So I hesitate to call this a review, even though it kinda/sorta is a review. Recently I got my hands on the first four G.I. Joe: Classified Retro figures released as Wal-Mart exclusives. Beyond the mangled card backs, the figures have their own pluses and minuses, some, obviously with more pluses than others.
So while I didn’t do a full-blown review breakdown of each figure, I did post a single look at the four different figures, outlining their good points and bad points with a ton of images.
Let me get this right out of the way up front — when Hasbro first announced they were doing a Wal-Mart exclusive G.I. Joe: Classified “Retro” line, my first response was — why? I mean, after all, the standard releases had been trending very close to Retro already. What was the point?
When we saw the first figure — a carded Baroness, I doubled down on my reaction. While the oversized card was an interesting trinket, the placement of the bubble and the somewhat dull positioning of the figure (empty space and all) didn’t really make it at all appealing. Now, to be fair– the Baroness was a sensible choice, after all, she’d only been available in an expensive Target exclusive pack alongside the COBRA Coil motorcycle, so at least at Wal-Mart someone could drop $20 for just the figure.
In my mind, the extra items in the Target version made it worthwhile, but– I digress.
So, I guess the real question is– if I was so lukewarm on this idea, how the hell did I end up with all four figures?
Because Hasbro managed to weave some interesting design elements into them that made them worth my money? Yes.
Because I’m a G.I. Joe sheep who just might very well buy almost any action figure with the G.I. Joe logo on it? Also yes.
To be fair, Hasbro did manage to do some interesting things, especially with Lady Jaye and Gung Ho, so I bought those two readily and eagerly. Then I received a free Baroness inside a Hasbro Fan Box — and my obsessive nature compelled me to at least purchase that final figure I was missing. Thus, I ended up with the whole damn set.
I suppose the answer is– do I regret my choice? Hmmmm… yes and no.
From my perspective, both Destro and The Baroness are objectively worse than their standard retail versions, so in those cases, yes I have some buyer’s remorse (though really only for Destro, since I got Baroness for free). The removal of some of the gray trim from the Baroness, the lackluster weapons and the removal of her knife sheath are all big points against the Retro version of COBRA’s female intelligence operative. I do like the stand she comes with, but that’s about the only improvement.
Destro is a little bit better with the black, animation specific eyebrows over his eyes and a somewhat eye-catching silver on his gloves, but by and large, I much prefer the color breaks of the retail version of this figure as well. I think “regret” or “remorse” might be a strong word, but suffice it to say, the Retro Baroness and Destro will not be the ones that I stand up in my display.
Animation accurate or not– new stands or not– I just prefer the way the original releases look and will be sticking with those. I can kinda understand why Hasbro chose these two characters (especially with the Baroness’ availability and price point) I’m just not sure I needed them in my collection.
I will say, however, things get a lot more interesting when you start talking about Lady Jaye and Gung Ho. Especially Gung Ho.
Let’s take a look at Lady Jaye first — while Destro and The Baroness seemed to just sort of commit to whatever they were trying to achieve, Lady Jaye went all in on the homages to the original 1985 action figure. The lime green uniform, the lack of the hair to replace her hat, the NEWLY TOOLED OLD SCHOOL CAMCORDER not to mention her backpack. Yeah, whatever corners Hasbro cut they built back up.
As much as I’d prefer if Hasbro try new concepts and new ideas it’s tough to argue that having a 6″ update to the ’85 figure doesn’t have at least a little bit of a “cool factor”.
Now, taking nostalgia out of the picture entirely, I think I prefer the original release. I’d much rather have the swappable hair/hat combo, the more modern backpack-mounted camera and the slightly more toned down, realistic colors. I will say the execution on the face painting on the Retro Lady Jaye is great improved, however.
This brings us to Gung Ho. Far and away the shining star of the Retro series thus far, Hasbro threw everything they had at this Gung Ho update and stuck the landing.
Personally, I really liked the original Gung Ho release– it was during a short window of time where Hasbro was trying some new things, not beholden to vintage ideals, and I kind of liked that approach. It meant each new figure had a potential to bring something legitimately new to the table, rather than everything being, more or less, pre-ordained. Sure, Gung Ho came with some clunky weapons and his hat wasn’t 100% adherent to the Marine Corps standards, but the darker colored uniform, the modernized vest– the slightly retooled facial features. It all worked really well for me, though I acknowledge others weren’t wild about it.
For the Retro version, Hasbro leaned whole hog into that old school 1983 powder blue aesthetic.
And, you know, as much as I say I love the modern and scoff at the vintage accuracy of some of these figures– tough for me to say that the Retro Gung Ho isn’t pretty cool. Yeah his colors are bright and somewhat unrealistic, yeah, there isn’t quite as much originality at play. But the figure works.
Hasbro clearly invested a ton of new tooling dollars into the figure, giving him a new head, new hat, new backpack, new vest, new grenade launcher, new holster and grenade pouch. The entire figure could have easily sold in a box at MSRP rather than the Wal-Mart Retro line and I suspect almost any Classified fan would have paid up. It is, more or less, similar to Heavy Artillery Roadblock, a vintage looking figure etched in 6″ scale with a modern aesthetic.
What started as mostly a curiosity for me has somewhat surprised me. Initially I hadn’t really considered buying any of these, yet somehow I ended up with all four in my collection and while their usability might be in question, they remain fun additions to the Classified line.
Without a doubt, I would say anyone who owns the existing Baroness and Destro don’t need to bother adding those two Retro figures to their collection, however both Lady Jaye and Gung Ho have significant additions to their figures and are both worth at least considering, in my mind.
I suspect the majority of fans will eagerly acquire Gung Ho and to a lesser extent Lady Jaye, though they might very well (and rightly so) pass by Baroness and Destro.
I know this wasn’t a full-blown review, but in truth, the majority of these figures didn’t have enough changes to warrant a full individual review and rather than just focus a review on Gung Ho and/or Lady Jaye, I decided to write up a sort of “catch all” post covering the interesting and less interesting elements of these figures.
The year was 1987 and it was a turning point, of course for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. Many fans these days would claim it was the start of a downward trend, the emergence of COBRA La, a shift toward more ridiculous enemies like Raptor, Crystal Ball, Big Boa and yes– Croc Master.
I will say, I find Croc Master’s relative popularity curious– not that he’ll ever rise to the ranks of someone like Firefly, Storm Shadow or The Baroness, but amongst the other 1987 rookies, I feel pretty confident in saying he remains at the top of most fan’s lists. Unlike his COBRA La counterparts, he never appeared in animation, and he was barely featured in the comics before being buried in the COBRA freighter, so beyond being COBRA’s island security with an obsession with crocodiles, there isn’t much known about the enigmatic villain. Perhaps that’s part of his appeal? The relative blank slate status he has so the fans can write their own backstory?
Or maybe it’s just his look — the black mask, red eyes and crocodile hide armor giving him very unique aesthetic that is both apart from COBRA standard, but also fits them in its own weird way.
Whatever the reason, Croc Master, over the years has received a surprising focus from Hasbro and G.I. Joe fans in general. After all, he appeared relatively early on in the 25th Anniversary line (as well as near the end of Valor Vs. Venom), and even earned a Python Patrol repaint, which, I’d say, is definitely a possibility with this version as well.
I mean, objectively speaking, he looks a LOT cooler than someone like Raptor or Crystal Ball (and this is coming from a guy who actually likes Raptor quite a bit), but even so– his emergence as an almost constant presence among COBRA’s elite does remain at least somewhat of a surprise.
DESIGN
What isn’t a surprise is just how bad ass this figure is. As the G.I. Joe: Classified line has evolved over the past two years, it’s become clear that the sculpting and design talent behind the line are second to none and when it comes to a character like Croc Master there are so many awesome, unique design elements, it’s no surprise that the talented folks behind Classified design absolutely knocked this one out of the park.
First and foremost, yes, as with most recent Classified releases, the designers adhered pretty strictly to the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” vintage inspiration. While I’ve found some reason to complain about that approach in other reviews, it’s tough to argue its effectiveness here. I would still maintain that characters like Storm Shadow, Stalker, Firefly and others would heavily benefit from a more modern approach. But when it comes to a croc obsessed COBRA security guard? I dunno– the vintage look nailed it pretty nicely.
Croc Master is a larger body buck, but not as large as say Roadblock or Gung Ho. His broad shouldered bulk is covered by a fantastically sculpted crocodile hide body suit layered in various shades of green which add a nice sense of depth, realism and texture to the figure. He comes complete with his two familiar gauntlets, the COBRA emblem on his right chest and the unique weird eyeball belt buckle that has become a strange hallmark of sorts. Is that eyeball an actual crocodile eyeball? If he’s obsessed with the creatures so much why does he wear their skin? So many questions.
The sculpting on the figure is amazing as well, with his furrowed brow beneath the taut, black mask, the airmask and hose that leads to his back where the secondary tank is plugged into his back. His holster and awesome, somewhat modernized revolver as well as the knife at his calf. This is a perfect upscale rendition of the familiar ’87 Croc Master and Hasbro really turned the design dynamic up a notch when translating him in three dimensions.
ARTICULATION
Pretty much perfect, all things considered. The textured croc skin vest is sculpted on instead of strapped over, so his ab crunch is unhindered and fully poseable. Even though he’s got pretty muscular arms, he retains full range of motion in the elbows and shoulders, and even with the air hose his head and neck are capable of any manner of twists, turns or nods.
Hips, knees and ankles all have their full poseability as well, and in spite of the bulkier, more stout stature, Croc Master can move with the best of them.
ACCESSORIES
I mean– the focal point of his accessory compliment has her name right on the box — Fiona is where it’s at. A fully articulated crocodile, Fiona is a spectacular addition to the figure and a real upgrade from the static chunk of plastic the ’87 version came packed with. She’s amazingly articulated with a wire frame tail, ball joints at the base and a multi-segment neck joint, so she can twist and turn in all manner of different directions.
Her hips and jaw are all articulated as well, not to mention her wrists, which helps get just the right predatory pose no matter the circumstance. Don’t even get me started on the paint apps — the various shades of green, the touches of pink at the tongue and the corners of her mouth. She looks like a crocodile translated into plastic– who just happens to be an accessory for a G.I. Joe figure.
What’s great is that she’s far from the only accessory he comes with. I already mentioned the great revolver and knife, plus a nasty looking meat hook, a chain leash with spiked collar and a whip, all very much in line with the original and 25th era releases. There are also two baby crocs that come with the set as well, all combining together to make this entire box feel “deluxe” though I’m not sure I’ll ever get accustomed to paying $40 for a domestic release six inch figure, no matter what it comes with.
CONCLUSION
Croc Master is one of those obscure characters that I fell in love with early, and unlike some of them that I appreciate, the fans and Hasbro themselves seem to share that love.
Taking the 1987 template and cranking up the scale and sculpting to align with a 21st Century aesthetic works absolute wonders for Croc Master, giving him suitable bulk and intimidation. He remains exceptionally well articulated and as I mentioned before, the intricate layers of paint and texture just bring him fully to life.
If you’d asked me to pick which COBRA characters were going to make an appearance within the first 38 figures of the Classified line, I’m not sure Croc Master would have been on that list– but I’m thrilled that he was.
General Gallery
G.I. Joe Classified Croc Master
Design
Originality
Articulation
Accessories
Value
4.6
Summary
Yes there’s more of that adherence to vintage look and feel but for Croc Master it works. He looks suitably imposing and thankfully his old school aesthetic doesn’t deviate from more modern elements. He’s a great looking update with some fantastic accessories and a face only a mother could love.
Pros
– Amazingly detailed sculpt
– Fiona is remarkably cool
– That multi-toned and textured croc skin outfit is gorgeous in 6″ scale
Cons
– Doesn’t have a place for all of his weapons, unlike most classified figures
– $40 still feels like a sorta steep price point, though Fiona almost makes it worth it!
One of the strengths of the G.I. Joe mythology over the years was the prevalence of strong female characters, which was something you didn’t always see back in the bygone days of the 80’s. From the very first, many of the central, most important characters who drove the G.I. Joe world were female, and certainly within the confines of the Sunbow animated series, Lady Jaye was at the top of that list.
While she was paired with Flint throughout much of their time in animation, she was clearly her own character as well, often starring in episodes as more than just “Flint’s other half” and carving out her own identity and personality. All that being said, I was a little surprised to hear her mentioned as part of the G.I. Joe: Classified line so early in its life. That surprise, however, swiftly became anticipation, as Hasbro revealed a fantastic iteration of Lady Jaye.
While I’m thrilled to see Lady Jaye’s inclusion within G.I. Joe: Classified, I wasn’t sure how well her look would translate to a more modern aesthetic. She’s always had a pretty unique old-school appearance, and even as Hasbro gave her new tooling throughout several updated versions, she never really got a new “look”, always just the same vintage uniform with some minor alterations.
I’m pleased to say for the Classified version they managed to draw inspiration and spirit from her original ’85 appearance, but updated it in a few key ways that manage to make her look vintage inspired, but also mesh with the more modern Classified style pretty seamlessly.
DESIGN
Lady Jaye has her familiar green uniform that she’s been shown in since day one. The color is very much as its always been with a somewhat bright sheen, though not too bright. She’s got her familiar popped-up collar, though Hasbro did dial back the plunging neckline a bit, definitely for the better.
She’s got combat pants and boots and her rolled-up sleeves, all of which call back to her vintage appearance, but also give the modern designers some freedom to do a few interesting things.
As we’ve seen with several other Classified figures, the additional texture and sculpting detail allowed at a six-inch scale is put to very good use here. Several seams are sculpted into her uniform as well as a nice application of layered texture and padding, which adds some depth and dimension to the figure.
Pockets, pouches and straps sculpted on top of her base uniform adds some really cool detail and this Classified aesthetic and the secondary belt and straps are pretty terrific. I like the hip pouch and what’s become the trademark blue communications device that also helps tie her in to the rest of the team.
What’s perhaps my favorite aspect of this figure’s design, however, is how they handle her head.
As any G.I. Joe fan knows, the original Lady Jaye figure wore a baseball cap (as did several of her more recent releases as well) however in the animated series, she was featured without it. In fact, it wasn’t until the 25th Anniversary line a little over 10 years ago that we even got a Lady Jaye figure without her baseball cap.
With this Classified update, Hasbro finds a way to please both camps! The figure comes with the cap-less head, but the hair is removable with the ability to swap it out for a hat with hair attached. Honestly? It works perfectly.
ARTICULATION
As with most of the Classified figures, Lady Jaye features some impressive articulation, only this figure actually goes even further above and beyond.
Lady Jaye was actually one of the first Hasbro female figures to feature double-joint elbows, and she also has the latest state-of-the-art pinless joints so the aesthetic of the figure is not interrupted by the obvious round pins that keep the parts together. In spite of this new revolutionary construction, she manages to retain full range of motion and is just as highly articulated as any other figure in the line (and actually even better articulated than Scarlett and Baroness).
There have been some reports that the elbow joints do restrict motion a little bit, though mine has been fine with some careful moving and an application of some heat from a hair dryer.
ACCESSORIES
As great as the figure design itself is, Lady Jaye only shines further in the accessory department.
While the original ’85 release figure had a somewhat funky javelin/gun sort of combination, the Sunbow animation really leaned into the whole javelin idea and actually gave her spears to throw, many of them with unique tips that could provide all sorts of different functions– explosive, acid, even one that formed an airtight bubble to protect her and Flint from lava. Yes, you read that right.
The Classified version manages to meld both ideas, giving her a modular javelin gun that can be separated so she ends up with spare javelins for throwing, and they even have removable tips! Not only that, but the spare tips can fit within recesses in her backpack, which also has a fantastic modular surveillance camera system for some of those covert operations she is sent on. There’s also a removable knife that fits into a sheath, and as I mentioned before, the whole hat/hairpiece combination.
In short, her accessories are fantastic. It would have been cool if she could have come with some other sort of combat weapon that leaned a touch more realistic, but Hasbro was clearly leaning on the ’85 version for inspiration, which is what most fans want, so hard to blame them there.
CONCLUSION
Sort of like the upcoming Target exclusive Barbecue, Lady Jaye wasn’t a figure I realized I needed quite as badly as I did, but now that I’ve got her in hand, I’m really impressed and thrilled that Hasbro got her in collector hands so early in the line.
To anyone who fell in love with the Sunbow cartoon, Lady Jaye was clearly a central cog in that machine and it’s great to see Hasbro giving the character her due.
They did great work with this figure and I really don’t have any complaints, though the pinless elbow joints have been reported as issues either with their mobility or their durability. I feel fortunate that I haven’t experienced that myself, but it should be mentioned regardless.
As an aside, I’m hearing and seeing reports that both this figure and Flint have been relatively easy to locate at brick and mortar retail– a great and hopeful sign of things to come as the world continues its recovery from 2020 and looks ahead to a renewed explosion of G.I. Joe popularity.
General Gallery
G.I. Joe Classified Lady Jaye
Sculpting
Paint Applications
Articulation
Accessories
4.4
Summary
The way Hasbro handled their six inch update to Lady Jaye is about as good as it gets, from my perspective. The unique way they handled the javelin weapons, the swappable hat/hairpiece and the added elbow articulation all add to a terrific overhaul.
Pros
– Great mix of vintage call backs and modern stylistic updates
– First female figure with double-jointed elbows
– Brilliant use of accessories with the javelin and the hat/hairpiece
Cons
– Added articulation does make the elbow joints a bit more fragile
– The javelins are great, but I would love some more traditional accessories included as well
Yes, this figure, as it stands now, is about a year old and we’ve seen a couple dozen Classified figures emerge within that window of time, but Major Bludd, for my money, stands at the top of the list of favorite figures even as the roster has grown significantly since his release.
Major Bludd seemed to emerge right on the cusp of the shift from modern back to vintage aesthetic and I’m absolutely thrilled that he fell on the right side of that line. This figure, almost more than any other, truly benefitted from a more science fiction approach and it’s for that reason that he’s as successful as he is.
Major Bludd fever felt like a turning point in the G.I. Joe: Classified franchise. Frustration over the COBRA Island Target exclusives reached a fever pitch and it was with Bludd, Barbecue and Breaker that Hasbro seemed to find the right formula that mixed desirability and availability. While Bludd’s initial sell through sparked some of the familiar complaints, he eventually became more accessible with reports of collectors finding upwards of 30 of him on pegs throughout various regional Target locations.
At this point, an eBay search seems to bear that out with figures averaging around $30 – $40 on the secondary market. A bit of an uptick from MSRP but it doesn’t appear to be an indication that these figures are exceptionally scarce.
DESIGN
From a design perspective, Major Bludd ticks all the right boxes, especially for being a store exclusive. There was a time when an exclusive to a particular retail chain automatically meant repaint– but with the Classified line, we’ve seen a bevy of great new parts with almost every Target exclusive released and that certainly remained the case with Major Bludd.
The base body, it should be noted, is mostly a repaint of the COBRA Trooper, though you wouldn’t necessarily notice with the updated secondaries, the new right arm, shin armor and head. Beneath the covers, I’m totally cool with the Trooper body being used, as it represents a nicely updated, bulky looking figure that seems like a great template for Bludd.
Covering the torso is a thick plate of body armor, more reminiscent of the Sideshow Collectibles release of Major Bludd than the 1983 rendition, which is a huge win in my book. It’s a great design with several sculpted textural elements and great layers, looking protective and future sci-fi in all the right ways. A bulked up shoulder pad on his right shoulder adds to that bulk, which of course compliments the clearly cybernetic right arm included as well.
There has been a lot of debate over the years whether Bludd has a robotic arm or simply some armor to protect him from his missile-launching weapon, and there are plenty of arguments for both. Classified went hard into the “robotic” arm side of things and I absolutely love it. The sculpting, articulation and overall design of the limb is so great, it really adds a terrific cherry on top of this figure which provides even more separation from the standard COBRA Trooper underlay.
Perhaps just as great as the arm, however is the head sculpt. That grizzled, angry Mercenary look glowers out from beneath the domed helmet, his scarred left eye replaced by yet another cybernetic attachment once again calling back to a previous version of the figure. Sideshow Collectibles also took this element to heart and I remain ecstatic that Classified seemed to use that as a canvas.
While the COBRA Trooper left gauntlet is a direct recreation of the one that came with that Trooper, Hasbro gave Bludd new boots which dramatically help make him look a bit new and different. Add to the boots, the vest, the head and the arm, a simple addition like the belt with a low-slung holster just adds all the more appeal to this mercenary figure.
Then of course there are the colors– as one would expect from Major Bludd, the base body is brown, just like the vintage figure (and several of the ensuing releases since) but rather than a pure flat black to complement it, Hasbro goes with a deep, gunmetal gray, dark enough to look black, but with just the right sheen to it that it gives it added texture and detail.
Speaking of detail, there are various nicks, and dings taken out of the armor and the shins, which just show that Bludd has been through the ringer, giving the figure a life of its own.
ARTICULATION
Beneath the layered armor, Bludd’s articulation remains on point as it does with pretty much every single Classified figure released. Like several others (including the frequently mentioned COBRA Trooper) a full torso armored vest does hinder some of the torso movements which detracts a bit from the overall range of motion.
Even with that, the figure reaches and maintains all manner of great positions and it’s tough to be too upset because the vest adds so much detail to the look of the figure.
ACCESSORIES
Could we ask for anything better? As they’ve started doing more frequently, Hasbro clearly went to the vintage well when providing Bludd his backpack and missile launcher, and because of the larger scale of the figure, they could actually make the rockets removable from the backpack which is a really great detail.
Those rockets can then attach to the end of the launcher as well to mimic the gun the vintage version came with (though the Classified version looks a bit longer and ganglier than the vintage version did). Along with the backpack, missiles and launcher, Bludd comes with removable dog tags, his familiar helmet, and a really great looking revolver which, yet again, is a call back to Sideshow Collectibles in the best way. Bludd’s pistol remains one of my favorite weapons of the entire line to this day.
CONCLUSION
Absolute, utter perfection. An immaculate blend of vintage aesthetic and modern touches, Major Bludd is a spectacular addition to the G.I. Joe Rogue’s gallery. His availability caused some consternation at first, but has loosened up since, which is a good thing, because every fan deserves to have this figure in their collection.
Major Bludd is a picture perfect example for why I wish Hasbro would still allow for some unique modern aesthetics to creep through as I think he really showcases the potential for that rather than devoting all attention to recreating the old school look.
Time will tell if Hasbro eventually puts together a more faithful vintage version of Bludd, but I’ll just say up front — they don’t need to. This guy is perfect as it is.
General Gallery
G.I. Joe Classified Major Bludd
Sculpting
Paint Applications
Articulation
Accessories
4.8
Summary
What a great figure. A combination of reused parts and new, a great modern take on the classic COBRA mercenary. LOVE his weapons. Not a whole lot to complain about.
Pros
– That head sculpt is about as good as it gets
– Love the cybernetic arm and that future tech pistol
– Great modern updates!!
Cons
– Layered body armor is great, but does restrict movement
LOVE the COBRA Trooper base body — but I do wonder what a pure “Bludd” Major might look like
