JoeCanuck

Ack so many figures with those...hands. I'd still buy this if it shows up in Canadian TRU for $30 just to have a row of Vipers and I do love the Mercer. He was my favorite of the renegades, I'd like to see a remake of his original figure too.

I will be able to rest easy when I pass this up at retail. It just sucks in every way, for me. I have several CC's and Dukes I love already, and the troopers are useless to me in those colors.

If my wife would let me get away with it, I'd clear out a few more HISS's. Ain't gonna happen. She nearly crapped when I bought second copies of Eels, BAT and Bazooka Trooper. For whatever reason she doesn't mind me buying the TRU army builders. I guess if the HISS ends up at a major discount we'd all be willing to grab them. The real problem is that there is no use for extra Steelers or ghastly Serpentors in most people's collection. As much as I see the HISS, the other set is far more common.

Oh and did Canada ever get the Trouble Bubble twofer? I've never seen it on any shelf but a comic shop.

I bought all of my 25th and 25th-style figures in 2008 so bear with me if I mention an 07 by mistake.

Best figures: Croc Master, Copperhead, IG Destro, Eels, comic pack Firefly..  really Hasbro nailed the Cobras this year. Of the 80 or so 25ths I have, the overwhelming trend is great Cobras, so-so Joes. I am quite fond of the comic pack Duke-if-he-was-an-82 and the two-headed Beachhead. Not sure if he's an 08 but the 84 Roadblock in carded form is also a real favorite since he can actually hold that ridiculous gun.

Best vehicle: HISS, simply because I was annoyed the VAMP doesn't have removable cloth doors and roof any more. I would easily hand it to the VAMP if Hasbro had included the original doors/roof. I wasn't thrilled to have to buy the driver for the HISS separately though so maybe that evens the field (the blue guy can be a gunner, but he's not driving my HISS). Both are great rigs any way I look at them. Having passed up Sharcs, Firebats and the TB/RAM set... I am kicking myself. The last thing I need is another Sharc since I've always thought it was too awkward to fit guys in anyway and my Night Force version remains mostly intact somewhere in storage. Every other anniversary vehicle is a must-have. Now if only I knew someone who could go to Target for me...

Best box set: Cobra Night Watch. Despite not including someone buff enough to carry Roadblock's heavy machine gun, this set is the best of the army builders by far. The greenshirts are nicely equipped and all but I hate the idea of "nameless" Joes. In my mind, there are not disposable Joe troops, that's what the other branches of the Military are for...Joes are elite individuals. But I digress. Oh the Night Watch set is a great place to get a gun for comic-pack Copperhead. That's just gravy. I just grabbed the Crimsons today so I can't judge them yet. I would have liked they came with machine guns and wood rifles though, instead of just the carded version's stuff.

Best Comic Pack: I bought a lot of these but most of them was just for one guy. For instance, that Firefly/Storm Shadow set is a mockery. Including the best-ever Firefly with one of the worst Storm Shadows of all time? Oh well. I guess the best one for me is the 82-stylized Duke with Red Star. Beachhead and Mainframe probably come in second place.

Worst figure: by far the worst I got was the Serpentor who came with the Air Chariot. I even love Serpentor, but christ almighty this is a bad one. If he had even just come with his cape and daggers I'd be more forgiving. As is, I don't consider him a real figure and would not pose him with the rest of my Cobras. The DVD box will have to come my way before I accept the Emperor back into my team. Second worst for me is Glenda/Scarlett. Just ugly and pointless to me. I also can't for the life of me think how Matt Trakker is supposed to mingle with guys who are traditionally much larger. I never once played MASK stuff with my Joes. It's nice that Hasbro likes to raid Kenner's old copyrights but this is just baffling.

I might buy it, though I'd rather find the comic with the classic paint job SI. Scrap Iron's been a favorite of mine since he came out...shame he's not given much to work with in his remakes. Does this paint job have any logic to it, do you know?

Yeah I am a big fan of the original too. Hopefully they can figure something out.