gojira77

I'm glad to read something like this-- it feeds my hope of getting a digitally re-mastered G.I.Joe the Movie sometime soon. It's a shame that we couldn't get the Movie in one of the DVD Battle Packs.

Once again, the movie designers are going for more bestial looks for the 'cons (besides that evil 'Gizmo Duck' guy in the Super Bowl preview). The A'bots are alien but more or less anthropomorphic to distinguish them as hero-type characters. Really, I like how these things look on the big screen but I don't think I'll be buying any of the toys. I can appreciate the creative latitude that the designers have with the 'bad guys', but then again I liked the Vehicons, too.

I still watch and enjoy the old G1 cartoons-- by far my favorite Transformers series. I know it's not perfect, and there seem to be times that the creative staff aren't sure where to go, but it was ground-breaking then and still holds up better than a lot of the TV shows I watched as a kid. For a while, I actually considered the third season my favorite, especially after it ends with the Return of Optimus Prime. I liked the darker tone and the deeper exploration of the core characters and mythology-- you could see that they brought in writers from G.I.Joe here and that they really pushed to have a core cast (something that helped Beast Wars a lot). But it was also a little out there, losing the strengths of the first season. I now like the second season best because it combines what I like most about the other two: the great characters, focus on earth and "robots in disguise" of the first, and the darker, experimental writing of the third. The second season seems to have fewer annoying animation errors as well. The animated movie will always have a special place in my heart as well. When my wife and I were first dating, I made her watch that silly video until she learned to appreciate it. It wasn't intentional torture, or anything-- it just worked out that that was the movie I was in the mood to see after we watched one of her chick flicks. Like lox and bagels, comfort food. She later bought me an Armada Unicron and even a 20th Anniversary Optimus Prime. We had "You got the Touch" at our wedding and today she is honestly excited about Revenge of the Fallen (chicks dig the Bay movies).

Pics on the box show that the blast shields on his face fold back. This looks really cool to me and I'm glad that he comes with a driver-- something I wish that the Alternators did. Does this mean that Shia gets to hit on all those Anime girls from Kiss Play?

I haven't felt the same about the Sarge since he 'turned heel' during the first Gulf War-- and sided against America! Maybe Dr. Mindbender was somehow responsible...

I think Hasbro started this little controversy in 1989 when they offered Troopers and Vipers together for the first time as part of the contraversial Python Patrol. They may have also ended it definitively with the back of the new TRU-exclusive Viper Five Pack. Vipers are higher than Troopers in the modern, more-specialized legions of Cobra. Though I'd always pay a guy more who can both cook and use a garrote wire...

Is it ever a good idea to have "revenge" in the title?

I skipped the first movie leader class Prime because leader class Megatron was a piece of crap (one of the few TFs I've ever returned) and it would be kinda stupid to have a giant Prime next to a half-sized Megatron. I never got movie Megs because of the same reason He was a peice of crap Hes okay, but not exactly a masterpiece.... I REALLY can't wait to see what ROTF Megs looks like with his new Cybertronian Tank mode. Same here, I like the new Megatron concept art. At least Hasbro won't have to deal with big wings this time...

Things that stand out: Looks like the rubber tires are back, as well as the articulated fingers and light-up windshield. Transform is different-- I'm really impressed that they're giving us such a new Prime rather than just tweaking the old one, and hope the back end of the truck is more faithful this time. Different weapon mechanism, whatever "snap-out" means, which appears to be less obtrusive. Can't tell how they're handling the chrome parts, whether they're painted like the premium version or cast in silver plastic. If the latter, I hope that they don't use as dark a grey as the first Leader-class Movie Prime toy. I like the tannish silver used recently on the Target-exclusive Voyager Prime that came with a sorely out-matched Deluxe Bonecrusher. I'd love an actual vac-metalized Prime like the Old Days, but only if the QC is good and he isn't standing on his bumper as part of his transform. Box advertises both conversion sounds (please be classic G1 sound over the "Challenge of the Superfriends" noise!), racing and engine revving sounds, and a speaking voice-- hopefully Peter Cullen rather than a generic robot voice. I'm enough of a kid to really appreciate electronic gimmicks if they're handled well and still lovingly remember my G1 Galvatron-- what a great Christmas! No co-sells or any mention of combining ability. I really like my $40 Leader-Class Prime, but I'd like to see more of this one, especially pics of the actually figure. This image seems really heavily photoshopped, to the point where the windshield doesn't even look transparent. I'd like to know if the eyes glow blue this time and the extent of his hip articulation. I'd also like to see that head at other angles, since it doen't look quite like either of the Leader-Class Prime heads we've seen. I could always keep him in Truck mode and display the two together...

This is the 25th Aniversary line that I'm most excited about. First Iron Hide gets some long-overdue-justice, and now Brawn! I simply can not wait for Cosmos.

All three packs were at my local WM in Washington State yesterday. That was the first time I ever saw the fifth set at retail-- the other two made a brief appearance at my Target a couple weeks before Christmas, but they've been completely sold out since then. Which of your local stores sells out and re-stocks the fastest?

I will also most likely pick up the Marvel Universe Spider-Man because of all the great memories I have of my Secret Wars Spidey. Since Mr. Parker is not impervious to bullets and has a problem with authority, I think he and the Joes will be keeping their distance. I only like cross-overs if they make some sense to me. I also keep my eyes open for new releases of Jakks WWE Build 'N Brawl figures with the hope that they'll slip in some classic wrestlers such as a certain bullet-headed Marine drill sergeant...

Same thing happened in the late '70s/ early '80s with the last oil crisis-- Big figures tend to have a greater wow factor by themselves, but the smaller size makes it more pratical and economical to build armies and have to-scale vehicles. With a universe as expansive as Marvel's and the leaps and bounds that Hasbro has improved over the modern Star Wars line, now's really a perfect time to get smaller.

I like the idea of Hasbro making Marvel heroes in the 3 3/4" scale. G.I.Joe started out as a Marvel Comic and really shared a lot of themes with that Universe from the realism and complex villains of the comic to even the the fantastical elements of the cartoon (where radiation poisoning isn't always fatal!). Though they never got to mingle in the '80s, I'd love to toss some of the less powerful Marvel characters-- like Captain America, Winter Soldier, Punisher, Nick Fury, and the Hand-- in with Hawk, Duke, and Snake-Eyes. It would be like a great family reunion! Thor and Doc Strange would be a little 'out there', however, even by Cobra La standards... I'm actually happier keeping my DC characters in the 6" scale though-- perfect to interact with DC Comics alum He-Man (DC introduced Prince Adam as well as Teela's relationship with the Sorceress) and the new Masters of the Universe Classics!

Ya, that makes sense. Good suggestion. That's what I always did to tighten knee-joints. I also just kept broken and other-wise lame figures in a parts bin with a phillips-head screw driver so that my good figures had a supply of donor o-rings, rustless screws, and hip hangers. Nothing I could ever do for broken thumbs, crotches, or-- in the case of '89 Snake-Eyes-- exploding chests. Man, ABS plastic could be brittle sometimes...

Over at Runrunhero.com it looks like Classic Yellow and Brown costume Wolvie are opting out of the regular Marvel Universe line to be in the Wolvie Movie line, which would be the second time we got comic-book likenesses in an X-Men movie line. I wasn't that interested in the black and silver Wolverine, but I'd take a brown one. I think a Civies Logan, or better yet Combat Flash-back, would fit in nicely with the Joes.

Soooo beautiful-- great late-'80s cheesy goodness! Except for Wild Bill... What, no Tiger Force Wild Weasel AKA SkyStriker? Good thing I have that Pilot Scarlett.

According to DarthJoe's pic of the Wave 14 Card Back, it appears to be Night Force Falcon with Flint's gloves and new card art. See the comparison pic from YoJoe.com--

All of 'em, any figure that I could get my hands on. Even Eco-Warriors. I did tend towards more land battles than sea or air, but that was because I didn't have much for vehicles. My collection also scewed towards the post '87 crew since I started collecting G.I. Joe pretty late. I loved the cartoon, but I tended to get MOTU and Transformers instead for awhile there.

You're right that a different gun helps a lot, which is why my current default Roadblock is the Lime-Green vested one with the smaller M-60. He holds that pretty convincingly with one arm and then holds his ammo in the wide palm of his left. But an '84/'88 version RB would come with the old gun that he never held very well. Without new tooling, I just couldn't pick up another one. I actually prefer the paint job on the DVD Pack RB to the first one-- I think the face came out better that time. I really had two problems with a Tiger Force Roadblock w/o new tooling-- one is the "play-ability" of the figure as-is. The other is that the '88 figure was IMO one of the less-inspired repaints. Even if they tweak his colors a little, like they did with TF Flint and Duke, I don't see him as that appealing. Tiger Force had some really cool repaints, which is why anybody would forgive Hasbro for making Dusty into a jungle fighter (WTF-- that's almost as bad as Frostbite!). Roadblock just got some random stripes and a yellow helmet. I guess they made his shirt a solid green and his gloves a different color, too, but not much else. Show me the error of my ways if you can...

So looking on the back of the Wave 13 cards, it looks like we're getting another RAH-style Roadblock along with what will most likely be an improved Falcon (no matter the arms they use this time). Some speculate that it will be a Tiger Force version to go along with Flint and Duke, since the image is clearly based on '84 Box Art as was '88 Tiger Force art. Maybe-- it sure would seem crazy if they re-released the same figure that we got in the Battle Pack and last year's Wave 4... Though I'm not sure Tiger Force Roadblock would be much better. Unlike Flint, Duke, Dusty, or really anybody else on the team, RB's new colors weren't that different from his old ones besides a loud yellow helmet and a few random stripes. The great thing about Tiger Force back in the day was that it gave you a second chance of picking up characters that you couldn't find in stores anymore, some like Duke and Trip-Wire for years. There have been plenty of opportunities to get the heavy machine gunner in this year alone and I don't think that I'd grab another one just to build up my Tiger Force-- and I love both RB and Tiger Force. I think what gets me the most about the last three RBs if that the basic mold was terrible to begin with. Many of fans have pointed out the short-cummings of the initial 10 figures from the 25th Anniversary line and Hasbro, for the most part, makes MUCH better figures now and has gone back and improved nearly every one. Except Roadblock, who still can't hold that giant gun well with his terrible arms. Really, next to Gung Ho, I'd say RB is the one figure that I've been most disappointed in and I don't like it when his parts are re-used even for the likes of Copperhead. I've come to accept his baby-face if it's painted well, but the awkward arms and shoulders kinda ruin him for me. I take my Joes out of the package and play with them, and his possibility is just too awkward, and he winds up back in the display case while TF Duke and Flint get all the glory. I think that I actually used Radio-active Snake-Eyes more than poor Marvin. I think that Hasbro would have to at least re-do his hands, if not the whole arms, before I'd get another one. What do you think?

Guess I'm not a fan then...But what are all these toys and comic books laying around my apartment-- weird! I don't like Wave 13 Duke at all, sorry. 25th Duke was fine for me, especially with the new arms-- if I wanted realistic military, I'd turn on the news.

Double post-- sorry. I don't want to sound calloused, but I've got to say that it matters to me more when local, small businesses fail rather than specialty chains that have out-lived their niche. Terrible news for the employees though so close to the holidays, but I've been laid off right after Christmas myself-- it happens all the time in retail. They'll probably manage as well as I did.

How exactly do they get away with filing for bankruptcy twice in four years-- you or I couldn't do that! Maybe the rules are different for businesses... Kaybee was never my favorite place to shop, but you could always find the darnedest things there-- like Machine Wars, or old MOTU figures years after either line was cancelled. I hope people can still find their Cyborg and Batman Beyond variants in all of this turmoil.

I once hid my Hit & Run figure in a shrub in my best friend's front yard. That was back in 1989-- and I still haven't found him! Nobody could hide better than that guy!