More GI Joe stuff has arrived, I realize my reviews of GI Joe’s and Star Wars are being much more sporadic than the Marvel Universe ones but at the same time when you do not strive to be a completist you tend just to review what you get your hands on, or in at least one case here, what falls into your lap. Anyway I thought I would have some fun with the sporadic nature of these reviews so this one is titled Snake Eyes and friends.  

The smaller GI Joe vehicles have not had a big appeal to me, for the most part (with some exceptions like the ROC repainted Firebat) they have seemed overpriced. Now dancing at around $16-$18 depending on where you shop these vehicles defiantly do not seem to be a good "bang for your buck" purchase. Such is the case with the Ice Cutter.  

While I didn’t expect a large vehicle out of this, I was surprised at exactly how small it is. The pictures I have seen previously made the vehicle look a bit larger than I thought. Truth is (with the tracks pulled in) it is barely any bigger than the Tron Legacy Light Cycle (which itself is drastically overpriced). So really just on size you are already getting less than what you should expect. I think what is worse is the total lack of any sort of real detailing on the inside of the drivers station. There is a minor hump indicating the seat for the driver and that is all. This lack of detail from a line that has a rich detail of internal details in their vehicles feels cheap to say the least. Defiantly feels like a step down in quality from previous vehicles in the GI Joe line.  

That is not to say the vehicle is a total loss but it has several strikes against it. In addition the “attack track” action of the treads is actually hard to get to work correctly. Often the treads end up moving in unison rather than the way indicated. Could be I got a defective one, but it’s something kind of irritating cause it was one of the drawing points for me, sure it’s silly but also fun. I think I may end up putting the treads partly out on the vehicle and then have it as sort of an enlarged snowmobile.  

The Ice Cutter is an unusual design and would go over better but for some flaws. It’s ok but defiantly a bit of a letdown. I think if it were priced closer to $10 I would feel a lot better about the purchase.  

The vehicle comes with a Snow Serpents who is dubbed the Snow Serpents Commander. It’s the basic 25th mold but the blue areas are painted red this time. The figure is ok but a bit worn especially after the Winter set and the TRU ROC exclusive. This is a figure that should have probably stayed out of the light for a while after so much usage. Not to say it’s bad but it defiantly has a feel of “been there, done that."  

The red seems odd to say the least, my guess is the designers were going for a contrast to the blue of the original. To be blunt it kind of doesn’t work. It’s kind of an interesting variation but really it just doesn’t cut it. I suppose the blue matches an arctic theme where as red contrasts it. Still I like the Snow Serpents mold so I can’t knock it too much, but defiantly not looking forward to a repaint.  

Overall the Ice Cutter and Snow Serpents is not a must have item IMO. Overpriced, overused mold, faulty vehicle, it is an easy pass. It does have its uses but not a stellar edition to the GI Joe mythos.  

From not so great to downright crap, we jump to Duke. Ol’ Conrad here came to me by accident packed in a box even though I never ordered him. So like almost every single Duke ever released, is pretty bland and boring. His drab color scheme is kind of reminiscent of an older figure he had in the Valor vs. Venom era (Yojoe link here if anyone is interested). The figure was just as standard and boring as this one. Although Duke generally is supposed to represent the boring drab kind of soldier, let’s face it there are only so many of those that can be release that are tolerable and this character is over 40 versions.  

Duke does come with some interesting weapons though and that is probably his saving grace. His future gun is kind of cool and the rocket launcher that can attach to the side is better on its own but a decent looking one. He has a backpack that quite frankly looks inappropriate for him. While it is cool it looks like it belong to Heavy Duty (If HD went back to his old MOS of Anti Aircraft trooper). While cool the pack does make him hard to stand while wearing it. Defiantly something I am going to give to Heavy Duty.  

Unless you are a diehard Duke fan I would avoid this one, I wouldn’t have even bothered if not for the fact he came to me completely on accident. His weapons are useful but that is about it. Shame too cause with the abundance of Dukes in this line you would think the designers would come up with something original rather than backtracking to a boring mold from an era that has seen its day.  

In direct contrast to a rehashed Duke, there is the Resolute pack Destro. I am reviewing this figure by himself because I bought him separate from the rest of the pack. Truth is the remainder of the pack held very little interest for me. I didn’t think the Alley Viper was distinct enough to be labeled Alley Viper, Cobra Commander had been seen twice already, and I felt there were much better versions of Firefly, Storm Shadow, Zartan, and Baroness. Destro on the other hand was something different. He looked like a classic general with his long coat and regalia. This was a fresh take on a worn character that has seen over 30+ versions.  

So I set out on the bay of evil and snagged him for a reasonable price and was not disappointed in the least. In many ways his manner of dress is reminiscent of pictures I have seen of German General Rommel, which is kind of how I have always viewed Destro as a character.  

Destro has two holsters both with guns which is always nice to have places for the guns when they are not in use. But in addition the briefcase has a computer inside and a place for another gun, BRILLIANT! OK not anything we haven’t seen before but still nice. The accessory I honestly don’t understand is the cybernetic arm. I suppose it could be some sort of call back to Action Force, the European version of GI Joe. Back in the day, the European version of Destro had been renamed Jackal and was supposedly a cyborg. Then again that might be a stretch.  

So even if the rest of the pack doesn’t appeal to you (like me) there are plenty of these guys floating around at a reasonable price. It’s too great a figure to pass up.  

As I said with Duke, his weakness is he is a call back to a boring mold that just didn’t work. A direct contrast to that is the new Snake Eyes, this figure has tons of qualities that hark back to his many versions but in this case it works, it works very well. Let’s start off with the heads, Since the version 2 of Snake Eyes came with a visor instead of goggles there has been this kind of quiet debate on which one Snake Eyes should wear. This seems trivial at first but there is some validity to both sides. Some have the viewpoint that the goggles are a sign of Snake Eyes being a commando while the visor leans more to his ninja background. I think this has to do with the two different looks of his version 1 figure (commando) and his version 2 figure (more ninja influence). Personally I have never prescribed to this notion and debating it for this figure is a moot point because he has both. This makes him versatile for the owner because they can give him whatever look suits their personality. I really like this approach since I honestly like both looks depending on my mood and honestly I hate changing figures all the time because of it. Different figures have different merits and flaws and often different looks do not have merits that again fit the mood I am in. Again with this figure there are options but the head swap isn’t the only options available.  

The knife on the shoulder is removable, thankfully as I didn’t like it there at all. Also the signature Uzi has a silencer that can be added or removed. Another silencer fits one of his pistols, again options. Another great option is the scabbards of his swords. One of my big gripes of City Strike Snake Eyes from last year was the fact that his sword was in an awkward position on his lower back. Some argued this was great placement. Now the sword can be put there (with an optional additional one that can go on the back), or it can be removed without making its absence too noticeable. You can place the sword on the back and leave it like that if you like. That is what makes this figure great, options.  

He also has an explosive pack which is reminiscent of his version one figure, again harking back to an earlier version but without being boring. Also harking back to an older version is the commando sword reminiscent of his version two. All of this makes this version of Snake Eyes whatever the owner wants the figure to become. Very few characters lend themselves to these types of options with just a few accessories and a head swap, but that has been a staple of Snake Eyes character for many years. Each time a new version comes out there is constant debate over the figure not including something “signature” that was with a previous version, sometimes it’s a sword, the visor, the goggles, or a ton of other options. Although no figure could cover everything this one comes the closest and I honestly cannot think of a way to give him another option to switch about to satisfy that desire.  

My one minor gripe is the straps between the legs. It’s hard to say what could be done differently there and I am sure there is an easy adjustment I can make that I haven’t had time to figure out yet (as of this writing I have had this figure all of 12 hours).  

Admittedly I am often very hard on GI Joe figures, possibly because I had such a concentration on them from the 80’s up until the mid part of the 00’s and as such I often see a great deal or repetitiveness. This time I assure everyone THIS SNAKE EYES IS THE ONE TO GET!!!!!! Every year there seems to be a figure of Snake Eyes people say that about and generally I am all over something about it that I feel is subpar , much as I felt about City Strike Snake Eyes last year whom I felt brought nothing new to the character. I admit this version brings nothing very new to the table, and that is the point, it combines elements from everywhere and tosses them together. This idea could have easily failed but in this case it pulled together some of the best qualities of the past and put them into one figure. It works on just about every level I can think of.  

GET HIM!!! Highest possible recommendation for any GI Joe fan.  

My hope is there is a Storm Shadow with similar attributes to this Snake Eyes in the future (and no that Power Ranger version I refuse to buy isn’t even close).