Air Assault Glider with Captain Ace | Produced by Hasbro | Released 2010 [Cancelled]
Flying over the frozen Tundra in an Air Assault Glider Capt. Ace descends toward a manufacturing plant to observe the unknown facility more closely. The building's doors burst open and Cobra troops pour out of the plant. When they start firing at him he takes aim with the glider's multi-barrel cannon and A2G missiles!
Capt. Ace is a pilot on the GI Joe team and a former Air Force fighter pilot. At home in the cockpit of almost any type of aircraft he has flown numerous missions all over the world. He performs test flights of the team's advanced and prototype aircraft.
Another set from the cancelled Wave 3 Deluxe Figure range (see here for details) it's the turn of Captain Ace and his Air Assault Glider to come under the That Figures microscope...
Packaging
The Deluxe Figure packaging is a sealed box, with a cut-away window showing the figure within. The rear shows a photo of the vehicle/accessory and there's a nice ''fantasy situation'' illustration to help you figure out what you're buying.
The box is opened at the top and can be resealed.
Captain Ace
OK, I'm going to lay it on the table right now and tell you, this isn't a good play set. Where the other Deluxe Figures at least had some nice accessories or good figures, this one has neither. It's probably the worst GI Joe toy I've bought, which is a shame, as up to now they've all been of a fairly high standard.
For starters, Captain Ace is an incredibly dull figure. He probably chose the codename himself, as he thought it would sound exciting and would impress girls at parties. Not that he ever gets invited to parties. At least not the sort with girls there. No, judging by his natty moustache and sensible shoes, he probably goes to parties where men stand around all night discussing the pros and cons of the new Fiat. Or they swap ''amusing'' stories about traction engines.
His uniform is a light grey (he probably thought it was too racy) with some minor details in black and another, darker grey. Sadly these details are all sculpted onto the figure. Similarly his helmet is not removable and is part of the whole head piece. Given that many GI Joe toys feature removable helmets, I'd have expected to see that here, too.
Articulation is fine, however, so at least that's one thing they got right.
His paint is nicely applied but no amount of good colour-work is going to hide the fact that he's a very generic action figure. He could be equally at home in a dollar store toy line-up and that's not a good thing given this was a full-priced release from Hasbro.
Air Assault Glider
The Air Assault Glider is a little better than Captain Ace, but it's still a very disappointing toy.
For starters, it doesn't do anything. There are no firing missiles, no hinged/moving pieces, no spinning cannon. It's three lumps of plastic that slot together and then slot into Captain Ace's back. Although it can be configured into two modes - Glider and Assault Pack - neither is very exciting and this ''reconfiguration'' involves pulling the wing tips out and switching them with the missiles. Really, that's it. I think Captain Ace probably designed this vehicle himself, as he looks like the sort of chap who'd enjoy taking a machine apart and then putting it back together.
To be fair, the paintwork at least is very good, with a nice snow camouflage pattern and it's all very well-applied. It just doesn't disguise the fact that - again - it's a dull toy.
The production quality is also a lacking. The glider bar that Captain Ace is supposed to hold in Glider Mode doesn't fit properly into the wing section and is also warped.
Captain Ace and his vehicle are very well-suited.
Extras
Captain Ace has two SMGs and the set includes a sticker and instruction sheet. The base in the photos is from another figure.
Final Thoughts
This feels like a dollar store GI John play set. Captain Ace is an incredibly generic, faceless, characterless action figure and his glider - whilst nicely painted - is just a lump of plastic that just sits on his back. There's nothing exciting or innovative about this toy. Yes, I'm sure if I were a child I'd enjoy whizzing Captain Ace around and pretending he was on a strafing run. But I could do that with a paper aeroplane, which would cost a lot less and at least I'd get the fun of actually making the plane in the first place.
This toy is on-sale at Ross Dress for Less for $5.99, reduced from a proposed $11. I think $5.99 is probably about $5 more than this toy is really worth, though. Unless you're a GI Joe completist - and even then, I'd think long and hard before buying - avoid this toy.
It's crap.
Captain Ace
| Sculpt | D |
| Paint | B |
| Articulation | B |
| Production Quality | B- |
| Final Score | D |
Air Assault Glider
| Sculpt | D |
| Paint | B+ |
| Articulation | N/A |
| Production Quality | B- |
| Final Score | C |
Overall
| Final Score | D |
Image Gallery
At first I thought this was an update on the eighties Joe who came with a styrofoam glider - I would love if this new one had styrofoam wings and actually flew! I had that original one and it was a ton of fun - well, at least until it crashed too many times and would no longer fly straight.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've noticed a few of the GI Joe boxes do say ''Product does not fly.'' :D
ReplyDeleteI used to have an Action Man parachute troop (Action Man being the 12'' GI Joe in the UK) and that was a lot of fun, as the chute worked and you could throw him out of the window and he'd float to the ground. Of course you then had to walk downstairs and outside to fetch him...
That should be ''trooper'' not ''troop.''
ReplyDelete'