Toy Review: Firefly vs. GI Joe Troopers

Firefly vs. GI Joe Troopers

After getting the Hall of Heroes Firefly, I got that urge that I get when I find a character or line that is just so immutably cool. I simply had to get other toys that depicted the Cobra Sabotuer, with his masked face, mean eyes, compact guns, and explosive equipment. I’m sure many of you can relate and I think this kind of urge to splurge on what is essentially the same toy is borderline obsessive-compulsive behavior. I’m sure in some other quantum universe, I’ve been arrested for stalking Angel Locsin, or running naked through the streets covered in lime green Jello singing “Eye of the Tiger”. In this reality, thankfully, most of my energy is focused on the toys.

There aren’t as many versions of the character as there are of Snake Eyes (which is fortunate for my wallet), though he is one tough bastard to find. Remember the old Sigma 6 line? The Cobra Firefly figure was the most sought after toy in that line, and is now fetching upwards of 3500.00 Php online easy. Of the 25th Anniversary versions, I’ve only seen the Wave 3 figure a few times in Toys “R” Us in Galleria, the Wave 13 blue version once during a toy launch and I NEVER seen the Wave 4 Comic 2-pack with Storm Shadow. The version I’m reviewing today comes in an exclusive boxset that dissappeared pretty fast from shelves once everyone was finished with Rise of Cobra mania.

The Toys “R” Us exclusive G.I. Joe Troop Builder boxset, Firefly vs G.I. Joe Troopers,is pretty good value for your money. Usually these exclusives cost a pretty penny, considering the lengths distributors go to bring them into the country. Luckily, it looks like Toys “R” Us doesn’t have any mark up when it comes to importing things for their own store. This one cost me 1,500.00 Php so roughly 300.00 Php per figure. That is about 50.00 Php cheaper than the retail price for a single 25th Anniversary figure.

You’ll also see that Hasbro tried something a little different with the pacakging this time, a precursor to what they did with the Rescue Mission boxset in the ROC line. Firefly and the Joes are all posed in a freeze frame of the action. Granted the poses are kind of goofy, but it’s definitely a nice touch, especially for Mint in Box collectors.

On top of that, this set is meant especially for the guys who wan to build a true army of G.I Joes to face of against their armies of Vipers or Crimson Guard Commandos. You can’t really pick any of the existing Joes to act as the extras in your little skits, since so many of them are so individual. There are no uniforms apparently in Joeverse. Yes you could swap heads to make a new character, but let’s face it, there’s nothing that says “army” more than guys in identical green shirts.

I guess Joe’s Green Shirts are a take on Star Trek’s “Red Shirts”, who often act as cannon fodder, getting shot in the first reel to demonstrate the power of the big bad. Since both Cobra and Joe troopers alike are graduates of the infamous Vogon Sniper Academy, that kind of invalidates their existence. These guys couldn’t hit a brick wall if they were standing with their noses pressed against it.

To tell the truth, I bought this set for Firefly more than the troopers. Their design is pretty basic, a green shirt with sleeves rolled up,camo fatigues and boots. There is a knife sheath sculpted into their right leg. There are 4 different head sculpts. I’m sure they all belong to previous toys, but since my collection isn’t too big, I couldn’t tell you which. One is a redhead, one blond, one with black hair, and one with brown. The blond’s head is noticebly bigger, though Hasbro’s planned ahead and provided a helmet that will fit his planet sized noggin.

There’s a whole bunch of other accessories for each green shirt. All of them have the same thing; rifle, helmet, knife, pistol, and web gear harness. The harness and pistol are by far the best of the toys they get. It fits all of them perfectly, and if you have any other figures that don’t have sculpted belts, they go well with them as well. I’ve taken one and put it on one of the plainer looking Snake Eyes figures and it looks great. Too bad it doesn’t look as nice on the Rescue Mission Duke. That figure is really hopeless.

Articulation is another reason I’m not so thrilled by the Troopers. Their elbows are barely functional, which means that it’s hard going trying to make them look natural holding the standard issue rifle in two hands. There is a wrist cut, but it is one of the ugliest I’ve ever seen. The arms are cast in green plastic and then painted in skin tones. This means taht you can see the swivel quite plainly, even if the figure is standing relaxed. They fore arms also tend to fall off. The rest of them is pretty standard, though.

The Firefly figure on the other hand, is just as expected. I’m pretty sure he’s identical to the Wave 3 version of the figure, though his paint might be a tinge bluer than the original. he’s got the same cross harness across his chest, same sculpted details on his pants, same sweater and balaclava. They gear is all the same as well. SMG with folding stock, transmitter/cellphone, backpack. Not as much as the Hall of Heroes version,has, but enough to make him look great.

All things considered, I still think this is a great buy if you’re a collector, and at 300 Php per figure, you can’t really complain to hard. In my particular case though, I’d probably pass on it if given the chance again. The Joe Troopers seem half hearted efforts on the part of Hasbro. I’ll probably keep their gear and just sell off the figures to one of our army builder or customizer friends.