Younger fans may not believe this but there was a time when Grunt was the face of the G.I. Joe brand. Before Snake Eyes exploded in popularity and became the signature character of the Real American Hero era, it was Grunt, the non-descript “every soldier” who was found on much of the brand licensing. Yet, in spite of his prominent early role, Grunt hasn’t exactly fared well when it has come to figure updates. Either he was a repaint of parts used to make other figures or he was released in a form that just didn’t do the character justice. (Seriously—the 1991 figure is TERRIBLE.) So, when I saw that Grunt was to be included in the Crimson Strike set I was intrigued. Would this figure measure up or would it be just another rehash? Read on and find out this Joe fan’s opinion!

To update this classic infantry soldier in a modern look, Hasbro went with a fairly simple recipe. It adds some height to the figure over his 25th Anniversary release but that’s nothing new for a line that’s been trending taller in recent releases. Grunt appears to be constructed of the following parts:

• Torso, arms: Cobra Shock Trooper
• Legs: Resolute Duke
• Web gear: Retaliation Night Viper

It’s a surprisingly good parts combination for such a simple recipe. The figure retains a solid range of motion thanks to the hinged wrists and yet still manages to convey the appearance of a modern soldier. I may be in the minority but I’ve grown tired of how creatively shackled to the 1980’s the G.I. Joe brand has become. Rather than merely try to recreate the 1982 Grunt design, the designers at Hasbro opted for a modern homage. The signature elements are there but the body design doesn’t come across as having stepped out of the Reagan era. The only downside to this parts combination is the fact that the Night Viper harness isn’t a great fit on the torso and tends to flop about more than it should. Honestly, I’ll probably swap it out with some other gear at some point but that’s my only complaint about this figure. It’s a fantastic and practical update to one of the “original 13” and I’m glad to see it!

In terms of the head sculpt, there’s nothing new to see here. Grunt utilizes the 25th Anniversary Airborne’s head with a different color scheme. Given the almost generic nature of Robert Graves, it works well enough and the different flesh tone and hair color go a long way in helping distinguish it from too closely resembling Franklin Talltree. It would have been nice for Grunt to have a unique head sculpt but I just don’t see that happening on an exclusive item like this. He’s gone this long without having a unique generation 3 visage so what’s another reuse now? At least it looks better than the FSS 1 Desert Grunt which reused the 25th Anniversary Zap head.

It terms of gear, Grunt is travelling light—but that’s pretty much been his MO from the very beginning. He comes with a SMG with an underside grenade launcher, helmet with night vision goggles, and an automatic pistol. The pistol is an “okay” fit in the web gear holster and the helmet seems a bit small on the figure’s head but the concept works as a modern update to the G.I. Joe team’s original infantryman. Eventually I might give him Steeler’s M4 but that’s just a matter of personal preference.

I won’t lie—Grunt is one of my favorite figures in this entire set. It’s always great to see the ’82 roster revisited and updated in a respectful fashion and this figure accomplishes that in spades. At a glance, Grunt is a modern fighting man and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s kind of sad that this figure is relegated to the SDCC exclusive set as I can honestly see where a lot of Joe fans out there would love to add him to their collections. He’s a great update and one that looks great with some of the more recent Pursuit of Cobra updates to the original 1982 roster. Seriously—if you can snag him at a decent price go for it!