25th Anniversary SHARC

I have been a G.I. Joe collector since 1996, when a friend bought me the 1994 33/4” 30th Anniversary Action Soldier, Marine and Pilot. It’s all been downhill since then…at least my wallet thinks so! One thing I’ve always wanted to see with any modern release of G.I. Joe is a strong connection to the ARAH years, especially concerning artwork and packaging. Even a simple re-issue of everything would be fine with me. The 1997 15th Anniversary releases were pretty close - until one opened the packages and discovered the plastic quality was worse than Funskool’s Joes. Most Joe releases after that were OK quality-wise, but did not really have any sort of visual connection to the past, at least in the artwork and packaging domains. I know there are collectors out there who say “Look ahead, not behind” – but for me, and I would imagine at least a few others, G.I. Joe is cool because of what it was in the 1980s. I recall when the modern Star Wars figures started getting released on the re-created “Kenner” cards, I hoped that a similar release would happen for G.I. Joe (i.e. modern sculpt, vintage artwork & packaging). The 25th Anniversary releases in 2007 brought that hope to life, and I must say the past year has been a dream come true for an old-school fan like me! One of the few pieces of my original ARAH collection was the SHARC. I either got it for my birthday or Christmas in 1984 – I’m not exactly sure when toys were released in Canada, so I can’t say for sure if a 1984 toy like the SHARC was actually out in April of that year. My parents were quite wise with their money (and still are) and so were not into buying huge, expensive toys. I usually ended up getting small and mid-sized stuff. That suited me fine; as a kid, I was usually more into something for its “coolness” and not its expense (although I really did want a Skystriker). And believe me, the SHARC was really, really cool…it’s almost like it has everything great about a Joe toy combined in one! Most 1980s Joe vehicles are great because of their detail – they have that combination of a model & toy. The SHARC has a canopy like most aircraft; an engine panel that is removable – I always thought this was awesome on any Joe vehicle (especially the Rattler!); hidden gunpods (absolutely radical!); dual torpedoes on the bottom whose mounts can also hold Joe figures; moveable twin rudders; and a wicked, sleek overall design with lots of little mechanical details molded in. I recall that, in the days when we actually assembled our Joe vehicles, there were a few cubes of Styrofoam that went near the gunpods to help the toy float. Deep Six, the SHARC’s pilot had a neat gimmick of his own: he came with a bellows mechanism that made the figure dive or float in water! I’m pretty sure I tested this out soon after getting the toy, during bath time. Overall, the SHARC was one of the best toys of my youth. Imagine my toy-nerd happiness when I found out the SHARC was getting a “Modern Era” release! We’ve actually seen the SHARC mold a few times in recent years: there was the Cobra Wave Crusher from 2001 (which I still have: makes an excellent sub for M.A.S.S.-era Baroness) and 2008’s Night Spectre. Night Force and Sky Patrol also used the SHARC mold back in the day. But the Modern Era release is the coolest of them all: an actual SHARC reissue, with a new-sculpt Deep Six! As far as I can tell, the vehicle itself is changed very little from the original. Please keep in mind I haven’t seen my original since about 1986, though! The new reissue has 3 extra pegs on the underside, one to hold 25th-style figures, and two for…well, I don’t know, exactly. I’d say balance, but previous versions of the mold balance fine. And the two extras are too thin for holding 25th figures. As mentioned earlier, we used to actually build our Joe toys before they were ready for play. It was very much like assembling a snap-together model, and this was a big part of the fun in getting a new Joe vehicle. Those days are over now, and 25th/Modern Era vehicles now come preassembled, in window packages. A few of the stickers are pre-applied as well. But not all of them! These vehicles still come with sticker sheets, and this is where a fan of the old-school can at least capture a bit of that nostalgic feel of building your toy – even if it is just applying a few stickers. Luckily, most modern releases come with quality stickers (unlike some of the 90s paper stickers – oh, and the Modern Era Rattler’s stickers are pretty bad, too!) and I must say that the simple act of sticking them on really brought me back to 1984. I had totally forgotten about the “Absolutely No Access” sticker that sits at the back of the cockpit and wondered if I’d ever be able to apply it, since the SHARC was already built and those quarters are really cramped….surprisingly, it went on very easily! This sticker and many of the others really help convey a sense of realism. By the way, there is “Absolutely No Reference” to the name “SHARC Tooth” on the stickers – they all say SHARC. So, Hasbro’s name-losing is not such a big deal. And really, it never was…it isn’t too difficult to call a Joe product by its original name despite a slight change in the modern version (e.g. Sgt. Flash = Flash). Deep Six is an interesting Modern Era figure. The 25th/ME figures are noted for their massive increase in articulation points – something like twenty-two versus the original thirteen (pun intended). The original Deep Six is noted as being a Joe figure with TWO points of articulation…his shoulders. This, of course, is due to him having the aforementioned diving feature. A bellows contraption adds or removes water, depending on whether Deep Six was diving or surfacing. So, his body is basically an air pocket which means no room for standard construction. The Modern Era Deep Six takes the updated articulation concept and gives him seven points: wrists, elbows, shoulders and neck. I should note that on the original and this modern update, his shoulders are not double-jointed and can only move like vintage-era Star Wars figures (i.e. forward/backward, not out to the side). While I appreciate the effort on Hasbro’s part, the modern arm articulation is not that impressive. This is compounded by the fact that his elbows are not double-jointed either, and have very little range. I do like the rotating wrists though…and the fact that his diving gauntlets can hold weapons now (the original does not have functioning thumbs). To me, the important articulation addition is Deep Six’s neck. His diving suit canopy/helmet is now removable and his head is articulated like most other 25th/ME figures. The original Deep Six is in that category of figures where I sometimes wanted to remove a non-removable part…the original Serpentor’s helmet is like this as well. So…the modern Deep Six has an added “accessory articulation”, then! I also like the addition of a diving light on his left shoulder, and the propulsion fans on his backpack. The bellows pump is less complicated compared with the original. I recall the 1984 version having a vent that you would flip around for diving/surfacing. I haven’t tested it, but according to the instructions, the new one is more a matter of having the bellows compressed or not compressed, depending on what function you require. In summary, I find the new Modern Era SHARC to be a very excellent (re)release! There’s something very exciting about getting a toy 24 years later that’s practically unchanged from the way I remember it. Most of the 25th/ME line has been win-win in my opinion, and the SHARC just furthers my belief that this is the best G.I. Joe line yet. My childhood Joe collection was not very large, and 2007/2008 has seen the re-release of about 90% of it…only the FLAK is left! So, thank you Hasbro, for continuing to re-create a big part of my childhood 25 years later.