More GI Joe 25th figures

I think I like these better than what we've seen already. The second versions of Cobra Commander, Storm Shadow, and Snake Eyes are all great figures, and here they are updated, but still retaining their classic look. These figures are what we've been asking Hasbro to do for years, and it's finally being done and done extremely well.

Flint- in the second season of the cartoon, Flint seemed to take on the role that Duke inhabited in the first season. It suited me fine- I never liked those perfect guys in leadership roles. Therefore, I'm glad Hasbro is updating him since I'm not a big Duke fan.

Snake Eyes w/ Timber- I knew another Snake Eyes was inevitable, but at least it's that iconic second version which everyone seems to fawn over but not own. As with Storm Shadow in the original ARAH line, you couldn't find the second SE figure to save your life. Another great candidate for updatedness.

Cobra Officer- I'll hazard a guess and say this will be a single-carded figure, since the regular Cobra Trooper is coming out in a five-pack, and the army builders have to get their jollies somewhere. (By the way, the first ten figures we've seen make up two five packs that start off this 25th Ann. line.)
The only difference is a different-color Cobra sigil on the chest. I'll get a few of these, since I wasn't all that impressed with the recent DTC Cobra Trooper, and I have a severe lack of Cobra lackeys.

Cobra Commander- this is my favorite version of this megalomaniacal masked madman. He was only available as a mail-in figure back in the 1980s, and my brother and I both had one since I saved all my Flag Points faithfully and all you needed then for a mail-in was the catalog(which came with specially-marked figures and vehicles), three Points, an envelope, and a stamp. No receipts, no check or money order for shipping in addition to the Proof-of-Purchase that you need nowadays.
He harkens back to a simpler time, when you knew you were going to watch the mailbox for six-to-eight weeks in anticipation of your new figure, but forgot about it entirely after a few days. It was like a little Christmas when he showed up. I should relate a tale about my GI Joe mail-in adventures, but that's another story.
This will be a most welcome addition to my Cobra army.

Storm Shadow- again, much like SE, Storm Shadow figures were a bitch to find, at least around here. (This town was a retail wastleland back then, just like it is now.) I clearly remember finding the 1988 version (which is recreated with this figure) back in the day at K-Mart, but I'd blown my allowance on baseball cards that week, so I had to go without. As we all know, when you're a kid, three dollars is a king's ransom, and apparently, your parents thought so too. Needless to say, the only way I got that Storm Shadow was by paying my own money for it, which is the lesson my parents were trying to instill in me, only it was fifteen years later, five times more expensive, loose, and no filecard. Perhaps it's just as well- Tommy probably would have been buried in a hole along with other great 3.75" action figures when my dad was putting up a fence.

The fact that these figures can elicit such memories is part of the reason Hasbro is finally doing them. The real reason is money, but they know the nostalgia is going to fuel the sales, much like the soon-to-be-great Transformers Classics line.
I can't wait to see packaged samples of these figures, just to see if they've followed through all the way and made ARAH-style packaging for them.