REVIEW: GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra - Gung Ho vs Copperhead Double Pack

Gung Ho vs Copperhead Double Pack (Walmart Exclusive)

Produced by Hasbro | Released August 2009

Gung Ho is a Marine and member of the elite GI Joe team. He'll take on any battle with his bare fists and brings his fearsome fighting skills to support the team as the battle criminal forces that control the deadly Nanomite weapon technology.

Copperhead pilots watercraft for Cobra and can escape anyone with a combination of speed, skill and sheer bravado. He helps disperse Nanomite weapons in different locations to prevent the GI Joe team from reacquiring them.

Packaging Shots

Gung Ho

We'll kick off this two-part Review with a look at Gung Ho.

Of the two figures in the pack, Gung Ho is definitely the better one, although even then he has some problems.

The sculpt is pretty good but Gung Ho seems smaller than he should be. I'm only really familiar with him from GI Joe: Resolute (it appears to be the uniform from that series he's wearing here) but I was under the impression Gung Ho was a pretty big guy. This figure is a little on the short and skinny side for what I'd expect of Gung Ho. And that's a shame, as the actual sculpt - size issues aside - isn't bad.

There's enough detailing on his vest and fatigues to keep him interesting. The rolled-up sleeves work nicely and his hat has a pretty good look to it. Muscles are well defined and his face is a good likeness of the Resolute Gung Ho.

Unfortunately there are some articulation problems with Gung Ho, caused by the sculpt. Try as I might, I found it impossible to get him to hold either of his weapons (see below) using both hands in a manner that looked convincing. His arm joints simply do not have the range of motion and his arms/torso sculpt further prohibits movement. Given that both his weapons are two-handed rifles, it's a rather poor oversight to include equipment he can't really be posed with. I also found the wrist joints seemed very loose and felt as it - when posing him - they were going to snap.

Paint is cleanly applied and his drab grey look is quite good, given he's not really a Rise of Cobra figure.

Copperhead

I'll say this right now: Copperhead looks utterly ludicrous.

From the neck-down, he's not really that bad. It's the use of the helmet (which isn't removable) that makes him such a silly-looking figure though. I understand he's a pilot and would be wearing some form of protective head gear, but the helmet - with its massive ''scoops'' that look like Mickey Mouse ears - and the fact that he's wearing it with a wifebeater vest make Copperhead look like some kind of cheap bootleg, made from whatever pieces were at hand.

As an experiment I switched his head with that from the Duke - Reactive Impact Armor figure. Even though that's not the best head sculpt in the range, just look at how much better the figure looks.

It's a shame, as the rest of the body is pretty good. His combat pants look cool, with the banded inner leg and various pouches adding some interest to the model and the knife sheath on his leg works well. The upper body is relatively plain but there's not much wrong with the execution. I just really hate the design.

Paint is cleanly applied. The drab olive and brown work - just - and his upper-body details - such as elbow bands - are accurately applied. And even though I dislike the helmeted-head design, the paintwork is clean.

Extras

Gung Ho comes with two rifles - a standard assault rifle and the 40mm-style grenade/riot gun (as seen in GI Joe: Resolute.) There's also a backpack, which slots into the rear port on the figure.

Copperhead comes with an assault rifle, knife and heavy calibre machine gun with its own tripod and belt of ammunition. Like Gung Ho, he has his own slot-in backpack, plus the figure is also sporting a (rather hideous) yellow shoulder holster (although there's no removable pistol.)

Both figures have their own stands.

The accessories are - on the whole - fine. The only problem is that neither figure can hold their two-handed weapons with both hands and the belt-fed heavy calibre gun is a little useless, unless you find something to stand it on, as GI Joe figures are not flexible enough to use the weapon when it's on the ground.

The worst part though is that Copperhead doesn't come - at least in this pack - with any form of vehicle. He's a craft-less pilot. That's as ridiculous as releasing, I don't know, a Ghost Rider figure without a bike and it makes me wonder why Hasbro thought it would be a good idea to put him out, given that there are so many other Cobra figures they could have chosen.

Final Thoughts

Gung Ho isn't a bad figure. He doesn't look too out of place among the more realistic Rise/Pursuit of Cobra figures and although he's too small, he's a pretty good likeness of the character. It's just too bad he suffers from articulation problems when it comes to posing him with his weapons.

Copperhead looks awful though. Yes, that's my personal opinion and I'm sure there are collectors who will love this figure, but I just can't get over the silly-looking helmet. The combination of black ''muzzle'' and side-scoop ''ears'' just make him look like an overgrown mouse. If the head fits, I'm displaying him with Dusty's spare, unmasked head. I don't care if that makes him ''less Copperhead.'' In fact, given how his ''proper'' costume looks, I think that's probably a good thing.

UPDATE: Dusty's skin tone does not match that of Copperhead. However, I removed Copperhead's yellow shoulder hostler and replaced it with Zartan's ''disguise vest.'' This is a much improved look and would recommend you try it yourself.

Unless you're a big fan of Gung Ho or Copperhead - or both - I'd skip this one.

Scores
Gung Ho

Sculpt	B-
Paint	B-
Articulation	C
Production Quality	C
Final Score	C+

Copperhead

Sculpt	C+
Paint	B-
Articulation	C
Production Quality	C+
Final Score	C

Overall

Final Score

C

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