If it’s smaller, you can collect more!

For a while now, I have seen these Instagram and Facebook posts about a Hotwheels version of the G.I. Joe SkyStriker. I’d done a search a few times online, but wasn’t able to find one in Europe. Until today that is.

Premium SkyStriker

For a small toy, the details are quite nicely done.

Up close

Just a small update this time around. See you later, until then, YoJoe and Happy Collecting!

Honey, I shrunk the Joes!

A few years back, I got my hands on a set of G.I. Joe Minimates figures. Apparently, they have made a second set of figures for the 2022 New York Comic Con. I recently came across this set when browsing the interwebs for Joe stuff. Naturally, I got myself a set.

Ninja Force Minimates – Front

As you can see on the picture above, this set is focused on the Ninja Force sub-team. The cover of the VHS tape inspired box, features Snake-Eyes front and center, flanked by Scarlett and Storm Shadow.

Ninja Force Minimates – Back

The back shows the fourth figure that is included, Dr. Biggles-Jones.

Ninja Force Minimates – Inside box

The inside box is made to look like a VHS cassette, a nice touch of nostalgia for the G.I. Joe fans that used to watch the cartoons on tape..

Bee Kind! Please Rewind.

This nod of VHS renting is recalled on both the front of the inner box (2-night rental sticker) as well as on the back with a reminder to rewind the tape when you return it. Check out the song Rental Patient by fellow Joe fan Wordburglar if you want to submerge yourself into that nostalgia.

Ninja Force Minimates – Figures

The figures themselves are a bit taller than a regular Lego mini figure. Storm Shadow gets his 1992 look with black & white. Scarlett and Snake-Eyes resemble their 1993 figures, all from the Ninja Force sub-team. They come with a lot of accessories and even an extra set of hair for Scarlett.

Dr. Sidney Biggles-Jones only got one semi-official action figure release in 2017, a whopping 24 years after her introduction in the Marvel comic books (issue 135 from 1993). The figure was part of the G.I. Joe Featuring Ninja Force and Transformers box set from the Official G.I. Joe Collectors’ Club. To be fair, this mini figure looks better than that 3.75” version if you ask me.

That’s it for now, see you again soon. Until then… Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

The drought is finally over

It has been a few months since I got my hands on a new G.I. Joe Classified Series figure. The wait is now over. The plastic crack addiction is starting again. Take my sobriety chip. My wallet will start hurting again. Starting off with no Joe, nor a Cobra in the true sense, but with a full fledged Dreadnok. Ladies and Gentlemen, here is Zandar.

Zandar box – front

Zandar is staying true to the original 1986 3.75” figure, as we’ve been seeing with a lot of these figures. He’s actually showing a little less bare skin this time around. The gold accents from the OG figure have been moved from the knees to the shoulder armor and the belt buckle. The blue has been toned down and the ginger hair has received a more muted color as well.

Zandar – Head close-up

The figure also has the red face paint like the original, as well as the earring. The pinkish scarf is also a bit more toned down compared to the 3.75” inch figure, but it resembles the pink from Zarana’s jacket. On my figure, there are some white spots on the scarf, Quality control may have been a bit lacking.

Zandar – Geared up

When it comes to his gear, the figure is decked out with a scoped harpoon rifle, a large knife,pistol and a backpack. I have to say this is one of the better figure from the line. I never really cared much for the Dreadnoks to be fair, but this figure does look convincing as a crazy biker gang member.

Zandar – 146 – Side art

The box is the latest iteration of Classified Series boxes. Smaller than the first run, but with a clear window rather than the fully cardboard ones we got. The art on this one isn’t bad, but not something that will stand out as spectacular. Maybe that was intentional, after all, Zandar is the kid who never got noticed.

That’s it for now. I do believe that more figures will be released/delivered soon(ish). Until then, Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

Lookin’ back ain’t all that I look forward to

As we start a new year, it’s always good to step back a moment and take a look back. In 2024, there was an increase of 33% in visitors to the blog and an even higher page view increase of 39% compared to 2023. This means that last year has been the best so far for the site! I want to thank you all for taking the time to read my brain farts. I’ve said it before and will say it (over and over) again, the G.I. Joe community is one of the- if not the best – fan and collector’s community in the world. (You can read those last words in Jeremy Clarkson’s voice.)

All joking aside, I really am very grateful for all the comments and messages I receive from all of you. A wise man once said, time is a currency you can never get back. Thank you for spending some of your precious time on my blog. I’m not sponsored and don’t have any ad revenue generated through the site. That’s something I will try to keep that way as long as I can – the no ads thing, if you want to sponsor me, feel free to reach out – I’ve got bills to pay :-).

The last few months of 2024 have seen less posts than I would have liked, not because there hasn’t been any new arrivals for my collection, but rather because I have been struggling with my mental health. I’ve tried to focus on my (paid) work, my home and my family and that meant that there was little to no time available to write. I’m still muddling through, but I will try to get more posts out again soon.

That’s it for now. I wish you all the best for the new year and hope to see you all back soon for more G.I. Joe updates. Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

I’m gonna need a bigger coffee table

We’ve been spoiled as G.I. Joe collectors with the amount of collector books and comic books that have come out in the last years. It all started with the Ultimate Guide by Mark Bellomo, then the Art of G.I. Joe from 3D Joe’s (Carson Mataxis) and more recently the giant Omnibus. Somewhere in between, I scored a Spanish book set about all the G.I. Joe toys and paraphernalia released in Spain. And now I got these 3 collector editions of the Battle Action Force comic books.

3 big books

These books are showing the original Battle Action Force comics, but on a much bigger scale than the original comics. Check out the picture below to see how big they are, Classified Snake-Eyes for scale.

Snake-Eyes on the books

The first book features 12 stories alongside the secret file of The Baron and character data files.

Cover of the first book
Contents of the first book

The second book has 9 more stories and even more character data files, along with a cover gallery.

Second book cover
Second book contents

The third book contains 3 more stories, additional character data files and cover gallery.

Third book cover
Third book contents

These 3 beautiful books that should be part of every serious collector’s collection, can still be bought via the Total Toybooks website. Hurry up and you may be able to still get them with a 25% discount! Be kind to your mailman as these books come in at a little over 6kg…

That’s it for now, see you again soon. Until then, Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

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