Today the mailman came to my door again with a lovely package from Hasbro. This time around I received the Cobra H.I.S.S. Techno Viper with the H.M.S.
The box
The Techno-Viper comes in the H.I.S.S. tank color scheme and has several accessories, like a backpack, handgun, rifle and a remote control for the HM of the HMS. The HMS has 3 big missiles, legs that can be raised so it can be towed by the H.I.S.S. and a wheel on the back so it can be turned more easily.
The back of the box
Everywhere on the box, the new Cobra H.I.S.S. logo is featured prominently. I have to say that I do like it. It’s simple, but elegant and reflects the H.I.S.S. tank in the shape of the Cobra depicted. The art on the side of the box shows the Techno-Viper close-up and is – as with all the art of the Classified Series really – stunningly beautiful. Let’s hope somebody will be collecting these masterpieces into a little book someday – here’s looking at you 3DJoes :-)!
The side art and 111 number
Also on the box is the Semper Fidelis Serpent emblem. This one is not really printed on, it’s more of an embossed print, it pops up from the cardboard. Not sure if you can see it in the picture, but if you have felt it yourself, you know what I’m talking about.
Semper Fidelis Serpens
That’s all for now. See you back soon with new updates on the collection. Until then… Happy Collecting and YoJoe! (Or Hail Cobra! Or Semper Fidelis Serpens!)
I’m a backpack loaded up with things and knickknacks too. Anything that you might need, I got inside for you.
A while back, I saw a post on Facebook by The Full Force Podcast that they discovered a G.I. Joe themed backpack on Fun.com. Since I try to get all sorts of knickknacks for my collection, I went ahead and tried to order one. Unfortunately, they don’t ship to Belgium, so I had to get creative.
Straight from the U.S of A.
I remembered I once created an account with myUS, a mailing service in the US and UK that will ship packages to you from suppliers that don’t ship to your country. I never actually tried it out, so this seemed like a good time to try it out. I purchased the backpack on the fun.com website and entered the address of the forwarding provider. It shipped quite fast to them and I got an email that an inbound package was expected. They immediately charged me for the shipping costs and the import taxes and duties. This was a bit higher than I expected, but considering they all did this for me, it was acceptable. Just under 3 weeks later, the package arrived at my doorstep.
Now that’s a backpack!
They actually put a bland brown cardboard box around it to ship it to Belgium, but that’s not so interesting to show. The backpack itself is colorful and camo, although the print quality isn’t as sharp as I would have hoped. Maybe I had too high expectations. See for yourself.
Fuzzy Destro
Another choice I wouldn’t have made are the gold colored zippers. They look a bit out of place with the camouflage print and the colors of the figures.
Zip-a -di-doo-da
On the front of the backpack is an extra pouch with another gold colored zipper and a big rubbery G.I. Joe logo. Unfortunately, there is spot of red paint on the blue line of the logo with my backpack. Quality control should have picked this up because it does stand out. Maybe I’m nitpicking, but you really do notice it when you look at the bag.
YoJoe!
Red, white and blue and another spot of red.
On the inside, there is no padding or extra sleeve to put your laptop in, so I wouldn’t recommend it if you want to be sure your laptop doesn’t get damaged. There is a separate pouch on the inside that can be closed with a zipper, big enough for your wallet or cellphone. Another G.I. Joe logo is found here as well, but it’s just on a label that is stitched on quite loosely, just 2 strips on the short edges. I feel that this may become loose sooner rather than later.
Inside pouch and tag.
All things considered, I’m glad this is a part of my collection and I probably will be using it when I go to a convention in the future. If anything, I’ll be flying the G.I. Joe colors.
That’s all for now. See you back soon, until then, Happy Collecting and YoJoe!
First of all, let me wish you and your friends & family my best wishes for the new year. Let’s hope it brings us more G.I. Joe (I’d really like to see a new cartoon) and more collecting fun.
It’s been a while since I posted something, but I’ve been having some health issues, nothing major, but lots of annoying little things that kept me from being creative to be honest. 2023 has been a good year for the site, we’ve been getting more visitors and interaction than the years before, so the growth is real 🙂 Thank you all for your time and interest. The G.I. Joe community truly is a warm and inclusive group of people.
I was originally going to continue this post with some pictures of the Classified Dr. Mindbender (Deluxe figure) I received a while back, but then I realized that I’d put all my figures in storage already, so there will be no pictures 🙁 It wasn’t just everyone’s favorite orthodontist I received and put in storage, but also Serpentor, Wolf Spider, Scrap-Iron, Snow Serpent, Grunt, the Python Patrol Trubble Bubble, Tripwire, Mole Rat and the Steel Corps Troopers. More on this below.
Frequent readers will know that my entire collection is in storage since we moved house in 2018. The plan was to make 2 rooms in the attic, one for my daughter and one for my collection. We had to give priority to other things in the renovation of the house and my health issues played a big part in the lack of progress for the attic. This year however, I’m determined to continue the work on the attic and to be able to put my collection back in our house and back on the shelves rather than being boxed up in storage.
Keep on coming back to get updates and naturally, I’ll be posting some more of the new toys that eventually make their way over into my collection. Some big ones should be coming soon, and there’s also a small book on the way with some artwork… Keep you posted!
As a visitor of this blog, I’m pretty sure that you have heard of The MacGuffin Device. And I truly hope you’re familiar with the rapplicable skills of The Wordburglar. This post is all about his new vinyl record, aptly called The MacGuffin Device. Stay tuned, because there is a Joe connection.
Amazing art by Brian Sauer.
Both sides of the vinyl are packed with excellent beats and lyrics, check out the tracks below. And yes, kids, we had to turn over the LP when we wanted to listen to the full album.
Lyrilogical SideRhymelistical Side
Have you found the Joe link yet? (Spoiler at the bottom of this post). In any case, head over to bandcamp and check out Wordburglar’s full discography. Tell them I sent you and support him by getting some gear and sweet tracks.
Along with the full album vinyl record, as a backer from the get-go, I also received an exclusive mix-cd (yes, a genuinely hand-burned compact disc from the Wordburglair), with even more smooth beats, mixes and lyrilogical and rapplicable greatness.
It’s a Mix-tape on a CD! CD’s are back y’all!
That’s it for now. Go check out bandcamp for Wordburglar’s music if you haven’t already and see you back soon!
Well 2013 didn’t bring any new Joes to my collection, sadly.
On an even sadder note, it seems that Hasbro is not responding to my question whether the new Retaliation toys will be released in Belgium when the movie is screened.
But things may be looking up, since we’re planning a trip to London next week and I’m quite positive I can find some there. If anyone can give me some tips or pointers, just leave a reply.
Also check out the TCG section on the site. Helping me complete my collection of TCG’s will be much appreciated 🙂
Remains to wish you all a very happy, healthy and G.I.Joe-filled 2013!
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