6 INCH: GI JOE CLASSIFIED: STEELER

Back in the day, this character came with the motorized MOBAT tank. It was a set I did not have as a kid nor as an adult. (For the record, didn't have the successor, the Mauler. Skip ahead and I did have the Patriot Grizzley) I don't think I ever got an official Steeler figure; I made one via MTF which I rather liked and had fun with. Fast forward ahead to the Classified version (without $200 tank) and like I said with Short-Fuze, man the promo shots made them look good. Could I do cool shots like that? In my mind, I can. The reality, HA!

It's funny, when I made my Steeler, it wasn't too far off how this one looked. I admit, if I were to make them again, I'd change some things. In particular, the armored legs and arms would go. I was talking to a friend about that aspect. I feel that the armored body parts are too much for the type of missions my figures go on. If I was doing big battlefield or futuristic/neo-modernistic urban environment stuff, it'd be fitting. Like in Aliens when the space marines are gearing up. But in the desert? or jungle? Especially the jungle or forest where you need to be mobile. Pretty sure you don't want big metal plating on your chest in the jungle when you have to jump into a fast-flowing river. All that aside, my Steeler had a vest but the fun was the long-barrel pistol I gave him. That, to me, set his character. I don't remember where I got the idea from. For some reason, I picture Donald Sutherland as a tank driver whipping out a big long pistol in a show of "allow me to whip out my..." (Yes, I know that line is from the movie Blazing Saddles.)

I think I like the character because like much of the Original 13, a lot are an open book. They had some cartoon time and some comic book time, but I feel, not quite enough to latch onto them. Perhaps that's what the various writers wanted to do. Don't go too deep on them so the kids will make their own adventures. They were just avatars to sell the toys and from there, the sky's the limit.