GI JOe Renegades Ripcord Review

[Iok]

Here's my take on the Renegades version of Ripcord:

That Figures: REVIEW: GI Joe 30th Anniversary - Renegades Ripcord (http://that-figures.blogspot.com/2012/01/review-gi-joe-30th-anniversary_05.html)

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UaJVkJJ6XIo/TwWor-yV6SI/AAAAAAAAIJI/FTODoGnoFoU/s1600/GI+Joe+Renegades+Ripcord.JPG

It's a tough one to call, as there's a lot of good here but Ripcord is also plagued by some pretty major mistakes. For starters, he looks nothing like the animated character. Depending on your view that may not be such a bad thing but it is odd that Hasbro failed to translate his look from the animated show as effectively as they did with Scarlett (or even Duke.)

Then there's the equipment. Whilst it's great to see the inclusion of some very neat pieces (such as the goggles and helmet) the decision to cast the weapons - which are actually really cool accessories - in such a hideous colour is simply mind-boggling. The other Renegades figures don't feature such day-glo weapons, so why is Ripcord lumbered with such laughably bad accessories?

If you're a collector of GI Joes there's nothing here you can't fix with a quick visit to your spare accessories box (although it is annoying that you'd have to do that just to bring Ripcord in line with your other Joes) but I'm also pretty sure casual collectors, younger buyers or fans of the show will be disappointed to see how little this figure looks like the on-screen character.

Yet even with these problems - none of which are really a deal breaker for me, personally - Ripcord is still a very good figure and is certainly one of the better Renegades toys. I just can't really give him a better score though, simply due to the fact that as a representation of the animated character he's a failure and that Hasbro saddled him with such stupidly-childish weapons.

Could - and should - have been better.

Overall Score: B

[MJjoe4life]

Thanks for the review!

[Iok]

Glad you enjoyed it!

I did a quick weapon switch (basically I gave him Scarlett's pistol) and he looks so much better. Not that that changes my opinion on Hasbro releasing him with those crappy weapons!

[hectordelgado]

I personally just wasn't a fan of the renegades Ripcord uniform so i'm glad they didn't use the vest the prototype had. Also the bright orange just seems really silly to me so i repainted mine in more realistic military type colors so i'm actually digging this figure now :)

And i'm still puzzled on why they gave him bright blue candy color weapons....

[Iok]

I personally just wasn't a fan of the renegades Ripcord uniform so i'm glad they didn't use the vest the prototype had. Also the bright orange just seems really silly to me so i repainted mine in more realistic military type colors so i'm actually digging this figure now :)

And i'm still puzzled on why they gave him bright blue candy color weapons....

Yeah, it's a very odd palette choice in general. Maybe they thought kids would like him so they gave him weapons that wouldn't get lost on the carpet/in the yard...

[MeLikeJinx]

Does Renegades Ripcord's helmet fit on 25th Alltitude/Ripcord?

[Xenos]

Yeah, the weapons are really ugly. I'm going to give him a Renegades Cobra Soldier rifle and one of the extra Duke pistols.

[Iok]

Does Renegades Ripcord's helmet fit on 25th Alltitude/Ripcord?

I don't own the latter so I couldn't say. It's the same helmet as Captain Ace comes with from the SkyStriker, I believe.

[Iok]

Yeah, the weapons are really ugly. I'm going to give him a Renegades Cobra Soldier rifle and one of the extra Duke pistols.

Yeah, I put Scarlett's pistol in his hand and it looks way better. The Cobra Trooper weapon would work just fine, too, as it's the same one just cast in black.

[ljacone]

I considered picking him up but ultimately passed. I think he looks good but I am not married to the character and I am trying to save some money here and there since I just bought the Marauders and Dreadnok sets. :P Thanks for the review Iok!

[BEAM]

I don't own the latter so I couldn't say. It's the same helmet as Captain Ace comes with from the SkyStriker, I believe.

No, different helmets.

[Iok]

I considered picking him up but ultimately passed. I think he looks good but I am not married to the character and I am trying to save some money here and there since I just bought the Marauders and Dreadnok sets. :P Thanks for the review Iok!

Glad you enjoyed it. And yeah, I've got my 7-packs in processing now - a late Xmas gift from my wife!

[Iok]

No, different helmets.

Is it? I didn't compare the two but it seemed the same. Just shows to go ya!

[TheRealDubya]

I like the figure. And the review. I'm done with these guns that are difficult to finagle into a toy's hands.

[Iok]

I like the figure. And the review. I'm done with these guns that are difficult to finagle into a toy's hands.

Thanks.

Yeah, the gun is a bit problematic, in that he can only really hold it one way. If you can get it into place - and you like the pose - it's fine but if not, or you want a little more flexibility with your displaying of the figure, it's a pain.

[Primo_Baddest]

I wonder what he would look like with ARAH ripcord camo....

[DrKain]

Does Renegades Ripcord's helmet fit on 25th Alltitude/Ripcord?

I just tried it and it does. Although this has probably been answered by now.

This Ripcord is pretty awesome and far better than the 25th one we got. The only things I do not like on him are his weapon colors and that his right hand is always fall out of its socket due to how thin the plastic is around it. And I know it is not my figure being defective because the Renegades Duke I have is the same way.

[Raz9000x]

I like the figure. And the review. I'm done with these guns that are difficult to finagle into a toy's hands.

I hear you. For a variety of design and taste issues, probably half of my figures use guns from Marauder Inc.

[Iok]

The thing I found about that rifle is that it works perfectly - in one position...

[Stuart_Selkirk]

I'll pick him up eventually, but not because I like this specific character or such, but because I can use him for spare parts.
Serious: this guy goes parachuting in a t-shirt?
He'll be great to take apart and use as custom fodder, but beyond that I have no use for that figure.

[goosetuber]

Nice review. I couldn't agree more on the weapons. Interesting thing about the headsculpt tho. It is a spot on representation of the IDW character. I actually like the look but question the short sleeves

[Dod Ear]

Good review - would have been nice to see a picture of him without webgear.

Somone mentioned his initial wbegear so I liiked up the protype pictures. I prefer the Duke vest as well. Weapons were light grey to match his unifrom too. Perhaps a factory error?

In the picture I realized that Law actually had entirely different newly-scuplted legs. Again, I think I prefer the Duke-sculpt released version.

Really enjoy your reviews. Any chance you can add a feature with prototype pictures and compare/conrtrast when there are differences?

[Iok]

Good review - would have been nice to see a picture of him without webgear.

Somone mentioned his initial wbegear so I liiked up the protype pictures. I prefer the Duke vest as well. Weapons were light grey to match his unifrom too. Perhaps a factory error?

In the picture I realized that Law actually had entirely different newly-scuplted legs. Again, I think I prefer the Duke-sculpt released version.

Really enjoy your reviews. Any chance you can add a feature with prototype pictures and compare/conrtrast when there are differences?

Sadly I don't have any of the prototypes but if you know of a place I can grab some images of them I could take a look - time permitting.

[Iok]

Nice review. I couldn't agree more on the weapons. Interesting thing about the headsculpt tho. It is a spot on representation of the IDW character. I actually like the look but question the short sleeves

Hehe - I didn't know that about the head sculpt. It's a very cool, pretty lifelike face though - just nothing like the cartoon version!

[Lifeline 71]

I took some time this weekend and repainted Ripcord's weapons in a nice shade of Tamiya Gunmetal, which seems to look okay. I've also tried him out with a generic ROC FN 2000 rifle, which looks similar but is smaller so he can hold it better. I'm considering painting his arms so it looks like he has sleeves. Otherwise, I really like this figure.

[Iok]

I took some time this weekend and repainted Ripcord's weapons in a nice shade of Tamiya Gunmetal, which seems to look okay. I've also tried him out with a generic ROC FN 2000 rifle, which looks similar but is smaller so he can hold it better. I'm considering painting his arms so it looks like he has sleeves. Otherwise, I really like this figure.

Nice. I just ended-up giving him Scarlett's pistol. :)

[nighthawk]

I wish he had hair...haha.

[Lifeline 71]

If you want to make him look a little more badass, give him ROC Heavy Duty's machine gun/grenade launcher combo. Looks good and he holds it well.

[Iok]

If you want to make him look a little more badass, give him ROC Heavy Duty's machine gun/grenade launcher combo. Looks good and he holds it well.

Oh good call!

[Lifeline 71]

Oh good call!

Thanks! I was going through my figures the other day, found that gun, and decided to try it out. It's big, but since he's surprisingly bulky-looking it fits. Plus, that gun has a shorter stock so he can hold it in different positions.

[Drawing Heat]

I really like this figure. It's one of those where, when I first saw it, I thought, meh whatever. But getting it as part of the wave 4 case, I'm really glad I did. It was the surprise hit for me.

I also painted his weapons. A little touch that I thought makes a world of difference is to paint the front pouch on his web gear a dark gray color (like his boots). Makes him look more like the card art design and it just improves the overall look.

[DrKain]

I didn't bother painting his weapons, I just gave him the gun and silencer that came with a Cobra Trooper (who had 2 with him).

[Dem_Yoe'z!]

I gave mine the extra assault rifle Steel Brigade came with

[Cobra Fox]

We all need to be open minded and accept the fact that G.I. Joe have too many honkies. In 2007, Hasbro CEO John Reese was contacted by BET's Rupert Lee Thomasom III and suggested that the ROC movie to have one of their main characters to be African American. And here's Ripcord and the rest is history. LOL. Just b/sing you. Made all that up, even the names.

[Griff]

i picked him and he's STATIC LINE in my world....not ripcord. the head sculpt was really amazing thouygh for a figure....though ti was weird he didnt have hair...but im nto complaining..he make sgood custom fodder sinc ethere are very few decent black sculpts on the market!.

[Headman]

This ripcord is 100% win! (For parts to make characters better than this shit fest of a figure).

[nighthawk]

I use mine as an updated Stretcher. Still looking for some Stretcher vintage gear to finish him off.
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l171/wing_woo/Joe%20Customs/031-2.jpg

I thought of using him as Static Line too, but I don't have any of his gear as well.

[Lifeline 71]

Yeah, I might make him into Stretcher as well. It's got great custom potential if you don't want to keep him as Ripcord.

[Odinsdad]

I don't own the latter so I couldn't say. It's the same helmet as Captain Ace comes with from the SkyStriker, I believe.

It's a different mold than that but I can see why you thought so.

[Iok]

It's a different mold than that but I can see why you thought so.

Given how fragile the weapons mounts are on the SkyStriker and that it's up on a shelf above head height, you'll understand why I wasn't in a hurry to get it down to check. :)

[Lifeline 71]

A couple of other things that can help him look a bit better. I gave him ROC Desert Duke's helmet and backback, both of which fit very well. Also, try using the Pit Commando's pack, as well.

[rip_cord]

i pretty much only want the helmet & goggles from this.....to use on my Spc. Altitude Ripcord.

[MeLikeJinx]

i pretty much only want the helmet & goggles from this.....to use on my Spc. Altitude Ripcord.
Me too... but I wanna see how it looks first before I buy a Renegades Ripcord just for his helmet.

[boff123]

i like the figure. i only paid 4 bucks so that him acceptable. also picked up tunnel rat and scarlett for the same price.

[youdoitimbusy]

yeah, i still don't know how i feel about this figure. I bought it, but once my son is old enough this ill probably be one I give him to play with.