FSS 5.0 - Salvo & Darklon

Wave 3 of FSS 5.0 is here! Wait, what happened to wave 2? Factory shipping error, so we got wave 3 early. Wave 2 will be in March.

This shipment turned out to be two great figures, Salvo and Darklon. By all appearances of the figures still packaged, they look great. Let's take a closer look at each figure to see how they stack up.

Salvo turned out to be the result of a unique situation with the Club and the fans. Initially, the Club was planning on using a smaller torso and collectors were a bit upset because of their preconceived notion that Salvo should be a must bigger guy. This idea came about because the original Salvo was a bit more broad chested and a little bulkier in the arms. Nearly all of the original o-ring Joes were the same height due to the basic design of the figures back in the 80's and 90'. The fandom did a good thing and suggested that the Club should try to use the Rock/Roadblock torso that allowed larger bulkier troops to join the team. Well done to all the collectors who politely took the issue to the Club and a great figure was the result.
Almost... There's something about those lower legs. 

I think the lower legs came from the GI Joe trooper from Retaliation. Maybe, I'm not sure. The Club, for whatever reason, didn't use the original lower legs that are a part of those upper legs. The end result is not good.

The legs are now a bit wonky and Salvo doesn't stand up too well. Some have suggested soaking the lower legs in hot water to straighten them out some. I tried that trick but it didn't work out too well. There's also something slightly visual off with the leg parts. The lower legs just seem proportionally shorter than how they should look when compared to the thighs.

I decided to try a possible solution. I had bought a couple of the Battle Kata Roadblock figures from the Retaliation waves and thought that I could see how bad off the color differences would be when I switched them out.

It's not a great situation, but at least Salvo can now stand. Perhaps one day, I'll dig out my paints and make his pants all one color. We'll see. As far as the accessories go, I'm pleased with what the Club provided. I would guess that the molds for the original Salvo's weapons are long gone and they would have been quite expensive to retool.

I had originally assumed that the Club would use Serpentor's bald head for Salvo. I was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case. So who's head is it? The head sculpt comes from the Hit & Run figure. I don't know that I realized that H&R's head was actually bald with just painted on hair. With H&R's face being green with the unusual beard paint pattern, there's enough cosmetic differences that allows this head sculpt to work nicely for Salvo.

The Club did a great job on Salvo, at least from the knees up. I was hoping for a no issue figure from the Club with Salvo, but it doesn't seem to be that way. So damn close. So how did the Club do with Darklon?

Darklon is a crazy ass figure, either looking at the original o-ring figure, or the Club updates.
"Let's see... I'll start with a green shirt... red pants... and these orange boots as the final touch. Oh yeah, and my mother's gloves." Good lord, what a fashion nightmare. 
The craziness of the design, whether original or modern update, is what sells the character.

Visually, the Club hit a frikkin' home run with Darklon. He looks great! There are some issues with the build. The knees are single jointed and the gloves/hands are one piece without the additional wrist swivel. Ultimately, who cares? He's still a damn fine figure. I'm not crazy about the accessories, but that's not that big of a deal. I've got plenty of extra weapons for him to use.

Only after taking several pictures of Darklon did I realize that his sword belt had ridden up on his waist. Ugh. Whatever, just move on. The sword belt and should harness work quite well with Darklon where they didn't work so well well with the modern Iron Grenadiers.

I'm just thrilled with how Darklon turned out. I don't recall where those legs come from, but they work quite well for him.

The Club also perfectly captured Darklon's iconic mask based on the original figure.

So for this shipment of figures from the Club, I've got to say "Well done!" Despite Salvo's lower leg issues, I've got to say that the Club improved him so much from their original concept. Darklon turned out great, so I'm quite pleased with this wave. I'm looking forward to who's next to be shipped!

GI Joe Club FSS 5.0 Reveals

All the shenanigans seem to have settled down about the reveals for the Club's FSS 5.0 set of figures. I've been it a bit of a funk lately, at least in relation to toys and stuff. Surgery, new job, moving... it's all piled up to make for an interesting summer. The toys and this silly blog got put to the side for a while.

I've signed up for FSS 5.0 and have previously been a part of FSS 2.0, 3.0, and 4.0. I figured that I might as well throw out my two cents about the troops for FSS 5.0. Nothing better than sharing your opinion on the internet, right?

I loaded the pictures as to how I had saved them, not in the sequence that they were released. So, what the hell? Let's get going.

First up is Ambush. I wasn't really a huge fan of the original figure and I think that the Club did a decent enough job in capturing the essence of the character. As has been pointed out elsewhere, his neck seems extra long with that head propped up on that collar. Maybe it's just a pre-production issue and hopefully it will be resolved. In general, I'm in favor of this figure.

Next up is the Viper based on version 4 from 1994. I really didn't like the original figure much. I'm sure I bought a few, but nowhere near the amount of regular Vipers that I would have bought back in '86. Now we have another troop builder from the Club. I can't really fault the Club, primarily because the Cobra figures were largely the troops, with the individual personalities being a smaller amount. I think the figure looks well made, but I just don't know yet if I'm going to keep him. The design doesn't really fit into the design of the current modern Vipers or Cobra soldiers. Right now, I'm thinking he's going to head to the secondary market. I'm thinking I should be able to turn him for a decent profit.

Next up is Charbroil, another figure that wasn't terribly exciting in his original form. I think the Club did a decent job with him. I like this design over the Hasbro Blowtorch design. Charbroil is a keeper.

Next up is Darklon. The Club used the character in one of the recent Convention sets and he looked pretty good. I don't recall the build and I'm too lazy to go look it up right now. I think the Club did a great job; I think the parts choices work. I've always liked the character and will be pleased to add him to my collection.

No, this isn't Gung Ho. This is his Action Force counterpart, Gaucho. The original Gaucho was just a repaint of the original Gung Ho, so... yeah... Easy figure for the Club. He's way too much like Gung Ho for him to fit into my GI Joe world. I don't know what I'm going to do with this figure. Keep or sell? Time will tell. 

Next up is General Flagg. I like the design from the Club. Not sure how well that hat is fitting on his head, but the build looks pretty decent. I'm looking forward to adding him to my team.

Raptor? The Club decided to tackle Raptor? They certainly did and they did a damn fine job. I've seen customs in which the jungle viper "wings" were used for Raptor customs and I'm pleased that the Club went the same direction. The "wings" work great for Raptor and I'm excited about adding this goofball to my Cobra lineup.

I have always liked the character of Scoop. A combat journalist always sounded like a cool part of the team. Those odd combat jobs, like the journalist or the combat engineer (Tollbooth) always appealed to me. I think the Club captured his look well enough, but I'm disappointed that the head sculpt has a non removeable helmet.

Sneak Peek in his more accurate colors is up next. I liked the FSS 4.0 Tiger Force version and this guy looks just fine as well. Lazy on the part of the Club? Yeah, maybe, but it makes sense. I'm not sure why Tiger Force came out before this regular version, but either way, this figure works. I'm pleased to add him to my team.

Next up is Steel Raven, from the Club's comic story. Loosely based on a SKAR character from GI Joe: Extreme. Wow! The Club dipped into the mutant cousin/line of GI Joe? Not bad! There's been some criticism about Steel Raven looking like a female Major Bludd. Yeah, maybe. Whatever. I think she looks pretty good and well designed. 

Next up is Xamot, from the "Shattered Glass" storyline from the Club's Adventure Team comic. Whatever the backstory, we have one of the twins in a business suit. I'm quite pleased with this choice. Does the Club have plans for Tomax? Maybe in the future? 

Next up is the biggest source of nerd rage of FSS 5.0 - Salvo. This is the first concept from the Club and the Joe fan community exploded in a fury of outrage! Personally, I didn't care too much at the time. I've always imagined that the Club has to use what Hasbro allows them to use. Apparently the fan base interpreted the somewhat bulky original figure with the idea that Salvo had to be a big dude. Nerd outrage ensued... But the fan base did a good thing. They politely went to the Club's forums and reacted in a positive fashion, which resulted in...

This new version of Salvo. The Club offered up a design using the Retaliation Roadblock torso which gives Salvo much more bulk to him, much more in line with the muscular original figure. I've got to admit, the fan base did a good thing and I'm really hoping that the Club can create this version of Salvo.

Finally, there will be the mystery 13th figure. The Club has revealed that the figure will be a female figure and a "highly requested GI Joe team member." So what does that mean? Sounds interesting, I'm looking forward to seeing who it will be.

I was pretty much sold on FSS 5.0 from just the original line up and the release of the preproduction designs further completed my buy in of the line up. Right now (only considering the 12 named figures), it looks like there are ten solid keepers, with the Viper being a probable sale and Gaucho being on the fence as to what his final fate will be in the end.

My only real complaint with the Club and the FSS figures is the lack of communication. I don't want to know all of their business, but keep the fans updated on production and expected shipping delivery times. Just give us something once in awhile. Please.

One last question - Will the last figures from FSS 5.0 be released before the 2017 Convention? I certainly hope so.