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I would like new characters in the mix. Think about it, ARAH introduced new characters all the time. Each year we got something new...
I like remakes but an entire squad of new members would rock!

It's funny you bring this up, because I've had discussions with Hasbro employees before where they've told me that working on the 25th line held the brand back, and I totally agreed, but then they keep making updates of the same characters in PoC.

I can say with 100% certainty part of what made G.I. Joe so appealing to me in the first place (as a kid) was the variety of characters, their assorted specialties and backstories, accessories and costumes, etc. etc. Nowadays, regardless of however incredible the sculpting or packaging art or paint jobs or accessories, or whatever may be, it still doesn't change the fact that they are all, for the most part, in some way just an update of something we've already had in another form for nearly 30 years.

At times it seems like Hasbro is scared to venture in to new territory, and that is really funny to me how it feels like they've almost become complacent given that they are the company that basically revolutionized the modern action figure, and G.I. Joe is one of the primary lines responsible for that. The bread and butter of G.I. Joe all throughout the '80s and early '90s was it's solid foundation of NEW and creative concepts, something which I think it sorely lacking in today's Joe.

Looking at recent waves, some of the "new" characters they've snuck in like Shock Trooper or Nano Viper are amongst the most popular with fans, and those are just troop characters. Imagine the possibilities of real new characters that had distinct names and personalities.

In my estimation, if ever there was a time to be adventurous with Joe it is now. Renegades is about to end, and the movie had yet to come out, and it's fair to say sales at retail are not going as well as hoped for, so what do they have to lose? The line is currently not tied to any form of media and is free to venture in to new territory, some of which I think could really be something interesting, and even though I thought it was a cool figure I'm not talking about something like the Cobra Zombie.

I think Hasbro need not look any farther than their own strategy from the ARAH days...you have a team of characters, each with a specific role, ex:Doc=medic. When that character gets dated, you fill that void with Lifeline, when that gets tired you fill it with Stretcher, and so on...

They don't need to reinvent the wheel here, simply rest characters that are over exposed and create new ones to fill their specialty, while at the same time giving Joe fans a little variety. I suspect doing this would likely bring about the most successful wave of figures Joe has experienced in a very long time, but hey what do I know I've only been buying them for the last 21 years ;-p

New characters would make sense. GI Joe is such a niche item now (my apologies to those of you who think the toy world may still revolve around this license) that a line of 6 original characters could do nothing but theoretically help sales for the following reasons:

a) One of the reasons for so called "peg warmers" are that there are collectors who just don't want/need upteen versions of certain characters they already have. And believe it or not, kids and parents look at it that way too. Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow can be some of the most visually and historically significant characters to a line, but at some point they reach a saturation. Even with little Timmy who's dad is maybe buying him a GI Joe figure. "Well Timmy, there's a new Snake Eyes, a new Duke, and a new Storm Shadow. That's all I see on the pegs" "I have all them Dad, let's get something else." More characters will equal more units sold. Just seems to be common sense.

b) GI Joe isn't a line like Batman/Spider-Man/Iron Man. Sure there's a core concept, but it's not one character. GI Joe's appeal in its heyday was due to the variety of characters and vehicles/playsets released over the years. We wanted them all. Each were unique or different in some way. When we were given a new version of a character it made sense and it happened years apart. Snake Eyes 82, 85, 88 etc. Storm Shadow 84, 88. I could go on. We didn't get 3 or 4 versions of the same characters a year.

c) There's no current licensed product for GI Joe that is affecting toy sales positively or negatively. The cartoon has nothing to do with the toy line and is going away anyway. Crossover between the toys and the comics is virtually nil. Introducing new characters now is the perfect time. Collectors want variety. Kids want variety. Parents don't want to buy the same thing over and over again. If Hasbro came out with a character called "Goggles" (just for shits and giggles, no offense intended Gary) and it was a cool looking figure then collectors and kids would buy it. I don't think anyone would be saying "he's never been in a comic" "i've never seen him on a cartoon" .

Hasbro should look back to when they were most successful with this property and invest that knowledge in the line's future.

Done with first rant on this board. Knew you all would be sorry

I concur a thousand-fold.

OKAY NEW IF HASBRO: but by all means feel free to still comment on the first IF HASBRO hypothetical and by all means add your own!!!



IF HASBRO:


Released an unannounced figure into a wave. Say one every year. Something that would never be revealed at a convention or even at Toy Fair.
Not as a chase figure... so not in limited quantities (well, maybe... first things first though). But a figure that no one knew was coming. I don't know how they'd pull it off between on-line retailers and China leakage and brick-y-motar computers... but let's just say they did.


Would some sort of mystery figure maybe elevate the excitement/anticipation of new releases?

If Hasbro #1 - I would love nothing more than to see Hasbro continue to reinvent the brand and really capitalize on new characters. As someone who has been around the block for the past 30 years, I've had my fill of Duke, Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Cobra Commander, etc...

But if I've learned nothing over the past three decades (and the past 4 years specifically) I'm in the minority. There are a huge number of collectors out there who, for some rhyme or reason, are much happier with regurgitated versions of the vintage figures/characters ad nauseum. I mean, I know at this point all of the collectors are sick to death of Duke, Snake Eyes, etc... but a ton of people would much rather get Tiger Force, Night Force, or further rehashes rather than totally new characters.

While I absolutely loved Barrel Roll, Blackout, Scalpel, and the Cobra CLAWS in the new sculpt era, I think many fans and collectors would rebel if that happened these days and would instead gripe about not having Footloose, Cover Girl, or Captain Grid-Iron for crying out loud.

From my own perspective, and from the interest of the next generation, new characters and themes are a must. But I fear to continue garnering collector support, Hasbro must continue to cater to those vintage purists who won't rest until favorite character XYZ is done in the new format.

If Hasbro #2 - I simply don't think this would be possible. I would love it if Hasbro could make it work, but you get those crazed pre-prod hunters who just have to go and spoil everything...

In all seriousness, if it was logistically possible, I'd love it. I'm not sure it is these days.

Yeah I don't get the whole "why did Hasbro make a new figure when they could have just made an old one." I think the fact they gave us Matt Trakker
said "hey look we wanna do something cool for all of you." Instead they get all this shit and I simply don't get it.

HAHAHAH and as for those crazed pre-prod hunters... I myself am NOT a leaker. I've only leaked one item (the POC VAMP) and that was by accident.
I didn't know what the hell it was. Everything else I've ever shown had either been seen before or had been lodged in mystery or rumor from an older line. I mean I guess that's like regressive leaking or something (that sounds like adult potty training to be honest).

Heh! Yeah, I was just giving you crap, Goggles, I know you're great about the whole leaking thing. I guess my point is if you can get access to it, and it's out there, generally someone somewhere will leak it.

And I'm right there with you on the Matt Trakker thing. I'd heard about him several months before the figure was revealed, but kept my mouth shut, just being excited for Joefans to find out and totally geek over it. Instead they found out and got all butthurt.

That was one of the more disappointing things to me about the Anniversary line, and kind of soured me on a lot of the thought processes behind modern era collectors. The fact that they would be so adamant against an awesome MASK-related Easter Egg, and would just bitch about their personal favorite figure not being released because Trakker "took up a slot" was immeasurably frustrating to me.

I'm also surprised people didn't get more excited about the backpack, not that we ever saw an Annhilator out of it, but that's beside the point.

As for the new "what if"

I'm very torn on the idea. I kinda like it (it's how I've collected Star Wars in the past) but if it's just one figure how do you know what you're looking for? I know, it's the figure you've never seen before but I guess my worry would be that even in good quantities, that will be the scalper bait for the first few store stockings meaning you'll never see it till someone posts pics. Also I'm not too sure I'd like it for just one figure. What if the figure turns out to be kinda boring, now your unrealistically built up expectations are dashed (I realise this can go the other way too and the figure could be the coolest thing you've ever seen)