6 INCH: GI JOE CLASSIFIED: DUKE

Back when Duke was released in the ARAH days (did anyone notice that Hasbro got rid of the ARAH tagline???), I couldn't stand the guy. Being of (technically) minority status, Duke was the symbol of the type of people I didn't care for in life. If you are asking, "wait, weren't you in 2nd or 3rd grade???" The answer is, "yes, I was in grade school." He was a blonde jock, egotistical, good looking, thought the world should revolve around him (this roughly equals too the amount of screen time he got in the cartoon). But he was also an authoritative character which, I had a hard time with. It would make sense I'd end up skateboarding, right? The comic didn't push him as hard which was good. But to me, he was the All-American American. There were kids like that in school who I obviously didn't get along with. Trendy jocks. Funny thing is, in the animated movie, when the writers tried to kill him off, I wasn't cheering on. I was impartial.

Let's fast forward about 20 years. Hasbro brings GI Joe back with the Joe vs Cobra (JvC) theme. And of course, Duke got love. His v1 looked so bland and generic, hard to take him seriously. The change in action figure construction, the dreaded t-crotch, made no sense and was such a departure from the o-ring, it left all the fans scratching their heads. Over the next, oh, 4-5 years, the amount of Duke variants would skyrocket (as would Snake Eyes followed by Cobra Commander. Actually, it was Snake Eyes #1, then Duke, and in distant 3rd, CC.). I would learn of something akin to the 'golden trio'; the core figures that had to be in every wave or some belief by Hasbro GI Joe. 

As much as I don't like the character and the figures were kinda so-so, there was a point where the designs were getting better for him. I ended up liking the figures. This may have been the time in my life when I was doing a lot of photography and doing diostories. What this really meant was that I was writing my own characters. I wasn't always creative with the characters so some stayed more like their comic or cartoon versions. Duke, because I didn't feel like writing him, rarely showed up in my stories. I often put him on the disabled list with others just so I wouldn't have to use them. I think it was around the Sigma6 era, I actually came to terms with Duke. I also didn't mind the Channing Tatum live-action version because that's more how I saw Duke.

Then we come to Classified. I was lukewarm on the series. It wasn't just bigger size, it had to do with price point and where I was in life. We are talking about a guy with a job history longer than my arm. Might even be taller than me. I wouldn't have minded getting that v1 Duke but I was so-so on the figures themselves. I liked his look, but then, I liked his Sigma6 custom I did and his Resolute version was fantastic. Thus we come to this recently released Duke. Some call it the 'rugged' version; I don't know if that's an official title or not. I'm not sure when this figure was supposed to be released; buyers were getting him early from somewhere. Amazon, I think sold out on their pre-orders and I was watching the price jump. Didn't trust them so I went thru BBTS (which oddly shipped thru Amazon). Basically, didn't want to miss out on him nor pay $40+.

With the history out of the way, this Duke figure is basically how I envision Duke. Especially a modern version which I don't think I even went all out when I made my own (in small scale). This dude is all geared up and has a great vibe to him. Excellent figure to have in general, not just to fill the Duke role or a field commander role. The accessories are slightly less for him; 2 pistols, a backpack, a knife, and an automatic rifle. For the most part, that should be standard for all figures (well, 1 pistol can suffice. Feel free to add a stand, Hasbro!) Now, just how shall I write him?