Leaky Suit Brigade

A Blog About All Things GI Joe

Tag Archives: Funskool


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Complete Set of the Funskool/Complan Commando Force Figures

I was recently able to complete the Funskool/Complan Commando Force figure set! These figures free/promotional figures, that were given away on the purchase of ‘Complan Chocolate Health Drink.’ It appears that they were carded as one file card for each of the figures has surfaced (except for the Blue/Yellow Firefly/Short Fuse figure). The last figure that I needed to fill out the roster was the Blue/Yellow Firefly/Short Fuse. I believe this is the first complete set in collectors’ hands. However, I know that more sets will be completed as I have confirmed 4 Canary Ann figures now. 3 have sold, and one is still available, but it is way overpriced for the condition it is in.

Their names:
Emerald Gung Ho/Zap – “Striker”.
Red/Purple Scrap Iron/Zap – “Cross Country”
Blue/Yellow Firefly/Short Fuse – ??
Red Baroness – “Rednok”
Yellow Lady Jaye – “Canary Ann”

Funskool/Complan Commando Force Complete Set

Funskool/Complan Commando Force Complete Set


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Let’s Make That Two – Funskool Commando Force Canary Ann

This year will likely go down as the biggest collecting year ever for me! Not only have I been lucky enough to make multiple deals with Aire, win two lots from Shane Watson’s Vectis auctions (more later on that), but I just completed a deal for one of the most rare and desirable figures in the hobby – Canary Ann!!!! This deal fell into my lap and I pulled out all the stops to make it happen. I have to thank the seller for making this one of the easiest and best transactions I’ve ever had. It definitely made me nervous went I sent the payment – but the seller was AWESOME.

I am sure that more Canary Anns will be found (I know there is at least a 3rd, maybe a 4th), this is definitely the first, but hopefully not the last to be shared publicly. Now that it is hands on I can get some great pictures of it to share with everyone. It is complete and in absolutely great shape, tight joints and just some minor paint wear on the gloves and one boot. The first order of business when I get home will be to switch out the screws (they aren’t rusted, but I’d like new ones in anyway) and then to place her right next to my other Commando Force figures!

Before I get to the pictures, here is the background info on the Funskool Commando Force figures:

They were the free figures, that were given away on the purchase of ‘Complan Chocolate Health Drink’.

Their names:
Emerald Gung Ho/Zap – “Striker”.
Red/Purple Scrap Iron/Zap – “Cross Country”
Blue/Yellow Firefly/Short Fuse – ??
Red Baroness – “Rednok”
Yellow Lady Jaye – “Canary Ann”

Enjoy the pictures!


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Balls of Steel

Well last night I took a huge risk and decided it was time to attempt to retore my Rednok (Red Baroness) from the Funskool/Complan Commando Force. When I first picked up the figure, she looked like she was beat with an ugly stick, so because Rednok and Funskool Baroness have an identical head I found one to swap out with. The first, problem or minor issue was coming to grips with opening up a MOC Funskool Baroness, but I got over that pretty quickly as Rednok is much more rare.

The real issue came when I attempted to unscrew the back screw… It was completely rusted out. It just crumbled when I put my precision screwdriver into it. At this point I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. I had an incredibly rare and expensive figure that sooner or later would have an O-ring shape and then I would be left with pieces of an incredibly rare and expensive figure. So, after going back and forth on the issue for awhile I decided to get out my Dremel and drill the screw-head off so I could open up the figure.

The nightmare scenario would have been drilling into the screw and pushing it right out her chest, effectively destroying the figure. After deciding I would live with the results I slowly and carefully drilled the screw-head off. Once that was accomplished her body came apart like any normal figure and I too the remaining part of the screw out with some pliers. Then I popped off the old head that had definitely seen better days and put on a mint as can be, fresh off the card head. I think it turned out great and was well worth the gamble. Rednok got the plastic surgery she always wanted and looks like a million bucks now on display!

Rednok Before

Rednok Before

Rednok After

Rednok After


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3 AWESOME Figures I just Picked Up! 2 Super Rare Commando Force Figures and One Brazilian Figure

Posts haven’t been as frequent as there hasn’t been too much going on.  I am very late on my xmas gifts (coming soon TM), but those can wait because in the last week, I finally pulled the trigger on one figure that has been available for awhile and also picked up two others that just came on the market. First up, we have the Funskool Commando Force Cross Country. This figure comes from the same set as the Canary Ann and Rednok (Red Baroness) that were giveaways with a Complan chocolate drink in India. I had my eyes on this figure for a while now and the price and timing were perfect to pick this up. All of these are birthday presents to myself; I celebrated my 28th yesterday. Second, is a Funskool Commando Force Striker! It has a broken hand, but I am think about switching it out with a Funskool Gung Ho hand seeing as they are identical. With these picks ups, I only need a Canary Ann (but with only 1 known and a 3K price tag – I may be waiting awhile) and the Firefly/Short Fuze to complete the Commando Force set. So, if any of you out there have the Firefly/Short Fuze, I am interested. But I’d like some time to recover from buying these first! Third, I picked up a mint/complete Brazilian Maligno (aka the Toxo-Viper). This was a must buy for me, I had been looking for one for a long time and this one was in great shape and came with all its accessories including the electronic backpack!

 

Commando Force Striker

Commando Force Striker

Brazil Maligno - Toxo-Viper

Brazil Maligno – Toxo-Viper

Commando Force Cross Country

Commando Force Cross Country


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New GI Joes, Comics and More!

Well guys I have been busy buying all kinds of stuff lately, so I will have a lot of great new, unique and rarely seen content coming up. In addition, I am going to start putting pictures of  my entire collection online. It will be a mammoth undertaking and something that will be work in progress for awhile. As a start, I have edited the “My Collection” page and formatted into different picture galleries. The First one up is a small portion of my Funskool GI Joe figure and vehicle collection. More will be added this weekend.

First up for some hard to find items that many have probably never even heard of are GI Joe comics from Egypt and India! There were 4 GI Joe comics produced in Egypt in Arabic. Pictured below are 3 of the 4. These are vary rare and I know of only one other person that has them (but this being GI Joe, I am sure there are others out there with them).

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The next two pictures are of GI Joe #1 and #2 produced in English, in India by Funskool (who also produced the GI Joe toys in India). The Covers of these are in a lot rougher shape but the inner pages are white with bright colors. I believe there was only 1 other GI Joe comic produced in India.

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In upcoming posts I will also share other rare international versions of GI Joe comics, so if you enjoy seeing all the different places that GI Joe was produced, keep coming back for more.


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New Joes!

Well guys it has been a little slow around here on the GI Joe front. There has been a lack of quality international items on the market lately. In addition, since I only need about 22 vehicles for a full run of the US release Joes they are also VHTF. 

But I was able to pick up some very cool pieces! First up we have a MINT Funskool Clutch and mint Funskool Snow Job. The Clutch is the real prize as it is very tough to come by. I was also able to pick it up for a steal at $50! I have seen examples sell for more than $200! Second, we have the SDCC 2012 AND 2013 boxed sets! I hadn’t picked up the 2012 set yet and found it to be good timing to grab that along with the new 2013 SDCC GI Joe/Transformer exclusive. Third, I grabbed a GI Joe Funskool Stalker Jet! It is a largely unknown vehicle and kind of hard to find, though it doesn’t cost too much. It is basically the same as the Jet that was released as part of GI Joe Savage or Extreme (I forget because I try to block that time from my GI Joe memory). While here in the states the vehicle is not associated with ARAH, it IS in India. 

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GI Joe Weapon Transport Variants

Hey guys so as I pull back on the amount of purchases this month, I will be posting pictures of interesting items in my collection. First up are the 1985 Weapon Transport and its international variations. This vehicle is often over looked and that has made collecting it and variations of it easy to do. Below are pictures of the US release, the Argentina (Plastirama) release, and the India (Funskool) version. The US vehicle is on the far right of the pictures and is in an olive drab/green color. The light green variant is Funskool, and the dark/bright green is from Argentina. You may also notice that with the Funskool version, the wheels are black while the US and Argentina versions are more grey. They are all pretty affordable at about $15 each plus shipping. In my experience, the Funskool version was a little harder to come across.

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Never Before Seen, One-of-a-Kind Funskool Canary Ann

This figure truly is one of the holy grails in terms of international GI Joe collecting. This is the first and only known example of Canary Ann. Until a few weeks ago, there was only a picture of her file card. This figure was privately sold. I didn’t have the cash on had to buy this, as I have been on quite the buying spree. However, I will be saving up and setting aside some cash for future grail finds such as this. I waited a couple weeks to show to hoping that the buyer would post pictures somewhere. I believe that things like this should be shown, there is absolutely no reason to hide stuff. So, I’m revealing it to everyone because no one else will.

Here is some background on this figure as well as the other figures it was released with.They were the free figures, that were given away on the purchase of ‘Complan Chocolate Health Drink’.

Their names:
Emerald Gung Ho/Zap – “Striker”.
Red/Purple Scrap Iron/Zap – “Cross Country”
Blue/Yellow Firefly/Short Fuse – ??
Red Baroness – “Rednok”
Yellow Lady Jaye – “Canary Ann”

Here are the first ever pictures (front and back) of Canary Ann, as well as the file card (front and back).

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New Joes! Funskool, FSS and more!

I bought Iceberg, the Club Membership Figure carded from the store (there still might be some available) as well as the mystery 13th FSS figure Blackout! I also picked up an Argentinian Flash with his file card. I’ve included a second picture with the US release (on the right) to compare the difference in color. Finally, I also picked some rare Funskool figures! I grabbed Emerald Zap, Purple Ripper, Gung Ho and Lady Jaye! I had been looking for the Emerald Zap and Purple Ripper for awhile and got both for a good deal! 

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Just Bought a Batman Toy! (Sorta)

Well for the first time in 20 years, I bought a Batman toy. However, this one is still GI Joe related! In 2003/2004 (I think) Funskool in India, used the mold from the 1988 Cobra Stellar Stiletto for a Batman jet. I first heard of this about 6 months ago and I had been looking for it, but did not put much effort into it. But since I also recently picked up the Bronze Bombers 12-pack which used Joe molds I decided that I would check eBay today for the Batman Battle Jet and I randomly stumbled upon it and picked it up for $10! 

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