This over at Joe Dios got me kind of pumped up for winter operations style Joes.
While I'm not a big fan of the cold weather Joe stuff, or cold weather period, if ever environment specific figures were out there, arctic guys were it. Unlike, say, desert trooper Dusty, a guy like Frostbite just doesn't fit outside an imaginary frozen land covered in snow. At least to me. It's kinda like diver figure: Deep six, Wet suit, etc., they just don't feel right busting through imaginary forest.
Use as you will, though. My Joes have to take on Cobra Snow Serpents ('85 and '91) and Ice Vipers ('87) on some of the most desolate, frozen areas on the planet.
Sub-Zero is the leader of the dedicated squad of the GIJOE arctic team.
The rest of the squad is pretty much every classic "arctic" Joe that I have:
Blizzard
Cold Front
Snow Job
Snow storm
Windchill
Avalanche
Iceberg
Frostbite
It's a good mix, 4 are really more vehicle drivers, too. Snow Storm is the oddest man out, though, being all contained in that hi-tech snow suit that seems all warm compared to everyone else. Guess who's on patrol the most? Avalanche could have been with the BF2000 group, but really, just is more "suited" to the snowy landscape, in my opinion.
I'm still on the fence about White Out, classic or modern style. Interesting in that I'm a person who wants to see more new characters, yet, I'm just feeling any connection to the new(er) characters that have come out. Some of that is a little due to the "new sculpt" style just not being something I like, but, perhaps it's the characterization, too? Big Brawler almost came on too strong, for instance..., the big bad tempered muscle man. However, Sure Fire is a guy I've kind of gotten use out of, the one with the original head that is. White Out was essentially Snow Job, just like Double Blast was pretty much Roadblock (absolutely no Double Blast here). However, with me being very choosy on which modern figures I buy, I have a very unique figure with this White Out. The figure has no semblance to any figure I have, so I can use that, however, the guy just doesn't stand out to me. Almost too flat-a-figure, could be any schmoe dressed for winter in some ways. Any-who, we'll see if that changes in the future....
I had a pretty good spread of Cobra arctic vehicles at one point. The Ice Sabre, ice Snake, a pair of Wolf's, but they all got trimmed.
I had the first Joe Ice Sabre, too, but it ended up lost in a bad trade overseas, but it didn't really hold my interest on the long-term even on the short term of ownership.
I had the GvC Rockslide, too, but the missile launcher kind of killed my interest on it, I just wanted an original PBB; but even that was feeling antique to me. Even my mighty Blockbuster is gone, which I never felt any arctic connection to, although it was one tough vehicle with a neat action launcher!
I did get the Wolf Hound, more on that on a post at Joesightings. So that's my only cold weather transportation.
I was really thinking of army building the Ice Cutter, but with the tracks being stuck on the action-movement gimmick, well, I just gotta say, "no." Not at full price, anyway, and I didn't want to get a bunch of red troopers I wouldn't like, either. My hopes were high....
I guess in the future, I would hope to see some small snowmobile come out for Cobra, not like the Polar Blast that was out a few years back; never did see that at retail anyway. Something a little more Cobra Ferret-like in simplicity, heck, swap-out the wheels for a ski and tread combo on the axles and it's half-way there for me.
I've been a little interested in the Arctic Blast, too. It seems like a battle vehicle, no frills..., big tires and room for guys to gun from. I think the yellow guns are really my only big turn-down, and the fact I've never seen one in person. As I look at it now, doesn't it seem a little back-end heavy, too? Anyone recommend it? I think it would fit my small-vehicle oriented collection for the cold guys.