One "junior Joe" here naturally has had a great interest in firefighters. Barbecue was a natural and easy first choice of a modern figure to buy for the "junior Joe." Blowtorch had a nice selection of fire-oriented gear, too, and this figure more recently joined forces with Barbecue. (although the flamethrower angle has been downplayed...)I thought Airtight would be a nice addition to our modern (somewhat of a fire/rescue) play force here. Hostile Environment Trooper really fits well with fire and rescue in my mind. The other two figures are alright, but Airtight is simply very cool. I am impressed!
Now that I have more backpacks and gear, I'm starting to really appreciate the little gear-holding peg holes on the modern VAMP.
Although, here's a major disappointment (Hasbro): The peg has already snapped on the mask part of the helmet for Blowtorch. And of course, we've already seemingly lost the flamethrower rifle and Barbecues little hose and nozzle.
Airtight is shining, though.
I haven't bought a lot of modern figures, mostly since you likely know I am a classic ARAH collector. But I must say I really like the wrist-articulation. A pose like this was really easy:
I really, really, really, like Airtight's helmet. And the figures boot tread is great. (it could have been left as flat feet, as most all have been for years..., a great detail!)Let's grab the gear and go!
With all the praise, I would only give Airtight a 4 (out of 5) Star rating, though.
The waist and belt area still seem really flat in detail. I think the belt should have been more pronounced, perhaps even another separated plastic strap belt on top?
The vest and gear don't float off the figure anywhere near as bad as some figures I've looked at, but the "snap" peg allows the plastic to start floating off the figure. It's just me, but I would like the gear like this to be snug-looking on the guy.
So, those two points drop the figure a 1/2 star.
The other 1/2 star drop comes from the fact that he's yellow. Sitting in the new VAMP, the green helmet almost matches that vehicle perfect. And the yellow isn't bad, and I get the "homage" and Renegades Cartoon angle, but why not a more "army" looking suit? Maybe all black with a yellow "hazard" camo? For me, to be a 5 star figure, the figure needs to add that extra small detail that makes it even more unique standing alone amid a sea of plastic figures.Heck, how about an all black suit with a special yellow glow in the dark camo? I mean, hey, they had the water activated color change on the 1991 Eco Warriors. ???
Either way, I highly recommend this figure. It's really a great straight modern version of our favorite old 1985 version. It has all the classic gear included (well, not the helmet hose, but I'm ok with that), but adds in an extra tank backpack, testing device, and shotgun. The lack of a weapon like a shotgun kept my old 1985 Airtight out of the action more often than not.
Check out GeneralsJoes.com review on Airtight!!!