The GI Joe Adventure Team
Undercover Agent
KFG Man of Action
Here's my review the GI JOE Adventure Team Man of Action and the Undercover Agent set. I waited with anticipation for this one to appear. As a kid, I always wanted the MOA soldier, but never saw one on the shelves (until I got the MOA talker in the late Autumn of my Joe years). This one, with the Kung Fu Grip looked like a winner when I saw it on the web, and I wasn't disappointed when I saw it in person.
Here is the set out of the box (but still on the inner card). It seemed to be packed well and, unlike other reports, mine did not have "hat head" from the packaging. I didn't have this set as a kid, so the Nostalgia Factor was pretty low for me. I thought it was odd to include grenades, binoculars, a clunky map case, and a deep sea diver's knife. These just seemed odd to include in an "undercover" set. I think I'll toss the flashlight, binoculars, and map case into my AT helicopter. The diving knife will go into our Sea Stuff box, the grenades will go to the "ME Squad". The metal AT dogtag is mooey bueno! It's very cool with the GI Joe logo on one side and the AT symbol on the other. I think the mask will go to one of the kids' "invisible Joes".
One of the most notable parts of this set is the groovy briefcase with Man From U.N.C.L.E. -type pistol. The barrel extension and shoulder stock fit nicely on the poorly sculpted Luger. The little reel-to-reel tape recorder tucks in there, too. Reasonably cool. The downside of this part was that my briefcase wouldn't close completely when the stuff was installed. I haven't figured out why yet, but eventually I'll figure it out and fix it. For now, I am just using a clear elastic to hold it shut.
The hands were a big area of interest in this one. Are the new KFG
hands as good as the originals? How do they compare to Cots Action Hands?
How do they compare to the Palitoy Action Man hands? In the pic to
the left, you can see the Cots Action Hand on top, the new KFG in the middle,
and the Palitoy hand on the bottom. Laying in the box below all of the
hands is an old original KFG hand. I didn't bother with a direct comparison,
because the limp, weak original KFG hand was faaaar inferior to ALL of
these! The Cots hand had the least finger flexibility and narrowest grip.
The new KFG hand had longer fingers than the Cots, but that new plastic
is not nearly as flexible as I expected. It reminded me of the FDNY Real
Heroes type of plastic. I wasn't impressed. It's a lot better than the
original "booger pickin'" hands and better than the Captain Action/Real
Heroes hands, but I still prefer the Cots hand. The other one here is the
Palitoy hand. The plastic of the Palitoy hand is the best of the lot -
it's strong yet flexible. The Palitoy hand is larger, but gets my vote
as #1 hand. Too bad Hasbro didn't try to duplicate the Palitoy hand!
Here's the new MOA on the right and the original
MOA on the left. It looks like the new MOA head is actually smaller than
the original. It's even more noticeable in person. Weird. You'd think
the original would've shrunk over time... and it's still bigger!
Here's a comparison of the original MOA versus
the new MOA. Notice the size of the neck is different. The "old" head
sure seems bigger all the way around! Weird!
Here's our AT's original MOA greeting the new recruit.
"Welcome to your new assignment. We're glad to have you aboard."
This new
MOA guy has already been issued ME Action Soldier fatigues so he'll be a
real Man of Action. I have some AT stickers around here somewhere. Soon
this guy will be sporting one of those on his uni to make him look even
MORE official.
The new MOA has already distinguished himself in action. He had barely
arrived when a alien-looking beetle (approximately 1 threatening centimeter
long) menacingly approached my daughter as she innocently sat on the couch
playing with the New Guy's accessories. "EEK!" she screamed as the beetle
waggled its probiscus as if sensing her fear - and ready to strike. Man
of Action to the rescue! He was there in an instant to crush the invading
beetle beneath his Undercover Agent repro boot. My daughter was so relieved,
we held an award ceremony right away. Princess Barbie hung a silver AT medal
around his neck (which conveniently came with the AT set - the metal dog
tag). The kingdom was safe! The new AT MOA was really part of the team now!
Kids rock.
Here's the MOA Undercover Agent ready for a mission. This set rates high on my Groovy Scale. If you're an AT fan, it's a Must Have. If you're a fan of the MOA, it's a Must Have. If you're a KFG fan and need the nostalgia, it's probably a Must Have. If you're into BBI and Dragon modern SWAT stuff, you'll surely pass on this one (and aren't reading this page anyhow!!!) ;-) Great set, swell packaging, nifty contents. AT Commander says "get this one before they're all gone!" If this ever hits clearance, I'll certainly get a few more!!!
This guy just makes me recall the old Mission
Impossible episodes: "your mission, should you choose to accept it… this
tape will self destruct in ten seconds…" Fun!
or click the bar to email me, the ATCommander@adventureteam.com (put "Sandbox" in the subject line or it'll auto-delete!)