G.I. Joe Classified Series Big Boa review

With the arrival of Big Boa, Hasbro seems pretty dialed in on knocking out the Cobras from the 1987 lineup. They were a wild mix of villains and fun additions to the series.

When he was announced for the Classified Series it was clear Hasbro was going to have some fun with him. Not so shockingly, Big Boa’s CS debut is a winner. But is he good enough to be a contender for Figure of the Year in the CS Top 10?

Let’s find out but watch that right hook. It’s a doozy.

Packaging: We’re back to the mostly original look for the CS line with the big plastic window to show off all the accessories, a large portrait on the side, the QR Code to nowhere with the small skill stats and a terrific action shot render on the back.

His bio is the same as the old Real American Hero figure: Cobra troopers can be an unruly bunch at times. They aren’t motivated by patriotism, unit loyalty, honor or sense of duty. It takes a brutal, unfeeling taskmaster to whip them into fighting form and Big Boa fits the bill to a tee. He has a voice like a bullhorn, fists the size of frozen turkeys and the disposition of a rabid grizzly bear.

I do wish Hasbro would add some new info to the bios to put a bit more background to the characters.

For his skill stats, Big Boa ranks a 4 in strength, a 3 in hand-to-hand combat and a 1 in coercion and leader.

Likeness: Fittingly for Big Boa, Hasbro gave him the Roadblock/Gung-Ho mold. It’s the biggest, most defined body in the Classified Series toolbox so far. The additions of new pieces definitely help to avoid making him look too similar to the muscled-up Joes.

Big Boa’s always had a great look befitting a Cobra enforcer. It’s the crisscrossed harness with spikes that really sell him as an intimidator. He’s got taped wrists to help protect his fists from heavy bruises.

His crotch/cup protector is ribbed and has studs for added safety measures.

Boa has his helmet, which really puts him over the top as far as being in the Top 5 most intimidating Cobras. It’s got a spiked mohawk and has a mouth grill like a Transformer with a rebreather on the left side. For eyes, there’s one long orange stripe. It’s so much better not seeing any of his facial features.

His default head is definitely gonna be the alternate for me. It’s got plenty of character with some scraps and missing front teeth. His portrait is so well done as he just looks like a goon/thug type. One who’s taken at least a few shots along the way.

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Paint: Paint normally isn’t a problem for Classified Series figures. If there’s any problem, it’s typically the smaller more precise areas of a figure. Big Boa got a very crisp paintjob. The few problem spots are what you’d expect — some of the silver from the spikes splattered over onto the red harness and vice versa.

One area that turned out really nice is the bloodstains on his wrist tape. It shows Big Boa has either been training too hard or he’s been beating up some Cobra prisoners.

Scale: Big Boa is a bruiser type character, so it makes sense for him to be taller than the average Cobra officer. And look pretty formidable against a regular height Joe.  He’s gonna be looking eye to eye with Roadblock, GH and Sgt. Slaughter.

Articulation: He’s the rare Cobra agent who’s not lugging around a gun or some weapon. For Big Boa, he’s the weapon.

That really means he needs to be able to get in some good punching and grappling poses. I envision him as kind of the Cobra MMA fighter if he were introduced in modern times.

The boxing gloves are good for battering an opponent. but he’s gonna want to lock in some submission holds that naturally he won’t let up until he breaks something.

As I’d expect, Big Boa has fluid movement and can pull off some pretty fun and creative poses.

Big Boa has:

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

Accessories: The Real American Hero figure came with a punching bag on a stand. That was a pretty fun accessory, but it was really all he had. While I miss the punching bag, the CS version has enough gear to make up for its omission.

For more classic-skewing collectors, he also comes with his boxing gloves. They’ve got an impressive amount of detail from the white lined interior and the Cobra logo on the front. The cuffs have a leather-like texture to provide another layer to them.

Finally, to give Big Boa some extra swole, he’s got a pair of 90 lbs. dumbbells.

Beyond the fun posing possibilities with them, they could also make for some seriously deadly weapons.

The sculpt on these is solid too as they’ve got the usual font used for weights. In another cool touch there’s some small cracks and dents in the weights simulating the wear and tear they get over time.

Worth It? Big Boa is $24.99, but I was able to take advantage of a Target sale to get him for $17.49. The Classified Series figures are worthwhile pickups at the regular price so any price lowering is welcome even if unnecessary.

Rating: 10 out of 10

The only thing taking this down oh so slightly — not enough to lower the score — is the missed opportunity for more Python Patrol branding. The logo is great and it would have been nice to see it pop on some other elements specifically the backpack.

Where to Get It?  Big Boa is available right now on Amazon.

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