2012 Membership Exclusive - Man of Evil - A guest review by Chad Lawless

“The OTHER Man of Evil released in April…”

So, you’ve joined the Official G. I. Joe Collector’s Club, paid your $44, are receiving your Club Newsletter…. and the other day, a box arrived in the mail.

IT’S YOUR FREE FIGURE FROM THE CLUB!!!!!

AND IT’S……….. FOOTLOOSE!!!!!!!!!

Okay, it’s no secret that most of the readers of GeneralsJoes.com (NOT a hack site…LOL) are 1:18th collectors, and hopefully the above situation has happened to you very recently. The new Footloose figure has been hoped for by many collectors and the Collector’s Club has done a bang-up job of delivering this classic entry in a modern era sculpt.

But we’re not here to talk about him.

Nope, today I’m here to briefly fill you in on the OTHER possible choice for your Free Subscription Figure: 1:6 scale The Man Of Evil.

Although I have been buying Joes since 1982, and have recently started testing the waters of “army building” (that term didn’t exist for many of us back in the day…. you got ONE Cobra Trooper, ONE Cobra Officer, ONE Crimson Guardsman, etc…), these days I much prefer to spend my money on the Sideshow 1:6 scale G.I. Joe line.

So when it came down to a choice of which figure to get, Footloose or Man Of Evil, it really wasn’t a choice at all.

I selected the Man of Evil without hesitation. His portrait was absolutely mystifying, and he had a particularly fun throwback feel to him, typical of the old Hasbro G. I. Joe styled retro figures of late.

Usually I would give a backstory to the Man Of Evil for my review, but to be honest, we know very little: he was a valued member of the Adventure Team, lost during a dangerous mission. He was presumed dead. But recently, out of nowhere, he has returned… or has he?

The Man of Evil arrived in a white mailer box, and was packaged in a clear plastic tray wrapped in plastic.

He was dressed in a black sleeveless tank top, featuring a “mysterious logo” (recently seen on the 2010 G.I. JoeCon Exclusive “Henchman” figure) and black boxer shorts. To be honest, his choice of clothes aren’t very intimidating. The logo is a simple sticker, loosely applied, which may be nice, because I don’t plan on displaying him with only his tank top, so perhaps I’ll remove the logo and put it on a different item, like a jacket or gear bag for him to carry.

The headsculpt for the Man of Evil is the entire reason to get this figure. First: the hair is flocked silver/gray with specks of black. He looks like a man who’s seen it all, done it all, and lived a rigorous life. To back that up, he’s got a huge scar over his right eye, and the eye is “dead”, with a milky white appearance. CREEPY!

The paint job on the figure is top-notch, and to be honest, with all my love for Sideshow, I was pleasantly surprised at how professional the Man of Evil’s portrait was presented.

The body is very flexible, featuring the retro “Kung-Fu Grip” and 19 points of articulation. The figure stands very well unaided, which is a nice change from the Sideshow figures. He’s a little on the skinny side, and his joints are painfully obvious, so he will definitely look best when fully clothed in long sleeves and pants.

Speaking of his clothing: the G.I. Joe Collector’s Club has stated that the Man of Evil will have a specially-created outfit set available at a future date, for an additional cost. It is unknown when this date will be, especially in light of the unfortunate credit card crisis that forced the Club to remove all retail sales from their site for the foreseeable future. And the price of the special outfit is unknown as well. It seems that other outfits on the site were going for around $50-$65 (as I remember, I could be incorrect), but I don’t see them being inexpensive.

The special outfit will feature a black jumpsuit, black jack boots, a yellow belt and cravat, a sidearm holster for the belt, an eye patch, a “disguise mask” of a classic-style G.I. Joe, a dogtag, a chest holster, a revolver, and a yellow Action Team-style jacket.

Since I don’t know when the special outfit will be available, I went ahead and dressed my Man of Evil up with an urban camo jacket, black pants, black boots, and a silenced Uzi. It works, but I really do like the look of the special outfit, and once it’s available, I will definitely be picking it up.

In the final analysis, this is definitely a good figure. I am still a little disappointed his lack of basic clothing, total lack of accessories, and some of the joints are a little too loose. He’s definitely a “light” figure, by weight, which may speak to future durability problems. I do understand, though, that the quantities made of this figure and the tooling and materials needed probably hampered the Collector’s Club ability to full outfit the figure.

Overall, the Man of Evil is a solid figure for the investment in being a G.I. Joe Collector’s Club member. Had this been a “normal” Joe in a branch of the military or an Adventure Team guy, I possibly would have passed, electing to go with Footloose instead.

But the Collector’s Club has a winner on their hands, and I hope they’ll take the ball and run with it, building on what they have here and continuing the story of the Man of Evil and all of the trouble he’ll no doubt create for the Adventure Team.

GRADE: