Iron Grenadiers, part 1

I can say these are some of my favorite things, the Iron Grenadiers.

Us kids know Destro, he is a fairly well known household name in regards to Joe. I know I grew up with the cartoon where Destro was a fairly classy villain with the metal mask and wrist rockets (cool!). As such, this advertising worked on me. I wanted to get Destro, and spent a good amount of time staring at vehicle catalog inserts checking out all the stuff, wanting it all a more, of course.

My best bud at that time got the first Destro figure I had ever seen at that point, the 1988 Iron Grenadier Destro. Where I had Serpentor, he had the 2nd in command of Cobra. This is the figure I have today leading my Iron Grenadier forces. This aspect makes it even more of a nice thing for me to have: this figure once led a guys adventures back in the day and I know him!

I started my interest in the Iron Grenadiers when I bought the 1988 Iron Grenadier figure. Now, I always dug the Cobra Viper that I saw on the cartoon, and wanted legions of "blueshirt" Cobra troops, but the Iron Grenadier was really just sleek. The helmet is somewhat knight-like, but a little "star wars," the figure is not bulked out, but seems like a slick commando with the awesome pseudo-uzi. One of my favorite rifles ever. The red pistol never excited me, though, however, the ceremonial sword was a nice touch that really tied in to the '88 Destro figure.

I liked the guy so much, that even back in the day of limited kid funds, I easily bought a second, making the 1988 my first "army builder" officially. (I also bought Repeater at the same time.)

Since then I have added just about every Iron Grenadier force member or trooper on the classic style figures side of things, although I haven't had or kept every vehicle... There is quite a variety of figures for a sub team, or as I consider the Iron Grenadiers, an entirely separate and antagonist force of its own!



The Iron Grenadier set started out pretty tight in some respects, but kind of not in others. Destro comes clad in black and gold with his Iron Grenadier elite trooper matching quite nicely, gear and all. There's just enough red between the two, and it all carries over to the DEMON vehicle driver, Ferret. Ferret adds the khaki pants to the mix, which is still nice even as I would have preferred all black as well here. But the khaki really ties it over to the AGP pilot Nullifier. Now, this is a very different looking figure, and was long absent from my first Iron Grenadier vehicle, the mail-in AGP that did not have a figure included. I got Nullifier now, but after reading a tidbit of info that this figure was originally going to be a Cobra La figure, and he does indeed share some design similarities to the Cobra La team figures of 1987, I'm not as pumped up about these guys. Voltar breaks tradition before it even started coming in with a shade of red that I don't hate, but I don't know what to call it. He's got the gold, but as is doesn't seem like part of the team, ya know? He also has a condor that still needs explanation, as well as his radio.

Here's the actual Destro from the back in the day play days, the Despoiler is a second one that I'm not sure where it came from. My bud shaved off the little twin prong things that sit to either side toward the top front of the, well, not sure what to call them. I thought it very fitting for Destro to show up in his own personal ride after Serpentor had his Air Chariot, and it's cool that the Despoiler docks on the DEMON. My DEMON is one I found at a flea market mostly stripped with an X-19 as well. I was able to trade and get most of the parts I was missing for the DEMON over the years, but not until the 2005 GIJOE convention did I find the final missing gun, which happened to be the Despoiler docking pad. So, for almost 10 years, Destro simply couldn't dock.
This is my mail-in A.G.P., which was the first Iron Grenadier vehicle I owned, although I only recently got the Nullifier with a face mask. I was getting a little bored with lately, I had the missiles in the cockpit since taking it out of storage, but, after getting those missiles on it adds some nice attitude and lines to it. And it is Iron Grenadier black, red, and gold!


Next post: DEMON

Rescue heroes

With a young 'feller in the house, I'm finding the "rescue" type of GIJOEs a ton more appealing.

For the most part, I keep my GIJOE stuff to my self. Some of it is just too much to try and explain, especially when someone has very little real world experience to draw on in relation to a fictional/ playing role.

This is why I'm becoming a fan of Barbecue as of late. My first Barbecue ('85) is still all incomplete that I got from some guy in a lot of his old toys around 1995. As far as I remember, this figure hasn't seen much action in my little set ups.

I thought since the little guy in the house has shown interest in firetrucks and firefighters (as most kids most likely do), I thought the 25th Barbecue would work great with his firetrucks that are 1/18 scale (roughly). The Tonka brand Firetrucks came with some really clunky figures, but that's just my personal take on it.

Anyway, Barbecue has been seen actively climbing ladders and racing around in firetrucks. Seeing Barbecue in action on the old PSA's on youtube really got the little guy more excited about the figure, too.

Having both the 1991 and 1986 Lifelines, I later brought out the '91 "rice krispies" version. This EMT or paramedic hasn't gotten as much use as the 25 Barbecue, but he is the mix on the trucks.
Firefighters stand out, they get spotlighted in a lot of kids videos and shows, and we have had many opportunities to see our local firetrucks up close and inside...even being able to visit the fire station on occasions. The EMT/ Paramedic role doesn't stand out among all the gear dedicated to firefighting. Essential as they are, a 100-foot ladder truck is simply more exciting than the ambulance. So, with Lifeline, I was hoping to expand the man's mind in that a firefighter has a larger role than just fighting fires.

I'm hoping to add the "yellow" 25th Barbecue, and even though the flamethrower Joes are geared toward lighting stuff up, I wouldn't mind adding them in the mix to create some kind of extreme firefighting team. Blowtorch did show up in a fire safety PSA of old, so, I don't think it is too much a stretch of imagination. Finding some more scale gear and maybe making a small firehouse would be nice, but the man hasn't showed a knack for "small-item organization." (Hotwheels are great until they are spread out everywhere....)

So, where before, I've found the "rescue" hero Joes a little boring, I'm now finding them fun in their own non-direct-combat-with-Cobra kind of way. "Kelly's heroes," perhaps?

But even longer term, I suppose, Law & order, Mutt, Shockwave, could join the "junior Joes" ranks.

There are quite a number of ways a GIJOE team could be made out of everything available, where myself and maybe you would have a combat squad, someone else could piece together something of a total different flavor.

Zartan

Zartan(s).
This is my first full "pursuit of Cobra" figure, Zartan. I'm being very selective (or so I thought, more on that another time) when it comes to buying most anything modern these days. The PoC Zartan really seemed like he had a lot going for him that I could use.
Considering the modern movie Zartan was probably the more interesting character to me in that movie, but the figure wasn't that overly appealing. Even with the scary blades, I didn't see that figure mixing with my Dreadnoks. This latest version really said something different to me, though.

See the review of PoC Zartan at GeneralsJoes.com

Consider that the PoC Zartan here is now the "fourth" Zartan in my collection (all "newsculpt" are gone...). The very first Zartan I had was the 1993 Ninja Force version. This somewhat punk-biker version was the guy that was flanked by Zarana and Zandar back in my day, and not until 2001 did a more traditional looking Zartan jump into my collection. However this 2001 Zartan is more SAW Viper than Zartan and this figure has come close to becoming parts. Essentially this means that, yes, the '93 punk Zartan has been more my "default" Zartan for quite awhile. Not even one of those new sculpts versions swayed me away.
Even with the "ninja-action" waist, there is still plenty I like about the '93 Zartan. A little more road-warrior looking to me, had the colors been toned more matte, it would have been better. I think the head is still awesome, however much I would have preferred the mohawk and face-paint to be black, it's still a very tight design and really speaks more "dreadnok" to me than a hood. Plus, I always dug how the two knifes attached to the leg. Once again, I would have preferred these accessories in a black or silver, but that was always a nice feature I liked on this figure. Having a bow included may have been by chance, but it was about this time I was reading back-issue comics and learned of Zartan's mastery of the bow.

The 2001 version is a SAW Viper, even down to the huge machine gun. And while this figure hasn't gotten much attention to me, I have kept it over a couple of new sculpt versions. Did Zartan decide to become a machine gunner for a disguise? Who knows, but it is a somewhat original head and did have the old face mask disguise. I liked that, but, is he a SAW Viper with the disguise on? Was this to have been THAT particular SAW viper from the Marvel comics story that actually killed Joes? Once again, who knows.....
The next version of Zartan, which has become my more modern "default" is the comic pack Zartan. Now this guy has more of the original Zartan looking parts, and that may be why I like it. I like the shoulder and chest armor, that adds to the Dreadnok aspect of how I perceive Zartan, and he comes with a big bow, arrow, and quiver for accessories. And really, unlike the yellow boots on some some of these ARAH comic pack figures, Zartan has a really decent coloring. Not too comic-y or cartoon-y, but not to psychotic dark, either.
So, these three figures are what preceded my PoC Zartan purchase. And the GeneralsJoes.com review of the figure helped, too. Looking at the figure, PoC Zartan really brings in some old Zartan style into the figure.
Look at the arm/ elbow wraps, it reminds me of the 2001 version. And then think of how the two knifes fit on the '93 version and note how there are two (kinda) swords that attach to PoC Zartans belt. The face paint is more '93-style similar than '84-style on the PoC Zartan, but the plastic hood is even more flowing and elaborate than the comic-pack Zartan's style.
On accessories, the PoC Zartan has a more full on disguise, but on that assault rifle, it may be a stretch, but does it not seem to have that SAW vipers gun sight shape incorporated into the side attachment?
Some of it may be a stretch in what I'm seeing. Style-wise, there's a lot for me to totally like about PoC Zartan.
The bird and staff inclusion is a bit much for me, especially for a figure that wants to be disguised in the desert. Wouldn't you think? Although I do like some explanations on the Joe-boards where now in modern times we "find-out" that the old 1987 Raptor figure was really Zartan all along....

I'm not sure if I want to try to create "Sandstorm" right now. The goggles are very cool, though, and Tracker has been needing a pair. Tracker may take ownership of these, as a SEAL, he needs some gear, ya know. In the picture below, Zartan is using his really nice pistol, but also is showing why I don't really like the modern neck joint.
So far, I really like the style of the PoC Zartan. I'll probably keep the ARAH comic pack version figure as my "default," though. The PoC Zartan still doesn't feel as solid as an action figure could, joints are still "bumpy" in motion and I really think the ball-joint neck would work nicer on modern figures. Or, even better, combination of both! And I do not think an O-ring is the single factor separating classic figures from modern figures by any means. Good design always stands apart no matter what is underneath.
The assault rifle that was included with PoC Zartan came with a curve to it, too, and isn't this similar to the issue of accessories being banded to hands, deforming the plastic a bit from a few years back already?

Either way, I won't let small things get to me. PoC Zartan is still a pretty neat figure, and with so many disguises that Zartan has gone through, perhaps his original '84 file card hit it right on the head where the original personality is buried and forgotten....

Zartan may be the most fitting-est character to any incarnation of GIJOE in this respect. I can't wait to see the GIJOE: Renegades does with him!

new toys

New toys have arrived! No pictures, but it's all stuff everyone has seen before for the most part.
These "new" toys that are the "new-to-me" are:
1988 Toxo Viper
1988 Ferret (Iron Grenadier)
and 1985 Shipwreck.
And the PoC Zartan

This is my 2nd Ferret which is for my Iron Grenadier "army building" that is slowly on-going. I have one DEMON, so 2 of the 3 seats are now crewed by a Ferret. I most likely will not have a Razorback at any time in the near future, so my Wild Boar (needs an upgrade...) figure might just be the rear gunner, or perhaps he should become an individual character and command my DEMON? Things to figure out at some point.

This is my 2nd '88 Toxo Viper now. The first one I got is still incomplete and has the signs of play wear. I won't army build these guys, they are like the heavy suited guys compared to the lighter Viper '91 Toxo Vipers, but I think they will make a nice little mixed squad of toxic troopers. I may ultimately nix the Sludge Viper from my collection, there isn't much about that Viper that makes him much more different or more useful compared to either Toxo Viper. Another thing to figure out at some point, too.

Now Shipwreck? One would think almost everyone has Shipwreck? Actually the 1994 Shipwreck is the only "Shipwreck" that I have had. This particular figure is in really nice shape, but was missing everything, even Polly (sigh). I did have Shipwrecks pistol (that I can't remember where it came from) in my little extra accessories bag. I'm not too worried about not having the rest right now. I did have an '85 Shipwreck pass through my hands at one point previous, but that was for a good buddy that snagged a bunch of good GIJOE stuff at a Goodwill for me at one point a few years back. That was awesome, I just had to get him a few select figures in return, one was Shipwreck.
Now my WHALE has more of a deck-looking-crew. Another issue that comes up with this is that now I have "two" Shipwrecks. I won't "re-name" a figure into a new make-believe character, but perhaps in this case, keeping both makes sense. Shipwreck took his extra SEAL training and now is more versatile whether on deck or swimming with Torpedo and Wetsuit. The '94 Shipwreck has decent weapons and gear, too.

I got the PoC Zartan, too, the one with the bird where he looks all nomadic-like. I was thinking about getting the RoC Zartan, that was one character that I rather found interesting in that movie, but the toy didn't seem to offer much. This PoC Zartan has all sorts of gear, though. And he has a new (fresh?) take on the master of disguise. I'll get out all my Zartans some day and throw out some thoughts on those at once.
At this time, I find Zartan to be a very varied figure which really fits for the master of diguise, especially with this newer rendition, and also consider the vastly different "Renegades" cartoon version. Many personalities...

production stats

When it comes to what's more valuable or rare with GIJOE A Real American Hero, I really would like to know what the production numbers were.

Think about it, the Devilfish has been stated to have been the vehicle sold or produced as the highest number. I heard that from the round table in the 2005 Convention, and think I read that information elsewhere. (Unless Hasbro employees were messing with us.) But would that not mean that by average a person would be able to find a Devilfish or Devilfish parts more easily? Would this not be a very cheap and easy find even to this day?

Well, I can't answer my questions. But I would like to get it out in the open that I would really like to see production statistics on the A Real American Hero line. I think that would change "value" perceptions a little more if as collectors we knew how many of each was made.

1990 is a year of less produced as I've come to understand the ARAH line, so would not most everything in this year be just a small percentage more valuable? How often do you see a GIJOE Avalanche tank or Salvo making internet chat?

No matter what, I'm sure Hasbro will never make these numbers known. And I get that, it's a property managing company, it makes sense to me.

I do propose a 5-star rating on "rarity," though. Now, loose figures being complete are another animal all together on what I'm proposing here. I'm focusing just on the new-as-produced-back-in-day numbers. Those numbers will not change and the only numbers that will be revealed will be in comparison to what is made.
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The example:

5 star is the most made items. The Devilfish would be a very "very common" vehicle to find.

4 star "common"

3 star "uncommon"

2 star "rare"

1 star is the least made items. The Avalanche tank is a comparatively "scarce" find.
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What would that get fans?

An '85 Flint is popular and holds 'value' on secondary markets, but what if we found out '85 Flint is a 5-star "very common" figure that was made in high numbers over the years, so a buyer today might wait for a lower-priced figure to come along at a later date.


Whereas, lets say Quick Kick '85 is a 2 star "rare" figure, but maybe not a very popular or well known one, then a Quick Kick find would become much more valuable.

What say ye?

Should something like this be a 10-star system?

Perhaps combine it with a forever changing "popularity" rating? In that a "scarce" figure is really popular? (making it a "1/10-star" ; the most sought after items?) Maybe something like this is something that could be completely fluid on the internet on the "popularity" side of things, like a constant forever voting option at Hasbro.com?

Sigma Six, Sgt. Savage, Extreme, GvCSpyVvVDtc

These are the "others." The figures and themes that lasted a short time when compared to A Real American Hero line that these toys were launched from. It started almost right in about 1995 with Sgt. Savage and his Screaming Eagles.

I picked up two of the Sgt. Savage with VHS tape figures, one at regular price, and the other I left in the package after finding it on clearance. The Grizzly SS1 was the only vehicle I picked up, on clearance of course, and that was all I got for Sgt. Savage. I didn't "hate" the line, but these were not my scale Joes, they were all just a bit too big to fit in with what I had. So, it was a real easy pass for me not to try and grab more Sgt. Savage.

GIJOE Extreme came next in the pipeline soon after Sgt. Savage. I got some of these comics, and I bought the mini-vehicle pack of the vehicles (on clearance). A buddy who knew I was a GIJOE collector bought be the Iron Klaw figure, but I left that one in the package. The one in the picture above is one I found loose at the Goodwill. Now that I think about it, these Extreme GIJOE figures might have been GREAT to play with the '80s Masters of the Universe toys. I did have some mixed adventures with Joes and He-man back in the day, but Extreme-ly taller figures would have fit almost right in! (Too bad I traded in my He-man guys on a Thunderclap and Rolling Thunder...)

If you know your Joe, it was soon 1997 and the 15th Anniversary figures slid into Toys R Us stores and this went into 1998. So, 1995 and 1996 were just a couple of "off-years" in the long run. Each years line did end up really unique and I think as a whole and on their own, both Savage and Extreme were a pretty decent and fun group toys; just not for me. At least not in any sensible economic view, can't have it all is what I'm saying.

1999 was really the most dead year for Joe, and that worked as I was trying my hand at more higher education (in the name of Joe as a matter of fact) at that time. But 2000/01/ and even 02 brought in more stuff for me to add to my Real American Hero collection. I was digging these years and should have bought more in hindsight, even though I did make more sensible economic decisions "picking and choosing."

Now the (what I call) the themed years starting popping up with new styling and construction changes. I bought a Duke/ Cobra Commander pack and a Wet suit/ Moray pack for the figures, but quickly decided these were not for me at that time. Now there were some excellent things that happened from 2002 through 2005, but also some not interesting things. I did say these were not for me, but, I still ended up buying a lot of these "new-sculpt" years figures and vehicles, mostly the figures for the accessories. I think I ended up with well close to 75 some figures of the various styles from these "themed years" and really I should have been buying more classic ARAH things. Still, there was a lot of products for these made in a short few years!!

Of course, Sigma Six rolled out in 2005 in the fall, announced at the 2005 convention. Another "other."
And I think it was interesting that they added the 2.5" figure/ vehicle line alongside these 8" guys. Now, I didn't "hate." I did catch the cartoon in 2006 as often as I could, and I bought Lt. Stone and Long Range as these were decent original characters. Hi-tech was a gift for me, but even still an original character. These guys were fun and seemed built tough. More expensive, but as a figure a person could do more in terms of gear.
Lt. Stone was fun, and easily my favorite of what little I bought of these. The Styling of these guys made 12" gear somewhat compatible with Sigma Six, too.

I was tempted to start getting into the smaller vehicle companion line, but my income and other sensibilities held me back. In the end, if I had a decent place to call my own, and plenty of cash, yeah, I would buy it all and then some.

Now, BTR was out there, too. I didn't forget about those, I just completely didn't look at them. I think it was since we have limited toy selections in town here, but I never ventured into the block areas much. As much as I want every toy ever, it just isn't going to happen....gotta keep clutter to a minimum...



Now, you may say, I'm stuck on just what I grew up on. Not so, really. I had a great opportunity to play with these GIJOE guys below. I decided to sell these, as I'm not a Vintage collector. That's a thing that gets me, when what is really "classic" ('82-'94) GIJOE years are called "vintage." My Real American Hero is not "vintage" by a long shot, in my opinion. It's only starting to go into "classic" status as far as I'm concerned. Either way, I had a ton of fun back in day being able to play with these. (There was even million dollar man and other awesome '60's/'70's toys in the mix!!)
As far as I go, though, these are "others" when it comes to my collecting toys. It's an all or nothing thing for the most part with limited exceptions from here on out.





"Tough troopers" and "combat heroes" did not catch my eye at all.

What "other" versions of GIJOE do you totally dig, or not dig? Is the original A Real American Hero line actually the "other" GIJOE line in your view?


Was the "Rise of Cobra" an "other" line?

Street Fighter

Street Fighter II toys filled my toy hunting about the time GIJOE was making room on the store shelves for Sgt. Savage and his Screaming Eagles.

Here's as they were before I decided to trade them in, they really mostly sat covered in original plastic package bags to keep the dust off them when they were on the shelf for awhile and most of them sat in their own Rubbermaid container in a pile of Rubbermaid containers for a good number of years. Having them buried and unused was not very fun, so of they went...



The Devastator was pretty darn cool in coloring. I read in an old Steel Brigade Club newsletter that this was supposed to be all black, but it's pretty close...as far from the white Snow Cat of old as it goes. Of course, the "frosted canopy" was still there with the windshield wiper. There were only the spring fired rockets included so the old "ski-pedo" mounts went unused, until I finally found a use for that old "vehicle accessory pack."

This vehicle was very awesome, it kind of became a Cobra vehicle for a little while, but mostly just sat looking awesome.

I was so tempted to swap the Paralyzers weapons and put them on the green base of the Sonic Boom Tank.
I really liked the Paralyzer, and maybe should have kept that tank, too, but either way, this was a nice little vehicle. For '91, if it weren't for the orange-ish, I think the Paralyzer would be a TON more popular.

The Karate Chopper really killed the Dreadnok Cycle when the spring fired rockets were added to the turret. The red and white color with no other details painted really made the Cycle more bland. Not to mention the name, Karate Chopper. So if there was a least favorite of these Street Fighter II vehicles for me, this was it.






I like the Badger quite a bit, but the neon green convinced me to trade it off. The Crimson Cruiser didn't improve on the Badger at all, it was really left mostly the same even in the spring fired rocket launcher department. As I look at it now, I think I like the Badgers light green and blue more compared to the crimson and bright orange.
I think I used the Crimson Cruiser most often for Cobra, and even for my light use, I still managed to put a stress mark on the front hoods hinge.

If I could have found a TigerFly, I would have been able to say I had every U.S. release of the Dragonfly ever made. I thought about doing that, but ultimately, I chose to stick with just my one original Dragonfly. One gunship would be plenty good for my GIJOE team.
The Heli-Fighter here, was really nice, though. If not for that darn spring launcher, it would have been a straight re-do. It didn't include much in the way of missiles, much like the Devastator, so I dug up some extra Dragonfly and Locust v2 missiles to put on this chopper.



The Street Strikers I had were my VAMPs here. I bought 2 of these, kept one strictly SFII, but used another I picked up on clearance as a GIJOE VAMP, using extra GIJOE vehicle stickers that I had. The "GIJOE" stickered one is the most dusty, it got set up in displays mostly, and easily replaced the 2nd hand "real" VAMP I had as that thing was really beat up.