Classified – European Joe's

The Eel has stranded

From what I’ve been reading and hearing it’s been quite difficult for some of the US collectors to find the Classified Series Cobra Eel. I was able to order one from Amazon(.com) when they popped up and it finally arrived here.

Whilst it was just recently announced that the EU Hasbro Pulse store will be shipping to Belgium (just in time to back the Dragonfly), this figure was not yet available and so I had to check the .com site of Amazon when they were announced. I was lucky enough to be able to order one and for around $45, it was delivered in a very clean box. It would seem that Amazon takes better care of their international shipped products than they do for domestically ones if I look at some of the horror packages some of the US collectors received.

The figure itself is a nice callback to the original O-ring figure with it’s red, grey and black colors.

As has been the case with so many of the Classified Series figures, the box art is on point yet again. We get a close up of a very mean looking Eel. I must say that I’m still in doubt about the new plastic free packaging. On the one hand, it’s a shame you don’t get to see the figure and the accessories when you look at the box, on the other hand, the box art does look great and really gets all the attention. I also like the smaller footprint of the boxes.

That’s all for now, keep following me on the socials and here because more is coming (sooner than later it would seem).

Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

Guess what made my Pulse go racing?

Yes, SDCC is going on far, far away across the ocean and very likely some really cool stuff is being shown there, but I’m not there. No, I’m here in Europe and we were being treated a bit poorly by Hasbro when it came to G.I. Joe over the last years. I said ‘were’, because just last week, they decided to open up the EU Hasbro Pulse to all 27 countries.

BREAKING NEWS… and breaking my wallet in the future.

This means that I no longer need to use a German proxy service to get my plastic crack. I can just place an order and get it delivered to my home address for a reasonable price straight from Hasbro.

Now, for some really weird reason, I got a refund from Hasbro on the Arctic B.A.T., claiming they had no stock, but the figure itself was still available on the site to order. So, I went ahead and placed my first order to deliver directly to my home.

It actually got delivered in 2 days, so no complaints here. The packaging was decent, not to much padding, but these all-cardboard boxes need less protection I guess.

The figure comes with quite a good set of accessories. I personally really like the blade to cut the ice and the interchangeable chest plates. The gun isn’t necessary if you ask me, but that rifle sure is very nice. Talking about nice (yes, I’m a big child), check out the number on this bad boy…

Naturally we need to discuss the artwork on the box. It’s looking very nice as usual. The B.A.T. is looking very menacing with his central viewing lens (I can’t really call it an eye, can I?). The gun does match the one he has in the box, but I’m still not convinced this is the best weapon for an android trooper.

That’s it for now. There are still some orders I placed with EU Pulse when they didn’t ship to Belgium and whilst they are not yet sent, I can’t change the shipping address on those orders, so I guess I’m still going to have to cover the additional costs to ship them here. Keep an eye on on the socials and this site, because for some reason, it would appear that a lot of those pre-order figures have been prepped for shipment all at once. See you soon.

Until then, Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

Why you too should join the Culture Club.

Karma, karma, karma, karma, karma Kamakura
You come and go, you come and go
Loving would be easy if your colors were like my dreams
Red, gold, and green, red, gold, and green

Mostly green though. And some silver. This package just arrived today straight from that big river store in the US of A. It’s also my first figure that comes in the new all cardboard packaging.

I get the switch from the windowed boxes to these full cardboard ones, it’s less plastic and less cardboard and will probably be more cost effective as well as better for the environment. If it’s better for us as collectors? The jury’s still not out on that. I personally like it. The art has always been great on these Classified figures and this way the focus can be more on the art. What I don’t like is the fact that the size is different from the other Classified figures (I guess I could just open them all up to counter that). The small picture of the figure on the front bothers me. They have all this space to let the art pop from the page, it feels wrong to me to put a picture of the actual photo on the front, they can (and do) that on the back. I’m guessing it’s some legal obligation. All I can say is that it ruins the art. I know, with the window boxes you could also see the figure, and you’re right in pointing that out, but still, that is completely different. They should have fully embraced the new packaging and went for an full-on art attack with these boxes.

On the back of the box, we get a complete view of the figure, complete with a ruler to show the actual size of the figure. I genuinely think this is a good way to show off everything that’s included in the package. Keep it like this, don’t put a small picture on the front and take attention away from the art. Especially since the same image (but larger) is re-used on the back again.

On the back, they also reprinted the photo from the front, this time instead of the bust, the complete figure in an action pose. As I said before, this should be enough, I don’t need to see it on the front.

As a side-note, when will we be getting an official checklist for these figures, comparable to the little pictures we used to get on the back of the cards of the 3&3/4 figures? I know this is also probably not done in a way to keep the production costs as low as possible, but still. How cool would it be to have a small poster inside these boxes with an overview of the classified pictures on one side and then an action shot on the other side? Maybe we’ve been to spoiled with the European catalogs we got in the 80’s and 90’s, but still, I’d really would love to see that make a comeback.

That’s all for now. More new Classifieds coming soon I hope. Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

I’ve got a license to kill

Not exactly a real license, but it does involve a Double O. I honestly gave up hope of ever getting my hands on this figure. I really had to pinch myself this morning when I unboxed the package the mailman just delivered. First impressions? Surprised at the size of the box. Second impressions? Blown away by the beauty of the art and the design of the box. To say that this is a masterpiece, is not doing it any justice. This is one piece of G.I. Joe history that will go down in the books as a Grail item.

Get ready for the most amazing boxset of the entire G.I. Joe Classified line, and it was the first! Let me present to you figure “00” Snake-Eyes (Deluxe).

Inside the beautiful cardboard sleeve is a much sturdier box with the same artwork. This time though, it’s embossed and glossy. In bright red Japanese it says Snake Eyes (according to Google translate – I can’t read Japanese). The picture doesn’t do it any justice, I need to work on my lighting.

Inside the box, you’re greeted by yet again this stunning artwork (they are immensely proud of it and rightly so!). This time around it’s a drawing in charcoal. And the simplicity of this black on the brownish paper just brings out the beauty even more.

Underneath the drawing, the actual figure and accessories are located. Set firmly in some foam to protect everything nicely and securely. To be honest, I’m a bit reluctant to take stuff out of the foam. This is really going to be one of the centerpieces of my collection.

The figure itself is a work or art too. Highly detailed, a sword with sheath, a backpack, an uzi, silencer, gun, knife, extra hand, grenades on his web gear. Remember, this is the first figure of the line. Talk about setting the bar high. I’ve always made a point of addressing just how good the artwork is on the boxes of the Classified figures. This one is no exception. Just look at the details on the image. The figure, the hand on the sword, Timber… It’s truly Art with capital A.

The art on the back of the first wave of figures has always been the same image, this time they also printed it in the same metallic silvery grey of the Snake Eyes artwork. It looks superb!

As I’m writing this, it’s Friday (TGIF!). I know what I’ll be doing for the rest of the weekend (and probably even longer). That is to just look at this piece of art and feel all warm inside.

Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

This ain’t no Game of Thrones.

Gold!
Always believe in your soul
You’ve got the power to know
You’re indestructible

That last part still leaves to be seen (I’m NOT going to try it), but we all know that knowing is half the battle and you are GOLDEN! I’m back with a new post and this time it’s about something custom. My brother-in-law has a 3D printer – I’m holding off on getting one until I can get the garage set up as a true workshop – and he has printed me this as a New Year’s gift. Yay for me!

A golden Cobra throne! This will look beautiful with the Regal Cobra Commander (once I get that one shipped from the US) or with the Snake Supreme Cobra Commander or of course with the Serpentor figure they still have to announce and release. For now, a Cobra Infantry soldier is enjoying it.

And we’ll have fun, fun, fun, fun, fun when old CoCo’s away…

That’s it for now. Until next time. Happy Collecting and YoJoe!