i wonder if joe customizing would have existed, if back in the 80s, Hasbro released G.I.Joe in its current form.

i think i would have still bought them at the time, but with difficulty disassembling it, i'd probably wouldn't even think of customizing...

I know this is only tangential to the topic, but I'm kinda ticked off in retrospect that I had so many awesome O-ring lines and I just didn't appreciate them in the 80's. The Remco stuff was super fun too.

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This ^ Currently i've been enjoying a very first world problem - trying to figure out which joe to reinvest in. I've had 3 modern style joes over the last few months (A Cobra Soldier, Cobra Viper and Lift Ticket) and i swear i wanted to like them. I wanted to embrace them with all of their removable this and vest that. It's friggin JOE! I've been a joe fan for the majority of my life. But for some reason the magic isn't there with them and it bums me out as i would love to buy these highly detailed beauties but they dont make me smile and that in turn makes me less happy lol. I then look at these less detailed , less "polished" ARAH o-ring figures and i ask myself why i would take a step backwards? I have no clue other than they make me smile. And a large part of that is due to being able to mix and match parts relatively easily. That and their being smaller than modern joes.



And This ^ American Defense comes to mind for me. This guy i had with an absurd light blue..vest? Or coat? Anyway he had a visor that reminded me of X-Mens Cyclops. I had no interest in Cyclops himself but for some reason Cyclops knock off Remco twin has stayed in my memory for decades.

for a lot of us the O-ring is what makes a joe a joe...simple truth..

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I completely agree. I bought a substantial number of 25th style Joes. Not just a few, I had at least 100 for sure. After while I realized they just weren't Joes to me. So I sold them all and don't regret it for a second. Now my o-ring Joes? The only ones I consider selling are the junked figures or those that I have multiples of.

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I'm actively buying Vintage Joes now (and pretty happy about it ).

It was simply a superior design.

1. O-ring figures looked better. The modern figures are ruined by the mid-torso joint. It makes them look like robots. The o-ring construction provided 'camouflage' in that there is a natural 'break' between pants and torso, which is the belt line. I detest the big ugly gap on most modern figures, even when they are standing totally straight. Some of them look like they have the saggy man-tits of a 78 year old. Turn the torso to the side just a little and it ruins any illusion of this being a little human.

To 'solve' this problem, we are given vests on modern figures, but that really limits the mobility of the mid-torso joint, making them stiff, like Corps figures, losing that natural, poseable, liveliness the o-ring provided. Ironically, the vests would work much better on o-ring figs, because they wouldn't really hinder the mobility as much.

2. MUCH easier to customize. It was so easy to combine torsos and legs into novel combinations in minutes. This is all but impossible on modern figures, since part of the 'shirt' stays with legs, thus necessitating painting. Very unfriendly to casual customizes.

Admittedly, the o-ring did have one weakness, wearing out over the years. But with several places selling replacements cheaply, is that really an issue for anyone?

tl;dr O-ring is better.

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Although i've found myself seeking O-Ring gi joes lately and cant seem to "get into " the modern era figures completely i cant say that O-ring figures look better in all cases. In fact most of the modern era figures hands down look better than their o-ring counterparts. IMO that is the only thing they have going for them (better sculpting save the mid torso swivel which isn't my to my taste). Well better sculpting and better arm designs. Generally speaking a better looking figure should be enough but apparently it isn't as i'm buying vintage figures *shrugs*

I completely agree regarding the vest potentially being better suited for O-ring figures especially due to the smaller size and slightly slender proportions of the early to mid 80's torso tooling. I'm actually going to try this out if i can get my hands on a vest that fits well.

Something i've also come to appreciate as well - non ball jointed heads. I dont like the idea of heads popping off easily. It's the same reason why i dont like figures with ball and socket joints. Speaking of which ! i recently purchased a MU Cyclops figure as it is the shortest body type that might fit in with joes with modification and still look super heroic. The damn things arm popped off casually at the upper arm bicep swivel while i was moving it and having a conversation. I was JUST telling the person how well sculpted the figure was and how well built

Now i'll admit that the sculpting of MU is better than ARAH style joes in most cases but I've never had a joe limb pop out of socket randomly. It isnt a though my other MU figures have limbs popping off but the point is i've never had it happen at all with ARAH joe. This kind of hits at the core of what i and others have said about the new figs looking good but not feeling like a toy. That's a really subjective statement but it's my opinion .

I recently welcomed the Modern Era Cobra figure Night Adder to my collection and i must admit that figure is NICE. It poses really well and looks good with its vest on .

which is moderately funny given that it isn't even the original Joe form.

I loved the o-ring figs as a kid, and would have loved them all the more had I really tinkered around with part swapping back then. But I don't think I loved them because they had o-rings. The figures themselves just captured the imagination. No single part defined them for me. If it was a construction based inspiration for me at all, as a kid, it was more the articulation in general, not just that one part.

I think whether the magic of the old figures still exists is a personal question for everyone. In my mind, the ARAH stuff still has a magic spot. But as someone who left the hobby for a long time and came back as an adult, looking at the old figures with jaded adult eyes was an alarming realization. With their odd proportions, etc... they simply did not look the way they looked in my mind's eye. Once the spell was broken, and once I saw the modern figures in comparison, I don't think I could ever recapture the love for the old style again. The new figures look the way my mind remembered the old.

For me, as a customizer of modern figures, the inexcuseable construction decision of the modern era deals with the lack of the back screw, which is (for me at least) distinct from the o-ring question, as it could be used in the modern form just easily.

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Thats definitely the case for me. I had plenty of other toy lines as a kid at one point or another but joes articulation placed them at the top of the heap eventually. Had it not been for that...perhaps i'd be celebrating the latest MOTUC or TF figure release.




As someone that is jumping back into the o-rings but primarily the figures from 2004 -2008 i have to say i agree. It was amazing to me how much more appealing the latter o-ring figures are with new head sculpts. Outside of the bulbous heads i have no problem with the o-ring proportions. If anything it's the metal rivets that make me cringe slightly heh heh.



This. I wouldn't mind the t-bar that modern figures use in old ARAH bodies.


I dont understand why Hasbro felt the need to alienate a fair percentage ( i assume ? I really dont know) of the Joe fan base? Why NOT make the figures 3 3/4'' instead of 4+ inches tall? Why NOT add a back screw considering so many are attached to it? Were these 2 issues addressed i'd overlook the other minor gripes (mid torso swivel and pop of head) and buy bucket loads of army builders. It irks me slightly as i'd love to support the line as a fan but i cant justify it.

...odd decisions on the part of Hasbro even if the decisions in some way benefited their bottom line. They've shown they'll make decisions that aren't bottom line dictated on the surface in years past.

I still like o-ring figures for many of the points already brought up here in this thread:

- I like how most of the figures are based off a standard buck, which makes them group together well and fit into most vehicles
- The figures were well constructed for rough play; these figs were made decades ago and we're still playing with them
- While Hasbro has gotten better with modern construction, the torso joint and the hunched-over shoulders and neck still look a little off
- O-ring figs can rest their arms at their sides and elbows have a wider range of motion, which is lacking for many modern figs
- I like the bigger backpack holes on vintage figs, the softer plastic and smaller holes on modern figs don't stay very secure
- As an LBC customizer, mixing up torsos and pants is much simpler

Honestly, the o-ring construction with added wrist articulation would be a good blend of old vs new for me. For whatever reason, o-ring figs are just fun to play with. It's the perfect blend of decent detailing and playability.

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I had a few purchases arrive in the mail recently - Marvel Universe and a bunch of o-ring figures . As soon as i started moving the joe figures around i thought of your post.

These things are built for kids / rough play and i'm reminded of why these figs have held up for 20+ years (or in this specific case 10-15 yrs). No heads popping off after posing them at a certain angle. No arms popping off (my Marvel Universe Cyclops right arm. I'm glad i have a dremel ...) and no floppiness / feeling of fragility. So far in my personal "testing phase" the MU figures look fantastic and make great desk jockeys while the O-ring figures look good but seem to be better suited for "play" so far.

On that note, having lunch with co-workers and GI JOE brought up, he said the best part was making your own Joes. I think a real appeal to the O ring was that anyone 8 year old with a screwdriver could customize, Even though I like both styles it takes more work to customize a figure today, something the typical kid could not do.