Action Force Storm Shadow with free mini vehicle...

[Billy_Boy]

Hi Guys!

My name's Bill and I'm a vintage toy collector from the UK.


I purchased a large carded toy collection at the beginning of the year. Amongst the vintage UK Star Wars figures were three GI Joe 'The Action Force' figures from 1989. On the Storm Shadow card was something I'd never ever seen before on a UK card... a free mini vehicle???

I've seen the US cards with the free mini figures... BUT I have never found one (or even seen or heard) of one on a UK card before! Funnily the same seller had two or three similar loose mini vehicles for sale too.

Can anyone tell me about this unusual offer and when it possibly ran in the UK?

Bill

[Billy_Boy]

I forgot to add the link to these pics...

http://community.webshots.com/album/184893708JwedfN


Bill

[Blitzwingz]

Funny! I asked myself the same question when I found this ebay auction:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

[Billy_Boy]

COOL!



That is the first other example I've seen! Isn't that particular Spirit figure a 1990 European release?

Bill

[Billy_Boy]

Nope... thinking about it that Spirit card was actually an early '91 release.

So what's that 1989 carded Storm Shadow doing with the same special offer on it? Was it possibly a later applied offer placed on old 'overstock'???


I'd love to know the history of these?

Bill

[JeffreyKabal]

last week I e-mailed the seller of that spirit with the mini vehicle for some more information, to bad I didn´t hear from him yet.

[Blitzwingz]

According to a certain Dutch GI Joe database (soon to be online ), Stormshadow v2 was released in 1990 in Europe. Maybe he was also available 1991, just like Spirit?

[JeffreyKabal]

most figures were released several years in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Stormshadow (renamed BLIKSEMSCHICHT) was released in 1990 which was the 4th release overhere. Spirit was part of release 5, 1991.
Both spirit SM & European version were released in 1991.
So it was a bit confusing as a kid.
Anyway I´ll have to check if bliksemschicht was released in 1991 as well. I do think so.

[Billy_Boy]

I'm pretty sure the (US '88 / 'V2') Storm Shadow 'Action Force' card was released in the UK in time for Xmas 1989... the only reason I strongly believe this is that my Nephew can clearly remember receiving the same figure (with a few others) as a present from a relative who sadly died in 1990. (Not a very nice way to determine a release date! )


Either way, the exact initial release date is not what I'm really intrigued about... it's determining when this 'free mini vehicle' offer period took place in the UK?

Bill

[RotterdamTerrorCorps]

Have you tried the boards on www.actionforce.org already? There are loads of Saksons and Scots roaming overthere with first hand knowlegde 'bout those things.