G.I. Joe Classified Series (1:12)

[ThunderDan19]

I did alright with the price I got my retros for, but these are even better. It can be tough with this line trying to fend of the FOMO for the best deals. But wait too long and some of them will go completely dry (retro Duke as an example). He was everywhere for a good while, did go down a little, but never where I couldn’t hold off, and now he’s a mirage. There will eventually be the right opportunity again, probably in the aftermarket now, so I just have to remain patient.

I went ahead and used my last Target Circle deal to get Budo ordered. I sent DD a cancellation request for the PO I’ve had since June from there. The price difference was a wash. If I can’t get out of the DD order, it’ll just end up getting returned to TG.

I also set up retro Flint tonight. To my displeasure, there isn’t a good way to move original Flint’s LBE/armor to the retro one. It’s just too form fitting and I would have to cut it to move it, and there’s no chance it ever stays closed at the cut with it being so tight on him. I’ll be looking for an alternative, likely a Vala armor kit for a shot gunner. Stay tuned for an “ultimate” Flint once I get that worked out.

 

[nacho]

Joe vests typically do have to be cut off.

Pro tip, cut a waist strap at a long, shallow angle... ideally on the side/back. A shallow cut allows a lot of overlap between the parts (which superglue back together easily) and hides the cut really well. 1000% better than a square cut that will never hold just butting the pieces back together. And aim for the cut to daylight out at a feature (plate, buckle, etc) where it's a break in the sculpt anyway, makes the cut even more visually inconspicuous.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Thank you for that! I have done a bit of that as necessary for some of my other “ultimates,” but none of them had vests that are so snug. This one’s so tight that I don’t think I’ll be able to rejoin the two sides of the cut and get it to bond. I can live with it until a better solution pops up on Mercari.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Walmart has some of their exclusives marked down as well for the inevitable "early black Friday." Lowest price is $10 for Shooter in case you need more high top shoes.

 

[nacho]

I bought a $10 NF Tunnel Rat during the october prime-day-wannabe WM sale just so I could use his dark grey pants with short-king Mainframe.

And I picked up another St/SF pack from target, as they came back in stock in the night and I used the 25% coupon. Getting that set for $36, even with the goofy color schemes, it a pretty solid deal.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Good call. It's nice that they finally came into stock fo' reelz. Hopefully the folks that missed out previously will finally be able to get them, and with discounts active. I got my UPS shipping notifications for mine plus the Budo order (so I think it might actually happen!).

I would have saved a couple more bucks had Target managed to have them both in stock at the same time, but I can't really complain when saving like $30 all together off retail. That's amazing considering I really don't shop Target enough to warrant the coupons they throw at me. If they ever got their web presence in order, I'd be a whole lot more likely to buy from them for more than just the exclusives.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Well, Target got St & SF to me today. I have to say, I’m glad I got them. They are pretty good figs and definitely do bring the nostalgia. I gave SF a Vala armor kit (thanks to Nacho!) and he looks pretty darn good. The mortar looks legit with the blast effects and, with the armor covering much of it, I don’t even mind the two tone battle uniform.

Steeler is a little harder because they made all his gear tied together (shoulder harness, belt and drop holster). I left him alone for now and, since Hasbro has dropped the ball so far on making him a tank, he’s manning the FLAK. I have to say, he looks pretty comfortable there, at least until they produce a MOBAT.

Budo is supposed to arrive tomorrow, green Range-Viper just shipped from EE (I can’t imagine Sci-Fi is far behind), and AMZ just notified me that Mainframe should arrive on Monday, so the good times will continue!

 

[nacho]

I got my discounted ST/SF set yesterday too. It's a good set, especially at the discounted price, but I will definitely be painting, dyeing, or replacing SF's torso/arms. I just haven't decided which method is likely to give me the best outcome. If they go on clearance, I might try them all ... that would practically guarantee a retro release sooner than later

AMZ says Mainframe is arriving Monday, Sci-Fi on Tuesday, and Wet-Suit still showing December 22nd. I assume those will all align and arrive together in the next week or two.... or maybe they'll pull a Dial-Tone and ship part of them and then the rest 8 months later... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Oh, and the Greenshirt is arriving from AMZ Tuesday as well. I already got one from Pulse, but I split my order because shenanigans. I already got the retro BAT from both, so I don't know why that wave is split as well.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, it seems like the more recent waves have not been mixed, but rather boxes filled with the same fig. And then there's the individual mailer boxed items. I really don't understand the current method. Maybe they just send them based on what's ready to ship.

Either way, seems like we will finally have a feast of new items to enjoy into the holidays. Good timing for once, Hasbro! You gonna have time to do mods and photos? I'm looking forward to seeing your full take on the OGs - before they give us the exact retro replicas!

 

[nacho]

I suspect you're right... they just box up a bunch of the same figure as they come off the line and ship them. The other wavemates will be on soon enough... or I assume that's the philosophy.

I'll probably have more time this winter after the holidays to work on that kind of stuff, but I definitely want to get my O13 group settled. Not sure how retro I want to go... i.e. do I replace the classified helmets with classics or just let them be... same with the backpacks and guns. Right now, I think I'd be satisfied to just have the colors somewhat correct.

But along those lines... I'm about 60% finished printing a MOBAT. I like the Ramen tank, but its body is very square... which works better as the base for the Wolverine and Bridgelayer, but it looks off as the main battle tank. Thus I decided to print one. It might be my undoing.

It'll be a long time before I get it done, maybe not before x-mas, as assembly will be a slog. Just cleaning the supports off of 180 track segments and heating each one individually to get them to snap together will take f-o-r-e-v-e-r... but it's going to be awesome and massive. Body alone (not counting barrel) is 22" long... and about 11" wide.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Oh wow! That's ambitious! I really think Haslab missed the boat by not making one, and I still think that's why we suddenly have all these OGs (particularly Steeler) all at once. I think they had it teed up before being derailed by their dumb focus group. I almost feel like now they would have to go with a Mauler so they could intro a new driver, so MOBAT may never make the cut. At least after all the work you'll have one long before Hasbro comes back to it, if they ever do.

If we ever get Flash, you'll need to recreate the iconic comic/battle gear picture!

 

[nacho]

Oh wow! That's ambitious! I really think Haslab missed the boat by not making one, and I still think that's why we suddenly have all these OGs (particularly Steeler) all at once. I think they had it teed up before being derailed by their dumb focus group. I almost feel like now they would have to go with a Mauler so they could intro a new driver, so MOBAT may never make the cut. At least after all the work you'll have one long before Hasbro comes back to it, if they ever do.

If we ever get Flash, you'll need to recreate the iconic comic/battle gear picture!

100%, that battle gear pic is actually based on the cover to Marvel issue #1. That'll be on my short list of pics to take for sure. I'll use my custom valaverse Flash if they don't hurry up and get him out soon... but he's rumored to be in the '26 plan. He was (rumored to be) actually in the '25 plan but got bumped due to the rejiggering of the output due to the factory swap to Vietnam.

I agree, the fact that they released Steeler tells me a MOBAT is not happening. No chance they put him out and kill whatever draw he'd bring to a MOBAT haslab.

A know-it-all on the TFW boards who claims to have insight into the design process/plans (and he's usually not far off) claims a Mauler was in multiple focus groups (along with some heavily modified/modernized HAVOC), but that the MOBAT was deemed too plain/boring/lacking in play features and was never considered. That's why I felt safe sinking a lot of effort into making my own. If we ever get a tank, it'll probably be a Mauler, but a MOBAT is highly unlikely.

 

[nacho]

FYI, AMZ has Trubble Bubbles and retro RnR on pre-black friday sale... $33 and $21 respectively.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I've gotten way spoiled lately. Unless I am PO'ing it, I only really pay attention to figs that start with $1X.xx. With Recondo and Mindbender there now, and Stalker and others previously, I'm fairly confident rRnR will get there too. It'll be interesting to see where these go for actual black Friday and cyber Monday.

For me, it's almost like I need to fight the overpricing happening now on the new releases. Unless they are deluxe or top notch, or I have some kind of free play money, I'm not spending over my psychological barrier of $25/fig. And now I won't go over $20 for anything I consider second tier (less than top notch, or something I already have a satisfactory version of).

So far it's worked out pretty well. I've gotten the MOC retros that I suddenly decided I wanted for well less than $20 a pop. The only one I've missed is Duke. I waited too long on that one, seeing tons hanging forever at WM and thinking they had to have made a million of those. Not so I guess. I'll likely still pick him up on the aftermarket when the deal is right.

I'll likely also eventually end up with Stalker, RnR and Recondo, once they all get into that sub $20 range, but together still get me free shipping. None of them are critical though, so we'll see how low they will have to go to hook me!

 

[nacho]

 

[Dr Syn]

We short king now?

 

[nacho]

Reusing that Tunnel-Rat buck just doesn't work for Mainframe, IMO. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[ThunderDan19]

Guess he’s just a lil’ fella…

 

[nacho]

I'd be fine with it if he were typically depicted that way. But before now, that hasn't been the case... so on the shelf next to the other Joes, he looks like a child dressed up as Mainframe for Halloween.

EDIT: Dude's representing the Lollipop Guild...

 

[ThunderDan19]

In case anyone is dying for more Metal-Heads, AMZ has them for $22 right now. I still shake my head over the fact that they made him before IG Destro.

 

[nacho]

Lenny is a 90's kid, and sometimes it shows clearly.

 

[ThunderDan19]

So true. I wanna like the guy, but his taste is nearly opposite of mine.

 

[nacho]

Speaking of cheap metal-heads, I saw where some people are using his lower half to give mainframe some extra height and darker pants. While I think it looks better than the base munchkin, it makes the torso and legs a little disproportionate.

In my home display, I decided to keep my custom made from a PP Viper torso, PP BAT legs, RnR arms, Outback's boots, and a GridIron kit. Every time I saw the official figure, it made me irritated.

Not counting the truly awful Ninja Force Storm Shadow (AMZ exclusive with reduced articulation, WTF Mattel), Mainframe might be my least favorite mainline figure the line has produced. He's staggeringly underwhelming.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Pulse is having a BF/CM clearance sale right now. I’m tempted on some of the retros, but Duke is already out of stock so it’s hard to get to the free shipping limit. Im gonna hold out to see if AMZ matches the rest since they are on the rViper.

 

[nacho]

I have yet to see a sale on anything I needed more of. They're going to have to get more aggressive than $18-20 to trip my radar.

Got Sci-Fi yesterday (haven't opened yet), and my other greenshirts are out for delivery (they've been "out for delivery" three days in a row... I think my AMZ driver tossed them in a ditch).

 

[ThunderDan19]

Still waiting on Sci-Fi from EE. I have received Mainframe and Grim Viper, but haven’t opened them yet either. Been too busy hunting (got a nice big doe and a very stout 8 point buck so far, that’s a very good season already) and Battlefield 6 is taking up my spare time. Should be able to pop open green Range Viper and Oompa Loompa before the end of my Thanksgiving week vacation.

 

[nacho]

I opened Sci-Fi last night, and it's pretty solid. I have read a lot of gripes that he's not ARAH enough, green isn't bright enough, etc, etc... and I just don't see it. None of those things bother me.

And YET, he seems off somehow. I can't put my finger on what exactly is bugging me, but he's not quite right. I'm definitely not a fan of the full face shield that makes him look like something out of Halo... but even the traditional visor is off... almost like it's not wide enough. I guess I'm used to the ARAH figure having a huge noggin, and this figure, even with a removable helmet, feels like his head is small and the visor a bit narrow.

But in the big picture, that's a pretty minor gripe, and overall he's a nice figure. I like the blue laser blast effects, and his buck's plastic isn't too gummy. His visor stays attached without glue, his backpack stays on better than any figure I own in the entire line, and there's a lot to like here.

He's a solid laser trooper, but it irks me that we get the '86 replacement before getting the real thing in Flash... it's kinda crazy that despite getting nearly everyone from '82-87, three of my all-time top-5 Joes haven't been made yet: Flash, Ace, and Ripcord. Flash is supposedly in the pipeline, and we can only assume retro Ripcord is too... poor Ace, what does he have to do? Are they holding him back for a haslab jet in 3-4 years? At some point, they just have to do like Steeler and produce the dude.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Speaking of gummy plastic, I had the opposite problem with SF‘s feet. They are so hard that I had to open the peg holes up with a knife to be able to mount him on a stand. I get that we need some of the parts to be very rigid, but feet are much better for stand mounting if they have at least a little stretch to them. And it’s very random from one fig to the next.

 

[nacho]

Monday: your package is out for delivery
Monday night: your package is delayed until tuesday
Tuesday: your package is out for delivery
Tuesday night: your package is now coming tomorrow
Wednesday: your package is out for delivery
Wednesday afternoon: your package is coming between 12 and 2
Wednesday afternoon: your package is coming later today
Wednesday afternoon: the driver is on the way to your address, your address is our driver's next stop
Wednesday afternoon: we have lost GPS contact with our driver, but your package is still coming today
Wednesday evening: Your package is delayed
Thursday: Status: Delayed, not yet shipped
The Next Monday: your package is out for delivery...

This is me holding my breath:

Apparently I was not meant to own more than one greenshirt.
And AMZ shipped my Wetsuits... hopefully they don't take the same route as the greenshirts.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I've never had that kind of issue with AMZ. USPS, yes, a few times. Whenever I see that "smart" post delivery (or whatever it's called by the other guys), I know it's a dice roll, on when (so far not usually an "if") I will get my package. In fairness, it has gotten surprisingly better of late, but still takes a few days longer than actual UPS, FedEx or AMZ delivery, and can't actually be tracked once it gets into USPS' hands.

I only have PO's out at this point, so I'm not waiting on anything right now. I was a little underwhelmed by the deals on CS and retros for actual black Friday and cyber Monday. It seems like it was pretty frontloaded for the best pricing, and spread out to where it was hard to lock in enough for free shipping from any single outlet.

 

[nacho]

The deals were "ok"... but other than the retro Viper, they were all 2-yo figures that we've all bought for retail and on sale many times over. There just wasn't anything compelling that I needed to spend money on.

Wetsuit and greenshirt should be my last Joes for the year. After that it's just POs for the HnR, NV, Lifeline wave in April and next round of retros in May. Gonna be another dry spring.

 

[nacho]

Wetsuits arrived from AMZ... in an envelope. Fortunately only one of them was crushed, but the figure doesn't look harmed. You'd think that getting that many figures would warrant a box, but this entire wave arrived that way, one SKU at a time, each in envelopes.

 

[ThunderDan19]

This latest "wave" makes me wonder if Hasbro has decentralized their production. I don't know if there is any way to actually know, but it seems like each figure or set is more of an individual release now, rather than boxed up together with the others as actual waves lately. I've gotten Grim Viper (EE) and Mainframe (AMZ), but Sci-Fi has yet to arrive, at EE at least.

 

[nacho]

I ordered 3x of this wave minus the GV. Got three Mainframe... and a week later got 3x Sci-Fi... and a week later got 3x Wetsuit. So yeah, it does seem less like a wave and more like a group of figures that just get released in a similar timeframe.

 

[ThunderDan19]

So Target is back at its shenanigans. They finally got this latest wave showing up on their website tonight. Along with the other technicolor divers, I was going to order Wet-Suit with a $20 discount. Well, wouldn’t you know it? As soon as i got them into the cart WS goes out of stock. Every time.

Speaking of bright colors, and on a more positive note, Sci-Fi is processing, so he should arrive in another week or so.

 

[nacho]

Every retailer these days seems to have some kinds of shenanigans going on. AMZ telling me my figures will be delivered every day for a week... WM just forgetting about their POs... Target and Pulse playing the out-of-stock game constantly... BBTS charging a premium on everything just because. There is nobody that just sells stuff with no hassle or games involved.

Honestly, my favorite shopping experience is ShowZ (primarily TFs). No tax, minimal shipping (none pre-tariff era), best prices around, reward points, english-speaking people that respond to inquiries in a timely manner. Sure, their shipping takes 3 weeks, but it always arrives without issue. I wish they'd sell Joes!

Sci-Fi is a B+... good figure, but something just slightly off. Maybe you can articulate what my eyeballs are telling me. Definitely worth picking up though.

 

[nacho]

MTO Arctic HISS is live. PO for the next month, delivery is Dec '26... and unlike a haslab, supposedly we're not charged until it ships.

G.I. Joe Classified Series #216, Arctic Assault H.I.S.S. (High Speed Sentry) and Arctic Assault H.I.S.S. Driver - Hasbro Pulse

EDIT: The panel also has a name reveal of Deep-Six (no hint of which deco or if he comes solo or with a vehicle), and a teaser pic that is almost certainly the ski of a swamp skier...

Since they already announced Zanya, it's potential that they pack her with the skier since they like putting females with small vehicles (see Ferret and CLAW). But that's just a guess.

 

[ThunderDan19]

While I have no interest in the Arctic HISS, I do like this model for getting less expensive versions of Haslab developed vehicles or other medium to large vehicles. It will be interesting to see if they stick to previous Haslabs or open it up to non-released stuff that falls into that in-between size.

Stuff I'd love to see in this format, for $200 or less:

• MOBAT (duh) $200
• VAMP MkII $120
• NF (black and green beats Tiger) Dragonfly $200
• Wolverine $150
• SHARC $150
• Water Moccasin $120
• Firebat $120

What I'm afraid of is that we'll just get all the TF vehicles instead.

Stuff that should be Haslabs going forward:

• Skystriker
• WHALE
• Mauler
• Night Raven
• Tomahawk

Yes, those Haslabs are larger than what they have made so far. But with this new pre-order option, they could more easily knock out all the mid-size stuff with little risk. Smaller vehicles could still be sent to retail. Haslabs could maybe go larger with fewer figures and gimmicks, and just focus on making the vehicles as good as possible, while still keeping them compact enough to be somewhat practical.

 

[HUNMARINE]

The masters of distribution:
Arctic HISS for US goes for 199,99 USD while for the UK and EU it goes for a bit more than 300 USD.


Sorry if it looks like I"m crying out loud...but even if I have money...even if I will pay the difference due to location...there are some limits when you should say NO. This Classified line is really a game changer for me in this
way: I now know that "collecting" is becoming way more expensive as it was and in some ways as it should be.
I"m glad that most of the collectors are satisfied with the fact that there are so many vehicles in this line....For me - I know that most of it wont be on my shelf....And as far as it goes - it looks like this is the last G.I.joe line I"m ever collecting.

 

[nacho]

$300 is definitely steep. Even $200 isn't really a bargain, as the original haslab was $300 with four figures. Three less figures @ $28 puts the price barely over $200, and they have to do zero new tooling for this project. The margin on this has got to be pretty high.... basically priced at "What will the market bear" instead of "what does it cost and add some reasonable profit".

Do I blame them? Eh, in their shoes, I'd probably squeeze all I could out of it too. But I don't blame anyone for bowing out of a repaint costing that much. I wonder why importing to the UK is so much more expensive? It's all shipping from asia, and the UK doesn't have the tariff barrier the US does. Even VAT doesn't add $100.

--------------------

Dan, I'm convinced the next two haslabs will be Moray and *maybe* WHALE, but both would definitely push the price point higher than previous haslabs, significantly so in the WHALE's case.

My want list has altered quite a bit with my 3d printing binge and the Ramen Wolverine/Bridgelayer. I make no claims that my projects are nearly as good as a factory product, but they're good enough to display, photograph, and satisfy the basic urge for _____. So I'm not jonesing for a SHARC, Moccasin, Devilfish, Wolverine, Thunder Machine, or MOBAT like I once was. I'd probably buy an official, but the burning desire is tamped down a bit. But I recognize I'm not normal (in many ways).

I don't mind repaints like the Arctic HISS, as those have a theater-centric purpose. But I have no use for NF or TF repaints. I'm not giving up the fund or shelf space for those. A VAMP MkII... I'd probably buy, but I'm more of a MkI fan personally. But I'd need that sweet tan clutch for various desert themed adventures.

My want list would be the two big water vehicles, a Mauler, and a Conquest. I'd take a Firebat too, but it definitely needs to be a $100 retail item, not some MTO or haslab project. A Skystriker would be epic, but it's just too damn big (and would cost a fortune). Same with a proper Night Raven. Plus, I'd be p-i-s-s-e-d if Ace gets paywalled behind a $600 project. The big jets just seem better left to smaller scales.

Tomahawk... I'd almost certainly pass. I was never a fan, as it looked like a flying walrus next to a Dragonfly. Sure, it holds more guys, but it's the flying equivalent of a minivan. I didn't like it as a kid, and I've never understood the wide appeal amongst fandom. People are gaga over it, and routinely wish for it to be a big project.... however, I have not yet figured out why. Of all the big things we could get from the '82-'87 window, only a HAVOC would excite me less.