I was the opposite, after loving Joe in 82 and part of 83, I was almost completey out of the GI JOE thing in 1984 (the fickleness of youth, distracted by MOTU and others ), but my brother was still major into it.

I have a soft spot for the one item I did get myself that year, Zartan and his Chameleon. The swamp skier is crap that broke too easy even when it was new. But the idea of it all was cool. Plus it was something I had that my older brother didn't (He got all the other 1984 items except the Vamp MK2).

Also, the COBRA CLAW brings memories, not because I liked it, but when my brother got it was the first 84 thing we'd seen. We had no idea what was new, and it included the 1984 catalog/folder. Seeing those for the first time was the best kid "high" ever.

I'd get back into GI JOE in '85 after a major birthday haul, getting older stuff, like Recondo then, too (he became my favorite 84 Joe because of that). My older brother outgrew toys by mid-1986, so after that I carried the Torch (and Buzzer and Ripper, too ).

The best thing, though? The WHALE was a great thing, it started a new trend of assault vehicle with crew positions and mini-vehicles that would go on and on (with mixed results). That was a true team vehicle.