Wrapping Up 2024: Guile from Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers by Jada Toys

   Since February is when I present my annual awards for the best action figures and toys of the previous year, it's highly likely that you've just read  me gush about Jada Toys' Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers line. Last year the line didn't make my Best Top 10 toylines, but it only had three figures released and I didn't find most of them until the very end of the year, though Chun-Li did make my Best of the Rest list, however. This year? Street Fighter II is definitely one of my top 10 toylines of 2024. Each release is a super high quality figure and Jada is absolutely impressing me every chance they get. Today we're checking out Col. William F. Guile, the guy who was definitely my favorite World Warrior as a kid. When I first discovered the Street Fighter 2 subset of Hasbro's G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline Guile was the first figure I wanted. Heck, I even had a Jean-Claude Van Damme based Guile from Hasbro's movie line. This guy really thrilled me when I opened him, though, as he's such a cool Guile figure and I was excited to pair him with Cammy as part of the squad to take down Bison! So, yes, I do absolutely revere the 1994 film. Why do you ask? Let's take a look at this tough American after the break...

The Facts:

Height: 6 3/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/ hinge ankles, bootsa swivels, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball jointed hips, ball jointed waist, balljointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders w/lateral pec hinges, bicep swivels, double hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, balljointed neck, and a barbelljointed head.

Accessories: 4 swappable hands, 2 swappable portraits, dog tags, comb, Sonic Boom effect, and 2-piece effect stand. 

Non-Scalper Price: $25 dollars

Comparison:

* Just for fun, here's Jada's new Guile on the left and the original 1993 Hasbro Street Fighter 2 subset of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. Hasbro's Guile had a new headsculpt but a body composed of parts from Road Pig, Dusty v3, and Roadblock v2. He also came with a Sonic Boom bazooka. 

The Positives:

* Guile looks awesome. I absolutely love how Jada has managed to keep these figures very stylized, offering us an anime-like aesthetic that seems to capture both the original 16 bit era videogame sprites and the in-game art and packaging art. Guile looks absolutely ripped. Seriously, he's shredded like carnitas over a Mexican street taco. He almost has Barbie like proportions when you compare his chest to his waist. Street Fighter 2: The Power of the Force! Seriously, though, it's how he's supposed to look. His tank top isn't just painted on, either; it's sculpted on with a ribbed texture. One time as a kid, probably after I saw Street Fighter: The Movie, I was hanging around outside of my house in a black Venom tank top and was using the Street Fighter 2 manual to practice "moves." I never mastered the Sonic Boom, but a neighbor did yell at me because they thought it was too cold out for a tank top. I've always been warm natured, though.

* Guile's hair makes up about 1/4th of the total plastic usage on this figure. It's huge and insane! He can balance upside down on it. That's not something he does in Street Fighter canon (that I'm aware of), but it's something you can do here. This kind of haircut seemed to be popular in the 1990s in pop culture stuff, especially anime and video games. The face is perfect and Guile looks very intense with piercing eyes. His whole face is kind of hawk-like, don't you think?

* His second portrait shows him really intense, like he's just about to throw down with one of the agents of Shadaloo. He's gritting his teeth and showing off his massive, manly chin.

* Guile's dog tags are a separate piece. You get the beaded chain (kind of like on the 12 inch G.I. Joe figures or the Sigma 6 figures) with a plastic set of dog tags. That's a really cool accessory and they look pretty convincing. 

* Guile is representing the good ol' USA with some serious tattoos. The colors are very bright for a tattoo, but they match the artwork for the game, so that's the way it's going to be. I wonder if Guile can make the flag wave he flexes his muscles?

* The camouflage pattern on Guile's pants is pretty impressive, as is the sculpt and paintwork on his boots. Everything is neat, clean, and accurate to the in-game artwork and such.

*  Guile's articulation is also excellent, as we've come to expect with this line. I really like the feel of Jada's Street Fighter figures as the joints are all well thought out and have an incredible range of motion. Guile is a tough looking figure and he can pull of fighting moves with ease.  All of his joints are pinless and they don't stand out too much on the figure. He's ready to pull off almost any move you want to have him execute. He looks more impressive doing them than I did as a kid in my front yard in a Venom tank top. 

* Guile has four swappable hands, just like most figures in this line. He has a pair of fists, a grip for holding his included comb, and a loose gesture, probably meant for helping to comb his hair. They swap easily, so no worries here.

* Here's the comb I just mentioned. How cool, right? I mean, it's not the most impressive looking accessory or anything, but it's so neat that it was actually included for Guile to use to celebrate his victory.

* Does Guile come with a Sonic Boom? Of course he does! It's a cool effect piece that can plug into the included display stand. 

*  The display stand  has an arm with two hinges to give the Sonic Boom the ability to be positioned perfectly midair by itself. Sonic Boom! 

   I frigging love this guy! Guile is one of my favorite figures in this line yet. I've always loved the character and I get a crazy rush of nostalgia when messing around with this guy. He's an Epic figure and just a darn cool representation of the character. I know Jada Toys has been doing some Player 2 variants of the characters and I'd love to see Guile in his blue outfit (JCVD style, baby!) with an effects piece to mimic the Flash Kick. This guy is excellent, though, and gets me even more excited for Jada Toys to move further towards completing the complete Street Fighter 2 roster.




Looking for more of Col. William F. Guile? Then check out my review of Super7's Street Fighter II M.U.S.C.L.E. Pack C, which contains Guile.

For more Ultra Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers figures check out the following:

Cammy

Chun-Li
Chun-Li (Deluxe Player 2 Exclusive)
Dee Jay
Dhalsim
Ken
M. Bison
Violent Ken (Deluxe)