We’ve been getting flooded with some very cool Oktober Guard themed reveals over the past week or two, but many folks have been clamoring for more information about who the Oktober Guard will be facing off against.
Well, the G.I. Joe Collectors’ Club revealed that today with the Iron Grenadiers! We get a great revelation of the Iron Grenadier trooper himself and also some details about the story line itself. For folks who don’t recognize the figure itself, it was originally planned as part of 5 Pack of Iron Grenadier figures from the Rise of Cobra/Pursuit of Cobra line, but never got released. The image for that original 5-Pack can be seen at this post on GeneralsJoes. I’ve also mirrored that image below:
As for the story itself… check out those details below:
“By popular demand, the 2012 convention set stories and enemy factions are revealed…
OKTOBER GUARD Box Set: The 1990s brought us many captivating Cold War stories but this one was kept Top Secret for over two decades! Recently declassified documents revealed the original Oktober Guard (G.I. Joe’s Russian and Warsaw Pact equivalent) team’s “Special Mission” in Siberia to rescue their captured General from the ruthless Iron Grenadiers in OPERATION: BEAR TRAP!”
Okay…now THAT is bad ass. They give themselves an “out” for the dead Oktober Guard members by talking about declassified documents. And they’re also talking about their “captured General”… hmmm… could we see a modern version of General Mayhem from the 2005 set? Or maybe…dare I hope… Voltar?! Of course I misread this, and it’s the Oktober Guard general who is being rescued. Not sure what the angle is there…
Wow. The possibilities are endless! I cannot wait to hear and see more! Check out the Iron Grenadier figure below, and keep your eyes on GIJoeCon.com for the latest intel!
One of the longest running G.I. Joe websites on the web, and a bastion of research for every Joe fan everywhere, YoJoe.com has quite simply left an indelible mark on the fabric of not just the online G.I. Joe community, but I would argue on the fabric of the action figure community in general.
I often see people in other collecting arenas asking “where can I find the “YoJoe” for Star Wars? Where can I find the “YoJoe” for Transformers?” It has serviced G.I. Joe fans for many years, and I would argue it is quite simply the most impactful G.I. Joe themed website ever. Just remember the first time you stumbled upon it and immediately were thrust back to the good old days.
But YoJoe.com isn’t content to rest on their laurels and survive based on the robustness of their figure archive…they’ve been working extremely hard behind the scenes for several months, and I dare say even years to do a soup-to-nuts overhaul of the entire action figure archive. The results are quite simply amazing.
With a totally revamped index, and much improved layout for the individual action figure entries, YoJoe has drastically improved on what was already a fantastic resource. You can see all the various different versions of the figures in a single entry, and you should never have to leave a page to look for another page. In the grand scheme of things to folks visiting the site, the changes result in a much more intuitive and fluid interface.
As of this posting, the Action Figure Archive is the only section that has been completed, but there are many more to come. Kudos to good friend of GeneralsJoes Terry Dizard and Phil Donnelly for all of the work they put in, and big props to the tech guys for building this all out. They made a great resource even better.
As usual, notpicard has got a great eye for parts, unused or otherwise. I posted images of the Fang Boat w/ Swamp-Viper last night, and today, notpicard left a comment referencing some old unused “Clutch” tooling.
It was a story that I posted some time ago, pointing back to the Facebook page of Matt Brouillard, who is apparently a freelance sculptor who did some work for Hasbro, including an incredibly awesome looking “Clutch” (a name Mr. Brouillard used). This Clutch looked pretty futuristic, yet had a ton of amazing detail throughout…and guess what?
Yeah, that’s Swamp-Viper. Only the figure looks considerably different once it’s tooled up with reduced detail and articulation. There’s absolutely no doubt that the Clutch sculpt was the foundation of this figure, yet it’s downright depressing to see how much detail and design is lost through the articulation changes. Ugh. It’s not just missing joints, the entire figure just doesn’t look as sharp or as cool. Check out the comparison image below:
Obviously the armor design and overall uniform design is the same, though there are some missing pouches around the waist, and with the t-crotch added, you loose the detail in the upper legs as well. Some of the sculpting work on the gloves is not the same either, and overall, things just look a bit softer and less crisp. It still looks like a very impressive design, but by reducing the articulation, the figure itself suffers in almost every way.
A real shame. Again, big thanks and kudos to notpicard for picking up on this instantly. He’s got a great eye.
Believe it or not, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. As cool as the upcoming G.I. Joe: Retaliation Crimson Guard and Night-Viper are…and as neat as it is that they were once rumored to be 30th Anniversary figures, the JDSO crew dives into many more mysteries, both modern and vintage!
Patrick “notpicard” Stewart reviews the G.I. Joe: Retaliation figures, they talk about the awesome ARBCO Playset, and solve the long-standing mystery of what the hell is on Low Light’s leg??!
Of course any episode of JDSO is always complimented by some awesome images, so be sure to check out the thread on JoeDeClassified to soak in all of these great pictures. I’ve mirrored a a handful of them below, but you need to check out DeClass to see the rest. Some great, GREAT stuff.
Every Joe fan’s favorite package artist Mike Thompson had a stretch where he was posting several awesome pieces of his Joe art on an almost weekly basis. Working as a package artist through the Rise of Cobra and into the Pursuit of Cobra era, Mike’s excellent blog, Mike T Artworks showcased his excellent renditions of characters like Spirit, City Strike Scarlett, and Whiteout.
He’s taken a break from posting G.I. Joe related art, most likely because he’s either shown most of it already, or is still waiting for them to be cleared by Hasbro to post…but today that changed! During our interview of Mike Thompson on the What’s on Joe Mind podcast we were lucky enough to see some of his other pieces, and now he has posted them via his Twitter page.
These head shots were to be used on some canceled Wal-Mart 2-Packs featuring Nano-B.A.T., Zap, Budo, and Dr. Mindbender. Check out these excellent images below. Also make sure you keep your eyes on MikeTArtworks.com which is his main site featuring some fantastic work that he’s done over the years. He has some amazing talent, even if you’re checking out some non-G.I. Joe work, I think you’ll appreciate what he does. He’s obviously a geek at heart!
To hear straight from the source about the process for producing this incredible artwork, hit up the embedded player below to listen to our interview with Mr. Thompson. It’s enlightening to say the least!
With both the March and April newsletters running behind schedule, the G.I. Joe Collectors’ Club has posted a terrific sneak preview of their upcoming April issue on GIJoeClub.com!
I’ve gone on record saying that the newsletter has been hugely improved as of late, mostly pointing to the excellent comic contained within, featuring very cool cameos by many familiar GIJCC universe characters. Looks like this continues on in April, where we see a great preview page of the comic featuring Nano-BAT, Footloose, Jammer, Gaucho, Quarrel, and Sparta! An awesome selection of GIJCC themed designs, and I love seeing them in comic book form. This is pretty much what I envisioned when I produced the dio comics for the newsletter a few years ago, but unfortunately my own schedule prevented me from continuing past 3 story arcs. I commend the folks doing this comic for doing some great work here.
Folks who listen to the What’s on Joe Mind Podcast have obviously heard all of us interact with Chuck, and the fact that he does YouTube video reviews…I know I’ve been joking with him about it, but he does cover some G.I. Joe items, and hey, he’s a funny guy, so I’ll give him some free pub here.
Some of his more recent G.I. Joe reviews involve Pursuit of Cobra and 30th Anniversary figures.
First and foremost, he reviewed the 30th Anniversary Law & Order:
He also has covered the Cobra Viper as well, which is a very nice figure:
You guys should check ‘em out, especially if you’re a fan of the podcast.
When the folks over at UnderScoopFire asked me to participate in a “Top 100 Toys of All Time” list, I thought it sounded like a fun project to take part in. That feeling quickly gave way to sense of “oh crap PANIC” when I started digging through the massive list of favorite toys to attempt to narrow things down. It was simply impossible.
Thankfully all I had to do was submit my own list of 20 and then let Under Scoop Fire put the actual list together (and accept all the hate mail). I’m free and clear!
Well, not totally free and clear. One of my main jobs on the participation side of things was to submit thoughts under the G.I. Joe umbrella, and I think I represented that very well…with one glaring ommision.
But don’t take my word for it. Hit up the UnderScoopFire Top 100 Toys of all Time list to check it out yourself. First of all, a caveat. The “Top 100″ toys currently only has 90 listed. You’ll have to check in tomorrow to listen to the Under Scoop Fire Podcast, Episode 21 to hear the top 10, and then the final top 10 will be posted shortly thereafter.
Enjoy!
And remember…all hate mail is addressed to UnderScoopFire. I’m innocent!
Frustration from the glut of merchandise clogging retail pegs and blocking the release of subsequent waves of highly-anticipated figures seemed to be the theme of 2011. When new G.I. Joe figures finally made their way into our collections, the countless accessories, innovations in articulation, and intricately-detailed sculpts made the class of 2011 among the best we’ve ever seen in the 25th Anniversary-style era. Hasbro surprised with the release of the Sky Striker as part of the 30th Anniversary line, disappointed with the cancellation of the G.I. Joe: Renegades animated series, and energized with the trailer for the live-action movie sequel, G.I. Joe: Retaliation. Not to be outdone, licensees such as IDW Publishing and Sideshow Collectibles continued to impress with their offerings of G.I. Joe merchandise, an indication of the strength of the G.I. Joe brand. In retrospect of 2011, A Real American Hero, Generals Joes and The Terror Drome team up to bring you the best of G.I. Joe 2011.
Click the Read the Rest of this Story link below for the full details.
Yes, we’re two weeks into 2012 and the “Best Of” 2011 lists are still going strong! The latest one is courtesy of the Fwooshcast, a personal favorite podcast of mine, mostly because of one of the hosts Craig, who I have known for years, and who guest hosted on What’s on Joe Mind for a number of weeks.
So obviously, when he asked us to submit something for their 2011 “Year in Review” episode, we didn’t hesitate to comply.
Check out the latest episode of the Fwooshcast right here!
