The Little Differences: Cutter & Steeler from G.I. JOE

Vincent: It's the little differences. I mean, they got the same $#!t over there that we got here, but it's just – it's just there it's a little different.

*****

This week's installment of "The Little Differences," features Cutter and Steeler from the G.I. JOE 24th Anniversary line. (I promise they won't always be Joes as I have some Star Wars characters already lined up for next week.)

When Hasbro released Cutter in the Toys R Us exclusive Command 3 Pack, the figure overall looked pretty close to the original except for the terrible re-use of Gung-Ho's head and hat. To remedy the situation, I switched it to a Deep Six head which has good strong facial features and a relatively smooth hairdo. This allowed me to add a ball-cap without having to cut part of the head away or permanently glue it in place. I sculpted a nice bushy "Grabowski" mustache (as they say in Chicago) with epoxy putty. I then painted his hair and mustache the same shade of dark brown so they would match. I even added some sideburns to accent the facial hair. I procured a ball-cap from Broken Arrow Toys, added one of my custom waterslide decals for the Boston Red Sox logo, and then painted the entire hat dark blue. I heated up the hat with a hair dryer a little bit to get it to fit snuggly and BAM! Cutter was complete. (My Cutter Boston Red Sox decals are available for a limited time  in my Etsy shop.)

Steeler is an even simpler bash using parts from 4 figures. The torso, legs, head, helmet, and display base are from his first release in the Steeler with Armadillo VS Serpentor with Air Chariot vehicle pack. The visor and gear are from the Target Exclusive Ultimate Battle Pack release. The forearms are from Comic Pack Duke and the final touch is the black gloved hands from Snake-Eyes release 1.

So as you can see, with a little boiling and popping, (and a little more work in the case of Cutter) you too can make Ultimate versions of many of your favorite characters. Until next time as Stan "The Man" always says, "Excelsior True Believers!"

Cobra Commander as He SHOULD HAVE Appeared in G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra Action Figure Art

The best movies based on comics and cartoons adapt the things that worked well in the original medium while not straying too far from the things that made the property successful and loved by fans. Another key is adapting the iconic visual elements from the source material. This is a logical move because it not only pleases the fans but also doesn't create new problems by breaking things that work simply for the sake of doing something new.

If you've read some of my previous posts, you know I made Hawk, Shipwreck, Roadblock, Duke, and Scarlett as they SHOULD have appeared in the movie G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra. This is my take on good old Cobra Commander.

In the movie, the clear mask does little to obscure the Commander's burned face, so why even bother with the mask in the first place? Since it's not keeping him alive, there no reason for him to even cover his face from a literal perspective. And since the mask isn't hiding his features, there's no reason to do it from a storytelling perspective either. Would they have sold any less movie tickets if he happened to wear his trademark cowl instead of that goofy clear plastic mask because the general public is more accepting of clear plastic than fabric?

The mask is powerful storytelling tool that great storytellers now how to use. When Cobra Commander was introduced in both the comics and cartoon, his masks (the cowl and his mirrored helmet) served the purpose of hiding his identity. But it also allowed the writer to use it as convention for revealing bits of his character. Every time we saw a new bit of his face, part of his past and character was also revealed. It's a tease, but it also made it fun for the viewer to try to guess what exactly was underneath.

Finally, the cowl, if treated properly can appear even more frightening than any "hard" material mask as it allows far greater expression for the actor underneath especially a transparent one with weird reflections and glare.

The most challenging part of creating this piece was the Cobra logo on his chest which is one of my custom waterslide decals. It took a few tries to get it right as it is positioned on a very  detailed area of the chest and required decal solvent to get it to cling to the shape. I also clear coated the entire upper torso with a gloss to make it look more like body armor and contrast the matte "fabric" of the rest of his costume.

Thanks for reading and I hope you dig him. If you do, I've made him available in my Etsy store. Click here to add him to your Cobra ranks. Until next time, I remain The Insidious One.

Snake Eyes (V3) Custom Action Figure Art from G.I. JOE

I'm a big fan of the character Snake-Eyes from G.I. JOE. While most people know him only as a mysterious badass ninja, the character as written by Larry Hama in the original Marvel comic books is more of an everyman who just happened to find himself in some extraordinary situations that transformed both his appearance and the direction of his life. But underneath it all, he wants the same things we all want; to be able walk in the sun holding the hand of the person we love.

In the comics, after many years and with some very special reconstructive surgery techniques, his hideously scarred face was reconstructed. Unfortunately, almost immediately after the surgery was complete, Snake-Eyes was captured by Cobra and while making his escape, his face was scarred once again.

He defeated his captors and stole their gear. Apparently he liked the gear enough to keep it as his uniform. And while his face was scarred once again, it was nowhere near its previous level of disfigurement so he even removed his mask from time to time.

This piece is inspired by that version of Snake-Eyes or Version 3 as he is called in the toys.

I wanted to capture the makeshift look of his gear, so I treated each part of his outfit a little differently to make it seem a little less uniform and more dirty and gritty.

Then I detailed the heck out of the gear including the snoopers and backpack weapons.

But the final piece is the repaired but re-scarred unmasked head. His hair had a little bit of a wave to it in the comics so I sculpted it that way and actually carved out the scars on his face before I painted them.

Hope you dig him. Until next time, I remain The Insidious One.

Cover Girl Combat Heroes Style Custom Action Figure Art

Just when you think I've created every possible version of G.I. JOE's Cover Girl, comes the cutest version of this tank driving redhead yet; the Combat Heroes version.

While the last wave of figures was only released in Canada and included such favorites as Shipwreck and Lady Jaye, it did not include Cover Girl but I think you'll agree, she fits right in.

I hope you dig her. Until next time, I remain The Insidious One.

The Little Differences: General Joseph "G.I. JOE" Colton & General Hawk from G.I. JOE

Vincent: ...you know what the funniest thing about Europe is? 

Jules: What? 

Vincent: It's the little differences. I mean, they got the same $#!t over there that we got here, but it's just – it's just there it's a little different.

*****

This is the first of what will be a semi-regular feature where I show examples of how simple parts swaps and/or very little effort can dramatically improve the appearance of your favorite action figures. Because as Vincent explains to Jules in the movie Pulp Fiction, those little differences can make life so much cooler.

 Being the first in this series, I thought I'd start at the top of the G.I. JOE chain of command with General Joseph "G.I. JOE" Colton and General Hawk.

This figure uses the body and gear from the "Hawk" Toys R Us exclusive "Command Figure 3 Pack" and the head from a Star Wars Obi-Wan Kenobi figure. I specifically chose this Obi-Wan head because he has a slightly disheveled hairdo and featured an open mouth that looks as if he's barking orders like every good General should. Also, for the most part, Star Wars heads are a good fit on the G.I. JOE 25th Anniversary style bodies but in this case, I drizzled a little hot glue around the inside edge of the neck cavity so it fit a little more snugly. (Note: If you use hot glue to do this, DO NOT let the hot glue cool while the head is on the neck post. If you do, you will not be able to move the head and it could break the neck post when you try to move it.) For the final touch and as an homage to the original 1960s G.I. JOE 12 inch figure, I painted a battle-scar on his right cheek.

This version of "General Hawk is combination of the single carded version and the cartoon styled 5 pack. The single card had a lot of great body detail but the belt and shoulder holster were gray instead of black and while the 5 pack version had a black belt and shoulder holster, the fur collar was brown and his name wasn't printed on his jacket. So I unscrewed one of the legs on both figures and let the bodies sit in hot water to make the belts flexible and easier to remove. The hot water also softened the glue holding the epaulets in place on the shoulders and after a minute or two and a little pulling with a pair of small pliers, the epaulets came off and I was able to put the shoulder holster and belt on the single carded body. After he was cool and dry, I positioned the shoulder holster and added a tiny dab of super glue to the holes in the shoulders to reattach the epaulets. I re-attached the legs and used the helmet from the 5 pack which has more paint detail than the single carded version.

Call me OCD or a perfectionist, but I feel these little changes make a big difference to the overall look of a character. Compare him to either standard version of Hawk and see it for yourself. Until next time, I remain The Insidious One.

Selene from Underworld Custom Action Figure Art

As far as Vampire movies go, Underworld is one of my favorites. It has vampires, werewolves, Hong Kong style action scenes, chooses prosthetics and puppets over CG, and stars badass Kate Beckinsale in a skin-tight vinyl bodysuit and corset.

I've literally been waiting to do this figure for over a year. I first got the bug when I discovered Tri-Gate Creations once offered a "female vampire hunter" torso that looked strikingly similar to Selene's in the movie. Unfortunately, every time they made it available, it sold out before I could get one. So rather than keep waiting, I took matters into my own hands...

The parts are a combination of five different figures. (Can you spot them?) The torso is heavily modded requiring me to dremel down the waist details and sculpt the lower half of the corset.

I used a glossy varnish on some areas and a matte varnish on others really makes the black on black details of this figure stand out.

Finally, I couldn't resit having some fun with her and using some other figures and props.

Hope you dig her. If you'd like to commission your own custom piece of action figure art, contact me at Eric@insidious1.com.

Sgt. Slaughter Custom Action Figure Art from G.I. JOE

Hasbro is releasing a brand new, modern era Sgt. Slaughter action figure. While I like that it really looks like Robert Remus, the man who plays Sgt. Slaughter, it doesn't quite seem to fit the heroic proportions of the rest of the figures in the line or his muscular image in the cartoons of the 1980s. So I decided that I needed to make my own version of him.

This is one of two versions Hasbro will be selling exclusively at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con.

Okay, maybe the Hasbro sculptors were even being generous. Here's a pic from back in the day.

In the 80s cartoons, he was more muscular than Superman and could do anything but fly.

*****

Sarge - "Up and at 'em you lazy pukes!"

Sarge - "I'm here to whip you guys into shape and show you what it means to be a wrestle...er, I mean a soldier."

Sarge - "You call yourself G.I. JOEs? I've never seen a more sorry line up of pantywaists since Wrestlemania VII!"

Quick Kick - "Pssst, Steeler. This guy sounds like a 1960s Spider-man comic, am I right?"

Sarge - "You gotta problem, solider? Where the heck is your shirt? And while yer at it, where are your shoes?"

Quick Kick - "I never wear a shirt or shoes, sir! That's just my style, sir!"

Sarge - "Your style, huh? A JOE needs to be able to hop in a Skystriker and fly to any environment in the world at a moments notice. How the heck can Hawk send you to the North Pole if you're half naked?!"

Steeler - "That's actually where we found him, sir. He was filming a commercial for Frozen Fudgies dressed just like you see him now, sir."

Quick Kick - "You should see me on space missions, sir."

*****

The baton is made from a model kit sprue with a sculpted top. The whistle is also sculpted. The chest "USA," thigh, and boot emblems are my custom made waterslide decals.

Hope you dig him. The Sarge is available for purchase at my etsy shop. Or if you'd just like the decals for your own custom Sarge, contact me as always at Eric@insidious1.com.

A Tale of Two Lifelines

I still don't understand the fascination with the G.I. JOE character Lifeline. But I can't argue with the fact that his name always comes up whenever I talk favorite characters with other JOE fans. To this end, I've created several custom action figures of him. (You can check out another one here.) So I thought it would be fun to compare two of my more recent versions of Lifeline that are different takes on the character but share one common part, the excellent Trigate Creations headsculpt.

As you can see, the first one more closely resembles the original 1986 action figure with the button down shirt with three pouches while the second has more of a modern updated helicopter rescue look with a quilted body armor, knee pads, and removable pistol on the chest.

I added some gear and sculpted details to both figures to make them even more authentic to the original including a little "beeper" type gizmo on the first one's belt. The head and my custom designed decals work great with either interpretation.

I also painted the heck out of the gear to really bring out the detail on the backpacks which are vintage and required some radical modding to fit the modern peg hole.

I hope you dig them. If you want to see more of what Trigate has to offer, you can check them out here. If you'd like to buy a set of these decals or commission a Lifeline of your own, you can contact me as always at Eric@insidious1.com.

"Poor Wild Bill. He was a good soldier, a better pilot, and a swell friend."

"Hiccup! I ain't dead you muckle head, I jush had one too many Rum and Yo Joe Colash."