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The Full Force JoeCon 2018 DeBrief

So, has your depression about the last JoeCon been alleviated?

Well STOP IT.  Time to jump back in and relive the thrills and excitement of Chattanooga, TN.  The Full Force podcast has posted the full JoeCon Debrief as only the Full Force can with TONS (tonnes?) of special guests, interviews, and G.I. Joe fans far and wide reliving the joy of victory and the agony of hotel lobbies at five in the morning…

This one has it all, including yours truly along with Derryl DePriest, Mark Weber, Bobby Vala, WordBurglar, GI JoeBurg, Kate McLeod, Adam Riches, Patrick Stewart, Gray Childs, Eddie Inman holy crap something for everyone.

This is the goods folks.  If you went to JoeCon 2018 and want to be thrust back in time, check this out.  If you missed it and want to live the glory of JoeCon, check this out.  If you’re breathing CHECK THIS OUT.  As always make sure you’re also keeping tabs on The Full Force Facebook page for the latest news and info about the podcast.

FUUULLLL FOOOORCE

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The Final JoeCon Recap 04 – The Friends

I mean, who are we all kidding?  This is what JoeCon is all about.  Even with a nearly non-existent toyline, a lack of official reveals at the convention, and the wind down of Fun Publications as a whole the entire JoeCon weekend was an absolute blast.  A whirlwind of activity, both convention related and not, and a reminder of just what these shows are all about.

It started the day I got there, Thursday, when I told myself I wasn’t going to wait in line.  I went as an Aide specifically so I could enjoy myself and not feel hamstrung by product to buy, money to spend, or lines to wait in.  Yet, still, that first night, I found myself waiting and walking through the line because so many of my friends were there.  For at least four hours I stood in lines even though I didn’t have to, just to say hi and see what I’d missed over the past few years.

 

Thursday night, me and a few friends went to the incredible WordBurglar show at a local improv, which was terrific as well.  WordBurglar is a legit G.I. Joe and 80’s fan, and he killed it both with his skills on the mic, and with his knowledge of G.I. Joe (and Nintendo for that matter).   I believe “Long Pour” himself took video of nearly the entire show

Friday I had a nice breakfast at the rocking City Diner (open 24 hours), and while I unfortunately missed the parachute drop because of it (well, maybe not so unfortunately based on what I heard about it) it was totally worth it.  That night was spent in a friend’s hotel room, talking about Japanese imports (long live Diaclone!) and introducing former Hasbro employee Mark Weber to the more intricacies of JoeCon tradition.  We also spent some time in the hotel lobby drinking beers (huge thanks to code name “Long Pour” for his constant stream of quality beverages) and just talking.  Friday also gave us our first sneak peek at the sales floor when I basked in the glory of Complex and fainted dead away when one of my buddies told me what he spent in the first fifteen minutes of the show.

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Then there was Saturday.  I opened Saturday at the diner again with another good friend, talking hobby stuff (and business stuff!), then moved to the sales floor to try and get even more facetime with the product, with friends, and with familiar vendors.  We were treated to the now infamous “Behind the Scenes of the first G.I. Joe Micro-Movie” panel and I was able to spend some serious time on the sales floor, which was great.

Saturday night brought us Casino Night, which I spent playing bingo (BANGO!) with more friends, enjoying the cosplay, and even some facetime with YoJoe admin Terry who broadcast all the way from Seattle via a telepresence robot and was able to join us all for dinner.  It was a truly fantastic moment and one of those small things that makes this show great.

The best thing about Saturday, though, happened after Casino Night when I got a chance to hang out with some long time friends at a few separate establishments in the greater Chattanooga area.  We checked out two different places, the Honest Pint and the Pickle Barrel (we had one hell of a view at the Pickle Barrel) and ended up closing both of them down.  We returned to the hotel lobby where we shut down JoeCon after hours as well, finally retiring at right around 5:00 o’clock in the morning.  Hey, at least I didn’t have to drive home on Sunday or anything…  oh, wait.  Yes I did.

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I think by now we all know what Sunday was like.  It was odd, though, there wasn’t really a feeling of melancholy, it was a mostly fun, exciting day punctuated by bouts of emotion.  The real struggle came during the last panel, when folks were gathering to say good-bye afterwards, promising each other that this wouldn’t be the last time we all saw each other, promising that there were other regional shows and we’d all meet again somewhere down the line.

Yes, this is true.  There are regional shows, and many of them, and they all have a ton of promise.  Assembly Required, Coil Con, JoeFest, each of these gatherings promise to be fun.  But will any one of them capture the breadth of attention that JoeCon did?  Will any one of them draw in so many disparate collectors under one roof?

I hope so.  I really and  truly do.  I’ve been going to JoeCon off and on (mostly on) since 2003, and in spite of a fifteen year run, I’m not ready to say good-bye to these people yet.  I’ve seen a pregnant woman in 2003 raise a child, who is now entering high school.  I’ve made new friends and I’ve lost friends along the way.  JoeCon, at least the attendees of JoeCon, have become a part of my extended family in a way that my real family will never quite know or appreciate.  It was a good run, I met some great people, and my world was made better by the folks I’ve come to know and love through JoeCon.

Until we meet again.

Clearing up some confusion – The “Final Twelve”

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

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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.

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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

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“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

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Sonic Fighter Dodger vs Sonic Fighter Viper

Dodger and COBRA Viper in Sonic Fighter deco

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Sonic Fighter Falcon vs Sonic Fighter Road Pig

Falcon and Road Pig in Sonic Fighter deco

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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

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Euro Tiger Force Tunnel Rat and Euro Tiger Force Blizzard

Modern style figures in the vintage UK exclusive Tiger Force deco’s

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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!!

Full Force Post-Convention Recap Episode

The 2017 G.I. Joe Convention is over and Chris from The Full Force Podcast has pulled together a panel of experts to talk about what was shown, what was seen and what exciting things happened during the week down in Disney.

Join Chris, Troy and IDW artist extraordinaire Adam Riches as they discuss the trials and tribulations of JoeCon 2017.  Check out The Full Force on Facebook, or just hit up the podbean page below.

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Potential line up and design of JoeCon Exclusives

Okay, here we go!

Fresh from the Golden Ticket Pickup, we’ve got the full list of exclusives for the 2017 G.I. Joe Convention as well as some possible images/design cues based on the comic.  Keep in mind the comic isn’t always 100% accurate and they sometimes throw us some curve balls, but in years’ past they’ve been pretty solid.

First the list:

  • BF 2000 Vector Jet
  • COBRA Sky Serpent w/ Pilot
  • BF 2000 Marauder Snowmobile 3 Pack
  • COBRA Laser Vipers 3 Pack
  • Ultimate Enemies 2 Pack
  • COBRA B.A.T. Rocket Glider 2 Pack

So, this doesn’t  tell us a whole lot.  Thankfully, Phil from YoJoe was there with a camera to snap some images from the convention comic.  Check them out below:

Based on those images above, I think we can make some educated guesses:

  1. Vector Jet is a tough call.  It almost looks like it could be the Conquest, but the wings are the wrong way.  Repainted ROC Night Raven maybe?  Or something obvious that I can’t put my finger on?  EDIT – It’s been mentioned that this at least slightly resembles the old school COBRA Hurricane.  DARE WE HOPE?
  2. Sky Serpent w/ Pilot is likely the Black Dragon VTOL, at least it certainly looks that way.  No idea who the pilot might be
  3. Marauder Snowmobiles look like repainted Polar Battle Bears as figured.  Three of them?
  4. Laser Viper 3 Pack – Pretty much what I suspected, and also it certainly doesn’t look as if they have their laser backpacks (which isn’t a surprise, not even the concept case version did)
  5. Ultimate Enemies 2 Pack – Looking like perhaps DeeJay and Corrosao (the guy they call “Corrosion” in the comic).  In toy form, Corrosao was a Brazilian DeeJay repaint, so the correlation makes sense, though the comic looks to use the Tele-Viper head sculpt.
  6. COBRA B.A.T. Rocket Glider – Maybe COBRA Jet Pack (like the one that was repainted as a Target Exclusive for Rise of COBRA)?  The image of DeeJay getting blown up almost looks like one of those flying off in the upper right hand corner.

As an added bonus it looks like perhaps Backstop is the parachute figure!  At least that looks like him in one of the comic panels above.

It should be noted that Tundra Stalker is also in the convention comic, though I’m honestly not sure where he would slot in, unless he’s one of the “Ultimate Enemies” and DeeJay isn’t, but that would just be bizarre.  Sometimes the Club throws red herrings at us in these comics, so that seems likely in this case.

Patrick from YoJoe also threw along some images of the BattleForce: 2000 LAW.  Check those out below.  Huge thanks to Phil and Patrick!