 Hello and welcome to 90s Month. We will be looking at G.I. Joe toys released in the 1990s and since the 90s was the extreme decade We will be looking at G.I. Joe extreme No, no, this figure is not from G.I. Joe extreme. This is from 1993. We're not quite extreme yet. In 1993 G.I. Joe was mega 90s Month continues with our first look at the mega marines We're commander 788 here We're commander 788 here and welcome to the second review of 90s Month Yes, October is the month of Halloween and Halloween is filled with lots of Spooks and ghouls and that is pretty extreme Mega so this week we are going to look at mega marines gung ho the mega marines were introduced in 1993 And were only available that year. They added yet another science fiction element to G.I. Joe They also tried to capitalize on the neon colors that were popular at the time gung ho is also one of my favorite characters I really loved the first version of gung ho in 1983. This figure also came with a special bonus feature Play-doh, I mean moldable bio armor Mega seriously though. It's play-doh. Oh, but this isn't just any play-doh though I bought this particular figure because its canister of play-doh had never been opened. It was still sealed This is 24 year old play-doh. Do you want to see what 24 year old play-doh looks like? Well, you're gonna see it and I can tell you right now. It's mega Let's look at the final vintage version of G.I. Joe's first marine gung ho This is the 1993 G.I. Joe mega marines commander gung ho This is the fifth version of gung ho. It was available only in 1993. It was discontinued for the year 1994 mega marines was a sub team within G.I. Joe created in 1993 to fight against mutant Mega monsters created by dr. Mindbender the mega monsters were mutated Cobra troops Why was G.I. Joe fighting mutants in the 1990s? Let's see. What else was popular at that time? Yeah, this is another example of Hasbro chasing trends the mega marines had only one vehicle the monster blaster APC I did a video unboxing and assembling the monster blaster and I have to admit It's a pretty cool vehicle why mega marines gung ho was a marine so that makes sense He's the mega marines leader, but the mega marines also included clutch and he was not a marine So if the mega marines include nonmarines, why are they called that most likely answer? Aliens the 1986 movie featured the colonial marines They were really cool and badass and Hasbro wanted G.I. Joe to be like that Except Hasbro had already done a colonial marines ripoff with battle force 2000 in 1987 also the colonial marines did not wear neon colors They look like real futuristic military. That's one of the things that made them look cool So Hasbro has badly missed the mark here So why wasn't G.I. Joe's other prominent marine from the 1980s a leather neck a member of the mega marines? Well, that's because in 1993 leather neck was a little busy hunting giraffes I'm not gonna say giraffe trousers leather neck is the worst thing ever But you could say it I won't stop you version one of gung ho was introduced in 1983 the second year of 1980s G.I. Joe version two was released in 1987 wearing u.s. Marine Corps dress blues version three of gung ho was released in 1992 there were two versions of gung ho from 1993 I don't have version four, but that was just a reuse of the mold from version three in different colors Version five was the mega marines version version one was famous for having a chest tattoo of the Marine Corps emblem Version two was wearing a dress uniform. So of course the tattoo was covered up Version three makes the tattoo on the chest smaller. That's not how tattoos work. They don't just move around Version two removes the tattoo entirely version five again has the tattoo covered up I missed the tattoo. It was one of gung ho's defining features. Let's take a look at the card for gung ho I have the full card back this time and I have to say the artwork is not good The proportions are off the left arm holding the gun looks too small And it doesn't look like it bends in the right place His head is just sort of floating above his shoulders It has instructions in the space behind the figure based on this It looks like the bio armor is supposed to be used for the missiles as well We'll take a look at that later I like this part play dough modeling compounds sold separately can be used in addition to moldable bio armor We are really trying to sell the idea that this moldable bio armor isn't really just play dough Oh, sure. You could use play dough too. I mean you could steal it from your younger sister or something But moldable bio armor has GI Joe on the lid It's like calling a doll an action figure so boys would buy it flipping the card around to the back We have the other mega marines and the mega monster enemies oddly Dr. Meinbender is not included in this even though it mentions dr. Meinbender in the description And there was a new version of dr. Meinbender in 1993 But it was not in the mega marine series the figures are numbered which makes no difference since you don't have to buy them in any Particular order the figures also have numbers on them, but those numbers do not correspond with the numbers in the series So who cares we have some battle core figures here and we have the file card the file card is neon green and quite ugly But it isn't as hard to read as the salmon colored file card for supersonic fighters rock and roll Let's take a look at the accessories starting with the helmet of the helmet is orange It looks like a firefighters helmet It has a microphone and a flap on the back this helmet is totally unsuitable for combat It doesn't fit on the figures head very well look at this It pops off you press it on and it pops right back up not a fan of the helmet So let's look at the spring-loaded missile launcher also in that orange color I do not have the figure holding this because it does not fit in its hand very well A lot of 90s figures came with these spring-loaded missile launchers This one is not original to gung-ho it came with a couple other figures in 1993 and in almost the same color With this bright orange color gung-ho is really trying to make sure his enemy can see him This is intended to be slung under the figures forearm the hand goes through this opening and the grip is on the top It came with two black missiles and it could be operated by placing the missile in the missile launcher with the notch side down Slide it in until it clicks And then the trigger is here on the bottom. Let's test the missile launcher by taking out dr. Mindbender Let's look at the bio armor mold and this works with the main gimmick on the figure This is used to mold the Play-Doh onto the figure and it also molds warheads on the missiles So we'll look at that this of course works with the moldable bio armor That came in a black canister with a red lid and a silver label It is sealed with tape when I purchased this toy this canister of Play-Doh had never been open This is 24 year old never used before a Play-Doh This is what makes this review special what other GI Joe reviewer would dare to open 24 year old Play-Doh and show you what it looks like. Are you ready for this? Let's pop the cap off the canister and There it is This is 24 year old Play-Doh. It is hard It's completely solid except some parts have been crystallized it has crumbled a bit But it certainly doesn't look anything like Play-Doh. It's more of a rock It tastes surprisingly kind of minty Well, we can't test the bio armor mold with this So I got a fresh can of Play-Doh in red since that seems to be the color the original was So we're gonna use this to test out the bio armor mold This is supposed to be really easy You just take some Play-Doh and put it in the back half and then take a little bit more Play-Doh and put it in the Front half and then you press this on the figure the instructions say to point the arms straight out and to press the mold Haves Together on the figure I can already tell this is going to be excess so I'm gonna take this off now Let's pop this mold apart and see how the bio armor looks and There is the moldable bio armor. Oh, that's a relief I'm so glad this doesn't look stupid with the bio armor on gung-ho has a wild mix of colors yellow Green orange red. He might as well carry a sign that says shoot me In fact, I'll bet you could carve that into the bio armor there fixed it I know with this Play-Doh armor you can simulate battle damage But I'm mainly concerned with getting it off the figure without leaving any bits of Play-Doh in the crevices This bio armor mold also makes a warhead for the missiles So let's demonstrate that place the missile in and squeeze the mold halves together now pull it apart And we'll need to remove the excess There we go now. Let's see how this fires with a Play-Doh warhead on it. All right. Once again Let's take out dr. Mindbender. It's still fires fine. It doesn't make much difference though The rest of the accessories came on this black accessories tree The two black missiles were on here as well none of the accessories that were on this tree were exactly original But there were some differences from the original issues This machete is very similar to the machete that came with muskrat and was later Recolored and packaged with a lot of other figures including Colonel courage and robo-joe The mold was slightly altered from the original, but I don't know why they bothered it is still mostly the same this submachine gun originally came with tracker from 1991 and was reused many many times This rifle originally came with grunt version 3 from 1991 but the rifle that came with grunt had two holes bored into the side So it would connect to his missile launcher. This shotgun originally came with muskrat from 1988 And it is very similar to that original muskrat shotgun only minor differences in the details Let's take a look at the articulation for gung-ho. He had the articulation that was standard for gi Joe figures by 1993 meaning he could turn his head from left to right and look up and down He could swing his arm up at the shoulder about so far and swivel at the shoulder all the way around He had a hinge at the elbow so he could bend at the elbow about 90 degrees He had a swivel at the bicep so he could swivel his arm all the way around The figure was held together with a rubber o-ring that looped around the inside that allowed him to move at the torso a bit He could move his legs apart about so far He could bend his leg at the hip about 90 degrees and bend at the knee about 90 degrees Let's look at the sculpt design and color of gung-ho version one of gung-ho was one of my favorite figures from 1983 I thought version two while not having much play value was a fitting tribute to the Marine Corps Everything after version two though does not work for me Of course the first version looks a bit silly in hindsight with the open vest and tattoo But I still liked it that figure started a lifelong fascination with the US Marine Corps Later versions though just don't look like gung-ho to me. Let's look at his head He has a bald head and a mustache a black mustache even though his original mustache was brown Gung-ho was always bald but in version one he had his Marine Corps utility cover Later versions took his hat away leaving his head looking like a cue ball Give the man his dignity let him have his hat on his chest He has bright yellow shoulder pads and a yellow bandolier with orange pouches He had to have pouches because it was the 90s and Rob Liefeld was popular on his chest He has a black circle with a sculpted number one on it on the card art that one is yellow But there is no yellow paint on the number on the figure I have mixed feelings about this the number is an unpainted detail Which is usually a problem for me But the yellow number on the card looks like something out of Sesame Street So it's a wash on his arms He has yellow shoulder coverings which conveniently stop at the arm swivel so they don't have to be painted There's still some Play-Doh gunk in there that stuff is impossible to get out He has green sleeves with yellow forearm pads and gloves and the detail on the forearm pads and gloves is not bad If they were in a different color, they would be great on his waist piece He has that green and black camouflage again pretty good But then he has a bright yellow belt and crotch covering on his legs We see green trousers with more of that black marbled camouflage pattern Man, they could have done something with that if they hadn't covered it up so much He has thigh straps sort of they're kind of big thigh coverings on the left side He has a pouch which to the file card calls a survival slash medical kit The paint mask on the thigh straps isn't too good Some of the yellow paint spills over to the leg detail that's poor quality control He has tall yellow boots that go up to his knees and he has a square knife on his right shin The detail on these boots is really pretty good but I have another big problem with him Because there is no paint on the lower legs there is a color mismatch between the green thighs and the yellow knees And that is very obvious when you bend the knee That looks very ugly and I will always have a problem with this Let's take a look at Gungho's file card and this is one of those 90s file cards that has a list of the features on the figure I am not going to read through those I'm going to focus on the character of Gungho His codename is Gungho and he is the mega marine leader since he was GI Joe's first marine I have no problem with that File name is Etienne Arlafit Primary military specialty is bio military expert Secondary military specialty heavy weapons In contrast on his original file card from 1983 his military specialties were Rekondo and jungle warfare training instructor His grade is E9 sergeant major and that is a promotion from his version 1 file card that had him as an E7 But like rock and roll that promotes him over Duke who in 1992 was still an E8 master sergeant I do want to see Gungho get promoted But I also prefer Duke to be the highest ranking non-commissioned officer on the team I think his role on the team should be reflected in his grade We have a quote here presumably from Gungho himself It says this isn't just another bug hunt it's war Well the bio viper is kind of bug like so I guess that could be the bug hunt he's talking about But the monstro viper isn't a bug This paragraph says born on the bayou Born on the bayou Gungho's background in hostile environments and experience in the U.S. Marine Corps made Him a natural choice to command the mega marine forces Gungho knows you can never be sure where or when a mega monster will turn up So you have to be prepared at all times At all times He demands that his mega marines sleep with one eye open That way they won't think it's just a nightmare they're having when the mega Monsters really attack Is that meant to be literal because if so it sounds dumb Even if you could force yourself to sleep with one eye open That doesn't mean you're conscious and aware of what's going on Gungho is known for his effectiveness in neutralizing the most dangerous enemies A skill that will be put to the test fighting these genetically enhanced creeps Lot of music references in this one Looking at how Gungho was used in G.I. Joe media He appeared in the very first G.I. Joe cartoon in 1983 He wore his version 1 uniform for that He appeared many times in the original series But he never appeared in his mega marines uniform As far as I can tell he didn't appear at all in the Deke animated series in the 1990s Which is unfortunate He was mostly forgotten after his brief appearances in the 1987 animated movie His next animated appearance was in Valor versus Venom Which is outside the scope of this review In the G.I. Joe comic book by Marvel Comics He was introduced in issue number 11 Along with a lot of other characters from 1983 I can't find a reference for this version of Gungho in the comic book either So I guess that makes the media section of this review easy Awesome Party time Looking at mega marines Gungho overall It has playdough Now there's nothing wrong with playdough Lots of kids played with playdough I played with playdough It's a fun toy It's a fun toddler toy Take a look at the age of the kids playdough was marketed to This is not the age group for G.I. Joe That kid can't play with G.I. Joe because he would eat the small pieces Here's my theory about kids No kid other than a toddler wants to be treated like a toddler But imagine mega marines Gungho without the playdough How does the figure hold up? Well the sculpting is pretty well done In fact I would say the 90s was a great era for sculpting on G.I. Joe figures I've heard some G.I. Joe pundits say we should ignore the hideous colors and focus on the sculpting No The color scheme was an artistic choice There is no reason to ignore it The designers will be graded on the whole project Not just part of it The base color of the figure is pretty good I'd go so far as to say the camouflage pattern is brilliant But it is totally lost behind the day glow yellow I want to hate the mega marines too This is yet another example of Hasbro chasing the trends that were popular at the time And I can't help but detect a hint of resentment at their competitors In the fact that the mutants are the enemies of the mega marines I don't hate the mega marines though The mega marines actually make a pretty compelling self-contained narrative You have a mad scientist that turns people into monstrous mutations And you have a squad of specially equipped soldiers that has to hunt them down in one bad ass vehicle That's not bad You could do something with that Just not in G.I. Joe As I've said before, the essence of 80's children's entertainment Was the fantasy universes in which they existed Transformers had a universe He-Man had a universe G.I. Joe had a universe And in each of those universes, there were rules Everything that happens in those universes has to make sense Because if it doesn't, it breaks the fantasy From the very beginning of the real American hero line Great efforts were made to give it a sense of military authenticity With a few science fiction elements thrown in to spice it up The file cards were filled with real world references They told us G.I. Joe existed in a world of very much like ours With a few differences This wasn't He-Man There's nothing wrong with He-Man But this wasn't He-Man This was G.I. Joe As the line went on, they stretched those rules You can decide yourself where the breaking point was For me, the breaking point was Cobra Law in 1987 And the Mega Marines are way past the breaking point They're just too mega I'll punctuate that point by leaving you with the words of Larry Hama From the forward of Mark Belomo's Ultimate Guide to G.I. Joe Volume 2 What I have attempted vainly to impress upon the unnamed Nabobs of industry Is the importance of the totality of interconnecting internal agreements That compromise the solid base upon which even the most absurd fantasies stand upon In other words, it's all gotta jibe, dude Those words to me are mega And they are the essence of my objection to the Mega Marines and Cobra Law And all the other silly elements that were added to G.I. Joe Even if they would have been fine on their own They don't fit in the universe you were trying to force them into That was my review of Mega Marines Gung Ho I hope you enjoyed it If you did, make sure you like it on YouTube And subscribe to the YouTube channel And share the video to help this channel grow Find me on Facebook, Twitter, and Patreon 90s Month continues next week I'll see you there and until then remember Only G.I. Joe is G.I. Joe