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Sigma 6 Wetsuit, Shipwreck, Hi-Tech, Firefly

 

"The following is a guest review.  The review and photos do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Michael Crawford or Michael's Review of the Week, and are the opinion and work of the guest author."

Tonight's guest reviewer is Monte Williams, with a terrific look at the latest in the Sigma 6 line up - take it away, Monte!

Hello, MWC readers. Monte Williams here, waxing patriotic once again to bring you a review of four of the latest G.I. Joe Sigma 6 figures from Hasbro: Shipwreck, Wet Suit, Hi-Tech and Firefly.

Before we begin, a disclaimer: while I haven't branded myself with Sigma 6 tattoos (yet) or repainted my trophy room that distinct shade of Sigma 6 green like one of my fellow Joe Battle Lines forum members recently did, I am indeed a Sigma 6 fan. As such, if you require objectivity, I'd advise you to look elsewhere.















Packaging - ***1/2
These four make up a "Soldier" assortment of figures, meaning they are ten dollars apiece and feature fewer accessories than their fifteen-dollar counterparts, the "Commandos." Commando figures also feature the beloved capping approach to packaging, whereby the plastic lids at the top and bottom of each package combine to form a weapons storage case. It makes sense that these cheaper figures would bypass such elaborate packaging in favor of a more streamlined, traditional approach, but these packages are still pretty colorful, and I like that Joes and Cobras have separate color schemes. Plus, they display the figures prominently, with minimal obscuring, and each package features that reliable G.I. Joe standby, the personalized file card (ubiquitous in the toy industry today, the "file card" feature was first utilized by Marvel Comics' G.I. Joe scribe Larry Hama back in the early 1980s.) The chief drawback to these reasonably attractive and functional packages is that their durability leaves a lot to be desired; whether owing to poor design, shoddy craftsmanship or simply the considerable weight of each Sigma 6 figure, the Soldier packages are often dented, creased or even torn before you even purchase them.

Sculpting - Shipwreck: ****, Hi-Tech: ***, Wetsuit: ****, Firefly: ****
Hasbro tends to get all the mileage they can from the molds in this series, which fans usually forgive owing to the fact that the repaints and accessory assortments are creative enough to liven up even the most unnecessary figure. To clarify: we've yet to endure Batman levels of redundancy or absurdity; Hasbro has yet to introduce Urban Lazer Blast Attack Codebreaker Samurai Duke in neon stripes and day-glo polka dots. Still, fans get discouraged when Hasbro chooses to bypass such nostalgic favorites as Snowjob or Frostbite or Iceberg, for example, in favor of an arctic-themed repaint of Duke or Snake Eyes, who have each been released already in approximately a dozen incarnations.

What distinguishes this latest series of figures is just this: not only are we spared Beach Blast Frat Party Snake Eyes or whatever, but indeed we are treated to two completely new characters, plus one character who has been wildly reinterpreted, not only visually but also within the Sigma 6 mythos itself (Firefly started out as a Joe soldier with a sardonic smirk and a vivid orange Sigma suit, reviewed not too long ago at this very site; he returns in this assortment as an ominous Cobra turncoat clad in grays and blacks, his features obscured by a menacing mask.) Hi-Tech is the only straight repaint of the bunch, but while he is clearly the weakest link, and while he will suffer a fair amount of abuse in this review, his accessories make him a worthwhile purchase for child and collector alike. More on that in the Accessories section.

Shipwreck's sculpt, while hardly the most ornate or complicated, is certainly among the more striking of the bunch, for it deviates most sharply from the Sigma template. Where most of these figures are implausibly lean and angular (a design still resented by a large proportion of the G.I. Joe fanbase), Shipwreck is a thick, squat, meaty beast. His body alone gives him a lot of character (I get less of a disciplined militant feeling from him than other figures; he gives off more of a bar brawl vibe.) Also, it must be noted: Shipwreck's tattoos are damn good fun, featuring continuity nods to delight geeky geezers like myself (among the many women's name tattooed and then crossed out on his forearm are Lady Jaye and Scarlet.) Factor in his head sculpt, featuring a (non-removable) knit cap and an open mouth (a first for Sigma 6, I believe) which not only looks cool but accommodates his knife (!), and you have a fantastic figure.

Wet Suit utilizes the standard Sigma body sculpt, albeit with a unique orange hue. I've yet to tire of the Sigma suit design, though Hasbro's future assortments will see it phased out to a large degree. The suit has a wicked aesthetic appeal, plus it's versatile as hell; Snake Eyes looks right at home in it, and yet it makes for a convincing scuba suit as well. Atop the traditional body is an all-new head sculpt which immediately became one of my favorites; from its black scuba hood framing his face to the few stray locks of hair protruding from same, Wet Suit has personality to spare. He also comes with a bloody huge and slightly unnerving scuba helmet with which you can obscure his face, if for some reason you don't share my affection for the face sculpt.

Hi-Tech is merely a repaint of the original, superior Hi-Tech from late 2006, whose Sigma suit was made up of black and dark green, versus the headache-inducing patterns featured in this repaint. I admire Hasbro's attempt at distinguishing this figure from his predecessor, and it's certainly not one of their lazier repaints, but the gray base and the agitated lines just do nothing for me, and while that's something to be discussed in the Paint section below, it's worth mentioning here, too, since the sculpt itself has nothing new to offer. Perhaps it's unfair to attack a sculpt when I swore my undying loyalty to its basic design just one paragraph ago, but if Hasbro expects us to pay for the same figure twice, they should extend some minimal effort into altering its sculpt.

Firefly, like Shipwreck, is completely new from top to bottom. Some fans complained that the first version of Firefly was not only inexplicably a good guy, but was adorned in orange on top of it all, versus the gray camouflage made famous by his mid-80s Real American Hero predecessor. Here at last is a Firefly purists can rally behind. While I loved Hasbro's first Sigma Firefly, and still might even prefer him to this newer version, it is indeed nice to finally have the Firefly I remember from twenty years ago. For that matter, it's nice to have any new Cobra figure, as their ranks are far outnumbered by the Joes. I don't much care for the baggy pants tucked into the knee pads, but the gear on Firefly's chest is excellent, his head sculpt manages to be convincingly pissed off even beneath a knit mask, and his other mask is even creepier than the one that came with the Joe Firefly.

Paint - Shipwreck: ****, Hi-Tech: **1/2, Wetsuit: ****, Firefly: ****
I'll not dwell long in this section: these are simple paint applications, but they're also durable, which is important for figures who beg to be played with, versus merely posed. The lines are clean, the colors are sharp, and even after several adventures at my nearby creek, there's nary a scratch to be found. I'm knocking Hi-Tech down considerably, but his lower score reflects my opinion of his visual design, not the actual application of the paint, which is just as clean and tough as that of his fellows. It should also be noted that Hi-Tech's gloves and boots are semi-transparent, which might raise or lower the score depending on your feelings for such gimmickry.

Articulation - ***1/2
These guys could really use a mid-torso swivel and a more accommodating ball-joint neck, but otherwise they are so addictively poseable that they almost deserve the full four stars anyway. They each boast (limited) ball-joint necks, mid-torso joints that allow for up-down posing but not side to side, ball-and-hinge shoulders and elbows, swivel wrists and waists, ball/hinge hips and knees, and a cut where the shin meets the foot.

Accessories - ****
Even Hi-Tech earns his price in this category. When you buy a Commando figure you are essentially paying five extra bucks for the weapons case, 'cause while Soldiers are cheaper partly because they include fewer accessories, this is seldom actually the case. Shipwreck comes with a monkey (!), a harpoon gun and two knives; Wet Suit features a scuba helmet and huge scuba backpack, a slimmer harpoon gun than Shipwreck's but with a blade attachment, flippers, and an underwater Cobra bomb to diffuse; Hi-Tech comes with a robotic Cobra spider, a kickass backpack/belt/shoulder strap combo with rotating machine gun and missile launcher, plus a semi-transparent version of the extendable uzi that accompanied the first Hi-Tech and, most fun of all, an iPod! Finally, Firefly includes two rifles, a mask, a goofy fire-chainsaw thing, and a handheld cannon that launches fire projectiles. Collectively, that's a buttload of accessories for ten bucks per figure.

Fun Factor - ****
Oh. My. God. I am so in love with these toys. No longer do I open a toy only to pose it on a shelf and leave it to gather dust, 'cause Sigma 6 figures boast a nearly unprecedented level of versatility, interchangeability and plain old playability, and you can hardly stop yourself from having fun with them once you've got them in your hands. Put simply, with G.I. Joe Sigma 6, Hasbro has brought playtime back.

Value - ****
Hasbro has often subjected us to repaints in Commando assortments, asking us to pay fifteen dollars for several versions of the same character. Here instead, we're treated to two new characters at the Soldier cost, plus Firefly, who is essentially a new character himself. Factor in the accessories, and all four are well worth the cost (I nearly gave Hi-Tech a separate, lower score, but that would have just reflected my distaste for his basic design, which you might enjoy.)

Overall - ***1/2
It is easy for a Sigma 6 enthusiast to forget that this latest chapter in the G.I. Joe mythos has been its most divisive. I've sold or traded nearly all of my Masters of the Universe and Buffy the Vampire Slayer figures to acquire as many figures from this series as I can, and I happily spend my free time posing them and photographing them alongside the creek near my house. These toys have changed the way I see not just G.I. Joe, but toy collecting in general. They have helped me to remember that toys are for playing. However, there remain large numbers of Joe fans who remain immune to Sigma 6's charms. They don't like the scale, or the wild designs, or else they're just too hung up on their love for the more familiar Real American Hero versions of these characters. Whatever the reason, if you share this distaste for Sigma 6, these latest additions to the collection won't likely sway you. If you're already a fan, however, you will love these guys, and if you've been considering giving the line a try, you could certainly do worse than to let these cheaper but no less kick ass figures be your introduction.

SCORE RECAP:
Packaging - ***1/2
Sculpt - Shipwreck: ****, Hi-Tech: ***, Wetsuit: ****, Firefly: ****
Paint - Shipwreck: ****, Hi-Tech: **1/2, Wetsuit: ****, Firefly: ****
Articulation - ***1/2
Accessories - ****
Fun Factor - ****
Value - ****
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy:
Your guess is as good as mine; I have yet to find them anywhere (I received mine in a trade with a fellow Joe Battle Lines forum member.) Your local Target and Wal-Mart should have them soon, if they don't already.

Related Links:
There's been a few Sigma 6 reviews so far...

- Michael reviewed Destro, Firefly and Snake Eyes.

- there's been guest reviews of Tunnel Rat, Storm Shadow, and Long Range.


Figure from the collection of Monte Williams.

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