Wednesday, May 9, 2012

GI Joe Sci-Fi 30th Anniversary/Renegades Action Figure Review

One of the longest running 1:18 scale figure lines has to be GI Joe. When people compare lines like Marvel Universe or Microman they often use the term "Joe-scale". Over the years Hasbro has bumped up the overall quality of the line. Here we take a look at a fan favorite, GI Joe laser trooper Sci-Fi. His package is the same as usual and he's shipped along with some GI Joe Renegades characters. The card art makes him look strikingly similar to Robocop in the mouth and facial expression department. STOP CREEP.

Sculpt for Sci-Fi is out of this world, if you'll excuse the pun. He does have re-use parts as do all of the current offerings and removing his vest reveals the Arctic Snake Eyes body and upper legs. But his head, helmets, and other parts are unique. They look incredibly detailed such as the armor plating on his legs and battery packs plugged into his thighs. The facial work and balaclava hood underneath stand out as they could have just molded him in-helmet.

Articulation for Sci-Fi is excellent. He has all the range of motion you'd expect from a Gi Joe including hinged wrists to aid in his laser-accuracy. Even though he's sporting some heavy gear and hoses there's no sacrifice in movement. Paint apps are detailed and tho he's mainly neon-green plastic there's two tones of silver, black straps, and other details that are painted with no slop at all.

Sci Fi's has not one but TWO helmets, one with the blast shield halfway up and fully closed. One could use the closed helmet for a trooper or biker custom easily and this was a great addition. His battery backpack and gun have little red dots where you connect the hose, perhaps meant as fiber optic? The sculpt on the laser rifle is great and it stores on his pack. There's plenty of paint work on the accessories which is surprising, good job Hasbro.

The verdict? I really have to say this is my favorite figure of the series so far. He has the nostalgia factor as I owned the original as a kid, comes in bright colors that still mix well, the updated design is fantastic, and all that combined with a great base body makes Sci-Fi a character to own. Our sponsor Big Bad Toy Store had him in stock but he disappears quickly. Amazon has him at a decent price and you might get lucky at a Walgreens or CVS pharmacy as they still stock this line at the time of this review.


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