{"id":19332,"date":"2012-06-28T03:15:47","date_gmt":"2012-06-28T08:15:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=19332"},"modified":"2012-06-28T03:29:32","modified_gmt":"2012-06-28T08:29:32","slug":"g-i-joe-30th-anniversarylifeline-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=19332","title":{"rendered":"G.I. Joe 30th Anniversary
Lifeline Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>When the 25th Anniversary line gave way to Rise of Cobra<\/em>, I was crushed. So many of my childhood favorites hadn\u2019t received an update. Some I\u2019m still waiting on: Iceberg, Keel-Haul, Dress Marine Gung Ho. The short-lived 30th Anniversary ran into its movie roadblock, but at least they got to Lifeline.<\/p>\n

Lifeline is one of my all-time favorite Joes. I don\u2019t remember when I got him or who bought him for me, but after I had him, he was a constant in my Joe adventures. Looking back, I can\u2019t tell you why \u2013 I didn\u2019t read the comics and the only cartoon appearance I really remember about him was when he told some kids to eat fruit instead of candy (unfortunately, that\u2019s one PSA I never took to heart…). <\/p>\n

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I’m not even that fond of the color red, but none of that mattered. Lifeline was awesome. I did know that he would go to any lengths to recue someone (says so right on the pants) and that he was a pacifist \u2013 he won\u2019t use a gun (despite usually getting one as an accessory and carrying one on his classic card art, oops!). <\/p>\n

In my young Joe-playin\u2019 days, my Lifeline followed those two principles to the letter. He didn\u2019t use the provided gun; the holster on his chest was molded empty after all. And he\u2019d fly in on the Tomahawk or go in solo on the Recon Sled and pull any fallen troop to safety. No matter the danger, the Joes could be fending off the Inhumanoids, fighting the Horde, or protecting Electronic Alphie from Cobra – it didn’t matter. Lifeline would ride in to save the wounded. <\/p>\n

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He was also one of the Joes lost in the Great Flood\u2122. When my parents set out to replace my lost figures, Lifeline was nowhere to be found. I was fortunate though. A few years later, Lifeline was offered as a cereal mail-in and it proved to not only be a great way to replace my lost figure, but Kellogg\u2019s inadvertently managed to improve the figure. The story goes that they wanted a figure without a weapon \u2013 Lifeline was a good choice, but he did have a gun molded to his thigh. Hasbro part swapped in some plain legs, Kellogg\u2019s Lifeline figure ended up a better match for the character, and I got one of my favorite Joe\u2019s back. Wins all around. <\/p>\n

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When Lifeline wasn\u2019t updated in the 25th line, I was really disappointed. I bought an extra 25th Anniversary Hard Master (his colors matched) to figure out a custom, but I never got around to it. Five years later, Hasbro would finally have my back. <\/p>\n

When the last wave of 30th Anniversary was announced, there were some great figures in that wave. It makes me kinda wonder if the folks at Hasbro wanted to go out without a bang and make sure we\u2019d be desperate for more updated Joes when they finally get back to non-movie product (btw, Hasbro, I\u2019m ready whenever you are\u2026). Like most of the figures in this last wave, Lifeline is one of the best updates to a classic Joe yet. <\/p>\n

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There is some part re-use here, Shock Trooper arms and the Snake Eyes v54 legs (I think everyone\u2019s got those lately), but they supplement the new pieces just fine. The only complaint is that the kneepad on the left leg blocks his classic \u201cRESCUE\u201d tag on his pants, but props to Hasbro for at least having the bottom of the \u201cE\u201d peak out from the bottom of the pad. I think other companies would’ve overlooked that. <\/p>\n

The new torso and head sculpt are both fantastic. I love that they retained the chest pouches and the mid-torso articulation without having to resort to clunky webgear. And they finally made that molded-empty holster usable. The head sculpt is another favorite. I love when figures get removable helmets and it\u2019s even better when the non-helmeted head still looks sharp, as Lifeline does, right down to the great aviator shades. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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The paint work on the figure is great. The \u201cRESCUE\u201d on his leg is a little messy, but I don\u2019t mind as the difficulty level there was probably pretty high. I can read it, so I\u2019m good. The rest of the paint work is sharp throughout the figure. I was initially concerned about the lack of silver straps around his shoulders, but that was dumb on my part as there\u2019s no backpack for those straps to attach to. Though I do wonder what happened to that old pack…<\/p>\n

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The articulation is on par with the 30th Anniversary line overall: ball joints at the head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, and ankles, double-hinged knees, and the mid-torso articulation. I\u2019d like to see the new \u201cpeg-in-foot\u201d ankle joints used more often, but the traditional ball-joints work fine as Lifeline will pose just about any way you want him to. I know the arms are borrowed form the Shock Trooper, but I do enjoy the left ball-joint being put in perpendicular to the right one. It really opens up the gun-holding poses… even for a pacifist.<\/p>\n

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In addition to the 30th Anniversary figures being well done, their gear is another place where the figures shine. Lifeline is no exception, though some of his inventory might be questionable considering the character. <\/p>\n

Lifeline includes a pistol and a rifle. They\u2019re cool accessories, particularly the new rifle, but a pacifist won\u2019t get too much use out of them, y\u2019know? Some folks who aren\u2019t fans of his pacifism may be happy thinking he turned over a new leaf, but a lot of these recent Joes have more guns than they need and that\u2019s the case here as far as I’m concerned. My Lifeline happily donated his two guns to his fellow Joes and he still has plenty of accessories leftover. <\/p>\n

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Here\u2019s a quick rundown: the aforementioned removable helmet, rifle, and pistol, a great update of his classic \u201cRescue Case\u201d which still opens but is now designed to hold two included defibrulator paddles and an IV bag w\/ detachable tubing. There\u2019s also a syringe which fits into the holsters, a knife, an oxygen tank w\/ mask, a spine board with an immobilization strap, and the basic stand. I love all this gear, even if it\u2019s more than he can carry on his own. There\u2019s a ton of play value in the accessories, both in just having them and how they interact \u2013 like fitting in the case or attaching to the spine board. He\u2019s got just about everything he needs to tend to your injured figures. <\/p>\n

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In all, I really think that even the most ardent Lifeline detractor would have to love this figure. He\u2019s a fantastic update to the original and I\u2019m not just saying that because I\u2019ve been waiting five years to get him on my shelves. If anything, that just made it more crucial for Hasbro to get it right. And they did; the sharp design work on the figure itself and the complement of medical-themed accessories has me just about hating the movie figures right now. I really hope that Hasbro can take us back to figures like this whenever the movie line is wrapped up. <\/p>\n

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For more G.I. Joe Reviews, check out our Review Index<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/center><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When the 25th Anniversary line gave way to Rise of Cobra, I was crushed. So many of my childhood favorites hadn\u2019t received an update. Some I\u2019m still waiting on: Iceberg, Keel-Haul, Dress Marine Gung Ho. The short-lived 30th Anniversary ran into its movie roadblock, but at least they got to Lifeline.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[32,34,10],"tags":[1289,2568,33,24,219],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pObc6-51O","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":17461,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=17461","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":0},"title":"G.I. Joe: Collector’s ClubDial-Tone (2011) Review","date":"March 10, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019m setting a bad precedent doing two consecutive weekend spotlights, but you guys don\u2019t really mind do you? I mailed off a check to the GI Joe Collector Club this week and that got me thinking about last year\u2019s figure, Dial-Tone. Turns out he never made it onto the review\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18362,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=18362","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":1},"title":"G.I. Joe 30th Anniversary Seymour “Sci-Fi” Fine Review","date":"April 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The goal of writing one Thirtieth Anniversary G.I.Joe review per week kinda went up in flames the last few weeks. Plans tend to do that around here. We\u2019ve got theme reviews lined up next week, but April needs at least one Joe review, right? How about a quick look at\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":23501,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=23501","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":2},"title":"G.I. Joe Club Membership Figure: Iceberg Review","date":"May 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I am seriously backed up on G.I. Joe Reviews. I happily subbed to the Joe FSS (& the Joe FSS 2.0) and, so far, only the first month\u2019s figures have made it to the site. Did I mention I have all thirteen? Oops! And here I am reviewing the Membership\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1264,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=1264","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":3},"title":"Most Requested Figures: More 25th Joes!!","date":"August 22, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Requests"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20470,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=20470","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":4},"title":"G.I. Joe SDCC 2012 Exclusive Jinx (Red) Review (15+ Pics)","date":"August 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019ve said this before, but G.I. Joe was easily the biggest toyline from my childhood. I had my fair share of Transformers and MOTU. I treasured my comic-based figures and loved plenty of smaller lines too, but I had a ton of G.I. Joe toys. It was so different from\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20623,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=20623","url_meta":{"origin":19332,"position":5},"title":"G.I. Joe Renegades Law & Order Review (15 Pics!)","date":"August 31, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"For Joe reviews, can you believe I\u2019m still working off the case of GI Joes my wife bought me for Christmas? If that\u2019s not a sign I need to do more Joe reviews, I don\u2019t know what is! Today, I\u2019ve got a quick review of a Renegades Joe, but I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. 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