Hmm…this kind of came out of left field.  We’ve all heard the rumors about what Sideshow has in the works, and hell, we’ve heard it from Sideshow themselves.  Zartan, Destro, Crimson Guard, any of the females…there are plenty of characters on the docket that are screaming for some high end Sideshow greatness.  So, when they debuted their latest release yesterday, it kind of took me by surprise.

Is there really enough demand for a Red Ninja figure to warrant a $125 release as a high end collectible?  I’m not convinced.

Don’t get me wrong, from the small snippet we see here, the figure looks amazingly well-crafted, and I’m eager to see the final reveal, but this just seems like a strange choice when there are so many other iconic characters waiting in line.  Granted, Sideshow has to take advantage of part tooling and part creation, and this likely allows them to get more mileage out of their Storm Shadow parts, but I was still a bit surprised.

According to Sideshow’s Website, a full reveal will be launched on June 8th in their production blog, with pre-orders beginning June 10th.

Sideshow Collectibles has unleashed their latest newsletter with a few tidbits for G.I. Joe fans.  First and foremost, their latest Q & A session was posted, with the following tidbit of information:

“You’ll see the Crimson Guard appear in a diorama first, but the CG will appear in the 12-inch line at some point in the future”

Along with that answer, they posted a nice little tease of the Crimson Guard in diorama format, which you can check out here.

In addition to that, folks who now check out the 12″ Flint’s product page can also click the link for “Backstage Pass” under the product image and check out some great behind the scenes looks at the making of the fantastic looking Flint figure.

Last but not least, while the 12″ Firefly is sold out, anyone who wants the figure should hop on the wait list.  From what I hear, wait list folks have a pretty decent chance of getting the figure when it all shakes out, so give it a shot!

Once again, GeneralsJoes contributor Mysterious Stranger comes through with some very nice, well detailed reviews of recent Sideshow Collectible releases.  Knowing I don’t have the budget to get my hands on this stuff these days, he’s right on the ball, this time covering the Sideshow Cobra Officer and Cobra Sniper all in one shot.

Click the “Read the Rest of this Entry” link below to check out his review!

Read the rest of this entry »

Along with the release of the long-awaited Flint pre-order, the latest Sideshow Collectibles newsletter also debuted some very nice looking desktop wallpapers featuring their 12″ Firefly figure!  I’ve mirrored the images below, but be sure to check here for all different sizes.

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When Sideshow gave us the sneak preview of their 12″ Flint last week, they mentioned that you would be able to pre-order with the launch of the newsletter today, January 28th!  I will try to be as on top of it as possible…click the banner below to check out Flint’s entry on SideshowToy.com!

EDIT – As GeneralsJoes contributor and Sideshow expert Mysterious Stranger points out, Sideshow’s language might be a bit flawed.  He’s thinking that perhaps the pre-order information will be in the newsletter today, and the actual pre-order might happen later on.  I’m starting to think he’s right, because so far, this hasn’t followed Sideshow’s typical MO for pre-order process.

Stay tuned…

Infinite Hollywood has been posting some great reviews of G.I. Joe toys amongst other things over the past few months, and just put up a review for the recently released 12″ Rise of Cobra Destro figure by Hasbro.  In fact, this is the only version of a movie accurate suited Destro you’ll see on mass retail shelves.  I’m pretty surprised at how nice this figure really is.  The 12″ scale isn’t usually my bag, and the Rise of Cobra toys hadn’t changed my mind to this point, but Destro actually looks pretty neat.  I’ve got the SDCC Baroness, so I might have to snag this guy to go alongside her if I see it at retail.  Pretty cool.  Check out the review here.

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I haven’t really been a fan of recent 12″ Hasbro figures, but the Rise of Cobra ones are actually drawing me in, if only a little bit.  I’ve seen Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Duke, Cobra Commander, and Ripcord, and they all have some sort of limited appeal which I cannot really describe.  They still have the silly, scrawny body types, sculpted uniforms, and general goofiness, but for whatever reason, I still think they’re kind of neat.  Not nearly neat enough to drop $16 on ‘em, of course.

Regardless, for those folks who are into them, apparently the latest wave has started hitting retail according jroosa030 on HissTank.  He just scored the Destro and General Hawk, and I’ve mirrored images below.  I think both of these figures look pretty neat and fit into the RoC aesthetic remarkably well.  I dig ‘em.

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I’m a little ashamed to admit that I’ve been a monstrous fan of G.I. Joe in pretty much any characterization or scale out there…  except for the one that started it all.  For whatever reason, I just find it hard to get into the whole 12″ figure scene, but that’s not because I don’t like it or have a certain appreciation for it.  Usually it comes down to price or what you get for your buck, and it’s very rare that the 12″ scene gives me a good “go between” there.  The figures are either simplistic, non-detailed, and dull, or they are overly exagerrated, insanely detailed, yet priced way out of my affordable range.  There doesn’t seem to be anything in between.  Some of the Spy Troops and Valor Vs. Venom stuff gave us the best of both worlds, in my opinion…a reasonable price range, yet still enough bang for the buck, but recent releases have just been dull and uninspired, especially for the recently elevated price tags, even on basic retail shelves.

The Sideshow Collectibles stuff is out of this world, of course.  It’s simply fantastic.  However, the $100 – $120 price tag per figure doesn’t fit my somewhat limited Joe budget.  So, it always amazes me when I run across 12″ enthusiasts who actually accumulate enough fodder to do some crazy customs.  And I’ll tell you, the customs don’t get much crazier than a member of the One Sixth Warrior forum, gaiagear.  I’ve seen my fair share of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero themed 12″ customs, but gaiagear tackles something near and dear to my heart, G.I. Joe: Resolute.  There aren’t really enough words I can type in this post that express just how insane these customs are.  They are truly works of art and things of beauty.  In fact, pretty much every custom that gaiagear has done affiliated with the G.I. Joe universe really blows me away…but it’s really just the tip of the iceberg.  Check out a small sampling of gaiagear’s incredible work below, all found on the One Sixth Warrior Forums.  The gallery below features incredible versions of the following characters:

• Destro
• Duke
• Snake Eyes
• Storm Shadow
• Beachhead
• Flint
• Zartan
• Firefly
• Agent Helix!

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Crazy stuff.  But the craziest thing is this is just the beginning.  There are a wealth of insanely talented 12″ customizers on the One Sixth Warrior forums, and there is some equally insane Real American Hero styled customs over there.  Check out this thread for some of them.  While I don’t have the budget or the real incentive to dive headlong into the 12″ scale, I can certainly appreciate the work that goes into these customs.  Some awesome stuff here, I think fans of any scale will really dig ‘em.

Over on JoeBattleLines, Mysterious Stranger has posted a great image featuring two of the excellent JoeCon Exclusive Crimson Guard paratroopers as well as the ever elusive San Diego ComicCon Sideshow Collectibles COBRA Commander.  The end result is a whole lotta red that also set him back a whole lotta green.  But the picture is absolutely bad ass.

Check it out below!

A few different interesting 12″ pieces of news today…  first of all, the Terror Drome is reporting about some images of a 12″ Stalker and Gung Ho that are very military in nature and really don’t seem to fit into the whole movie aesthetic.  Are they figures that were slated for release in the normal line before the Rise of COBRA infusion, or are they still to come?  Gung Ho could almost pass for his Resolute/video game version, so that’s something to watch for.

Check out the images below:

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Also discovered by The Terror Drome is Entertainment Earth’s pre-order listing for the first wave of Rise of COBRA 12″ figures, including COBRA Commander.  This is the first time ole’ toasty’s been seen in twelve inch form: