We Had That

  GI Joe Outback action figure (Hasbro, 1987) When GI Joe was re-born as a 3 3/4" action figure under the "Real American Hero" banner in 1982, I was immediately on board!  Each year, a new wave of figures and vehicles was released. For the first several years, I was a huge fan who wanted everything that Hasbro offered!  But as the years went on, Hasbro began to stray from the original concept.  The GI Joe team had originally been made up of the military elite, but with each subsequent wave, more and more figures were showing up who didn't feel very "military" to me.  I didn't mind the crazy Cobra outfits as much since they were a terrorist organization, but I thought guys involved with the US Military should look a certain way. Outback on patrol with all his gear! To me, it felt like 1987 was the crossover year for the GI Joe team.  About half of the guys looked great.  Falcon, in particular, was one of the most military-looking Joes of the entire run....

  G.I. Joe's enemy: Cobra Communications Specialist "Tele-Viper" (Hasbro, 1985) When Hasbro first introduced G.I. Joe as a 3 3/4" "Real American Hero" in 1982, I fit their target audience 100%. I wanted all of the toys, I read the comic books, I watched cartoons and got excited when there was a commercial for GI Joe.  By 1985, I had a nice collection of Joes and Cobras who shot, punched, kicked, stabbed, and blew each other up pretty much daily.  When I saw my first wave-four figure in the toy store (It was Footloose, by the way), I looked at the back of his card and saw so many cool characters that I couldn't wait to find them!  Some of the most exciting were: The Dreadnoks, Snow Serpents, Crimson Guard, a new Snake Eyes figure with a sword and a wolf!?  The Tele-vipers, honestly, had some pretty serious competition for my very-few dollars.  The stars never aligned and I never brought home a Cobra Communications figure. Cobra Tele-Viper in the field Al...

  G.I. Joe S.W.A.T. Specialist: Shockwave (Hasbro, 1988) I loved the 3 3/4" GI Joe figures from the moment that I first saw them!  I thought the comic books were amazing!  As a kid, I enjoyed acting out adventures with these awesome action figures for many years.  My favorite figures on the Joe team were typically the ones that looked more realistic...at least what I thought was realistic at the time.  By the time wave 7 came out in 1988, I had already begun to expect there to be too many silly looking members of the Joe team and in general, that was the case with this wave.  However, there were still a few cool figures like Repeater and Hit & Run who looked like they could actually be in the military. Repeater and Hit & Run compared to Shockwave GI Joe's resident S.W.A.T. Specialist, Shockwave, was a little different than the others to me.  I thought of the GI Joe Team as an elite military group - brought together to deal with the mo...

Helicopter Assault Trooper: Airborne (Hasbro, 1983) G.I. Joe began his life as America's Movable Fighting Man in 1964 in the form of a one-sixth scale, fully articulated action figure.  After more than a decade on the shelves of toy stores across the country, Joe retired in the mid-70s.  With the popularity of Star Wars figures, G.I. Joe returned in 1982 as a 3 3/4" Real American Hero and that's where my adventures with G.I. Joe began... Airborne: Deep Behind Enemy Lines Right from the start, I thought these little guys were awesome and when the 2nd wave of figures hit the scene in 1983, I was excited to expand my team of Joes.  One of my absolute favorites from the second wave was a Helicopter Assault Trooper - Code Name: Airborne!  According to the file card on the back of his package, Franklin E. Talltree was a Navajo from a Arizona.  His family had made their fortune in the oil industry and as a kid, his parents let him take Sky-Diving lessons.  Origina...

1986 G.I. Joe "Iceberg" action figure (Hasbro, 1986) After having more than 10 years of huge success with the original 12" G.I. Joe action figures that came out in 1964, Hasbro took a break from the line for a few years.  During the late 1970s, the popularity of Kenner's Star Wars figures made 3 3/4" the new standard size for action figures.  In 1982, Hasbro came back with the "Real American Hero" re-launch of G.I. Joe and it was a huge hit! Iceberg keeps watch in the snow for G.I. Joe  In 1982, I was the perfect age for G.I. Joe and I was instantly sold on these new 3 3/4" action figures.  I still remember how excited I was when I first saw them in the stores and the agony of trying to pick just two of these awesome characters.  The first several waves of figures were amazing!  Sure, not every idea could be a great one, but for the most part, the first four waves specifically were pretty solid.  By 1986, when the fifth wave arrived, there...

Falcon controls the Machine Gun PAC RAT When G.I. Joe re-launched in the 3 3/4" scale in 1982, I thought they were the most amazing toys that I had ever seen!  The second wave added to the fun with more action figures, more vehicles, and more accessories!  Three of the smaller sets released in wave two were mobile weapons called "PAC RATs" (or Programmed Assault Computer Rapid All Terrain).  There was a Missile Launcher, a Flame Thrower, and a Machine Gun.  Your Joes could control these mobile weapons with tiny, hand-held remote controls.  For about the price of a new GI Joe figure, you could pick up one of these weapons and give your Joes some serious firepower! A single PAC RAT Machine Gun could take out a platoon of Cobra Troops! In 1982 and 1983, I wanted any toy I could get for the GI Joe line and the low price allowed me to add all three of the PAC RATs to my collection!  There were so many awesome GI Joe figures and vehicles at the time that I have t...

Vintage G.I. Joe "Swivel-Arm" Scarlett (Hasbro, 1983) In 1964, GI Joe became the first doll for boys...I mean "Action Figure."  Hasbro was extremely careful to make sure that GI Joe was never called a "doll" because in the 1960s, the idea of boys playing with dolls was 100% not ok.  The plan worked and throughout the 60s and 70s, GI Joe was a huge seller.  However, Hasbro did make a few missteps along the way.  One of the biggest was the Action Nurse released in 1967.  Apparently, it was ok for boys to play with male dolls if they were called "Action Figures," but no matter what you call it, a female "Action Figure" was still a doll in 1967.  Hasbro learned from their mistake and never released another female character for the GI Joe line for the rest of the 60s and 70s. "Swivel-Arm" Scarlett with her Crossbow With the relaunch of GI Joe in the 80s, Hasbro reluctantly included a female figure in the line and the character of S...