Guardians of the Galaxy Showings Start TONIGHT!

Posted on July 31, 2014 by Fred Meyer

One of the advantages of owning your own website is you can talk about whatever you want. So, in taking a break from G.I. Joe for a moment, I’m here to talk about the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Early screenings for the film start tonight and this particular admin cannot wait! Seriously, 7:00pm CST is so incredibly far away right now!

For those of you who have been living in a cave and haven’t heard of the Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s the latest installment in the insanely awesome Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, instead of focusing on Earth where the action has been dominated by the Avengers, director James Gunn is taking the audience out into space and is following the actions of Star Lord, a human from earth who has no idea what his place in the universe is. However, with the help of a talking gun-toting raccoon, a brawling tree with a heart of gold, a maniac bent on revenge, and the deadliest assassin in the galaxy, he’s about to confront his destiny head-on, all while jamming out to some 1970’s AM rock-n-roll. C’mon, what’s NOT to love? It’s like Farscape with the budget of Star Wars!

The film’s based on the incarnation of the team that formed up in 2008 and promises to be one heck of a ride. In fact, over at RottenTomatoes.com, the film’s rating (at the time I’m writing this) is holding steady at 91% fresh. (6 “rotten” reviews out of a total of 67 posted thus far.)

So, if you’re tired of reading about the current state of G.I. Joe and want to “get away from it all”, check out the Guardians of the Galaxy this weekend. I know I will. (Possibly multiple times!)

You’re welcome…

In Hand Images of the SDCC Danger at the Docks Set!

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Fred Meyer

The SDCC Danger at the Docks sets have shipped from ToysRUs.com and JBL admin Madmac41 received his set yesterday.

I have to say that I hate him for it! Oh jealousy, you are truly a green-eyed monster.

After a quick phone conversation, I was able to get a few thoughts on the set:

Flint is built using the Resolute head and the Retaliation 3-pack torso.
The plastic on the vehicles, like much of the 50th product, is softer. Apparently he’s had some issues with the rear axle.
The Night Landing weapons crate appears to contain an updated version of Road Pig’s wrist crossbow.
Overall, he’s pretty happy with the set and would like to see a Cobra Stinger re-release soon!

Check out the images of the SDCC Danger at the Docks set below. These were posted to the JBL Facebook page earlier this afternoon. My set is scheduled to arrive tomorrow so I have the feeling tomorrow night will be spent putting together a review as fast as my greedy little fingers can type!

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Toys R Us Danger at the Docks Available NOW!

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Fred Meyer

UPDATE: As of 10:30am CST on 7/24 these are now SOLD OUT.

Just a quick update– the SDCC exclusive Danger at the Docks set is up at ToysRUs.com right now! Limit one per person!

Go get ’em! A ’85 color scheme Flint and a VAMP Mk II await! (Oh, and that Night Landing isn’t too shabby either!)

SDCC Exclusive G.I. Joe Danger at the Docks set

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SDCC 2014: Gentle Giant G.I. Joe Debuts in December

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Fred Meyer

Gentle Giant Ltd, a company known for their realistic scanning technology and upscaling of classic vintage figures, surprised G.I. Joe fans everywhere with a new line of up-scaled 1:18 Joes based on the original 1982 Joes. That’s right– Gentle Giant G.I. Joe figures are coming!

According to the intrepid reporters over at ToyNewsI.com, the line debuts this Holiday season with the release of the 12″ Grunt in a special footlocker package. Subsequent releases will continue in 2015 and will be available on “authentic” G.I. Joe cardbacks.

Figures shown at SDCC thus far include:

Grunt
Zap
Stalker
Snake Eyes
Rock n Roll

Honestly, I don’t know how I feel about Gentle Giant G.I. Joe figures– especially up-sized version of the o-ring figures. After all, it’s the 50th Anniversary of the original 1964 Joes– not the 1982 figures. While I’m sure that there is a market for these and that the initial offerings will no doubt sell decently, I have the feeling that this will only appeal to a very small segment of an already fragmented fandom and will most likely end before more of the later fan-favorite characters can be produced. I’d love to be wrong about this but my ~~gut~~, uh, o-ring tells me otherwise.

You can view the original article, as well as a ton of great SDCC coverage, over at ToyNewsI.com!

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3DJoes.com Kickstarter is Now LIVE

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Fred Meyer

The staff at JBL are big fans of the website 3DJoes.com. (Let’s not forget its sister site Vintage3DJoes.com!)
Running a website is a labor of love and, for the most part, it’s a strictly not-for-profit endeavor. All of those costs that go into keeping a site up and running are typically absorbed by the site owner unless he or she happens to generate some ad revenue. Or, if you’re very very clever like Carson Mataxis, you can sell some truly AWESOME posters to help offset the costs.

Unfortunately, to produce such high quality posters also costs money– which is where the 3DJoes.com Kickstarter comes in. Here’s the announcement from Carson:

For two years I’ve been building 3DJoes.com, the ultimate G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero archive! 3DJoes is the only interactive, three dimensional museum of G.I. Joe A Real American Hero nostalgia. Best of all, it’s ad-free.

To help pay for the site, I’ve created three awesome posters (check them out here). I’ve taken a HUGE gamble each time I’ve printed one of these posters. The last couple posters have gone on a credit card and they have each taken over four months to break even. I simply cannot put another poster on credit, but that won’t stop me!

I’m ready to make three more, and I need your help! Each poster costs $3,000 to produce. SO, I’ve set the goal at $3,300 (to cover Amazon and KS fees) and hope to at least produce one of the following posters. If we hit the first stretch goal ($6,600), we’ll make two, and if we hit the second stretch goal ($9,900), we’ll make all three!

As always, I’m impressed with the level of detail that Carson puts into restoring each image to optimum quality. If you’ve seen his previous work, you’ll know that the final product is the best possible version of each piece of art. Now, imagine that level of meticulous detail applied to the vehicle artwork, or the 1986 – 1987 Joes, or even smaller pieces like post cards of the “To The Rescue” or “Yo Joe!” posters. Or, if artwork isn’t necessarily your cup-o-Joe you can walk away with a fantastic embroidered hat– just for supporting a truly terrific fan resource.

Even better– top-tier supporters can walk away with some of their items autographed by two of the minds behind the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero era — Larry Hama and Kirk Bozigian!

With 42 days to go, the project already has 42 backers and has raised $2,816.00 of its modest $3,300.00 goal. Let’s push that over the top and ensure that 3DJoes.com can keep on spinning! The deadline to contribute is September 3, 2014 at 8:01pm CST.

Show what support you can and let ’em know that the fan community supports 3DJoes.com!

3DJoes.com Kickstarter Project

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SDCC Danger at the Docks to Hit TRU.com on July 24

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Fred Meyer

It’s almost time for SDCC 2014!

Next week is the 2014 San Diego Comic Con! It’s a celebration of genre-related goodness with everything from panels featuring the latest movies to forthcoming toy lines on display. It’s also a time when exclusive products are made available through manufacturers and retailers. The G.I. Joe brand is no stranger to this concept– with a history of SDCC exclusive items sold through HasbroToyShop.com including the “Pimp Daddy” Destro, Sgt. Slaughter, and Jinx figures and even some G.I. Joe/Transformers cross-over items. This year, however, the place to check out at the con is the Toys R Us booth!

As reported earlier here at JBL, Toys R Us will be offering an exclusive version of the forthcoming 50th Anniversary “Danger at the Docks” set at the Entertainment Earth Booth (#2343) featuring Flint in his classic colors as well as the first-ever Generation 3 update of the desert VAMP Mk 2. However, this item will also be available online starting on July 24, 2014!

That’s right– this set, along with a host of other items including this admin’s sought-after movie-accurate TMNT figures, will be available at the following link on July 24, 2014!

http://www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=11433485&sr=1&origkw=sdcc

So get ready to hit those F5 keys and set your browser bookmarks! July 24th is going to be an interesting day to shop online!

Please note: there is also a standard “urban” version of this set available as part of the 50th Anniversary line which will be available at brick & mortar Toys R Us stores later this Summer/early Fall.

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G.I. Joe 50th Anniversary Items Hit Ebay

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Fred Meyer

It was bound to happen sooner rather than later. Ebay seller viperskingdom has listed several items from the forthcoming 50th Anniversary collection up for auction. I’ve mirrored some of the images below but all of his auctions may also be found HERE.

First, the pictures, then some commentary….

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Okay, I’m just going to go straight to the elephant in the room– the incredibly poor paint applications seen on the Lady Jaye figure. Really– that’s one of the worst paint decos I’ve seen since the 2000 relaunch of the brand with the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra era. This is the same head that was used by the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club for the Night Force Lady Jaye that was a 2013 Joe Con convention souvenir which means that fans have already seen how this head can turn out. They’ve now got something to compare this “G.I. Joe 50th Anniversary” version to. (I still argue that it’s really the “32nd Anniversary of ARAH”.) Those same fans have also come to expect a certain level of quality from Hasbro produced items.

This isn’t it. It’s like QC just took the night off and let the interns take a shot at painting.

As for the rest of the line? Well, quite honestly– it’s uninspired. Rather than celebrating the wide half-century history of a brand that redefined action figures for generations the marketing folks at Hasbro cobbled together a collection of repaints and some concept vault figures and called it a night. While the more recent Joe fans might like the offerings, this long time Joe fan finds them lazy, uninspired, and downright insulting to the collectors of the 1:6 era that put G.I. Joe on the map in the first place.

Sure, there’s going to be a Snow Wolf and a “mostly new” Leatherneck, but overall this line is nothing even close to what it really should have been.

Check out the rest of viperskingdom’s current G.I. Joe auctions on Ebay.

Happy Independence Day!

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Fred Meyer

JoeBattlelines.com would like to wish everyone a Happy Independence Day!

Today is more than just a day filled with cookouts, days off of work, and fireworks. For those of us in the United States, it’s the birthday of our nation. More importantly, it’s the birthday of a nation based upon the principles set out in these words:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

Dated “July 4, 1776”, the document quoted above was signed by a group of brave men who sought to free their friends and neighbors from what was then an oppressive government and establish a bold new experiment in representative government. Their actions forever shaped the world and helped create a nation that has forever changed the way people view the notion of “Freedom.”

So, to all who read this– we here at JBL wish you a happy and safe 4th of July. Whether the time be spent with family, friends, or even in some quiet reflect, take a few moments today to be thankful for the freedoms that you enjoy.

A full copy of the Declaration of Independence may be found here.

Last Call for G.I. Joe Collector’s Club FSS 3.0

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Fred Meyer

Today is the day– the final day to sign-up for the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club FSS 3.0. In order to provide that final incentive, the Club released the following “group shot” yesterday.

Yes, it’s just a composite image of the previews shown thus far but it provides the only real “at a glance” look at what subscribers will receive over the forthcoming months.

It’s an interesting roster– with many Nocturnal Fire alumni, three Cobra-affiliated ninjas, a member of Action Force, and the final member of the Stall family whose saga played out in the file cards of the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra era.

As an addition teaser, the Club showcased hard resin prototypes of three of the unique headsculpts from the line that were designed by the insanely talented Boss Fight Studio team. Seen below are the sculpts for Bombstrike, Big Ben, and the Crimson Guard Immortal.

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It’s not a cheap subscription– with the subscription running $315.00 if paid in full with additional charges for both shipping and credit card processing. (Or paid in three installments of $105.00 each.) However, if you really want to obtain these figures and don’t want to have to deal with the hassle of tracking them down individually the subscription is the way to go– and the only way to guarantee receipt of the “mysterious 13th figure”.

To subscribe, visit the sign-up page for the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club Figure Subscription Service 3.0 today.