Sure Fire - Figure Subscription Service (Wave 1)

The world of being a G.I. Joe fan has been a long and twisted roller coaster, even if it's only been going on for thirteen years in this latest "online" generation. Back in the simpler days you just bought your figures, enjoyed them, and if you were lucky you interacted with some fellow local collectors. Times have changed.

For folks who weren't around in 2001, they might not quite understand the significance of Sure Fire, and even some folks who were around don't often consider it the landmark figure that it was. Not because of a name on a file card, but because he represented a true "new generation" of G.I. Joe characters. Throughout the 2000 - 2002 Real American Hero collection line, we were treated to mostly repaints with no new characters (Chameleon only barely counts) much less new parts. Sure Fire led the third wave of releases from the Real American Hero collection, and along with Big Brawler and Laser Viper was one of the few figures that actually received a new head. As someone who is very invested in the G.I. Joe mythology, not just as four inch pieces of plastic, that was a landmark moment for me. For the first time since 1994, we were actually getting some new history, new blood, and new stories to tell. That goes a long way for me.

While many fans somewhat cast Sure Fire aside because of his filecard (where he appeared to be an expert in nearly everything), I used the idea of this cocky character who stood apart from standard G.I. Joe operating procedures and watched over them as a legal overseer really got my attention. He was a necessary part of the G.I. Joe hierarchy and could certainly get his hands dirty, but he was not liked by the military team proper, which caused an interesting dynamic in my mind.

This version of Sure Fire takes some very cool elements, but uses some other homages that I'm not necessarily sold on. The original Sure Fire was certainly the defining version of the character to me, and I would have enjoyed seeing this version of the character share more of those traits (such as the color theme). But I've never been one to celebrate a blow-by-blow recreation of an older version of a figure, so I can certainly see the appeal here as well. This is a more militarized version of the law enforcement trooper, and I like it.

Really, what's not to like here. This version of Sure Fire uses some excellent 30th Anniversary parts from Law, with the legs from various G.I. Joe: Resolute incarnations. The result is a figure that is nice and bulky, with great proportions and great range of motion, looking very much like a modern military character. His head is retooled from a Valor Vs. Venom Shipwreck, and matches the source material fairly well, even with the addition of a trusty goatee.

Where the original Sure Fire was blue and black, this version matches his second iteration, which was various shades of green and brown. As I mentioned above, I might have preferred some homages to blue and black, but I do appreciate the more military green side of things. One of the cooler things about this figure is even without his gear he represents a great basic looking police trooper, so there is some opportunity for troop building, if such a thing is possible with a $30 exclusive figure. I've seen some complaints throughout the Internet in regards to this figure, but I'll be honest, I think this update represents a pretty key part in modern G.I. Joe history, and the Collectors' Club managed to make a great figure, to boot.

Of course, there is one well-advertised issue with the figure...his right arm is missing some key paint applications on the sleeve, where he has a flesh colored area instead of the green that he should. This is a very unfortunate issue at the factory, and one that fans wish wouldn't happen, especially for a high-end figure. I'm hoping the Club takes some steps with the factory to ensure that they are keeping up their side of the Quality Control during production.

ACCESSORIES

Sure Fire comes with his share of great law enforcement themed accessories, including the vest from 30th Anniversary Law, a helmet, handcuffs, a flashlight and pistol. These are all really great compliments to the figure. For weaponry, he comes armed with the Vector submachine gun and an assault rifle. Sure Fire is totally stacked and ready for combat.

There are no new accessories here, but the ones chosen are excellent additions to the Sure Fire character that add great playability and display capabilities for the Sure Fire character.

Yes, there are some fandom complaints about the character...about why he was included when perhaps someone else could have been. The complaints are especially harsh because this character is based upon an employee of the G.I. Joe Collectors Club. I can understand why fans have these issues, but I guess I don't consider it as a big deal. Regardless of this character's file name, he represents a key moment in G.I. Joe history, has a very interesting specialty, and makes for a pretty fun action figure, even with some unfortunate QC issues on the shirt sleeve.

I think this is a pretty cool figure myself, and I have an affinity for the Sure Fire character (even used him as a focal character in my Concrete Jungle Dio-Story). I'm glad to get an update.

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