The Slaghter's Marauders 7 pack from 2012 was a mixed bag (er, box). All of the figures were nice, but the whole Slaughter's Marauders sub group wasn't included. Either way, the figure that is the subject of this post is a very love hate figure.
SM Spirit deviates from his original figure a great deal. Using a mix of PoC tooling instead of the lackluster 25th Anniversary mold, he is now shirtless. For me, I appriciate this as if I wanted the original, I would buy the original.There is no need for a perfect "update". In many ways, the new style Modern Error figues have been the most boring for me when they try to do the same thing that was done 30 years ago, except with a new construction. Sometimes new stuff doesn't work, as was the case for some of the RoC designs, but in all it's far more exciting to get new figures.
As for the figure himself, Spirit is a mixed bag. This particular incarnation fits well with the rougher team that comprises the Slaughter's Marauders. The tattoo on his chest adds some personality and story to the figure. Perhaps during his time on the team, Spirit became a tougher, rougher person who felt that a tattoo would commemorate his time on the team? Maybe it was some sort of rite of passage that all the members of the SLaghter's Marauders went through? Maybe him a Falcon were drunk/high and hit the town getting some regretable tat's that the Sarge mocked them for the next morning and forced Spirit to go shirtless as long as he was on the team?
His articulation is great too. He can get some nice poses and overall is up to the standard of what a GI Joe figure should be. The colors are nice, and the blue gloves and elbow bands work the trademark color onto the figure in a nice, realistic manner. The web gear helps to cover him up, and his rifle and machete are his essential weapons that establish who he is.
All around, I liked this guy. There really isn't much to say about him really, other than he is a good stand alone figure or a nice part of an updated SM team.
