Of the first wave of G.I. Joe action figures that were released in the Netherlands in 1987 (and the rest of mainland Europe) Zartan has got to be one of the coolest. Technically, Zartan wasn’t released as a standalone action figure, but as part of a vehicle set (the Chameleon Swamp Skier), just like the US version. I recently scored a very nice Zartan and Chameleon 100% complete in Dutch packaging (I try to collect the extremely rare G.I. Joe releases that came in Dutch-only packaging). Have a look at the gorgeous, signature 1980’s packaging:

G.I. Joe – Zartan with Chameleon Swamp Skier – (Dutch version 1987)

“Bad Ass”

Zartan is a mysterious character in the G.I. Joe universe. Officially he belongs to Cobra (the bad guys), but he is really a part of a subgroup of mercenaries called the Dreadnoks (“Waaghalzen” in Dutch) of which he is the leader. Zartan is a master of make up and disguise. He can also change his skin colour at will to blend into his environment, much like a chameleon. According to the file card on the back of the packaging he is fluent in over 20 languages and dialects and is master of several martial arts. His real name and place of birth are unknown. How much more bad…. ass…. can you get?!? :-)

Scene from G.I. Joe cartoon by Sunbow (1985)

“Heat Sensitive”

The toy version of Zartan was friggin’ cool! Zartan’s skin was heat sensitive. If you expose the action figure to direct sunlight, he will turn blue! I know, it’s just a gimmick, but to me it was one of the coolest things evah back in 1987. The same goes for his Swamp Skier (called “Kameleon” in Dutch), which also saw most of its parts change colour when exposed to sunlight. Zartan also has heat-sensitive chest- and thigh-armor that changes colour.

Zartan – being a bad ass

To top it off, he also has a mask that he can carry around in a special compartment of his backpack! You could actually put this mask on Zartan’s face! Like this:

“No mate, no Zartan here. Move along.”

“Collection”

I bought this Zartan a couple of weeks ago and I was very pleasantly surprised with the state the action figure was in, the Swamp Skier and the packaging. Everything was there. All the inserts, paperwork and in such great shape as well. I mean, even the spare heat sensitive stickers for Zartan’s chest and thigh-armor were included!

“Trivia”

The first version of Zartan’s file card in the US (in 1985) was released saying that Zartan suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and multiple personality disorder. After receiving complaints from a mental health organization Hasbro quickly dropped that part of Zartan’s bio and released updated packaging. As a result, this is sometimes used a selling point in auctions of boxed Zartans that still carry the “schizo card”. As far as I am aware Zartan’s Dutch bio never had any reference to mental illness, which is not so surprising, because Zartan was released in Europe two years later (in 1987).

Larry Hama, the guy who wrote most of the G.I. Joe file card bio’s, originally intended Zartan to be called Captain Chameleon, due to his colour changing abilities. In the end, Hasbro went with Zartan, which is an obvious anagram of Tarzan.

“Gallery”

Check out these sweet Zartan pics from my collection below. Enjoy!

[Show slideshow]

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A little while ago a very good collector friend of mine came through and made it possible for me to check off another item on my most wanted list. An MB Transformers Chop Shop! The colours on the box front have faded a little, but have done so in a very subtle and equally distributed way.

I am now down to the final 9 MB Transformers to complete my collection. You can check out my checklist and some photos of my current collection here. I have a lead on another MB item, which I really hope to score in the next couple of weeks, because it’s an item I’ve wanted for a long time. More on that if and when I do succeed in scoring it (don’t want to jinx it ;-). Anyway, I’m still on the look out for the following items:

Some more photos of cool vintage G.I. Joe and Masters of the Universe stuff I scored in the past few weeks coming up real soon!! Thanks for looking!

Anyone familiar with the MB Transformers line will know that Jetfire was initially the leader of the Autobots and not Optimus Prime. If you’ve ever wondered why that was, you’re not the only one. There’s a theory going round that explains this anomaly as the result of a trademark issue regarding the name Optimus Prime in the Netherlands. I think this long standing theory is incorrect.

I’ve done a lot of research over the past few months on this very subject (yes, sometimes I worry about my own sanity…) and I have found nothing to support this theory. Quite the contrary. I have come to the conclusion that the exact reason why Optimus Prime was not  initially planned for inclusion in the MB line is because of a different reason altogether and I wrote it all down in this 5th chapter of my series of articles on MB Transformers. Why devote an entire chapter to this subject? Well, for one, it is one of the more interesting issues in the MB line in my opinion and, two, it needs to be supported by a sturdy foundation of important information, which significantly adds to the length of the article, so it was not an option to include more topics in this installment.

I understand some people will choose to ignore my take on this, preferring to hold on to the trademark theory, but that’s perfectly fine! I believe I have outlined my case with many supporting arguments and from what I’ve seen so far, I think the trademark theory is wrong. Then again, new evidence might pop up one day proving my theory or parts of it wrong! All I’m saying is, this is what I think happened, and here’s why…. :-)

Tell me what you think in the comments section or by emailing me. Please enjoy the fifth installment on MB Transfomers by clicking here!

I’ve had some really nice feedback on my last MB Transformers article and I’m really quite humbled by some of the reactions. It’s a real boost to find that fellow Transformers enthousiasts enjoy reading my musing as much as I enjoy writing them. I’m already a long way towards completing the 5th installment and contrary to what I originally had planned, this will not be an article about the introduction of Hasbro branded Transformers in Europe. Instead I have deciced that I will concentrate on another part of European Transformers history that I am most interested in investigating and that is MB Transformers mysteries and variants.

From a chronological standpoint it just makes a lot more sense to look at MB mysteries and variants (1985) first and to push back the article on Hasbro rebranding (1986) towards the end of the series. As I was doing research on the legal issues surrounding Optimus Prime’s release in Europe and the Jetfire leadership thing (in Europe, Jetfire was initially billed as leader of the Autobots in 1985!) I gained some new insights that further cement the theory in the 4th chapter and I will merge these back into that article as soon as chapter 5 is done.

So what are all those MB mysteries and variants then? Well, first of all there’s the issue of Jetfire being leader in the MB Transformers universe. As you will find, the explanation for this abnormality is closely tied to our famed maker of toys from Strasbourg called Joustra! Also, I believe the standing theory about it being related to an alledged trademark dispute about the name “Optimus Prime” in the Netherlands in 1985 is false. This really is such an intricate web of information that most of the the fifth installment will be dedicated to it. The remainder of this installement will look at the total of three (!) different Optimus Prime variants that MB released in 1985, so it’s really Optimus Prime’s party in the next installment of the article series on MB Transformers.

But there are many more mysteries surrounding the MB line to keep us occupied, that will follow in subsequent installments. There’s also the mystery of the Thundercracker/Starscream mixup, there’s the mythical MB Devastator gift set, the mystery of the MB Swoop, the case of the missing MB Autobot car and yellow Constructicons. All these mysteries and variants will be examined in the next few chapters so stay tuned. Who said MB Transformers were boring? :-) Have a great weekend!

Recently I managed to add another MB Transformer to my collection! Decepticon Triple Changer Astrotrain is the latest addition and was obtained as part of a trade that I made with a very good collector friend of mine, who is also based in the Netherlands. The box has some wear, but it’s still in reasonably good shape. It came with a custom insert, but that’s easily replaced with an original insert as soon as I manage to locate one.

With this latest addition my MB Transformers collection is now 81% complete and it’s really starting to become an uphill climb. Of the 53 officially released retail items, I’m now only missing 10. I’m going to have to think about some new strategies to obtain these remaining 10 items, because it’s getting increasingly hard to find items I am missing. Of course this is not entirely surprising, because that’s the way it goes. When you have nothing it’s easy to find items here and there, but as you approach your goal of completing the line it gets harder and harder and some of the most hard to find items are the ones you’ll end up chasing for a long time. But I have the time and I’m positive I’ll one day complete my collection of MB’s!! :-) Meanwhile, you can find photos of my current, up-to-date MB Transformers collection here.