That's a good point... that head sculpt could easily have been fitted with a neck post designed to fit Deep Six's abnormal body style. If they re-used a head that was already in existence it would have helped save a step on a figure that didn't use their standard buck.

An earlier comment by Trekker got me thinking... that Breaker head does look a bit like Flash/Hawk/Short Fuze. In fact, I've always felt that a lot of the heads from the early years looked like each other. When I first got Deep Six, I thought he looked like a red haired Grunt. Ace looks a LOT like Flash. Rip Cord looks a lot like Thunder.

Is it possible that these heads that resembled each other came from the same sculptor and when the unique headed prototypes were shown, a bean counter had the brilliant idea of saving them money by reusing head molds rather than make new molds for heads that were similar?

I'm curious Trekker... did you by any chance try to snap on a first year Joe helmet on Deep Six?

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I am pretty sure that most of the '81 for '82 sculpts were done by Jim Toatley who unfortunately passed away in 1986 so all I have to go on are the memories of his former co-workers. His sculpts were described as having "asymmetrical characteristics" which apparently drove some people nuts who thought that the heads should be identical on both sides as much as possible. Meaning no hair sculpted more on one side etc. Probably more symmetry in the hair-lines as well. Toatley is the one who did the first 3 3/4" GI JOE prototype by sculpted clay onto a Buck Rogers figure. The prototype that is responsible for the articulation and detail of ARAH figures.

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He-Man was born out of Big Jim and RAH from Buck Rogers?!
We learn something new everyday and half the battle and all that

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No, I don't recall ever trying that.

As for the prototype of G.I. Joe being based on a Mego Buck Rogers figure, that doesn't surprise me a bit. Mego based those Buck Rogers figures on the Micronauts figures which they'd imported from Takara. The G.I. Joe figures essentially have the same articulation design as Micronauts.

Of course, Hasbro and Takara would later go on to work together on Transformers, and there's another Hasbro-Takara-G.I. Joe connection with a line I believe is called Henshin Cyborg.

Small toy world, ain't it?

Yeah Buck Rogers Tiger Man is essentially the first Real American Hero.

AND (to tie it all together)..... the reason Duke is smiling is because he is based on He-Man.

Here is the sculpting reference for Duke that was with the original wax head.
It reads "Master of the Universe Char (acter)."

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[eltonjohn]It's the circle of life!!!!![/eltonjohn]

...
Duke is He-Man?!
That's why there's always so many Duke variants in each wave!
Ice Storm Duke, Volcano Punch Duke, Snake Brawling Duke... It all makes sense now!

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Deep Six's head was originally going to be used for a GI Joe Mountain Trooper. The figure used Scrap Iron's body with Deep Six's head. The Deep Six turnaround says that it uses GI Joe Mountain Trooper head (or something like that)

Here is the mountain trooper artwork. Don't have the Deep Six turnaround saved though.

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I wonder if the Mountain Trooper art was the inspiration for the Brazilian Tigor figure. Similar overall look and color schemes.

Oddly enough, the original sculpt for Deep Six was supposed to be based on this guy with the mustache and longer hair etc. So I wonder if somewhere between 1981 and the mustache likeness and Rudat's sculpt sheet and Deep Six's eventual release and the Alpine Trooper..... there lies some sort of answer to all of this.

However, the Deep Six likeness photo reference with the mustache came from a head sculptor who didn't work on GI JOE until after 1982. If he is the one who eventually sculpted Deep Six from Rudat's reference, with no facial hair etc, then Deep Six is off the list of possible original 13 heads. Because the person who the mustache reference image comes from also sculpted Spirt, Baroness, and Duke. Which were done after 1982 or at least after the line launched in '82.

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These are the best kinds of puzzles.

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That guy from the picture could be reproduce by adding a mustache to either Scarlet's or Covergirl's sculpt since they were kinda manly...

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I'm certain I've said this before, but it is uncanny how the GI Joe team resurrected the Alpine trooper's gun, hat and general uniform design for Alpine. I'd love to see more work that was salvaged from the cutting room.

Well, this is all just awesome, and now I have an update to my OG13 customs to get to.

though Thunder will always be thunder to me, maybe I'll use thunderblast or whatever he was called in the late 90s to be one of the og13.
I look forward to any and all information you guys dig up. the one big thing i regret from not being able to get to April cons is missing out on ya'lls booth. If the owner of that Zap can be talked into sharing a pic that would be amazing.

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Okayyyy, that hair and mustache are just WAAYYY too 80's.

I like that mountain trooper, though. But that color scheme is definitely very close to the Brazilian Tigor figure, based on Recoil.

Duke based on Masters of the Universe?!??! Whoa...