FSS 5.0: Ambush & Scoop

Well, the mystery is over! The delayed 2nd shipment of FSS 5.0 finally arrived. It's Ambush and Scoop!

Let's take a quick look at these two figures. I have mixed emotions regarding both of these characters. Ambush was decent enough back when he first appeared, but he never really connected with me as a great character. Scoop was quite different; I really liked the character. Of course, there's his first animated appearance in which he is initially a traitor to GI Joe. I don't recall the whole story, which is probably a good thing.

To me, the idea of an embedded combat journalist is a great idea for a GI Joe character, especially in my personal twisted GI Joe world. More on that later when I get down to the Scoop figure.

In terms of the Ambush figure, I'm just generally indifferent to the figure. I try to be a Club loyalist, but I'm really not very thrilled with their build of Ambush. There are just too many odd issues. I know, I've said it before and I'll say it again - I don't know the process that the Club has to go through in the design of the final figures.

See? He looks pretty slick, all loaded up with all of his gear. Sure, the weapons don't match what he originally had, but I don't really recall what they were and I don't feel like looking them up, yojoe.com has your answers! 

The head sculpt is great! It was originally used for General Mayhem figure that came with one of the Convention sets. Repainted, it works great for Ambush. It would also make for an awesome Abraham custom from The Walking Dead (pre Lucille encounter of course).

Here's the primary issue with Ambush - that neck... He's got an extra vertebrae in there, I suppose. "Giraffe neck" seems to be the current descriptive term for these types of situations.
Another issue is that the forearms are a bit too long and just make his arms seem a bit too long. Gear him up and pose him and he'll be just fine. The Club also chose the two=part torso first seen in a Dusty figure from the 25th Anniversary series. Those body styles are a bit dated. Perhaps the Club could have gone with another more modern body. I don't know.

Next up is Scoop. In my bizarre twisted GI Joe world, he's on the top of Cobra's hit list of GI Joe personnel, much more dangerous than Snake Eyes or Roadblock after he burned his souffle. Scoop, along with Mainframe and Sparks, are extremely dangerous, because they get inside the Cobra data structure and find the evidence that Cobra isn't this benevolent protector of the American people. Mainframe and Sparks are the computer geeks, while Scoop gets the video evidence of Cobra atrocities. 

I really need to write more about my crazy world.

 So how did the Club do with the figure? Well, he's quite orange, but I don't have a huge issue with the color. The Club  reused the head sculpt from Sky Patrol Airborne from the Convention set... last year? Unfortunately, for both characters, the helmet is part of the head sculpt. A little tragic, but I'm sure it's a cost savings to the Club.

While it's great that the Club used the camera from the boxed set from several years ago, it is a bit outdated in terms of modern technology. A more modern camera would have been better, especially one that Scoop could have actually held. Again, that would require new tooling from the Club. I'm okay with the camera. He does also come with a microphone and a green walkie talkie that was temporarily misplaced for his photo shoot. Pretty much outdated tech, but the Club uses what it has access to.

I'm also glad he comes with a weapon. These guys are members of GI Joe. You don't just walk off a Hollywood set (Quick Kick) or the circus (Star Duster) and become a GI Joe. You are active military and you get recruited to the team. Then you go through the training process. I've seen hints of special forces training, it ain't easy stuff. I'm sure nearly all of the team goes through it. I have my doubts for some of the characters. I wouldn't expect Admiral Keel Haul having gone through the ground troops training sessions.

So for these two figures, I'll have to give a "thumbs up" for Scoop, and a "thumbs half up" for Ambush. We're up to eight figures having been released from the Club for FSS 5.0. That means that there are five more to go, with the unrevealed #13 in that count. Or is #13 truly unrevealed? The Club did reveal that it would be a female character.

Someone got the wrong stand with their Scoop figure and it had "GI Jane" on it. Hmm... I'm interested. Am I upset at the spoiler? Hell, these are just action figures, big deal. I'm interested to see the build of the figure? What's the head sculpt look like? Are they going to use the ample torso from the Pythona figure? Time will tell!

Time to move along?

To be honest, I am so tired of the 80's mythos of G.I. Joe. Yes, it was awesome, but it's 30+ years old. Yes, it was campy goofiness, but it's 30+ years old. 

In my opinion, the cartoon gave the characters voices while the comic book gave the characters... character. Again... 30+ years old. 

Personally, I'm done with both mythos of G.I. Joe. I have no "canon" for G.I. Joe. The characters are essentially the same but, for me, they now exist in the 21st century. My mental Joe world exists in the modern world. 

I've retconned the past to be a rather insignificant part of my G.I. Joe world. 

Nostalgia is fine, but I'm over it. And I just grow weary of the praises of the past storylines. Yeah, don't get me wrong, that was some awesome stuff. Larry Hama defined G.I. Joe for me. 

Disclaimer: I don't read the current comics and haven't read a G.I. Joe comic in several years. I know the characters have been updated.

Hell, I've had a bit too much wine tonight and I'm rambling. 

Hopefully my rambling is reasonably intelligent. (See what I did there?)

This is my silly ass blog. So I get to rant or ramble however I like. Feel free to rant or ramble along with me or against me. Just be decent. That's all, just be decent.

So what are your thoughts? Are you still stuck in the 80's or can you (cue the song) "Let it go"?

Ramble away. Be reasonable. Be somewhat intelligent.