 This is the 1988 Night Force Outback. This is version 2 of Outback, G.I. Joe's survival specialist. This figure was first available in 1988 as part of the first wave of Night Force figures. There was a second wave of Night Force figures in 1989, but I am unclear about whether the first wave of Night Force figures was also available in 1989. All Night Force figures were available in two packs. Night Force Outback was packaged with Night Force Crazy Legs. They were also exclusive to Toys R Us, so they weren't widely available at retail. All Night Force figures were reissues of earlier figures, but with new color schemes. They were mostly in darker colors than the original, but not always. Night Force Falcon, for example, his colors are less Night Attack ready than his original figure. The first version of Outback was released in 1987 and was still on the pegs in 1988, so these figures were available at the same time. But of course you could only get the Night Force Outback at Toys R Us. There were a couple later versions of Outback released in 1993. They were wildly different from the first two versions. Yojo.com lists these as versions 3 and 4, but I consider them to be variants of the same version. Comparing version 1 and version 2, one problem I always had with version 1 of Outback was the white shirt. It was inappropriate for combat. The rest of the figure was perfect, but his shirt didn't quite fit. Version 2 fixes that. The most obvious Cobra counterpart to Night Force would be the Night Viper, released in 1989, the year after this figure. The direct Cobra counterpart for Outback would be the Range Vipers from 1990, who had wilderness survival training like Outback. The practice of recoloring old figures and releasing them as subsets became popular in the late 80s. In 1988 they issued Tiger Force, which was entirely made up of reissued figures. Tiger Force is better known than Night Force since it was more broadly available. In 1989, Python Patrol and Slaughter's Marauders used reissued figures. The accessories for version 2 of Outback are the same as version 1, but the colors of most of them have changed and for the better. They are black, which is perfect for night missions. Let's take a look at Night Force Outback's accessories starting with his rifle. I have his rifle carefully slung across his chest and over his shoulder, and I do not put this rifle in his hand and there's a reason for that. This rifle, as far as I can tell, is the same as the one that was issued with the original Outback figure. If there's any difference, I have not been able to spot it. It has this strap that goes from the front to the very back and that is very fragile. Also, it connects to the back of the rifle very close to the grip, so it's impossible to put the rifle in the figure's hand without putting strain on this connection for the strap. This one, in fact, is just barely holding on. So I try not to put any more strain on it than absolutely necessary. This rifle appears to be a modified version of the Heckler & Koch HK53. In the first Outback video, I think I had this pegged as a G3, but upon further reflection, I think it looks more like the HK53. The next accessory is his flashlight. The flashlight is very small. It is black. It has a red dot painted on it for the lens. The paint application is a nice touch and it's an upgrade from the version 1 flashlight, which was green and did not have any paint color on it. Because of the size of this flashlight, it is often missing. It pegs onto the action figure. There's a hole on the action figure's left leg and it just pegs into there. It actually pegs in pretty solidly. I don't usually worry about it falling out. Outback's next accessory is his backpack. It is very large, but that's appropriate for Outback's specialty. He's a wilderness survival specialist, so he would carry a lot of survival and camping gear in it. It is the same backpack as version 1, but doesn't it look superb in black? Even though this backpack is quite large, it doesn't seem to put the figure too much off balance. He still stands perfectly well with a figure stand. His final accessory is his web belt. The belt goes around his waist and over his shoulders and around the back of his neck. This would be the load bearing equipment for his backpack. We didn't get this kind of accessory very often in GI Joe and it's nice that they gave us this for Outback. It's nice to have straps for the backpack. Usually the straps were just sculpted onto the figure or sometimes they were omitted. The belt connects in the back with a buckle and it is a tight fit. It just has a tab that fits into a loop that can very easily be removed. The belt itself has some nice detail with a stitching pattern for the belt and pouches. With the accessories out of the way, let's take a look at the articulation on Night Force Outback. He had the articulation that was standard for figures in 1988. He could turn his head from left to right and look up and down. He could swing his arm up at the shoulder and swivel at the shoulder all the way around. He had a hinge at the elbow that allowed him to move at the elbow about 90 degrees and he had a swivel at the bicep that allowed him to 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 he could bend at the knee about 90 degrees. Let's take a look at the sculpt design and color of Night Force Outback and of course they did entirely reuse the mold from version 1 of Outback. They even still have the copyright 1987 stamp on the inside of the leg. On his head he has ginger hair, kind of long hair, a full beard, red eyebrows and black eyes. He has a black bandana tied around his head. The knot is there in the back. His hair color is pretty close to the same as version 1. But on version 1 that bandana is green. On his chest we have the most significant difference between this figure and the original. He is wearing a green t-shirt instead of the white t-shirt that was on the original. But he still has survival printed across his chest. The source of this survival motto was printed on the file card for version 1. It is not on the version 2 file card. It is an excerpt from the US Army Ranger Handbook 1969 edition. The title stands for S. Size up the situation. U. Undo haste makes waste. R. Remember where you are. V. Vanquish fear and panic. I. Improve your situation. V. Value living. A. Act like the natives. And L. Learn basic skills. He is wearing short sleeves, green. He has a muscular build. He has black gloves. And he has a black watch on his right wrist. The thing is, the sleeves are a different color green than the rest of the shirt. The shirt on the chest is kind of a dark olive drab green. Whereas the sleeves are more of a kelly green. There's no good reason for this. This is the only place where this green color appears on the figure. Doing it the right color would not have required another paint spray. They just did it the wrong color. It's distracting. On his waist he has a black belt. A couple pockets in the back. A belt buckle has a sculpted eagle on it. On his legs he has green trousers. The same color as the green on the chest. He has a black pocket on his right leg. On his left leg he has an unpainted pocket. And of course he has the hole where the flashlight pegs in. He has a sculpted stripe that goes down both legs. On his left ankle he has a black knife. He has a strap that kind of goes around his left shin. He has a black pretty standard looking combat boot. Let's take a look at the file card. This file card is partially the same as the original. The biographical and specialty information is the same. We have his faction as G.I. Joe and there is the night force logo there. We have a portrait of Outback and as you can see they did try to reflect the different colors of the sleeves in the portrait. It just doesn't look right. His code name is Outback and he's the survivalist. His file name is Stuart R. Selkirk. His primary military specialty is infantry. Secondary military specialty is survival training instructor. Birthplace is Big Piney Wyoming and his grade is E5. His first paragraph is mostly the same as the original. It says Outback was an instructor at both the survival school and jungle warfare training center. He has had extensive experience in Central America and may or may not have participated in clandestine operations in the Middle East. Most people are intimidated by the wilderness. Here's where we have a difference from the original. On the version 1 file card they had a typo there. Well they fixed that on version 2. It says they do not feel comfortable in an area where there is no sign of human life for miles. Not Outback exclamation point. That's another change on the version 1 file card. It's just a period. He believes in being part of his environment not its adversary. This bottom paragraph is entirely different from the version 1 file card. The version 1 file card of course has the survival acronym from the US Army Ranger Handbook. It says a covert team that functions at night and lays low during the daylight hours has its own peculiar survival problems. A nice cozy spot to set up an ambush could also be a preferable nesting place for poisonous snakes. A dry stream bed might be an inviting place to pitch a shelter if one didn't know about the possibility of flash floods. It's Outback's job to get the night force team to their target intact and healthy. Taking a look at how Outback was used in G.I. Joe media. He didn't appear in the animated series at all. He was only animated for commercials. Looking at the G.I. Joe comic book series published by Marvel Comics. Outback first appeared in issue number 59. But he had more important appearances later. In issue number 61 he took part in a mission with stalker, quick kick and snow job in the fictional country of Borovia. The mission went badly. Stalker, quick kick and snow job were captured. Outback was the only one to make it out. Special missions number 6 tells the story of Outback's escape from Borovia. He has to use his wits and survival skills to escape the pursuit of the evil Colonel Ratnikov. Outback had a few scattered appearances later in the series, but he didn't have much impact on the story.