2) Canadians were promised (and received) more store exclusives, but the walmart battle stations and some toys r us exclusives were not released here. What was the reasoning behind this; did the exclusives we did get not perform to expectation?


Retailer space and product choices differ by market. Sometime variations in product listings do occur.

1) The design team at Hasbro is filled with creative people. If you look at the history of G.I.JOE; the most popular years, 1984 -1986 were mostly new characters debuting each year in a wave of 16-17 figures. Would the staff rather create new characters and new situations such as the Pursuit of Cobra storyline, or do their best to copy an original design? Do the team actually come up with their own designs and then just call a desert figure Dusty/Snow Job since he is the established desert/cold weather expert?

The Design team prefers to create something new. It's always great to create a new storyline like POC, but G.I. Joe has such a fantastic history that they use the lore for inspiration. In many cases they know the characters they want to create, like Dusty. They will use the original as a starting point and then revise it for today's purposes.

) Why was the G.I.Joe brand logo changed from the movie style to a more 80s familiar logo for the Pursuit of Cobra line?

We felt the Pursuit of Cobra line was a celebration of new and classic G.I. Joe, so the logo was a tribute that merged key elements from both.

1) As a follow-up to the first question, with the environment themes.
Is the idea to have a core set of characters like Duke, Snake Eyes,
Scarlett, Destro, Cobra Commander, etc that revolve around the themes
essentially creating a new version of said character to match an
environment; and then have unique specialists to match each one too,
like Snow Job (Arctic), Snow Serpent (Arctic), Recondo (Jungle),
Jungle-Viper (Jungle), Dusty (Desert) and so on?

Yes, the Pursuit of Cobra line is based on four missions and we wanted the core cast to appear in the missions as well as key specialists. It’s a great way to tell the story in an engaging way and it can appeal to kids and collectors.

2) I think that some the new details you guys are adding (e.g. ammo
pouches, an array of accessories, modern weapons, etc) have really
been taken notice of and are big hit with the fans. What was/is some
of the inspiration you are drawing from for these new designs? Like
with the Jungle Viper, the hi-tech looking Firefly and the modern
Recondo? Is there any chance we could see some early production
sketches and early concepts of some of these new exciting figures?

Inspiration is taken from many sources. We use the brand's rich history, personal experiences, research, stories, and pop culture. In the case of Jungle-Viper, the figure actually appeared in the Designer's dream. He woke up and sketched a basic outline, and then researched a variety of high-tech gear. If you are coming to JoeCon, during the Hasbro tour we plan on showing sketches and concepts of released products, as well as concepts that never made it out the door.

1) - The POC Duke has a new head sculpt that is distinctively different from the ROC and 25th/ME Duke. What was the inspiration for this sculpt and is this the version that we should expect with future Duke figures?

This sculpt was inspired by Resolute, Classic and Valor vs. Venom. This head will be the head used for all Duke POC figures.

2) - Are the weapons from the RHINO (and other DTC vehicles) and upcoming mech suits compatible with the modular weapons ports on the new HISS?

Some of the weapons are interchangeable, but because the R.H.I.N.O. is an older design they may not fit perfectly.

3) - Is the Pursuit of Cobra line limited to American markets, or will it be marketed internationally like the Rise of Cobra line?

The Pursuit of Cobra line is offered to all markets, but listings are dependent on retailers.