My headcanon is that the '93 Headhunters were pretty much bribed into Cobra after Headman's organisation collapsed - and since Cobra ain't in the business of pushing, they're now the urban patrol troopers. At least that's what I'm thinking because of the file cards.
I have my 92 version still but shortly after I bought it, I did a headswap to make a Max Rockatansky figure. That outfit and cut down shotgun just screams Mad Max to me.
Great review. I had the one with brown accents. I loaned him to my younger brother and never got him back. So in my case, "In the end, there can be only none."
I think that 1993 version was $4.99 because it wasn't sold at Toys R Us or another toy store that was able to charge less for them (odds are due to being able to get a volume discount). This figure is really cool and I can see Cobra taking over Headman's organization and absorbing his troops into their group. Great review!
I always thought that, with a head swap and some minor repainting, you could have a pretty badass custom figure of Max Rockatansky from the first Mad Max movie.
Of the 1990's action figures, my favorites are Lifeline version 3, Big Ben version 1, Duke version 3, Iceberg version 2 and Beach Head version 2. I remember seeing the Headhunter action figures a few times, now I wish that I had picked one up. It is a pretty nice looking sculpt and the shotgun and backpack accessories are nice. I could easily see people using this action figure as either bodyguards to Cobra Commander or as members of a third faction fighting both G.I. Joe and Cobra. The shotgun reminds me of the sawed off over/under shotgun that Chuck Norris used in his movie The Hitman (1991) which is about a policeman who fakes his death and poses as a hitman to disrupt a major drug cartel's operations . I would say that I defiantly favor the first version over the second action figure. The neon colors really diminish the appeal of it for me, even thought I do admit to liking a few of the 1990 and beyond action figures despite the bright neon paint colors.
We found the v1 Headhunters in the box I bought at a yardsale. Also in it were loose parts of other figures, we took Mercer v1 head and put it with the Headhunter body. My son called him Mad Max after seeing the Road Warrior. I know he used him as a driver for either the Badger or the Mudbuster truck. Would love to see you do reviews of the Stormtroopers and the v3 Law.
I like the sculpt. The figure does have a very 'Iron Horse' motor cross vibe. Terminator 2 came out in 91 and there were also a slew of unforgettable motorcycle movies that came out in the '90s: "I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle" 1990, "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man" 1991, "Samurai Vampire Bikers from Hell" 1992, "Bikers, Blonds, and Blood"-a documentary 1993, and for more motorcycle fun - "Valley of the Cycle Sluts" 1994, "Barb Wire" 1996 (even if there wasn't a bike in it, who cares?), let's see - what else - "Zombie Cult Massacre" 1998, "CHiPs 99" 1998, "Desert Heat" 1999, and, um, "Murdercycle" 1999. And if that means nothing there was the 1986 song by Jon Bon Jovi from the Young Guns soundtrack "Wanted Dead or Alive". If that perfectly reasonable and clear explanation doesn't put some lead in your pencil then I don't know what will. It's all so clear. I'm going to put animal crackers in my soup. Later, Gator!
Fascinating! Like most people of my generation; I’ve always found motorcycles to be about as cool as the retirees that putt around on them. Funny how they replaced motor homes for the ‘AARP’ set! When you mentioned that ‘Bon Jovi’ song I could practically smell the Icy Hot in the air!
"Say no to street drugs. Say no to illegal drugs. Say no to bad drugs." I've heard just about every version of this slogan. I think the Headhunter was the last G.I. Joe I got. After that the line just got too silly.
As another person has already pointed out, these figures have a bit of a Mad Max vibe to them; so like Hoodie said, maybe they should've tried with the Dreadnoks as the drug dealers and these figures would have fit in that group nicely.
Seeing a guy with a leather jacket and gold face plate and assuming he's a drug dealer is .... wait for it.... profiling. You're an attorney! I see an acquittal! : )
Ok...weird -- I was just wondering/hoping today that you'd review these guys soon... This is one of my favorite bad guy figures of all time. Surprisingly no neon, considering when it was released (that little bit of teal is not a problem). These are some mean-looking troopers and I love the urban gunslinger/gangster look (especially w/ the shotgun). While I can take or (mostly) leave spring loaded missile launchers, the light up feature was fun. I have a lot of fond memories of the summer of '92 when my brother and I picked up all of the DEF and Ninja Force figures over those few months. We did not buy disappointing green repaint the next year. Now that guy looked like he was on drugs! (Or maybe it was 'gator leather...?)
Great job and review, I love having these figures as army builders, if you change the head you can have a customize gi joe mad max figure, also if Audrey is a highlander fan she needs to check out all the movies, the series and anime/cartoon, yes there was a highlander cartoon series.
Valid....i like both. It would have been cool had the Stormtroopers came out 1 year earlier, then they could have got personalized accessories and a backpack rather than 15 different weapons that evey other figure got...just in a different color....and no backpack. To me, the sawed off shotgun & the backpack were great accessories for the Headhunter troopers. For my Stormtroopers, I use the knife and medium sized gun they come with and put a low light backpack on them. My bad bout the length of the comment...had a lot to say.
The 92 color apps are better than 93's. I like that the 93 file card has them as Cobra's urban troopers. Only thing is, would they be above the Alley Vipers? Would there be a squad of Headhunters lead by an Alley Viper, or the other way around? Or would they be an off-shoot of the Alley Vipers? Great review Hoodie, and that scream was priceless!!
In the DDP Comic series of GI Joe (which was a continuation of the Marvel run), the Headman was killed when Cobra bombed the GI Joe prison cells to save Xamot (who was deathly ill). Apparently he was imprisoned after the Marvel series
I only got the Headhunters and the Stormtroopers in later years but the DEF and Headman figures were purchased in Long Beach and the train ride back to LA went through Compton. Yes the same Compton that two future US Presidents lived in! I hear these cities have been mentioned in some form of music in later years...BTW I used to take the batteries out of these launchers and put them in other toys or little LCD primitive video games.
Oh yes, Stringfellow Hawk. A man who, when we first meet him is playing Cello as a hawk soars above him. Now that is what I call way too literal. Great show premise though 'Don't make me helicopter, you wouldn't like me when I helicopter'
When I saw this figure, even t though I was 17, I had to buy it - the 92 version of course. I thought for sure there was going to be a twist either in the comics or the cartoon (neither of which I read or watched then) that one of the headhunters would be Cobra Commander in disguise. Back in 1986 I had the Transformers Hot Rod and Rodimus Prime before the Transformers movie had come out. I thought it was weird how both toys had such similar designs. Then I found out why in the movie. With the Headhunters, the way it was designed I thought for sure it was something similar, the toy coming out first so they couldn't spoil an upcoming twist. Still glad I got the toy though, it is very cool and I love the shotgun and backpack that can holster it. Love, love, love that kind of feature!
I like to think (in my fictional storyline) Cobra secretly took over Headmans drug operation to partially fund their global terrorist activities. What criminal syndicate would miss out on the chance to employ these highly skilled mercenary foot-soldiers?! Seriously!? They're totally badass! I'm still looking to get my hands on one of these cool figures.
My headcanon for the differences in the filecards is that after killing Headman, Cobra took over his organization and the Headhunters just switched their loyalties to Cobra.
Oh hell yeah man I loved the Headhunters. I remember as a kid they were always my special mercenary group, I had about 8 or 9 of the Headhunter Storm Trooper, I always acted like they were Extremely hard to kill like The Terminator.
Honestly, I don't remember these figures since I had stop collecting GI Joe figures by around 1990 or so. I did get a couple of Ninja Force figures but a lot of the sub teams got really out there like the Mega Marines with the play doh armor. That being said, the Headhunters do give off the basic Viper trooper vibe with the visored helmets.
I think the Headhunters work as "civillian" troops for the Crimson Guard. As in the look seems like a private security force for Cobras more seemingly "legit" corporate offices.
These guys look like some of street thugs from Double Double! And as for the Terminator, well if you put 1987 Mercers head on them, then that's exactly what you get!
I always felt the headman and headhunters had a clockwork orange aesthetic, especially the hats, boots and masks. I always saw the headhunters hat as more of a beret or flat cap.
You missed 2 of the other enemies....1. .the red shadows........2. intergalactic bounty hunters......3. action mans green alien dude....and space threat...the green dinosaur alien creature
I had the neon green padded one growing up, and I got quite a bit of use out of him as a bad guy for my hand-me-down DC Super Powers/'89 Batman and Man of Steel figures. He was quite frequently a nameless goon (including sometimes for my older brother's Crystal Ball figure I would pretend was Ra's al Ghul), although because of the cool mask and spikes, he sometimes got elevated up to ganglord when I was bored with using my Joker and Penguin figures for the main villain. Looking back, i actually got quite a bit of use out of these 90s GI Joe figures (I got like 20 of them "from Santa" for Christmas in like 94 after they'd hit the double clearance rack) - and all of it was as repurposing them as goons for my figures from other toy lines, whether is was superheroes, Star Wars, Robocop, etc. And yeah, those oversized spring-loaded rocket launchers had their uses in that regard, too. I can understand people's distaste for this era's figures, but it had some real gems, eapecially if you were willing to repurpose them with other toys.
Hey buddy... Some of the 1987-1989 figures and vehicles kinda sucked. Sorry. I grew up with 90's GI Joe and people need to take their nostalgia glasses off. 1982-1986 was pretty consistently good, with only a few stray weird figures and vehicles, presumably designed to appeal to kids who wanted something more Sci-Fi in it's aesthetics. By 1987 though, maybe due to 1986 sales being smaller than 1985 sales, it seems like they threw aesthetic consistency out the window in favor trying anything to catch consumer eyes.
@Ryan Jacobson I probably did in a way. I was 5 in 1990. I remember had the 1994 Metal-Head and Scorpion vehicle, and I had the Sgt. Savage with the vhs tape, and GI Joe extreme figures from like 1996 on. However, looking back, I just think the later stuff is crap. Oh, there's some gems, no doubt. But, overall, I have zero interest.
My headcanon is that the '93 Headhunters were pretty much bribed into Cobra after Headman's organisation collapsed - and since Cobra ain't in the business of pushing, they're now the urban patrol troopers. At least that's what I'm thinking because of the file cards.
I have my 92 version still but shortly after I bought it, I did a headswap to make a Max Rockatansky figure. That outfit and cut down shotgun just screams Mad Max to me.
were you as confused as I was when he said it reminded him of star wars?
Great review. I had the one with brown accents. I loaned him to my younger brother and never got him back. So in my case, "In the end, there can be only none."
I think that 1993 version was $4.99 because it wasn't sold at Toys R Us or another toy store that was able to charge less for them (odds are due to being able to get a volume discount).
This figure is really cool and I can see Cobra taking over Headman's organization and absorbing his troops into their group. Great review!
HCC is hilarious. Best reviews, hands down.
I’ve always liked this figure. It’s very sci-fi-ish. They look like they would have came out of the films Judge Dredd, RoboCop or even Blade Runner.
I always thought that, with a head swap and some minor repainting, you could have a pretty badass custom figure of Max Rockatansky from the first Mad Max movie.
Yeah; maybe the Sylvester Stallone version of Dredd 😂
Actual cartel members look more like ISIS, or middle eastern terrorist paramilitary organizations.
HCC788's Daughter: "There can only be one."
HCC788: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH
best. intro. ever.
You’re getting to be a really good shot with those 90s rocket launchers HCC
Great review B! This was a wonky sub team, but one that I like. The message is solid. The Headhunters are totally awesome looking!
It’s always great to watch a new review on Sunday. It’s nice to forget about work and other stresses for a bit. Thanks for doing what you do HCC
Of the 1990's action figures, my favorites are Lifeline version 3, Big Ben version 1, Duke version 3, Iceberg version 2 and Beach Head version 2. I remember seeing the Headhunter action figures a few times, now I wish that I had picked one up. It is a pretty nice looking sculpt and the shotgun and backpack accessories are nice. I could easily see people using this action figure as either bodyguards to Cobra Commander or as members of a third faction fighting both G.I. Joe and Cobra. The shotgun reminds me of the sawed off over/under shotgun that Chuck Norris used in his movie The Hitman (1991) which is about a policeman who fakes his death and poses as a hitman to disrupt a major drug cartel's operations .
I would say that I defiantly favor the first version over the second action figure. The neon colors really diminish the appeal of it for me, even thought I do admit to liking a few of the 1990 and beyond action figures despite the bright neon paint colors.
Audrey " I am of the clan Hçc I have come for your head "
We found the v1 Headhunters in the box I bought at a yardsale. Also in it were loose parts of other figures, we took Mercer v1 head and put it with the Headhunter body. My son called him Mad Max after seeing the Road Warrior. I know he used him as a driver for either the Badger or the Mudbuster truck. Would love to see you do reviews of the Stormtroopers and the v3 Law.
This figure and the stormtrooper headhunter were badass in my opinion
I like the sculpt. The figure does have a very 'Iron Horse' motor cross vibe. Terminator 2 came out in 91 and there were also a slew of unforgettable motorcycle movies that came out in the '90s: "I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle" 1990, "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man" 1991, "Samurai Vampire Bikers from Hell" 1992, "Bikers, Blonds, and Blood"-a documentary 1993, and for more motorcycle fun - "Valley of the Cycle Sluts" 1994, "Barb Wire" 1996 (even if there wasn't a bike in it, who cares?), let's see - what else - "Zombie Cult Massacre" 1998, "CHiPs 99" 1998, "Desert Heat" 1999, and, um, "Murdercycle" 1999. And if that means nothing there was the 1986 song by Jon Bon Jovi from the Young Guns soundtrack "Wanted Dead or Alive". If that perfectly reasonable and clear explanation doesn't put some lead in your pencil then I don't know what will. It's all so clear. I'm going to put animal crackers in my soup. Later, Gator!
Fascinating! Like most people of my generation; I’ve always found motorcycles to be about as cool as the retirees that putt around on them. Funny how they replaced motor homes for the ‘AARP’ set! When you mentioned that ‘Bon Jovi’ song I could practically smell the Icy Hot in the air!
"Say no to street drugs. Say no to illegal drugs. Say no to bad drugs."
I've heard just about every version of this slogan.
I think the Headhunter was the last G.I. Joe I got. After that the line just got too silly.
I only have maybe three or four Joe's lying around...the head hunter is one of them. his holster back pack is one of the best packs they ever did
Will you end up doing a review on the headhunter stormtrooper too?
The Headhunter actually fits quite nicely with the Iron Grenadiers
Always great to see a great video from you HCC.
As another person has already pointed out, these figures have a bit of a Mad Max vibe to them; so like Hoodie said, maybe they should've tried with the Dreadnoks as the drug dealers and these figures would have fit in that group nicely.
Good job to both of you on the opening skit .
I Wonder would the Hi lander be good fit for the G.I joe team ?
Seeing a guy with a leather jacket and gold face plate and assuming he's a drug dealer is .... wait for it.... profiling. You're an attorney! I see an acquittal! : )
Ok...weird -- I was just wondering/hoping today that you'd review these guys soon... This is one of my favorite bad guy figures of all time. Surprisingly no neon, considering when it was released (that little bit of teal is not a problem). These are some mean-looking troopers and I love the urban gunslinger/gangster look (especially w/ the shotgun). While I can take or (mostly) leave spring loaded missile launchers, the light up feature was fun. I have a lot of fond memories of the summer of '92 when my brother and I picked up all of the DEF and Ninja Force figures over those few months. We did not buy disappointing green repaint the next year. Now that guy looked like he was on drugs! (Or maybe it was 'gator leather...?)
Great job and review, I love having these figures as army builders, if you change the head you can have a customize gi joe mad max figure, also if Audrey is a highlander fan she needs to check out all the movies, the series and anime/cartoon, yes there was a highlander cartoon series.
I always thought that the headhunter stormtrooper was way cooler.
Valid....i like both. It would have been cool had the Stormtroopers came out 1 year earlier, then they could have got personalized accessories and a backpack rather than 15 different weapons that evey other figure got...just in a different color....and no backpack. To me, the sawed off shotgun & the backpack were great accessories for the Headhunter troopers. For my Stormtroopers, I use the knife and medium sized gun they come with and put a low light backpack on them. My bad bout the length of the comment...had a lot to say.
The 92 color apps are better than 93's. I like that the 93 file card has them as Cobra's urban troopers. Only thing is, would they be above the Alley Vipers? Would there be a squad of Headhunters lead by an Alley Viper, or the other way around? Or would they be an off-shoot of the Alley Vipers? Great review Hoodie, and that scream was priceless!!
Looking good buddy, thanks for the upload.
Gotta love fictional drug names, Spark, Nuke, Jack, Slo-Mo, Jeffrey etc.
You missed the best one: Spin (from Bravestar).
@@erichurd7605 I wasn't aware of that one. Good call 📞👍
Poor Doctor Mindbender! Awesome review!!
In the DDP Comic series of GI Joe (which was a continuation of the Marvel run), the Headman was killed when Cobra bombed the GI Joe prison cells to save Xamot (who was deathly ill). Apparently he was imprisoned after the Marvel series
Headman always made me think of the Hamburgler.
I only got the Headhunters and the Stormtroopers in later years but the DEF and Headman figures were purchased in Long Beach and the train ride back to LA went through Compton. Yes the same Compton that two future US Presidents lived in! I hear these cities have been mentioned in some form of music in later years...BTW I used to take the batteries out of these launchers and put them in other toys or little LCD primitive video games.
Oh yes, Stringfellow Hawk. A man who, when we first meet him is playing Cello as a hawk soars above him. Now that is what I call way too literal.
Great show premise though 'Don't make me helicopter, you wouldn't like me when I helicopter'
Nice Hulk analogy, Hulk like.
Great review since I'm a fan of DEF. You should review Headman too and some others DEF figures to close this subteam. :)
When I saw this figure, even t though I was 17, I had to buy it - the 92 version of course. I thought for sure there was going to be a twist either in the comics or the cartoon (neither of which I read or watched then) that one of the headhunters would be Cobra Commander in disguise.
Back in 1986 I had the Transformers Hot Rod and Rodimus Prime before the Transformers movie had come out. I thought it was weird how both toys had such similar designs. Then I found out why in the movie. With the Headhunters, the way it was designed I thought for sure it was something similar, the toy coming out first so they couldn't spoil an upcoming twist.
Still glad I got the toy though, it is very cool and I love the shotgun and backpack that can holster it. Love, love, love that kind of feature!
This is one figure it would have been nice to have in a MOdern form yet from what I read once HAsbro wouldn't greenlight a Modern DEF Con Set
The Head Hunters are kind of like TARGAT where they just folded other bad guy figures into the main Cobra Forces after a sub-team was over.
“Run for it, Marty!” Haha
I like to think (in my fictional storyline) Cobra secretly took over Headmans drug operation to partially fund their global terrorist activities. What criminal syndicate would miss out on the chance to employ these highly skilled mercenary foot-soldiers?! Seriously!? They're totally badass!
I'm still looking to get my hands on one of these cool figures.
My headcanon for the differences in the filecards is that after killing Headman, Cobra took over his organization and the Headhunters just switched their loyalties to Cobra.
Oh hell yeah man I loved the Headhunters. I remember as a kid they were always my special mercenary group, I had about 8 or 9 of the Headhunter Storm Trooper, I always acted like they were Extremely hard to kill like The Terminator.
I skipped most of the subgroups, including the Headhunters V1. I did buy V2, because they were now part of Cobra.
Your daughter gets extra internet points for referencing my favorite movie of all time.
Honestly, I don't remember these figures since I had stop collecting GI Joe figures by around 1990 or so. I did get a couple of Ninja Force figures but a lot of the sub teams got really out there like the Mega Marines with the play doh armor.
That being said, the Headhunters do give off the basic Viper trooper vibe with the visored helmets.
These kinda strike me as a stylised version of Wesley Snipes clothing from new jack city... Mixed with cobra.
Yes! This is how I played with them
If I had been a kid in the 90's I would have probably asked this figure to mom, it looks as great as the B.A.T.
I like Headman & his Evil Headhunters. Fun figures.🤘🏻😎
Great review, I am enjoying the year of the 90s.
It's cool that you can share interests with your daughter.
All my kids are boring. 😢
The Headhunter is a slap in the face to people that hate 90s figures very cool figure....and remember kids say yes to drugs...😛
He's got spurs that jingle jangle jingle... jingle jangle!
Nice reference to the highlander. There can only be one!
I think the Headhunters work as "civillian" troops for the Crimson Guard. As in the look seems like a private security force for Cobras more seemingly "legit" corporate offices.
These guys look like some of street thugs from Double Double! And as for the Terminator, well if you put 1987 Mercers head on them, then that's exactly what you get!
Nice review! That helmet looks like a Coppola cap to me (Sicilian traditional kind of flat cap), see wikipedia.
I always felt the headman and headhunters had a clockwork orange aesthetic, especially the hats, boots and masks.
I always saw the headhunters hat as more of a beret or flat cap.
Good one! 😂
Have any of the versions of Cutter been reviewed?
He did the one who came with the WHALE, in the vehicle review.
That lovely backpack you going to marry it
Third one here Commander ready for action
I'm on the side of whoever makes sure the Spark keeps flowing
I was never a fan of the DiC series. And the nineties action figures only reinforced how I felt.
Hoody, your beard is epic
Maybe they turn the headmaster green because that way, kids could see drugs being more evil, with that ridiculous color.
Too bad I can't give you a second upvote just for the BttF references
But is it a top tier figure? I must know... for a friend!
I have the first one. It was a really great figure but i put a cobra sticker on its chest cuz cobra was cool.
Needed a cameo by your daughter in the tag.
You missed 2 of the other enemies....1. .the red shadows........2. intergalactic bounty hunters......3. action mans green alien dude....and space threat...the green dinosaur alien creature
GIjoe vs Walter White
He has a good code name.
Maybe working for Headman pays better for Cobra? I mean drug money seems better than the money Cobra printed themselves
You also forgot the twins......they were bosses also
No more drugs 👎💪
Looks like mad max road warrior
my 1993 headhunters all say China. so maybe u have a variant if it says indonesia
God, I would love to give 5 dollars for a Headhunter figure
Portable drug lab 😂 😂😂 only GI JOE is GI JOE
You mean her name isn't really Beelzebub?
New jack swing
I had the neon green padded one growing up, and I got quite a bit of use out of him as a bad guy for my hand-me-down DC Super Powers/'89 Batman and Man of Steel figures.
He was quite frequently a nameless goon (including sometimes for my older brother's Crystal Ball figure I would pretend was Ra's al Ghul), although because of the cool mask and spikes, he sometimes got elevated up to ganglord when I was bored with using my Joker and Penguin figures for the main villain.
Looking back, i actually got quite a bit of use out of these 90s GI Joe figures (I got like 20 of them "from Santa" for Christmas in like 94 after they'd hit the double clearance rack) - and all of it was as repurposing them as goons for my figures from other toy lines, whether is was superheroes, Star Wars, Robocop, etc. And yeah, those oversized spring-loaded rocket launchers had their uses in that regard, too. I can understand people's distaste for this era's figures, but it had some real gems, eapecially if you were willing to repurpose them with other toys.
Nice inclusion of your daughter, and it's cool to know she's a Highlander fan. And maybe the beret like helmets mean they're French Cobra troops?
I want that shirt
Great figure, but it looks more like a paramilitary fighter than a drug dealer to me. Ironic that he's dressed in black and tan.
hi fred 7
gi joe a real american hero should have bin could gi joe a real dutch hero (it has the dutch flag al over it)
Definitely a figure I would have snagged if I hadn't been out of the loop in 92. They look really muscular and mysterious. Boba Fett vibes everywhere.
Kinda cool, but not interested. 1992 is too late to be worth collecting.
Hey buddy... Some of the 1987-1989 figures and vehicles kinda sucked. Sorry. I grew up with 90's GI Joe and people need to take their nostalgia glasses off. 1982-1986 was pretty consistently good, with only a few stray weird figures and vehicles, presumably designed to appeal to kids who wanted something more Sci-Fi in it's aesthetics. By 1987 though, maybe due to 1986 sales being smaller than 1985 sales, it seems like they threw aesthetic consistency out the window in favor trying anything to catch consumer eyes.
@Ryan Jacobson I probably did in a way. I was 5 in 1990. I remember had the 1994 Metal-Head and Scorpion vehicle, and I had the Sgt. Savage with the vhs tape, and GI Joe extreme figures from like 1996 on. However, looking back, I just think the later stuff is crap. Oh, there's some gems, no doubt. But, overall, I have zero interest.
It's a cabbie style hat, not helmet