GI Joe: The Eagle’s Edge figure review set – Destro, General Hawk and Leatherneck
Yeah, it’s pretty typical of my procrastinating figure reviewing that Hasbro is cranking out a 6-inch line of Joes and I’m finishing up the last of the 3 ¾ sets. In fairness, I was holding off just so I could have a Joe set to review. This one is The Eagle’s Edge featuring Leatherneck, Destro and Gen. Hawk.
Packaging: I like this packaging with the angular design focusing your attention on the figures and the Joe logo with the 50th anniversary star.
There’s a nice write-up of the set explaining this particular trio and bios are also included.
Likeness: The main draw for me with this set was Leatherneck. Hasbro previously released one in this style that was a bad repaint of Gung-Ho. This one is a far more dedicated sculpt capturing the ornery Marine nicely.
Hasbro has done a good job of finding appropriate parts to use for these figures while staying accurate to the original figure with a slightly modernized approach. I love the stern headsculpt as Leatherneck always came across as gruff and completely no-nonsense.
Destro is an improvement over the Revenge of Cobra set version. It starts with a larger mask as the other one was a little too tiny to contain a human head. The mask/helmet sculpt is impressive and probably my favorite aspect of the set. It looks more like a helmet/family heirloom that doesn’t move when he talks.
Overall the figure seems slightly larger. I like the collar as it’s raised higher and wider. The rockets and grenades are bigger as well. The chest jewel and chest radio are more detailed as well.
Gen. Hawk is more of a generic figure from the 2011 Pursuit of Cobra line. The figure is OK, but there’s nothing about it that screams Hawk to me. Honestly it makes for a better Grunt than Hawk. The armor plating on the thighs and knees is well done. I dig the vest with the pouches and holster (with non-removable gun). His helmet does come off if you prefer the basic look.
Scale: Leatherneck is really huge. He’s using a Joe movie Roadblock mold, which was fine for The Rock, but not so much for a guy who typically was portrayed as a regular size guy. I always viewed Sgt. Slaughter and Roadblock around the same height followed by Gung-Ho and then Leatherneck.
This throws things off a bit. Hasbro seemed to stop focusing on scale at some point and it creates an unnecessary issue that shouldn’t exist.
Destro isn’t noticeably smaller, but being taller and bigger works for him. It’s perfectly fine for Destro to tower over Cobra Commander.
Gen. Hawk comes off poorly in this category as he’s just tiny compared to the others, but he’s actually scaled just fine with the older 3 3/4 figures.
Paint: Here’s where things get real dodgy.
Leatherneck might be the worst of the three. The left arm doesn’t seem like the skin tone was changed from Roadblock so it looks darker than the right arm.
His head is the worst offender with various slop and scrapes. It’s one of the sloppiest paint jobs on a figure I’ve gotten in years.
Destro is better. His chain is the hardest part to get right so I’m not shocked the paint applications aren’t perfect. The bottom point of the collar is missing some red and there’s some runoff on the holster.
Hawk’s eyes are painted a little weird and his skin tone seems a little pale. His color scheme is odd, but they work to make him stand out from other figures in the set. It’s just more of a dull color combination than anything.
Articulation: Despite the scale issues all three figures benefit from the enhanced articulation model of these 50th anniversary figures. Hawk is pretty good save the stuck left hand, which doesn’t rotate very well.
Destro is also solid, but his hips are annoyingly somewhat loose. Otherwise his articulation is very good.
Leatherneck is also a little loose and his size makes him a little clunky next to other Joes.
- neck
- ball-jointed shoulders
- bicep
- elbow
- wrist
- wrist hinge
- torso
- waist
- hip
- thigh
- knee (double-jointed)
- ankle
Accessories: There’s a slew of accessories here although the hand grips are loose making it challenging for the figures to actually hold the weapons well. Leatherneck has his grenade launcher similar to his original figure. He also has two knives, a 50 cal machine gun with ammo belt, a pistol and figure stand.
Destro has a case for his weapons — a sniper rifle — with various components that all fit in the case. Nice deal. It would be even better if the stock didn’t fall out with the barest hint of movement.
Hawk also comes with a case with a monitor/laptop setup, a carbine rifle, scoped SMG, another SMG, a pistol and a walkie talkie.
Worth it? I I got this set a long time ago — clearly as it was sold at Toys R Us — and I’m pretty sure I got it at a discount price. That’s not the case now as it’s going for $80+. Unless you’re a huge Leatherneck fan willing to overlook some of the scale and paint issues, this set isn’t worth that price.
Rating: 7 out of 10
On a figure by figure breakdown, I’d give Hawk a 7 out of 10, Destro a 9 out of 10 and Leatherneck a 5 out of 10.
Where to get it? You can still get the set from Amazon at various prices.