GI Joe Sneak Attack Review

Let's take a look at the Sneak Attack three pack from this year's "50th Anniversary" line. This is another set that I would never have purchased if it had always stayed at full retail price. But at $4.50 per figure, you can't fight the deal!

An odd choice of characters and an even odder color palette choice. Blue? Seriously? 

Sneak Attack includes Dusty, Bazooka, and Firefly. Blue? I'm not sure, as I write, which one is my favorite. I do know which one is my least favorite though. 

The Firefly from the set is very well done, but there are just a few minor issues. He's basically a repaint of the Retaliation Firefly (best ever!) from one of the three packs.  I like the different shades of gray for the uniform, but I think the boots and gloves should have been a darker gray. The added detailing rocks.

The paint apps on his weapon just make it pop. I haven't seen this MP5 very often in a GI Joe figure. I don't know where it originally came from, but it's a cool weapon. One drawback for the figure are the two bombs; they've been glued to his web gear. Dang it.

Ooh, that backpack! Where did this come from? Such cool details and great paint apps. Another drawback - the backpack peg is very short; it barely fits into his back. Very loose fit. No other solution besides glue.

Compared to the Retaliation three pack Firefly, I'm still in favor of the one on the left over the new paint scheme. Maybe Firefly in night ops gear? That'll work for me.

Next up we have Bazooka. Oh the pain. So much fail. Blue? Seriously? Blue? Hasbro took Bazooka's head and dropped it on the Rock/Roadblock body. Hey, let's make another tall figure! I liked the original 25th version of Bazooka and it still holds up to the more modern figures. Plus he seems to be looking downward, almost sad. 

I'd be sad too if I had to wear a baby-blue uniform. I don't know what I'm going to do with this guy. You may never see him again in another photograph of mine. Poor dude.

Lastly, we have Dusty. In blue. A desert ops soldier. In a blue uniform. Yeah, seriously. But I actually like this figure. The blue tones aren't quite as baby-blue as Bazooka's outfit.

Plus the parts selection just works for this figure. The PoC Duke torso and web gear look great. Original Duke arms and new hands? Unsure, but the parts choice works

This particular head sculpt is quickly becoming a generic multi-purpose head for bot Hasbro and the Club. It was originally used for the PoC Dusty, then it went to the Dollar General Duke, onward to the SpearHead figure from the Club from last year. This year, the Club is using it again for Bullhorn. 

I don't think I'm going to use this guy as Dusty though. You know, because his blue uniform would stand out a bit in the desert. I've seen some talk on the interwebs of using this guy as an aquatic ops sort of guy. Yeah, I like the land warriors better over other environments, but he could still work for me as an aquatic specialist. I'll have to come up with a new code name for him.

I'm going to have to go with blue Dusty as my favorite from this set, with Firefly coming in at a close second. With the other lighter gray version being my favorite, this new one just doesn't quite make it enough to bump blue Dusty from the lead position.

Trailing in at a very distant third place, Baby-Blue Bazooka staggers across the finish line.

That's almost it for reviews for this latest batch of "50th Anniversary" sets from Hasbro and Toys R Us. I did buy the two vehicle sets, but I sold off the HISS tank and the oddly colored Snow/TigerCat - HAVOC II thingy. I still have the black SkyStriker and the FOE Striker to review. I had almost forgot about them!

It looks like the figures from FSS 4.0 are finally going to start shipping next week! Yeah! New toys!!

Stay tuned!

GI Joe Vanishing Act Review

When this year's batch of "50th Anniversary" stuff first showed up online, there were quite a few of the two-packs that I knew I wanted to get. I've been pretty successful in getting what I want from the two-packs.

The only one of the three-packs that I was interested in was the set with Alpine. Got it, sold off the Rock Viper, no big deal. None of the other sets were of much interest to me.

Until Toys R Us started clearancing them out...
I couldn't resist. How can you resist when the per figure price drops down to around $4.50? So I picked up the Vanishing Act and Sneak Attack sets. I still don't give a crap about the Screaming Duke set.

As usual, I'm late to the game on figure reviews, but what the hell. Here goes my random thoughts.

I'm actually not very impressed with either of these sets.

The Vanishing Act set includes Torpedo, Hit & Run, and Zartan. Zartan is the high point for this set. 

Zartan has been a bit of trouble for me in recent years. I haven't been able to figure out my "default" version. I'm thinking that this guy has made the cut. For a while, the Resolute version filled that slot, but I think this version jumps ahead.

The parts choice works out quite well to closely match the original look, but not obnoxiously so. There's enough of a modern vibe to the figure that all the parts work well together.

The oddest accessory is the mask backpack. Like the original figure, the mask just slips under the hood and, there you have it, Zartan in disguise!

Uh, who the hell is this supposed to be?

Oh yeah, it's Storm Shadow! Yeah, that's right...

Crap, I forgot to take a picture with the Duke mask. Oh well, no loss.

This is a decent head sculpt. Is that the Vosloo head sculpt? Looks a little like it to me.

One day, I've got to revisit all the different versions of Zartan and make a final choice. I think this guy wins.

Next up is Torpedo. Decent figure, but there are a few issues. It looks like Hasbro went with the original torso and added the arms and legs from the Retaliation Snake Eyes. The new parts actually work quite well for Torpedo. The new arms and legs give a lightly armored look to the figure. I'm not too sure where the head came from.

The belt that originally worked with Retaliation Snake Eyes should work on Torpedo, but the sculpted belt interferes with its ability to rest comfortably on his waist. I like these types of figures just fine, but they just don't really work with most of my collection. I focus more on land warfare over water or air warfare. I may try him on eBay and see what I can get for him.

Lastly, we have Hit & Run. Such potential and such failure. The uniform color is great, but what the hell happened to his skin?

Look at that paint job on the helmet and the backpack! Excellent paint apps!

Alright, so Hit & Run is going for some nighttime camouflage, right? Yeah, sure, that's the ticket. I suppose it could work, but after the all green face from the Club version last year, I was hoping for a more normal skin tone. Perhaps Hit & Run got caught in the "Great Magnetic Field."

So for Vanishing Act, we have one hit and two misses. All decent figures, but Zartan edges out the two Joes with their flaws. Still, at $4.50 per figure, not a bad set. 

Next up - Sneak Attack!

The Reboot Arises

When we last were together, I discussed an insidious Cobra organization infiltrating into the very fabric of society, with the goal of tearing apart a once great nation from within.

After the events of 9/11, the nation was at the height of its manufactured nationalistic fervor. We knew who our enemies were who had caused this outrage and they had to pay. I'm going to run a bit fast and loose with history right now. Just kind of surface level stuff. Through the Bush years, the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan served as the proving grounds for those men and women would become the new GI Joe team. 

While there were successes in those wars, there was and still is great tragedy in those events. A quick commentary - is the Middle East really in better shape without Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi? I'm just a simple soul, beyond my pay grade to evaluate. But an unstable Middle East works quite well for the shadowy Cobra organization.

My thoughts of this alt history is that things were much worse for the US military, primarily because the "enemy" were better armed. Much like the private military contractors of our reality, the armed security side of Cobra Industries served, at times, alongside US troops, often coming to their aid, often being seen as rescuers and heroes. Building up a positive reputation of an insidious cancer growing from within. 

As the Bush presidency winds down, the nation is in turmoil, much like it was, but even worse. The population is disheartened and beaten down by economic disaster, caused, no doubt, by the machinations of infiltrated Cobra personnel.

This is really getting into some crazy New World Order stuff, isn't it? Fun stuff!

The nation is ripe for leader, a voice that will promise to restore Hope and Change. To fundamentally change the United States.To further weaken a nation.
One young Senator fro Illinois, educated at the hands of radicals, socialists, communists, and infiltrated Cobra agents.

So where does GI Joe rise in all this madness? During the Bush presidency, Cobra is widely public knowledge in all of its various public forms, but is usually portrayed positively by their media lapdogs. Only in the conspiracy websites and scattered militia groups, is there talk of the possible evil nature of the organization. Enough patriots still exist within Bush's government to revive the GI Joe team, which last existed in the Reagan years as a response team to that minor terrorist activity back in the 80's.

GI Joe serves admirably during the ending of the Bush presidency and does successfully transition into the Obama presidency. Obama genuinely supports, the GI Joe team, but has goals to "transform" the team to serve his needs.

Nearly the last bastion of honor and courage for the American people, the GI Joe team attempts to maintain their honor and integrity and inspire their nation. 

The events of IDW's Cobra series, GI Joe: Renegades, and GI Joe: Retaliation serve as a stew of ideas of what Cobra looks like in this modern era. Cobra, in its business ventures, is a force to be reckoned with across the world. Cobra International serves as the primary peacekeeping force within the Middle East, keeping ISIS at bay as Terror Dromes are built across the region. The Cobra Hierarchy understands the inherent instability that will be caused by allowing radicalized immigrants into once strong nations, but does have plans when those peoples become too much of a threat.

That's pretty much it for my alt-history world view of the GI Joe/Cobra conflict. A world much like ours, but quite a bit uglier. While there is violence in our cities, it is generally worse. But Cobra is there to the rescue, with the support of our government.

And, if that's not enough, let's stir up some more stuff! The Cobra science division has been working on all sorts of crazy stuff. Supposedly zombies have been used as weapons. There have even been reports of odd aliens or supernatural events occurring.

That's only so I can get away with incorporating Hellboy, Bossk, and some other odd 3 3/4"-4" figures into my GI Joe/Cobra pictures.

These are the events that will drive much of my action figure photography efforts in the coming months.

There is so much more that I could write about, but I think that's about it for now. Maybe I'll through in some other alt-history bits here and there as I get back into taking pictures again with this alt world in mind.

The Reboot Awakens

From time to time, I have referred to my intention to reboot the GI Joe mythos. My intention in this nonsense is to bring the GI Joe mythos forward into time and have some fun with it. Maybe even punch it in the nose every once in awhile. You might recognize some of the elements of my reboot; I've drawn inspiration from various familiar sources.

I'm going to drag in real world events, then twist and shape them to my liking. That's what is fun about alt-history projects. Maybe I've said this before, but I'm generally conservative in my political views. Not that I'm really thrilled with the current batch of dumbasses representing the current conservative movement. Once a politician goes to Washington DC, they are pretty much done as a decent human being. They become bought and sold puppets of grander entities. 

I'm going to pretty much tear into Comrade Obama pretty savagely. And it ain't because he's black (half black, actually); race doesn't have anything to do with his politics. I believe that he is quite adept at using race as a political tool.

Fear not, George W. Bush is going to get roasted as well. Well, maybe not him so much as Rumsfeld and Cheney, the puppet masters behind Bush. Billy-Bob Clinton is going to get his share of crap as well. George HW Bush and Reagan may get a little hit as well.

So let's get this crazy ride going.

First off, the 80's line and nearly all of the characters have to be nearly disavowed. I need most of these people in the here and now and they don't need 30+ years added to their lives. I've discussed this before - most of the original 13 GI Joe's were 'Nam vets. Sorry guys, but you're too old in 2016.

But what about Cobra? What was the deal back in the 80's? Here are my thoughts. Yes, there was a terrorist organization back in the 80's, but the U.S. was at its military might back then. President Reagan was outspending the Soviets and economically crushed communism. The military was huge and powerful! Some petty-ass two-bit terrorist group didn't stand a chance and the masterminds behind that group knew it. There was no way that they stood a chance. There was one weapon that could be used and would ultimately prove to be quite deadly and very successful. Time.

Reagan's America crushes this nascent terrorist organization and the leadership goes underground and, at the same time, public. The economic boom of the late 80's and 90's allowed for a new battlefield; one of economics and industry. Cobra Industries, Broca Brothers, ARBCO, Extensive Enterprises, and several other companies arise, becoming global economic powerhouses. Secretly, in the shadows, they begin to build their armies. There is no single "Cobra Commander," there are councils of leaders.

The next step is to infiltrate society at its core, and begin to tear it apart from within. What does this shadowy organization want? World domination? Maybe, but that's a helluva' lot of paperwork. As Shield/Hydra Leader Alexander Pierce says in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, "To build a better world, sometimes means tearing the old one down..."  Chaos, war, violence - and out of the ashes, Cobra will arise and serve as the leadership for a new era.

I've had these ideas about an insidious Cobra organization for quite a while and my thoughts were only enhanced by the direction that IDW took Cobra. Recently, on a Facebook group, the question was asked about people's views of Cobra. I posted something a bit lengthy, similar to this current writing, but someone else posted quite eloquently their view of Cobra that just nailed it.

From Christopher Galletta Stevens:
"Financiers and bank/currency -manipulating billionaires who use their wealth to manipulate the politicians, media and schools to brainwash the masses and government programs as vote-enticing handouts into giving them total control, while portraying the good guys as the villains in the news media, schools, movies and television. One may say ISIS, but in reality, Cobra would either buy off ISIS leaders to help promote fear and division, or blame their opposition for their existence, not actually be terrorists themselves. The Joes would be portrayed as evil pro-war military and Cobra would do everything in their power to get them legally defunded and turn the public against it, effectively eliminating all resistance to their rule. They would infiltrate everything and become politicians, teachers, news media sources, screenwriters, song writers... Controlling the many via the influential few."

That's beautiful right there and it aligns with my thoughts so well.

Let's move the narrative along. The infiltration into society has begun. The next key event that has to be discussed are the events of September 11th, 2001. That event, for a while, pushed me into conspiracy theory craziness. Not that I'm entirely over it, but I think the official story is full of shit. The key element that seems to draw the ire of some people is the disbelief that their government would do that sort of thing to the citizens of their country. 

Do I think the US government is willing and capable of undertaking such a horrific event and murder thousands of people for political and economic reasons? Hell yes. So, in my alt world, is the US government responsible for the events of 9/11? Yes... and No. Not the larger public face of the government, but the infiltrated elements of Cobra within the US government. George W. Bush? No. Rumsfeld and Cheney? Yes. Bought and sold Cobra agents. 

Cobra began infiltrating society as soon as their terrorist army experiment failed. Late Reagan years, onward through the Bush and Clinton years.

This post is getting a bit long right now and I'm going to wrap up for now. Here's the current status: Cobra infiltrating society on a global level, with an emphasis on the U.S. The events of 9/11 have occurred and the population is in full-on patriotic fervor.

Next time, let's roll into the wars in the Middle East and onward into the Obama dictatorship presidency.

TL;DR - Reboot GI Joe into the modern era and make it hurt.

Random Stuff via Periscope

I loaded a clever new app on my phone - Periscope. It allows someone to shoot a quick video with immediate interaction with viewers.

In our needy world of constant approval, this fits right in. Don't you get those emails asking you to take a survey about whatever service you've had done? Go to the doctor, auto service, restaurant, whatever - how did we do? Love me, please!

Despite all that needy crap, I think it's a cool little app (monetize it! make monies! I make 6 figures a day with Periscope and Twitter! How am I doing?). Sorry... random nonsense.

Still fun to be able to interact with like-minded people.

So here's my latest Periscope episode. The files actually delete themselves after a while on the 'Scope website. I'm sure Comrade Hillary Clinton is interested in anything that deletes her communications. Don't have to wipe a server now!

But you can link your Periscope site to https://katch.me/ ad it will save your files. From there, you can download the file or share them out into the series of tubes that make up the interwebs. 

So here it is...