G.I. Joe Single Pack figures - Wave 3
So the infamous single packs return, and frankly, this wave took pretty much everyone by surprise. It went from some scattered eBay test shots, to rumor, to Dollar Store shelves in the matter of a few weeks.
Like the first two series' of these figures, Hasbro uses existing molds with some paint alterations to try and get some more mileage out of existing molds and keep some core characters on the shelves. In the first two series of these single packs, results were usually mixed, depending on the effort put forth. This series pretty much holds true to that. One thing that this series really seems to do differently is, instead of a whole lot of figures with minor paint alterations, Hasbro has broken this wave into a few different camps from what I can tell; one camp is for figures that are changed minorly...only a couple of small tweaks to make them more like the collectors remember. One camp is figures that are actually radically different and look very cool and very new. The third camp most likely comes as an expense for the second one...that is a small group of figures here that simply are not changed at all.
In all honesty, as usual, distribution is a big issue here. I wish Hasbro could find more willing retailers to stock these single packs, because some of them are quite nice, and the fact is that a lot of collectors will not find them. However, on the other hand, I think it is the distribution issues that causes such fever for these figures, too. If you could walk into any Wal-Mart, Toys R Us, or Target and find these on the shelves, I don't think demand would be nearly as high. Instead, collector's clamor to as many dollar stores as they can, just hoping to amass a small pile of the army builders available here.
So, how does this wave break down compared to the others? Some lows, but also a nice number of highs as well. Let's get down to is.
First up is Ace:
Differences: Figure-wise, none. Exact same color hues used from top to bottom as far as I can tell. This actually isn't so bad, though, because with his helmet on, he could pass for merely another pilot. No big deal.
Packaged Accessories: His normal flight helmet, which is great...also comes with a backpack and M16/203 combo. Pretty nicely equipped, even though it's a little odd to see Ace carrying around some hefty hardware.
Comments: As I said, no changes to the figure, but that actually works okay, once the helmet is on his head. He comes with a couple neat accessories, too, so this one, even with no changes, might be worth a look.
Dusty:
Differences: Like Ace, there are zero changes here. Unlike Ace, Dusty doesn't look generic enough to pass for another desert trooper. His uniform is pretty outlandish and atypical, so he doesn't exactly blend.
Packaged Accessories: His original helmet, the M-4 Carbine that Duke originally came with, pistol, military backpack
Comments: No changes, really not worth a purchase. He's got some okay accessories, although no cool grenade bandolier, but really, you could spend your $2.00 in better ways.
Kamakura:
Differences: Like Dusty and Ace, the figure itself is exactly the same. Same colored facemask, same green shade on the uniform...everything is pretty much identical. The fact that he's masked I guess could make him a little more useful, but Kamakura looks distinctive enough to not really work as anyone else.
Packaged Accessories: The same sword and sheath that he came with in Wave 4, only now the sword is black instead of silver...so there's one change. Also comes with an Uzi.
Comments: Very minor accessory changes, and not worth an additional purchase unless your a completist with issues, like me.
Sgt. Stalker:
Differences: I feel like I'm repeating myself here. No changes. Same uniform color, same beret color, same funky forearm armor color. Nothing different...he doesn't come with his weird belt, though.
Packaged Accessories: Machine gun/shotgun combination, SAW-Viper backpack, and big pistol
Comments: No paint changes, and no real worthy accessories either. Unless you're looking for some custom fodder, do not purchase. Definitely the least desirable figure of the wave, and that's saying something here.
Snake Eyes:
Differences: Taking a page from their own book in 1982, Hasbro just basically leaves off the paint apps on this figure and gives us a straight black "non-paint". Personally, I like some color in my figures, but it's a neat homage to the original version, and hey, at least it's different!
Packaged Accessories: Sword/Sheath and submachine gun his original version came with
Comments: Kinda neat, but not enough to overshadow the Valor Vs. Venom original color scheme or even the Ninja Lightning bike color scheme...and certainly not enough to overshadow the Wave 7 version. This Snake Eyes is neat, although somewhat bland...and again, at least he's different, unlike the other four Joes offered in this wave.
Baroness:
Differences: Done up in her classic black (that many people thought the figure should have come painted like to begin with) with a brown, leathery belt and silver kneepads. Very cool, striking look, although I also like the blue version.
Packaged Accessories: Same pistol she came with originally, large typical COBRA machine gun.
Comments: Simple changes, but a nice, classic look for the first lady of COBRA. She blends well with Destro and looks neat. Her COBRA logo still looks quite sloppy...I'm not exactly sure why they couldn't trim up that paint app a little bit, but besides that the figure is very cool. A nice change and worth a purchase.
Night Creeper:
Differences: A drastically different paint scheme than any of his previous versions, and an extremely cool one at that. His purple base is dark, rich, and very pleasent on the eyes, and is also a nice flashback to the purplish shade of his original figure. The gold armor is nice and bright, and all of the changes are extremely cool.
Packaged Accessories: Sword, sheath, backpack and submachine gun.
Comments: I am so mixed about this figure in general. His proportions are so screwy, yet his figure design and implementation are so cool that I can't help liking him. The armored ninja mask, great wrinkled uniform and neat, sleek look all get nicely covered in this new version, and I find myself really liking it a lot. Very much worth a purchase, even with his short torso-long leg syndrome.
Sand Viper:
Differences: A big change and definitely a change for the better, although he doesn't really look the "Sand Viper" part. A black base instead of tan/gray, with some awesome gold armored trim really brings out the crazy intricate detail available in this figure. I LOVE the way the paint makes this figure look and have found an asbolutely awesome COBRA night ops trooper, "Sand Viper" or not.
Packaged Accessories: Sand Viper helmet, Firefly Backpack (w/ no cover), Neo-Viper AK-47 and submachine pistol
Comments: Lots of changes, and all changes for the better in my book, since I'm not much of a desert trooper fan anyway. The dark blacks and robust golds make the figure look very cool, but also very useful. Slapping the helmets on these guys makes all the difference in the world, and I find myself wanting to stock up on some of these if possible. Great, great figure with only a few minor changes. Best of the wave, barely edging out the Night Creeper.
Storm Shadow:
Differences: Not very drastic, but still pretty neat. Darker colors on the kneepads and boots, and his wrist/shin wraps are now red instead of a more realistic "bandage" color. The rest of the figure looks pretty much identical, even down to the silver trim dragon on his back.
Packaged Accessories: Wave 4 Backpack and cool as heck hooked swords. No bo staff pieces, but these accessories are cool enough on their own, anyway. Does not have his ceremonial skirt piece.
Comments: Minor changes that are kind of neat, but not necessarily any better than the original. Actually, I prefer the look of the original Storm Shadow, simply because the bandages look more realistic. Not a bad update, though.
Tele-Viper:
Differences: A color scheme quite reminiscent of the original Tele-Viper, using a lot more of the dark blue as a base with the purple being used as the trim, more like he was before. Quite different from the original figure, and a lot nicer, richer look to him, I think. Purple trim scattered throughout (with some orange here and there, too) brings this figure to life...he looks great.
Packaged Accessories: All of the Tele-Viper's accessories are here, from his chest antenna (in purple now) to his mouthpiece and little walkie talkie. His street sweeper style shotgun is now replaced by Destro's pump-action.
Comments: Very cool changes to the figure that make a nice difference. The color stands out well and the figure looks great in this new scheme. He'll still fit in well with all the other Tele-Vipers, but looks new and different enough to stand out as well. Great update and definitely worth a purchase as well.
So...looks like Hasbro's getting it, huh? They know the demand is a lot higher for the army builders, so they make sure and put a lot of extra effort into them, and it really shows. Each COBRA trooper in this wave has a lot of nice changes that really make the figure something new and exciting.
For the most part, the Joes seem kind of tossed in there, but it's the COBRA's everyone's after anyway, so what's it matter?
While some of the figures in here are unchanged (unlike the previous two waves) the ones that are changed seem to have more direction and more thought...all in all, not a bad wave of Single Packs at all, although as usual, I wish they were much more widely available.
