G.I. Joe Classified Series Dreadnok Ripper review

Of the original Dreadnoks. I always considered Ripper the wildest. Torch had to have some precision and restraint to run around with a flamethrower and Buzzer was a PhD who chose the anarchist lifestyle. Ripper? He’s a loose cannon from jump and seems to be the one most likely to get excited over wanton destruction.

Hasbro’s Classified Series’ rollout of the Dreadnoks has been slow — we finally got a third member of the faction at No. 102 in the line — but Ripper is here to wreck stuff up.

Let’s see if this Dreadnok is ready to rip or needs to get left behind in the Florida Everglades.

Package: The closed window Classified Series packaging isn’t terrible thanks to genuine effort made to make it fun. We get that here with a drum set and a Cold Slither poster in the background. There are also several cans of the Dreadnoks’ go-to drink — grape soda. No bonus points for including donuts sadly.

Ripper’s drawing as phenomenal with a wild yell. Above him there’s the accessory rollout on the top white stripe.

We get a wider shot of the strong portrait along the right side showing his smiley face right contact and razor-strewn necklace.  The left side has the QR code of nowhere and tiny skill sets. Over on the back, we get a better look at Ripper, his accessories and larger stats.

Ripper’s stats are as followed: a 3 in bladed weapons, 2s in mercenary and black-market deals and a 1 in siegecraft. All of those specialties check out.

You’ll have to head to Hasbro Pulse for his bio:

There are devils in Tasmania and Ripper is probably the meanest of them all. He is a professional criminal motivated by greed and a malignant dislike for the niceties of civilization—except for motorcycles and grape soda.

Likeness: Ripper is a perfect example of what the Classified Series team does best. Take an existing Real American Hero design from the 80s and make it even better for 2023/2024.

All of the terrific elements of Ripper’s first design have been enhanced for his CS figure. Starting with the head sculpt, which has layers to his fade on the sides and a spikier mohawk. Road Warrior Animal would be proud.

His removable sunglasses still have the red lenses, but now are laid into a silver frame. Ripper’s got a great snarl going showing plenty of teeth. His beard retains the same style as before just more prominently jutting out. Ripper’s a wild one so no need for it to be particularly well-coiffed.

The necklace consists of three razor blades. For the RAH version, it featured jagged cut up bits that seemed to suggest old dog tags of some of his victims. That didn’t seem all that safe so Ripper’s gone an even more dangerous route. He’s got one final razor blade as a right earring. The shoulder harness now has spikes on either side while retaining the pair of grenades on the right side and knife on the left side.

Ripper’s gold armband on his right arm now has spikes on the outside. He’s also got a spiked wristband on the right arm. Ripper definitely gives that impression he’s the Dreadnok all too happy to get into a brawl with someone. Then Buzzer gives them the final kick to finish them off.

For the RAH version, Ripper sported a crop top, but now the shirt goes full length tucked into his jeans. His card art featured a chain hanging from his belt, which is now implemented with the figure. He retains the holster on the right thigh with some added kneepads for an extra layer of protection.

Paint: Ripper features a more elaborate paint job than his RAH counterpart.

The biggest change is the addition of tattoos. He’s definitely the type to have some elaborate ink. On his left arm, he’s got a demon beast swiping its claw down his forearm.

The right arm has the Grim Reaper on the shoulder.

Easily the most impressive is the face paint detailing. His eyebrows have cuts in them and he’s got a tear tattoo under his left eye. The craziest addition is a smiling face contact that really takes Ripper up another notch or 12 on the deranged Cobra list.

The jeans are a darker color than the RAH figure, but the shirt camo seems like the exact same hue.

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Scale: Ripper is usually portrayed as a regular size guy no taller or shorter than the other Dreadnoks. With the exception of Road Pig. He’s been sized up slightly for the CS line putting him taller than standard characters. He’s still shorter than characters using the tallest part combination like Roadblock, Gung-Ho and Sgt. Slaughter.

I appreciate Hasbro creating enough unique parts that Buzzer and Ripper are about the same height, yet Ripper is more muscular and thicker.

Articulation: Ripper has the expected excellent Classified Series articulation scheme. While he has some separate pieces to his outfit, they don’t ride up as noticeably as some figures in the line.

His neck has superior range allowing for some very expressive poses and he’s also aided by the butterfly shoulders. They help with wide sweeping poses, which is essential for edged weapon wielders like the Dreadnoks. He won’t have any trouble using his weapons in combat.

Detachable hips aid in deep crouching poses as well.

Ripper 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:  Ripper’s got a great haul of accessories.

First up are his sunglasses. They stay on snugly and don’t fly off at a glance. He’s got a trench knife, which feels entirely fitting for him. It’s got a thick hilt and blade with serrated edges and stays firmly in the sheath.

Ripper also gets a smaller handgun that is removable unlike his RAH figure. It’s got a small barrel suggesting this is Ripper’s taunting weapon as the Dreadnoks stalk their prey. It also has a blade that looks like it would so some serious damage.

Throwing back to the RAH accessories, he also has his power jaws. The jaws actually expand and contract allowing for some fun play/display options. Ripper has no problems holding it either.

Finally, he’s got his main weapon — an assault rifle with a metal splitter. It’s also got a removable magazine.

And you can attach this to the peg on his back for storage. Ripper has some dangerous hardware.

Although Ripper can carry all of his gear, you can put whatever you’re not using in the included storage locker.

Worth It?  Classified Series, especially one like Ripper, warrant the $25 price point. Thanks to a Target sale, I was able to get him for $12.50 so it’s really hard for me to see him as anything but a seriously incredibly great value.

Rating:  10 out of 10

Ripper is one of the standout Dreadnoks and best of the Classified Series line in general.

Where to Get It?  You won’t find Ripper at retail these days, but you can still get him from Amazon, Target or Entertainment Earth.

As an Amazon, Target and Entertainment Earth affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.