At Hasbro’s media event yesterday during Toy Fair 2013, G.I. Joe: Retaliation Wave 3 has been given quite an overall!
Apparently the current wave 3 is merely a “filler wave” with the full slew of characters to hit in a May 2013 release. With more movie-accurate “ultimate” versions of Duke, Flint, and Roadblock as well as ton ARAH-inspired figures like Storm Shadow and Cobra Commander, this wave represents a DRAMATIC expansion of product offerings. However, for many Joe fans, the true “coup de grace” is found in the inclusion of two figures: the highly anticipated Data-Viper and the INCREDIBLY sought-after KWINN!! Finally, everyone’s favorite Inuit mercenary is given the Generation 3 update he so rightly deserves.
Here’s the compiled details, courtesy of Justin Bell of GeneralsJoes.com.
Wave “2.5″ Filler Wave – Due 02/11/2013
- Joe Colton
- Lady Jaye
- Alley-Viper
- Dark Ninja Warrior
- Cyber Ninja
Wave 3 – Due May, 2013
- Crimson Guard
- “Ultimate” Duke (Movie)
- “Ultimate” Firefly (Movie)
- Cobra Combat Ninja
- “Ultimate” Snake Eyes (Vintage)
- “Ultimate” Flint (Movie)
- “Ultimate” Roadblock (Movie)
- Storm Shadow (Vintage)
- Cobra Commander (Vintage)
- Data-Viper
- Kwinn
- Budo
All-in-all, I’m impressed. Yes, I already have a metric ton of Cobra Commander and Storm Shadow figures but the updates on these show a marked improvement over their earlier 25th Collection entries. The new “Ultimate” Duke, Firefly, Flint, and Roadblock are the movie-accurate versions I really wanted right away. Data-Viper was never on my personal “must have” list but a lot of fans were really looking forward to him and I won’t begrudge anyone the opportunity to snag an anticipated figure. Lastly, we have KWINN who has left me salivating since I first saw him. Yeah… that one is a must-purchase item.
The only figure that puzzles me is Budo. He’s a marked departure from the unproduced Walmart RoC two pack version that has popped up on the web. More ornate and sporting a Ken Watanabe-inspired head sculpt, he’s a marked departure from both what has come before and from the rest of the military-themed toy line. Plus, he’s wearing elk antlers– which seems like something more out of Naruto than a traditional samurai would wear. Of course, that’s just my opinion.
Check out the press images from Hasbro below and hit up YoJoe.com for more awesome coverage!
