cool gear that compliments the figure.

Rollbar

I think I've already made it pretty clear just what I think of this particular figure. Rollbar is, quite simply, one of my favorite Rise of Cobra figures. Using the Anniversary Sgt. Airborne figure as a base (which was one of my favorite Anniversary figures, naturally), Rollbar crams a ton of urban assault camouflage into a small package, accents it with just the right touches of black and gray, and gives us a fantastic urban operations specialist who may or may not be a vehicle driver.

Of course, the paint scheme is beautiful, but the articulation and the overall figure design is where "the rubber meets the road" so to speak. Unlike many Anniversary figures, the elbows have a darn good range of motion, and the way the hands are sculpted allows for very realistic rifle grip poses. His articulation is awesome, the generic special ops feel of the uniform is awesome, and the camouflage pattern is just the awesome icing on the awesome cake.

Awesome.

In all seriousness, this is a terrific figure, and combined with a great motorcycle and a pretty cool co-pilot, it only makes this vehicle an even easier sell.

Like Beachhead, Rollbar comes with all of the gear as his Anniversary precurser, including the backpack, helmet, pistol, and machine gun. What else does he need?

Yes, I waited until clearance prices to grab this one, but truth be told, it's worth the full $15.00. A very cool small vehicle with two equally cool figures. A great package deal, and one of the best Alpha class vehicles of the line, for sure. Right up there with the Skysweeper. Get this one...it'll even work with your Pursuit of Cobra figures!

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