Alexx Shorts: DG Shipwreck (7/3/12)

Well, this is it: I've finally decided to start reposting my old "Alexx Shorts" G.I. Joe reviews.  They're the reviews that lead to what eventually became this blog!  I'll be posting them in straight copy-and-paste format, separating them with bold dotted lines so you know where they begin and end, and then I'll post some final thoughts on what I think of the figure currently.

For those unfamiliar: I used to take random pictures here and there, but by the time the Rise of Cobra toys came out, I was getting annoying with how much people had been bashing the figures which were clearly better than the previous 25th Anniversary offerings.  I set out to show people how awesome they were, and things went from there, forming into "Alexx Shorts", named so because I thought I was going to keep to a short format with a few pictures.  I did not do that.

The original Old Spice.

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These figures just popped up outta nowhere! If you weren't already aware: DG stands for Dollar General.  They're a string of dollar stores that...well I dunno how far they stretch. In any case, the stocking of these figures seems to be spotty at the moment, and folks are helping each other out to get ahold of these cool repaints and frankenfigures.

The store near me is tiny, and I was having no luck until a recent trip Up North (the official name of everything above the middle of the thumb in Michigan) where the Dollar General there had the whole wave! And no more than that. It's too bad, because I doubt I'll run into more, and some of these are nice for parts!

Anyway, here's Shipwreck!  I posted a shot of him in-package, instead of the usual filecard picture, because there's no filecard.  The back of the package shows who's in the wave; that's all! Not that they need filecards, since these figures were meant to be budget (even though they run you six bucks, which apparently is budget now...). 

But lets see what else is on the package...

No, that's not a mistake. I was wondering how to file these pics when I got the figures: In with the 30th figures, or in with Retaliation? Well that answered my question. The Cobra figures all have a Cobra symbol on the side, and the Joe figures all have....the Arashikage symbol! Since the Retaliation movie features ULTIMATE NINJA ROADBLOCK, I have to assume that these figures are meant to be part of the ninjexplosion that is Retaliation.

Very minor thing, but crazy nonetheless.

So, here's what six bucks gets ya! One figure and three accessories. Oh, and a stand!

HABBA-WHA...a nameless stand?! Dunno why they cut that when they were cutting costs, but I honestly think it's cool! If you can find a way to do so; you can make your own stands! Or, if you're like me, you just use the Paint program to write ridiculously hilarious words that I in no way came up with in third grade.

HAHAHAHAHA....OH MAN. Stinky, when will you learn your own name?

*COUGHING AWKWARDLY AND TYPING ABOUT IT*  Moving on to the figure.  Shipwreck uses the 30th Snake Eyes torso, that is getting around, lately. Stalker used it, they changed the Steel Brigade guys to use it, and now I'm seeing it in one of the Retaliation 3 packs. It's fantastic, though I wish the right hand could hold things better. Anyway, the lower legs are from Renegades Duke, and because of this, they gave him a cool Renegades pistol.

It fits in the little slot on the leg and stays in nice and snug.

Beyond the pistol, Shipwreck also comes with his Rise of Cobra gear (to go along with the RoC head he's using). I never bought RoC Shipwreck, but after looking him up, I can say that this stuff matches that version MUCH better, since his RoC figure could pass for a suit that works in or out of water. This one...

Yeah. Somehow, I still like the look, even if it doesn't make a lick of sense.

The gear slips on nice and easy and still looks fantastic. The pipes on the mask fit in the little tiny holes in the top of the pack:

Shipwreck looks good, though I do miss his super angry face from the 25th line. This one isn't bad...he just looks like he belongs in an Old Spice commercial or something.

I mean look at that! Doesn't even look out of place!  Not that that's a bad thing.  Anyway: He's a blast to pose! I was reviewing him first, because I thought he was the weakest in the set, but I'm completely turned around.

Only thing you may notice, of course, is that he's got a bit of a long neck. It's more or less noticeable depending on how you pose him. I don't think it's bad enough to ruin him (like I thought it would be) but if you have one of those handy black scarves around, it certainly doesn't hurt:

And looks even better with the mask!

This one was originally gona be "buy for parts", but I'm both pleased and sad to say that this is a fun and cool figure! Pleased because, well, awesome! Sad because...now I may have to get another to use his awesome parts. We'll see.

As for his awesome parts:

I gave it a shot, but I think Zandar in his normal state is too hilarious to break up.

This is just completely random. I like to test out color on my Snake Eyes figures.

But hey, I'm not gona forget the last little tidbit of info! Did you know this guy very closely resembles (and is most likely a homage to) an old Spytroops figure? Also: do you know how much it pains me to speak of Spytroops as "old?" THOSE ARE STILL SUPPOSED TO BE NEW, STOP MAKING ME OOOOLD----

Anyway:

Don't skip this one! Fun to pose and play with, and comes with a nice, round set of accessories. On top of that, he's great for parts! Nothin' not to love.

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I've never been that big a fan of Shipwreck, but that's just me and my preference for masked and armored characters.  Still: This is a great figure!  Definitely the Shipwreck you wana get, nowadays.  He may have been added to one of the recent TRU two packs...but I can't remember.  Maybe that one is better?  But I've got a soft spot for the Spytroops one, so this is my Shipwreck.  His underwater gear doesn't make much sense, but the base figure is fantastic. 

That said: I have no idea what the Dollar General figures go for, nowadays.  At the time, they were scarce and passed around like money.  No idea if the numbers jumped up or not, and whether or not these are still hard to get.  I wouldn't pay big bucks for 'em, but it does feel like a definitive Shipwreck, so it's up to you and your love for salty sea dogs.