The Senior Ranking Officer 3 packs were popular Toys ‘R’ Us exclusives for the 25th Anniversary/Modern Era G.I. Joe line, so it’s only natural to see it continue in the G.I. Joe Rise of Cobra line. The Joe set has been reviewed! This set includes:
- Grunt
- SGT. Stone
- Speed Metal in Delta 6 Accelerator Suit
Steel Brigade says
Carrying on the tradition from the GI JOE 25th/ME line, Toys R Us again offers "Senior Ranking Officer" 3-packs with the current Rise Of Cobra movie brand.
The line has previously featured repainted figures & unique characters made up of previously released parts & this offering carries thru with that staple. It was noted that the last SRO packs for TRU (Air, Naval, & IG) were delayed because TRU did not like the packaging (understandable as they were somewhat difficult to stack), but the packaging still went through & was redesigned from the 3-tubes to a box format with the latest SRO offerings in ROC making it much easier for display space in TRU stores. The figures offered in the GI Joe SRO pack are Sgt. Stone, Speed Metal, & Grunt.
SPEED METAL: Speed is placed in the front of the box (which traditionally has been for the highest ranking Officer in the SRO expressions, but is actually the lowest ranked character E-4 vs E-5.) I tend to think this was done to entice kids to be interested in the pack with an Accelerator Suit figure in the best display placement within the new packaging. Speed carries the real name "Sherman R. Guderian", this makes him a ROC version of the character "Heavy Metal" from the ARAH days. And thus makes him & the Target Exclusive "Rampage" two different characters in the ROC universe. He is exactly the same figure & comes with the same weapon/helmet/stand as the Accelerator Suit Ripcord, except featuring the head of the 25th Serpentor figure. It was noted early on by fans here on the HISS TANK, that the Serpentor head was one of the only heads to fit on this Accelerator body with out moding. I'll be the 1st to admit that I thought Speed Metal was the most disappointing looking "head replacement figure" of the upcoming ROC Joe line in proto-type pics from China. As he did not feature the helmet in the pics & the Serpentor head was not one of the better (imho) of the previous line. Now that I have the figure in hand, he looks great. He has a nice gold finish & like Ripcord, has some of the better movement in the ROC line. Plus it gives you another character that maybe is more seasoned than Duke & Rip with the Accelerator Suit. I like the name "Speed Metal" as it kind of gives the character a throwback feel while being what many would consider one of the farthest offerings from Classic GI Joe. Speed comes with helmet, rifle, & a stand.
Steel Brigade says
SGT. STONE: The character played by Brenden Fraser is re-painted here as a red beret & colored in a more woodland theme. Although the figure does not look much like Fraser (maybe Hasbro didn't pay for the likeness of the actor), he has been noted as a fan favorite for his more traditional military look (like Flint or Falcon) & his great range of motion. Stone comes with the same weapons (-the launcher) from his single release except with some reversed colors, including his rifle, pistol, jackknife (which always seems a bit small to be useful in the figures hands imo) & stand. Many pictures of this figure online do not illustrate that his vest is actually very dark green with black nuances which helps separate this color even more from the single Stone release. None of the paint apps are deleted or added & it's more of just a color palette swap for the figure with a different camo bdu pattern. Stone is one of the best of the ROC line with a great range of movement in his limbs & I think many will find this a preferable color scheme, I know I do, & he was actually the figure I was most excited for in the set, as he reminded me of some of those 1980's knockoff figures I'd team up with my Joe/Cobra forces back in my play-days lol.
Barefoot Jedi says
You have the most awesome avatars ever.
Steel Brigade says
GRUNT: Since 2008 Grunt has been offered twice in the modern era construction, the 1st time as a TRU SRO exclusive & here again for the 2nd time. This figure is made from the ROC Zartan figure minus the Zartan head & a different weapons assortment. This makes for a good representation but also has the limitations of the Zartan figure with the lack of range in the elbows compared to most ROC figures, & the somewhat meager left hand. The color scheme is excellent & even though it doesn't provide anymore paint apps than the previously sparse Zartan, it is a nice woodland camo rather than the NATO style. My only disappointment in the paint dept. is that the arm band is left blank with no insignia, if they did not want to use the "MP" logo that Zartan has then they should have given him the ROC insgnia or some other military logo on that arm. Grunt also has his belt in better placement than Zartan's & this looks to be more in line with what the figure designer intended. Instead of Zartan's weapons he comes with a more preferable stock for the character, that of which were included with Desert Ambush Duke, they are the same rifle, pistol, backpack, & the ROC stand (vs the special ops stand Duke has). This figure is a perfect for Grunt as it is a very generic military figure, & will look great in your ranks as more of these woodland camo fatigued figures are released, like the upcoming WM EX. Base w/the woodland Hawk & TRU 5-pack with the woodland Pitt Trooper.
Compared to Walmart, K-Mart, & Target, these are the best PRICED exclusives currently available rounding out about $15 per pack, or around $5 per figure.
Jaybird says
Thanks for the reviews, SB. I love the side-by-side pics. I think I'm going to have to see this in person though before I make a decision since they're really just repaints.
Steel Brigade says
Barefoot Jedi... lol thanks for the avy comment, I appreciate that!!
Your welcome Jaybird, I'll be doing the same for the ROC Cobra SRO set later this weekend!
dsrader says
Nice review.
snakeeyes22 says
I think these aren't bad, although simply changing the way Serpentor's eyebrow's were panted would have made the Speed Metal look more like a different character.
I did grab the Cobra version, and while it is more of a straight repaint set, I enjoy how the character's colors remind me of how the toys ms have looked during ARAH times.
Good point about the Walmart camo. After those are out, it may make me yet this set. And great job with the pics, a very complete rundown with comparisons is a big help.
Rocky says
Great review.
MrClean says
The Grunt I got from HK earlier this year actually has the MP & Joe logo still on the sleeve, but no logo on the pocket. I guess they switched it on the final production. Great reviews and great new avatar!
Keep reading: GI JOE ROC TRU SRO 3-pack Review - Page 2
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