Friday, January 10, 2025

Wrapping Up 2024: Jane "Glenda" Mullighan from G.I. Joe: Classified Series by Hasbro

 

   It's time for another figure from the Dragonfly crew and this time it's Jane "Glenda" Mullighan. Glenda is an interesting figure as she's another character based on a vintage international variant figure. Glenda was originally part of Plastirama's G.I. Joe: Comandos Heroicos from Argentina and was a repaint of Scarlett. Glenda was blonde instead of a redhead and sported a blue and white jumpsuit with a vac-metallized torso. She's similar to Quarrel, another international vintage repaint of Scarlett (who was part of Palitoys' Action Force line. Glenda is a really nice inclusion with the Dragonfly as she's always been a helicopter pilot. Hasbro didn't just repaint Scarlett here, either; Glenda has lots of unique gear, accessories, and a new portrait with three different hairpieces. She's an impressive figure! I do like these international variants, especially when Hasbro really puts time and effort into them. Glenda was the second stretch goal in the Dragonfly campaign (unlocked at 16,000 backers) and is the figure from the Dragonfly least likely to see a re-release. Ready to check out Glenda? Then join me after the break...



The Facts:

Height: 5 7/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/ hinge ankles, boot swivels, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball-jointed drop down hips, ball-jointed waist, ball-jointed mid-torso, butterfly pecs, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel biceps, double hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, balljointed neck base, a barbell jointed head, and a swivel ponytail. 

Accessories: 3 swappable hairpieces, 4 swappable hands, helmet, pistol, backpack, cable, laser rifle, and 2-piece harness. 

Non-Scalper Price: N/A, included as a stretch goal with the Dragonfly (XH-1).





The Positives:

* Like with Quarrel, Hasbro didn't just repaint the retro collection Scarlett and call it a day: Glenda has lots of unique elements that set her apart from both Scarlett and Quarrel. The base body is mostly the same with a new color scheme, sure, but Glenda's torso looks more armored. That's not just because of the gunemetal colored armor, either. There's a new texture to this piece that I'll show off a bit closer in a moment. Glenda is sporting a non-removable harness with a holster attached, a couple pouches, and a collar of some sort. What exactly is that? Is is perhaps a lifejacket of some sort or just a padded collar in case she has to eject from an aircraft with that capability?


* Glenda has a new portrait and while I can't be sure, I think they did try to give her the look of someone from Argentina. A quick search does show that Argentina has a large population of folks with blonde hair and of Spanish or Italian descent, so that seems to be what Hasbro was going for. She's quite lovely and the face printing is excellent. Glenda has three swappable portraits, the first of which has her hair clinging closer to her head and pulled back with her hair coming down towards the back of her neck. 





* Glenda's second hairpiece is a bit more ruffled. I'm assuming this is what she looks like when she's just removed her helmet or when she first wakes up in the morning. 








* Last up is my favorite of the three: It's more like the first hairpiece, but she's sporting a really nice headset with a mouthpiece attached. The vintage Glenda came with Breaker's headpiece, so this is Hasbro's improved take on that for the Classified Series. This is fantastic. The detail is really nice and crisp. 







* Glenda also has a full helmet that she can wear over either of her hairpieces without the earphones. It's a cool sculpt in the same colors as her uniform with a large visor and a microphone. I kind of wish Wild Bill had come with one, too. 






* On the back "Comandos Heroicos" is printed. That's a cool nod to the Argentinian Plastirama toyline. A little Easter egg, if you will. 




*  Since Glenda does use most of the retro Scarlett's body, she has the same pistol detail on her inner left forearm and the shuriken on her exterior left forearm. Still kind of cool. 









* Here's a closer look so you can see that Hasbro did indeed add an armored texture to the vest over the torso. It definitely makes it look more armored, maybe like Kevlar or something. 








* There's a larger two-piece harness that fits together which can fit over Glenda. It's actually adjustable, so technically it can fit any other figure you want to put it on, too. There's a small silver hook on the front as this is designed to connect with the Dragonfly's working winch, allowing any figure to be raised or lowered. 












* Even with the larger harness on, Glenda's articulation is stellar. While I don't think there are many other characters who will use this body, it is an excellent one with a fantastic range of motion. Whether you have Glenda just chilling in the cockpit of the Dragonfly, utilizing her laser rifle, swinging into battle via the harness, or engaging in brutal CQB with Cobra forces, she's up to the task. 









* Glenda ain't playing around, so when she pulls out her .45 caliber pistol you know it's on.  





* The holster for her sidearm is attached to her standard harness. It's not removable but is conveniently located on her right thigh for easy access. The pistol fits in there nicely. 



* Glenda also comes with a laser rifle. The vintage Plastirama Glenda figure came with Breaker's headset and Flash's laser rifle. I believe the vintage toy came with the laser rifle with no cord molded to it. Here the cord is detachable from the rifle and the backpack. It's a nice larger version of the vintage Flash laser rifle, though I do hope the eventual Flash figures comes with something more updated. The sculpt is quite crisp, though, and it is a nice looking energy rifle. 





* The backpack is also quite accurate to the vintage toy, looking like an upscaled version of the 25th Anniversary Flash's accessory. There are lots of little tech details on here.





* Four swappable hands are included with Glenda. You get a pair of pistol grips and a pair of fists. 


The Negatives:



* My only complaint with Glenda actually has to do with the laser rifle. It'd not a bad accessory, though it is a piece I hope comes with a Retro version of Flash and not a mainline, standard Classified Series take. So, what's my problem? Well, the laser rifle can't mount on the backpack in anyway. What a bummer? I think even the 25th Anniversary Flash was able to accomplish that, right? Hopefully this gets some more attention and modified a bit before Flash is released. 








   Glenda was a pretty inspired choice for adding a second pilot to the Dragonfly (XH-1). Sure, there are other vintage U.S. released G.I. Joe helicopter pilots (Lift-Ticket, Windmill, Major Altitude), but Glenda nicely stands out from them with her brighter color scheme. She's really a very good figure as well. Excellent, even. Her color scheme is just so vibrant and her portrait is just gorgeous, especially with the swappable hairpieces. I love the headset! She's another Epic figure. I just can't over how much detail and how many accessories Hasbro crams into each release. This could have easily been a repaint of Scarlett with blonde hair but Hasbro really made her so much more.


This is the first review of Jane "Glenda" Mullighan I've reviewed. For more G.I. Joe: Classified Series reviews check out the following:

11 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. It is, isn't it? I tried to look to see if it had any sort of special meaning in Argentina or perhaps in Spanish, but nothing popped up. It seems to just be a name randomly chosen.

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    2. Yeah, it's just odd to me for a Joe to pick a codename that's just another regular name. :P

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    3. I'd really like to know why that's her name. I've seen speculation that it's a reference to The Wizard of Oz, but that seems a bit far fetched. It's also spelled differently.

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  2. First time I've heard of th
    one, though I can see the Scarlett/Quarrel origins. I saw 'Jane' before anything else and thought the good doctor had finally left the Chrysler Building. I do like these international variants, though the FunSkool ones were often painful to see up close. Here's to another year of excellent reviews!

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    1. Thanks! I appreciate it! And, yes, some of the Funskool variants are wild. Canary Ann would make a good basis for a Tiger Force Lady Jaye, though we might not need another Lady Jaye as she seems to sit on shelves for some reason (though I think it's because she's been overordered or shipped on her own in the Classified Series). I'm also down for Super Cop, Street Hawk, and Windmill.

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  3. I can't get used to the idea of anything on shelves - offhand I can think of only one store in London that sells the toys you review (Forbidden Planet), and even then in limited numbers. By and large there are no high street toy stores in the UK now (or for that matter, any place that sells CDs or blu-rays), and haven't been for the best part of two decades, so it's either Hasbro or ebay. This site is a wonderful portal to another world where cool stuff exists

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    1. Smyths and The Entertainer are still in business in the UK even if they haven't got stores near you. They don't sell everything but they do have some great deals. For example even though I'm not collecting MotU Cartoon Collection I did pick up She-Ra and Hordak for £17.99 each when they are £23 in Forbidden Planet and other retailers. And those are new figures. Some of the 'older' ones like Evil-Lyn and Spikor were £10 each.

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    2. I'm glad I'm here to entertain you. I like to think I'm a friend to nerds all over the world! Carnivus definitely seems to know where all the toys in the UK are, so I'd heed his words. I've always wanted to visit the UK, but not if it's a toy desert! I figured you guys had toys everywhere, just different stuff. You know, shelves filled with Doctor Who, Harry Potter, James Bond, Action Force, and Austin Powers stuff.

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  4. Dagnabbit. I really need to open my Haslab Dragonfly. Will finally do that this weekend. Great figure. Odd choice but still a great figure.

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    1. I imagine they really wanted to include at least one female figure and one real oddball without locking another A or B lister behind the HasLab paywall.

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