3DJoes and the Case of the Preproduction Cobra Officer

Isn’t the amount of 1:18, o-ring news that has been popping up as of late just wonderful? We have Carson from 3DJoes to thank for a lot of that news, with this latest segment being no exception.

Recently, Carson sat down with Micah Sampson, who presented (3) Cobra Officers. One of them, however, was very different than the others! Check out the video below to see a hand painted Cobra Officer prototype and the story behind it! –

The amount of items such as this piece that are in private collections never ceases to amaze me. I still fawn over the Unproduced 1995 Star Brigade Thrasher Artwork and 2up that were for auction at Hakes Americana and the 1994 G.I.Joe Star Brigade Cobra Power Fighter Painted Hard Copy Sample that was on eBay to name a couple (and no, I don’t have a Star Brigade obsession at all, really).

In the video, Carson gives us a side-by-side comparison of a production piece, alongside this hand painted prototype that is believed to have been used for promo shots and marketing materials of that nature.

The differences in both portraits are noticeable, with the unpainted version having no eyebrows, the production version having “cleaner” lines.

Here, Carson points out a gray primer paint that was applied on the proto before being hand painted. Carson also points out the differences between the pre-prod v production samples. Talk about a gem (the toy, but Carson too, I guess).

Here, Carson confirms the gray primer again and notes how the crotch piece did not have a taint gap, so removing the legs was a chore to say the least, as one would have to unscrew just about everything else.

All of the subtle differences do give us a solid figure in the long run; The braces within the torso to keep things from bouncing around, the crotch gap, etc. I personally would love to have this figure in this “dissected” form alongside a production release, encased in plex and on my shelf.

My silliness aside, cheers and thanks go to Micah for sharing the piece and to Carson for his in-depth investigative review of the figure. As noted, Micah will have this and other figures from his collection up for grabs, so make sure to keep your eyes on the Facebook groups for more details. I’ll be sure to share word here as well!