G.I. Joe Classified Series Mole Rat review

After cranking out a slew of amazing 6-inch versions of classic Joes and Cobras, Hasbro’s G.I. Joe team is branching out to create some new additions to the line. Mole Rat is the first original CS figure with a dual meaning with his possible connection to the Transformers as well.

I loved the Pursuit of Cobra Zombie Viper and for now this is the closest Hasbro has come in the Classified Series line. I’m excited for this one and wondering if was too cautious in just getting two.

Let’s hit the tunnels and break down Mole Rat.

Package:  I really dig the artwork for Mole Rat as it conveys that threat of Tunnel Rat seeing these guys in the distance coming his way. Peep the smattering of Dark Energon in the background.

On the right corner, the signature white strip shows all the accessories and underneath is a drawing of the Mole Rat showing how hazardous the Dark Energon is to humans. The sides feature a larger version of the drawing and the QR Code that leads to nowhere shows the skill sets.

The back showcases the accessories and another look at Mole Rat. They rank a 1 in environmental specialist, science and a rare “classified” category as well as a 2 in biohazard detection.

Here’s the bio courtesy of Pulse: While Cobra headhunts top scientists and researchers from across the globe, less-qualified recruits wind up as Mole Rats, quarriers and miners seeking new energy sources to power Cobra’s war machine. Extracting deposits of volatile Dark Energon has sparked certain troopers to become mindless husks bent on destroying anything in their path.

Likeness: The Mole Rat has an amazing head Dark Energon-ed infected sculpt. It’s caused a mutation in his face with elements of the material tearing through his skin. This is actually a pretty horrific design now that I think about it. The remaining eye is glowing purple and there’s all kinds of pockmarks along his face.

His teeth are misaligned as well. I love that despite the infection his containment gear cap is still intact around the back of his head and ears.

Mole Rat’s outfit is very complex. I can easily see it or most of it being reused for Airtight. It’s bulky enough to show it’s providing extra protection without being immobile. It’s got a lining around the collar for a larger helmet.

There’s vent caps (?) at either shoulder with tubing and a chest gauge. Along the waist are four longer pouches. I’ll have to imagine what they contain. Mole Rat is sporting some thick gloves to grab the Dark Energon oh so carefully.

The thick pants tamper off with more of a plastic material to provide a tight seal. As usual there’s a ton of great texturing detail to give the outfit a more realistic appearance.

 

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Paint: Mole Rat’s color scheme adds a nice new color scheme to the mix with a light purple and orange combination. Paintwork is mostly solid with the exception of the elbow joints, which are a weaker orange allowing for the light purple to bleed through.

The precise paint applications for the gauge and Cobra logo are very sharp.

I had to give a special shout out to the work done on the head sculpt, which takes this figure from filling the cracks in the face. The purple glow in the eye is exceptional and the gradient work around the Dark Energon pieces is very well done.

Scale:  He’s about the same height as a regular figure like Rock n Roll and will be looking up slightly at Bazooka.

Articulation: Mole Rat’s articulation is just fine for a lumbering zombie. Hasbro engineered him smartly — the chest piece and the waist pouches are separate pieces so the articulation isn’t limited.

Hip range is good allowing for deep crouching poses, which is very good for Mole Rat excavation.

Mole Rat has:

• head
• neck
• shoulders (butterfly)
• elbow (double-jointed)
• wrist
• wrist hinge
• mid-torso
• torso
• waist
• hips (ball-jointed)
• drop down hips
• knees (double-jointed)
• ankles

Accessories: Mole Rat has some a solid amount of accessories with enough different elements to allow for some very easy army building.

First up is the masked portrait. The mask detail is outstanding with a large rebreather section reminiscent of Darth Vader’s setup. The recessed eye portion is another standout thanks to paint effects that make it look reflective. I’m loving the back as it shows the bulkier material of Mole Rat’s biohazard gear.

 

He’s also got a container, which already looks like it’s got some Dark Energon collected.

Mole Rat also gets a Geiger counter to detect the radioactive material.  To register all of these hazardous materials, Mole Rat has a backpack with a connection that looks like it’s made out of the kind of duct tube material.

There are three fans of varying sizes to keep the air filtrated properly…if Cobra wasn’t so cheap. The backpack also has a latch at the bottom to hold the container.

For his weapon the Joe team came up with some clever uses for it. There’s a smaller section you can use as a blaster and then there’s a longer attachment you can plug into it.

Again, this helps diversify your Mole Rat ranks just from switching out the size of the machine gun. Or you can swap out the larger barrel for the drill bit for when you want the Mole Rat to start excavating.

The drill bit can be used as a separate piece on its own as well. I appreciate that the drill portion has a curved bit painted in a gunmetal silver.

As always you can use the included storage locker to hold all his gear.

Worth It?   With all the gear and the multifunctional use, he’s worth $24.99 although I wish he were close to $20 to make army building easier.

 

Rating: 9.3 out of 10

I decided to army build my Mole Rats a little and got a pair. I dig their 2 in 1 style army builder setup and might have to go with my typical army builder cap of five for these guys, which are a lot more fun than I expected.

Where to get it?  Mole Rat is a Walmart exclusive with limited availability at Pulse. They’re sold out at Pulse, but still available at Walmart for the time being.