Joe Con 2016: Legends of the West

Posted on June 19, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Joe Con 2016 concludes today but we’d be remiss if we didn’t talk about Legends of the West.

Earlier in the Armchair Coverage of Joe Con 2016, there was mention of the Broken Arrow Toys booth and how there were several lines being displayed there. JBL’s already highlighted Spero Studios Animal Warriors of the Kingdom but now it’s time to acknowledge another more classic-themed line: Chicken Fried Toys’ Legends of the West!

Imagine if you will a brand-new 1:18 scale series of Western-themed figures. Now, take those figures and add in incredible sculpting detail. Sound pretty good? Let’s take it a step further and give them modern-level articulation! Now, if that doesn’t make you want to saddle up and support the line I don’t know what will!

According to the images shown at the Broken Arrow Toys booth, the line will consist of the following figures:

The Head Honcho
The Gunfighter
Trail Drover
Masked Lawman
The Marshall
The Sheriff
Territories Lawman
The Shopkeeper
The Trail Boss
The Ranch Hand

There’s also the possibility of two others who, according to the initial artwork, seem to be a combination of parts from the other figures. Each figure also appears to include at least two accessories (firearms) as well as a unique Chicked Fried Toys display base.

But wait, there’s more!!! Continue reading →

Joe Con 2016: G.I. Joe Collector’s Club news & FSS 5 lineup

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Fred Meyer

The G.I. Joe Collector’s Club has completed the Joe Con 2016 Roundtable panel and it was a doozy!

Perhaps the biggest news of Joe Con 2016 concerning the Club came from the Hasbro panel held earlier in the day where it was revealed that Hasbro has decided to continue its relationship with Fun Publications through 2018. Despite rumors and all evidence to the contrary earlier this year, the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club has a two-year lease on life! Whatever transpired in the months since the Club announced that all memberships would end on December 31, 2016 it certainly seemed to be beneficial for the folks at Fun Publications. (Did the Save G.I. Joe petition have any impact?)

Next year’s convention will be June 15 – 18, 2017 at Walt Disney World!

However, the most pressing question on the minds of most G.I. Joe fans out there was “What is the line-up for FSS 5?”

Here are the “Quick Notes” from today’s panel…. including this year’s FSS announcement!

Introduction:

Brian Savage, David Lane, Lanny Lathem, and Pete Sinclair take the stage.

Contract for the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club has been extended for two more years. The Club, FSS, and convention will continue through 2018.
Membership renewals will turn back on later this week.
If your membership ran out in May & June, go to the store, login, and add it to your cart. It should reapply to your account.
Contract was initially NOT renewed. However, this was changed and Brian thanked the fandom for their support, including the petition from Joe Colton. Derryl DePriest is acknowledged as the person who turned things around for the Club.
The renewal only took place in the last two weeks.

Sky Patrol discussion: Continue reading →

Joe Con 2016: Hasbro’s G.I. Joe 2016 lineup announced!

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Hasbro unveiled their G.I. Joe 2016 plans and YoJoe.com was LIVE from Joe Con 2016 with a Facebook LIVE session directly from the panel! We’ve got the embedded video below after the notes.

We’ve got some hastily transcribed notes below. Expect a cleaner article with some commentary later tonight as part of the Saturday Armchair Coverage round-up!

Hasbro Writer’s Room:

Combination of television/movie/comic book writers. Hasbro is very proud of the talent they have amassed.
Creation of a shared universe combining their intellectual properties. Officially dubbed “Hasbro Cinematic Universe”—separate from IDW. Intended as multi-film story arc. Goal is to start to develop shared and combined stories. Derryl was able to spend two weeks with the writers and get to work with them on shaping this shared universe.

Joe vs Transformers SDCC set:

Deco is decal-based. Includes Joe, Cobra, Autobot decals. This way the toys can be whatever you want them to be in your own collection.
Soundwave is the 5^th most-popular Decepticon but hard to justify now as a cassette tape. (Same with Megatron.)

Hasbro Pulse Crossword Puzzle includes all characters listed below:

Stiletto
Scarlett
Zartan

Derryl – Joe is in quieter year. Harder to get resources to produce more figures during those years. In those years, previously tooled harder-to-find figures are ideal for re-release. 100% of tooling budget is used for NEW figures.

Toys R Us G.I. Joe 2016 line-up: (November 2016)

Focus on figures vs vehicle sets which were slow sellers
Two packs will be in a 10 pack case—ALL EVENLY PACKED!

Continue reading →

Joe Con 2016: Spero Studios Animal Warriors of the Kingdom

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Fred Meyer

The Animal Warriors of the Kingdom have invaded Joe Con 2016!

Sure, the core focus of Joe Con 2016 is firmly centered on the G.I. Joe brand but over the past few years there have been several new exhibitors who have been attracting quite a bit of attention. From Marauder Gun-Runners to Boss Fight Studio, third party toy companies have been steadily making inroads with the 1:18 scale crowd and this year is no exception. Case in point: Spero Studios’ Animal Warriors of the Kingdom!

On display this weekend at the Broken Arrow Toys booth (run by a good friend of JBL), Spero Studios has been unveiling test shots and production samples from their forthcoming Animal Warriors of the Kingdom line that is currently funding on Kickstarter. (HINT!) Today, just an hour or so before the Hasbro panel was scheduled to begin, they unveiled some of the next series: the BIG APES!!!

Seriously– my primate-fascinated mind cannot begin to describe how awesome these are! I’m already picturing where I can put these guys on my shelves– somewhere down from Captain Simian & the Space Monkeys but not too close to the Planet of the Apes!

In addition, the production samples for the entire first series were also on display! If you’re at the event and you’re on the fence as to whether you’d like to support the Animal Warriors of the Kingdom Kickstarter, stop on by the Broken Arrow Toys booth and check’em out!

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To follow more news from Spero Studios, follow Animal Warriors of the Kingdom on Facebook and consider throwing some support behind the Animal Warriors of the Kingdom Kickstarter. With 21 days to go they’re currently at $20,000 of a $52,000 goal!

Keep checking back for more of JBL’s Armchair Coverage of Joe Con 2016!

Joe Con 2016: Marauder Gun-Runners adds new items and exo-suits!

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Marauder Gun-Runners announces new exo-suits, male accessories, and fully articulated K-9 military unit for 2017!

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of Marauder Gun-Runners here at JBL. Going all the way back to the very first series which debuted at Joe Con 2005, we’ve followed the progress of this customer-service driven company with great anticipation. Returning to Joe Con after an absence of several years, MGR once again blew fans minds with the announcement of some brand new products including:

new male figure accessories
new exo-suits (coming in 2017)
new highly articulated military K-9 units (coming in 2017)

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In addition, the Marauder Gun-Runners booth offers THREE brand-new convention exclusive decos for their amazing Marauder Task Force figures– including new “light brown” bearded and goatee heads!

These exclusive figures will be available at the Marauder Gun-Runners store after the con but convention attendees have the opportunity to purchase them at 20% off during the event at the MGR booth! Talk about some customer service!

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And, as they say in the infomercials… “But wait, there’s more!” The first test shots of the Marauder Task Force Valkyries line will be on display at the booth this weekend!

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To check out the pictures at the original source, visit the Marauder Gun-Runners Facebook page and to pick up some the best 1:18 modern military gear out there head on over to the Marauder Gun-Runners online store which will reopen on June 22th!

Plus, you can view JBL’s reviews of the first few series at the Marauder Gun-Runner’s Review Index!

Joe Con 2016: Closer look at the SDCC G.I. Joe vs. Transformers set

Posted on June 17, 2016 by Fred Meyer

JBL’s Armchair Coverage of Joe Con 2016 continues!

Friday typically isn’t a “big reveal” day at the annual Joe Con and this year was no exception. Hasbro’s big panel doesn’t occur until 11:00am MST on Saturday and the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club Roundtable event isn’t until 4:00pm MST as well. However that doesn’t mean that there wasn’t anything major to see today.

The good folks from Hasbro put a few pieces in the display case today from this year’s forthcoming SDCC exclusive G.I. Joe vs. Transformers set! It’s the first time that fans got an in person look at the upcoming releases of Powerglide as a Cobra Rattler and Soundwave as a Cobra HISS tank. It was also the first opportunity for Joe fans to see convention exclusive Scarlett and Zartan figures.

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I’ll admit– the items do look a bit better in these images than from the first batch of leaked images from ACToys.net. Still, for $99 the set seems like it’s missing something especially after the 2013 set included a Skystriker, a VAMP, and three figures plus the exclusive Ravage figure.

There are some additional pictures posted over at HISSTank.com as well. At this point I think it’s safe to say that part of Hasbro’s reveals for the Toys R Us exclusive line tomorrow will include a Cobra Rattler, a plane that hasn’t been released since the Target exclusive 25th Anniversary release.

Stay tuned to JBL for more coverage of Joe Con 2016 in Loveland, CO!

Joe Con 2016: Souvenir items revealed!

Posted on June 16, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Joe Con 2016 souvenir item images have arrived!

Joe Con 2016 registration night has begun and the Golden Ticket holders are picking up their sets. That means the line for the souvenirs at the Club Store is queuing up and we now have our first images of this year’s souvenirs! Thanks to Mike Tinnel of the G.I. Joe Discussion Facebook Group, I’ve mirrored some images below.

G.I. Joe Glider 2-pack featuring Skymate and Cloudburst – $75.00
Heli-Vipers 3-pack – $85.00
Sky Patrol Skysweeper jet – $68.00
Cobra Hydra jet with Aero-Viper – $85.00
Sky Patrol Skystriker – $160.00
Sky Patrol JUMP 6-pack – $55.00
Cobra JUMP 6-pack – $55.00
Parachute drop figure: FREEFALL – $35.00

Bonus Attendee Item: Sky Patrol Air Raid figure

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I have to say– ANOTHER Skystriker?!!! Plus a repaint of the RoC Skysweeper jet (which itself is a repurposed Firebat), a pair of Air Assault gliders, and faction-changed 2003 Skysweeper jet? Fans of the late 1990’s era are going to LOVE this set but the more military-minded folks might just consider saving their pennies.

We’ll have more images from Joe Con 2016 as they become available! Stay tuned for more Joe Con 2016 Armchair Coverage from JBL!

Closer look at G.I. Joe vs. Transformers Ninja Force Scarlett

Posted on June 16, 2016 by Fred Meyer

The June 2016 issue of the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club magazine is hitting member mailboxes and with it comes a better look at the forthcoming G.I. Joe vs. Transformers set Ninja Force Scarlett.

So, how’s Scarlett looking? To the eyes of this Joe fan, pretty good! I see the Renegades Scarlett head and what appears to be the upper torso of the Retaliation Jinx combined with the arms of the SDCC Zarana figure. The upper legs might be from the 25th Anniversary Scarlett and the boots, well, those are a mystery right now. It looks to be a solid parts combination that does a pretty decent job of recreating the original 1993 Ninja Force Scarlett figure while still following the Club’s pattern of primarily reusing existing parts.

Continue reading →

Joe Con 2016: Armchair Coverage Begins!

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Joe Con 2016 has officially begun!

Sadly, this year it wasn’t in the cards for the JBL admin to attend what is Fun Publications final year as administrator of the annual G.I. Joe Collector’s Convention. While I’ll miss not being able to catch up with some old friends and getting to see the new product reveals at Saturday’s Hasbro panel, it doesn’t mean that JBL will be going dark throughout the weekend.

Instead, we’ll be doing our best to provide comprehensive coverage of the event, thanks to the efforts of all of the other individuals attending. We’ll provide links to coverage as it goes up on sites from HISSTank.com, to ToyNewsI.com, and even our fellow “at home” correspondants over at GeneralsJoes.com.

Sure, you’ll get some commentary along the way but that’s just part of the experience. Coverage of this year’s event will be archived on the 2016 G.I. Joe Collector’s Convention page.

Now, on to the news!

Wednesday Golden Ticket Package Pickup:

Tonight was intended to be the Golden Ticket package pickup in which those individuals who spent the extra $300 to purchase the “Joe Con Speed Pass” get a first crack at their sets and at the bonus attendee exclusive item. However, it was announced by the folks from Fun Publications that their “shipment was delayed at customs and then held up due to a sick driver” and that, hopefully, items will arrive by tomorrow and the Golden Ticket pickup will be at 3pm, with the rest attendee registration beginning at 6pm MST.

The t-shirts and the comics were on hand but were not permitted to be released until the sets arrive.

That’s all we know for now… so stay tuned to JBL for more Joe Con 2016 coverage!

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Have you figured out the G.I. Joe 2016 lineup yet?

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Fred Meyer

Who will be included in the G.I. Joe 2016 lineup?

We’re just a few days away from the Hasbro panel at Joe Con 2016 in Loveland, CO and that means we’re just a few days of way from discovering what exactly is the G.I. Joe 2016 line-up of figures.

On June 3rd, those clever marketing devils over at Hasbro published a crossword puzzle at Hasbro Pulse. This matrix was comprised of all of the figures to be released by Hasbro in the G.I. Joe at Toys R Us this year. However, the kicker was that there were no clues given. Only one row was filled in and that was the name of the Kindle World’s Fan’s Choice character Stiletto.

It’s been a few weeks since this crossword was posted and fans have had time to put in their guesses. Given past history it’s a safe bet to assume that some of these names will come from the now-infamous Concept Case displays of both 2012 and 2013. So, who does that leave for the G.I. Joe 2016 lineup? Continue reading →

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G.I. Joe news, action figure reviews, and discussion

Joe Con 2016: Legends of the West

Joe Con 2016: G.I. Joe Collector’s Club news & FSS 5 lineup

Joe Con 2016: Hasbro’s G.I. Joe 2016 lineup announced!

Toys R Us G.I. Joe 2016 line-up: (November 2016)

Joe Con 2016: Spero Studios Animal Warriors of the Kingdom

Joe Con 2016: Marauder Gun-Runners adds new items and exo-suits!

Joe Con 2016: Closer look at the SDCC G.I. Joe vs. Transformers set

Joe Con 2016: Souvenir items revealed!

Closer look at G.I. Joe vs. Transformers Ninja Force Scarlett

Joe Con 2016: Armchair Coverage Begins!

Have you figured out the G.I. Joe 2016 lineup yet?

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Toys R Us G.I. Joe 2016 line-up: (November 2016)

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