{"id":22591,"date":"2013-02-06T01:46:59","date_gmt":"2013-02-06T07:46:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=22591"},"modified":"2013-02-06T07:44:12","modified_gmt":"2013-02-06T13:44:12","slug":"g-i-joe-club-dice-review-jinx-non-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=22591","title":{"rendered":"G.I. Joe Club: Dice Review
(& Jinx Non-Review)"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a> If I\u2019ve learned anything from moving into my first home, it\u2019s that I\u2019ll be unpacking for the rest of my life. Seriously. Every time I think of an old figure I need for a review, it\u2019s inevitably adrift somewhere in the cardboard sea in my garage. For Dice\u2019s review, that sorta became the theme. <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been having a tough time deciding on what to review each time my turn comes up here at IAT lately. One thing I was excited for this year was the G.I. Joe Club\u2019s Figure Subscription Service and I\u2019ve been keen to review them (well, most of them) for awhile, but I couldn\u2019t find the boxes that were holding my Joes hostage. I decided to go ahead and do the review with the figures I knew where they were… which ultimately failed and just had me out in the garage unpacking in search of figures I just<\/em> had to have. Sigh. Nonetheless, I\u2019m happy to finally kick off my Joe Reviews for 2013. <\/p>\n

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I\u2019m calling this a Jinx non-review because I wanted to acknowledge that she\u2019s in the FSS, I love the idea of toy subscriptions and I don\u2019t mind the occasional figure I\u2019m not interested in, she\u2019s a cool figure if you wanted her, and that I\u2019m just not one of those folks. She\u2019s built on the Resolute Scarlett, a nice figure in her own right, with a new head and a slew of accessories. The accessories are almost enough to get me to keep her, but ultimately I already have a near-perfect modern Jinx<\/a> and I just don\u2019t need two. As a very wise man recently told me, it\u2019s better to convert her back to cash and use the money on a toy I really want than to review her just because. <\/p>\n

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Now, my not keeping Jinx isn\u2019t a knock against toy subscriptions. I still love \u2018em and one big reason is because they expose me to figures I might have missed out on had I had the chance to pass them up at the store. Dice is one of those figures. When I received the first two FSS figures and they turned out to be Jinx & Dice, I was a little disappointed (the Club announced 12 of the 13 figures beforehand, but has randomized the release schedule. That part is actually pretty cool)<\/em>. I had some Ninja Force figures as a kid, most notably the kickass Storm Shadow<\/a> and Nunchuk (still waiting on his update…). And even though I never had him, I\u2019ll never forget the name T\u2019JBang. <\/p>\n

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But I glossed over Slice & Dice completely. When I first heard about them years ago, I didn\u2019t even remember that they rounded out the evil half of Ninja Force. Even still, I have no idea how they were presented in any of the comics or what comics they\u2019ve even been in. So I wasn\u2019t that excited about Dice whatsoever (particularly because owning him kinda necessitates owning a Slice, does it not?) For a time, Dice was awaiting the same fate as Jinx and I found myself looking forward to the second release of FSS Joes without even knowing who I was going to get. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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And then… Dice finally got the better of me. I read his old bio, about some of his comic appearances, and it just kinda formed an opinion of Slice & Dice in my mind\u2026 they\u2019re kinda lame. That may be blasphemy to a hardcore Joe fan, but if there\u2019s ever one universal truth about 80s toy lines, it’s that being lame isn\u2019t always a bad thing. There are some really lame, beloved Joes after all. The same is true for just about every other line too. In some cases, it’s true of whole lines! And in that realization, I sorta unlocked an appreciation for Dice (& Slice too I suppose). They\u2019re like \u201cthe other guys\u201d when it comes to Cobra Ninjas. They’ll take it seriously. They\u2019ll try really hard. They\u2019ll dream big. And then Snake Eyes, a reformed Storm Shadow, or Jinx will come along and hand them their ass. It\u2019s their thing. I can dig it. <\/p>\n

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So Dice stays. It also helps that he\u2019s a remarkably well-done Frankensteined figure even if he\u2019s not exactly on model. On the figure itself, there\u2019s nothing new here. Dice is largely cobbled together from two different versions of Storm Shadow \u2013 one version from 2009 even included Dice\u2019s mask, so perhaps Hasbro was thinking ahead or at least paying homage with that figure. Either way, it made a figure of him incredibly easy for the Club to put in the FSS.<\/p>\n

Dice did need a head under that mask though, so the rather non-descript ROC \u201cAqua-Viper Officer\u201d donated his noggin\u2019 for the cause. I normally don\u2019t like reusing specific heads like that, but I couldn\u2019t pick out the Aqua Viper Officer on the street, so I\u2019ll make an exception here. <\/p>\n

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All the pieces came together well, and were painted sharp, to make a great Dice update The pieces coming from a little later in the 25th & POC lines also gave Dice some great articulation too. Some of the cooler bits like the ball-jointed wrists and reverse ball-jointed ankles aren\u2019t present, but there is plenty of articulation on the figure and he\u2019s a blast to pose. The double-hinged knees and ball-ankles is probably one of the best evolutions in articulation as the Joe line went along. <\/p>\n

In addition to his mask and removable harness, Dice also came with plenty of accessories including an axe, a bow staff, two throwing stars, and two tekagi claws. I didn\u2019t remember to take a simple accessory pic, but each item can be found somewhere in the various pictures. Since the accessories are also largely borrowed from the same Storm Shadows the hands are borrowed from, Dice holds everything snugly. I\u2019ve found that I prefer to keep his tekagi claws attached to his arms though. He came packaged that way and the claws just seem to fit with him being called \u201cDice\u201d. He may have never used them in the comics though, I\u2019ve no idea. <\/p>\n

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Overall, Dice is a fun addition to what will one day be my Joe shelf (once it\u2019s all unpacked). In additon to being fun, he’s also a great example of a how a company can go under budget, reuse the right parts, and still turn out a fantastic figure without cutting corners. The construction is sound, if a little off-model, and the accessories really liven up the figure. <\/p>\n

And yes, it\u2019s true that Dice & Jinx weren\u2019t the figures I was hoping for to kick off the Joe Club FSS, but my figures will come. For now, I\u2019m happy to have found a new appreciation for Dice by means of his getting a cool figure. Though it does mean I\u2019m locked in for getting a Slice now. You just can’t have one without the other. As for Jinx, well, I still think they did a good job on the figure even if I don’t need it. I’ll make sure she gets to a collector that can appreciate her at least. <\/p>\n

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

If I\u2019ve learned anything from moving into my first home, it\u2019s that I\u2019ll be unpacking for the rest of my life. Seriously. Every time I think of an old figure I need for a review, it\u2019s inevitably adrift somewhere in the cardboard sea in my garage. For Dice\u2019s review, that sorta became the theme.<\/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":[1425,1854,1853,1857,2568,33,1530,24,1856,1855],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pObc6-5Sn","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":20935,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=20935","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":0},"title":"PoeGhostal.com Review: G.I. Joe Zombie Viper","date":"September 18, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"For years, I was strictly a toy forum guy. It was great for news and interacting with my fellow collectors. PoeGhostal.com changed that. Poe\u2019s great reviews & insightful commentary helped inspire me to follow in his footsteps and strike out on my own. I can honestly say there\u2019d be no\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28230,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28230","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":1},"title":"G.I. Joe FSS 3.0 Next Three Reveals","date":"June 13, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "G.I. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20623,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=20623","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":2},"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. Joe"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":23501,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=23501","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":3},"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":28224,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28224","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":4},"title":"G.I. Joe (FSS) 2.0: Keel-Haul Review","date":"June 13, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Toys"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1117,"url":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=1117","url_meta":{"origin":22591,"position":5},"title":"IAT on the Road: GI Joe Con ’09 Kansas City – Final Round Up!","date":"August 17, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"JoeCon is over and the ItsAllTrueCrew couldn't have had a better time. From the parachute drop, to the various panels, to some of the coolest new Joes, and to meeting Larry Hama, it was really one thrill after another. We've got pictures from all the major events we attended as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Event Coverage"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22591"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22591"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22591\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22605,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22591\/revisions\/22605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}