HCC788 - 1984 SPIRIT! G.I. Joe TRACKER - Vintage G.I. Joe toy!

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[@Jtr_ceral_killer]

G.I. Joe was ahead of its time for representing all races without bashing it over our heads. The Storm Shadow/Spirit rivalry in the animated series was always fun to watch.

[@danielherrin]

My Mother surprised me one day after school with Spirit. Such an awesome action figure.

[@haroldcarfrey4206]

Spirits original figure is dressed in the 1870s uniform of a Native Cavalry Scout...

[@jasonesler2716]

This was a top 5 joe for me. His races was something that made him even more awesome! Mass respect for a people that lived and honored the land that they watched over. The wind talkers were a huge part of the us military success and definitely a great part of history to learn about. Plus he looked freakin awesome!

[@mikaelschaefer7720]

As a Quarter Shawnee I loved this character it looked like my grandfather who was in WWll I loved that they gave him are more traditional look not the forced shaved short hair head and must wear military uniforms even got to keep the red loan cloth also loved how so multi ethnic there were in the 80’s unlike most other toy lines mostly all white with few black and maybe one or two Asian people in there lines straight out the door we got many great ethnic figures such as sprit, storm shadow, doc, alpine, iceberg, striker, jinx, roadblock, ripcord, I mean we got females baroness, scarlet, lady jay, ect even got red heads this is just a toy line that got it early in the 80’s the late 90’s got a little out there I really hated the weapons and huge back packs in the 90’s that figures could not stand with on and weapons to big for there hands

[@aiwaloki]

To me, Spirit, was one of the coolest characters growing up. He had a lot of personality. I loved watching fight Storm Shadow in the cartoon. It was such a different pairing compared to SE. The cartoon made SE a baffon, always getting captured.

[@Cavillier1970]

I agree how the cartoon writers treated Snake after the five part pilot. And matching Spirit vs Storm Shadow made the most logical sense compared to every other Joe, on the spiritual/mental level (no pun intended) There was a sense of honor to an extent, but I suspect the writers didn't know how to wholly handle the situation considering the comic books are a visual medium and the cartoon is audio/visual and in dealing w/ a character who can't talk the writers are limited, unless they're very creative

[@miketwain202]

One of the greatest action figures ever made.

[@joemartin5669]

Airborne was more in line to how a native American in the military would look.however I do see how to a kid back in 84 they would see Spirit a more visually appealing( stereotypical looks or not)figure to own.I guess there wasn't enough money to do his skin in proper colors but he still was one of the best figures the line did.I haven't bought most of the classified figures but I think I will get one of good old Charley.:)

[@greatgibby]

I really loved this figure as a kid, but sadly never had him. Recently I did make my own version using the Marauders gun Runner figures and based him off the version 1 design. I'm actually really very happy with how he came out and have now filled that gap in my missing his figure. 😊

[@xxjennajamesxy]

This is probably one of the best reviews of a G.I. Joe figure in my opinion. Very good job!

[@KahlessTheUnforgettable]

Retired combat veteran here. You’d be very surprised just how much leeway special operators get as far as uniform/gear choices & skirting the regs on everything from hair length to tattoos.

[@SoundwaveNL1977]

Awesome review HCC. Spirit is one of my favorites from the ARAH toyline. What a great figure. So much detail and Freedom gives him that little extra. Thank you for sharing 😊

[@andrewandrew4568]

Another great video. Thanks for all the hard work not only your regular schedule but convergence. Enjoy JoeFest.

[@michaelpytel3280]

Spirit & Mutt ( Freedom & Junkyard too) were among the first G.I. Joes I had.

[@michaeljfoley1]

I missed out on these 1984 figures when I came to GI Joe, I had to hunt them down in flee markets. I loved that hunt though!

[@anionhero]

Great review! This is one of my favorite figures from the original toy line!

[@GrrrwolfWherewolf]

Fantastic review! Expertly and thoughtfully handled! I think the only other figure my friends and I wanted to play with more was Firefly.

[@michaeljfoley1]

Spirit had a kind of mysterious aura about him, as did many of the 1984 characters like Firefly or Storm Shadow or Zartan. That's how I felt as a kid, it gave that year of the line a certain feel.

[@firefly44220]

We all know this is a great figure and character. I like all the Native American touches tho. He’s wearing his tradition and since gi joe let it’s best soldiers wear specialized outfits, this seems entirely appropriate. That bird is awesome. Come. On. His animal companion is the bird that represents our nation as he’s fighting for it AND his name is Freedom?? *chef’s kiss* perfection

[@edaniels240]

Definitely wanting to get Spirit & Freedom when I was little.

[@christianhafer9819]

Spirit is cool. You should try to brighten up your blue and paint those bracelets again. I did, and he looks practically new.

[@johnsoehnlen4781]

In your opinion, what's the best way to go about bringing back the blue on the shirt? I'm asking since there's a local vendor who has two v1 Spirit figures for sale. I don't have that version in my collection. All of the accessories are in good condition. It's just that one of them has the faded look while the other looks brand new. I'm asking because there's a $35 difference between the two figures.

[@christianhafer9819]

@@johnsoehnlen4781 What is faded? His shirt or accessories? Make sure his eagle companion has the claws. That's important.

[@johnsoehnlen4781]

@@christianhafer9819 Just the shirt. It's showing that yellowing that light blue seems to get when exposed to lots of heat and sunlight. The vendor will let me look at the accessories to inspect the eagle before buying. Thanks again for the information on elbow cracks. I only found one with that in a lot of duplicates that I bought recently. Another duplicate had slight discoloration but no cracks. I have 203 figures and 62 duplicates in my collection.

[@christianhafer9819]

@John Soehnlen 206. Just got another one. Umm....Hydrogen peroxide is good for de-yellowing white and blue plastics. I've had a degree of success whitening my Storm Shadow. Not perfect white, but better than when I got it. Just be careful. You don't want to lessen the other colors by brightening up the blue plastic. Like the red on the patches on his srms.

[@warrenmuzakpostwarguy4331]

As a GI joe fan from the mid 70s Adventure Team figures to the early 90s. I am really enjoying these videos. This one featuring Spirit (known to me as "Shaman" is great!

[@misfit666_usmc6]

My son got me a retro Stalker for Father's day. Thought I'd share with ya!

[@markmierau5189]

As a Canadian, I can definitely say he was called Spirit.

[@georgenoriegajr]

18:55 you have it backwards, the one that starts with "Charlie is a Shaman" is from 1984. The one that starts with "Charlie is a Spirit" is from 1985; I have one that has the Triple Win contest advertisement on the back of it, which took place in 1985.

[@TheLilith1978]

Back in the day any figure witch was pack with any pets was more difficult to find. I remember my friend had spirit. For me I had and we use to team these two up. Once my friend got out of GIJoe and went into ninja turtles I end up getting his collection and I end up getting spirit but had get freedom on after market in early 90s and was my first thing I trade for it on Yojoe. Still lov this figure

[@specter7-1977]

One of my favorite figures.

[@lesteralvarez903]

Happy Father's Day Commander! Never had Sprit but he was a great figure. 84 was a good year for Joe's. Lots of cool accessories with this figure. Thanks for the review Commander!!!

[@avice10535]

Great review, Spirit is a figure I rarely saw on pegs growing up.

[@Arashikage32]

The spirit figure his file card, and the way he was used was always respectful. Some tropes are there, because there is truth in them. This figure in the way he was characterized did nothing, but give me even greater respect for Native Americans.

[@centauri9458]

They painted him to look like someone that both the white soldiers and the red natives hated. A US Army Scout. But I like the look. Every man makes a choice, good or bad. Those men chose to be Both Native and American.

[@KevinMayle1974]

Great review, awesome figure, and the new 6 inch version is extremely awesome!

[@MikeKaess]

Fantastic review! Can’t wait to get my classified Spirit!

[@mountainpeakcloud8442]

I really appreciate you addressing the wider context of Spirit and America's history with Native Americans, I think it's really important to acknowledge these issues, and to acknowledge the complicated relationship we still contend with in 2022. Something I appreciate about Hama was when he said that he tried to portray characters, even the "enemies" like the Russians as humans, to try to humanize people, as opposed to playing into stereotypes... I think given that it was the 80s when these things were released, there was obviously varying levels of success when Joe media tried to be culturally sensitive. Even the bad guys in Joe tended to be non-American foreigners, which always felt complicated, but I did appreciate that "Cobra" was never identified as a group from a specific country, and existed more as a generalized concept of authoritarianism and fascism, because you can apply that to authoritarian and fascist threats in any country, the US included... to me that's much better than some kind of over-simplified nationalistic narrative that we are always the "good guys", and "they" are always the "bad guys". Bravo on a great review.

[@MiKeMiDNiTe-77]

I love Spirit and Freedom I've yet to add this increasingly popular and rare star to my collection.

[@Willisthatgoproyguy]

As I kid, I always thought Spirit was Navy and not Army because of the red chevrons and blue shirt. Now, I'm presuming that that his blue shirt and red chevrons go back to some kind of homage to a mid to late 1800s artillery soldier.

[@Alverant]

His filecard says he's not a healer but in the cartoon he heals Quickkick's broken leg and he spoke in a slow deliberate style that, to me, implied English wasn't his first language.

[@PozerAdultRacingTeam]

I had this one. Wish I still did. I do have the 20th Anniversary edition. Yo Joe!!!!

[@jakeproven256]

Happy Fathers day HCC788!

[@mrdonigan]

As a toy, this figure is amazing. So detailed and just captured my imagination as a kid. As an adult, I agree, our treatment of native populations is dark and troubled.

[@jeffmorris508]

Nice video. I love Spirit, such a good action figure. Both the original and the modern 6" classified figure are great.

[@snowroaches]

So, he's an E-4 but has E-5 (Sergeant) stripes. Good job.

[@joshuachristian5443]

The way Indians were portrayed in an episode of the 3 Stooges was hilarious!

[@yojoe2059]

Enjoy father's day!👍

[@lorenzojoneson]

i have an original Spirit tattooed on my chest. Freedom on my left forearm, and backpack on my right forearm. his gun is on my collarbone

[@haroldcarfrey4206]

In Vietnam, some Radio operators often used rapid fire street spanish to prevent easedropping

[@tycondrius23]

great review. I do wonder how do you rate the UK exclusive 91, version of spirit ? as a variant or as another version like SM and Air Commandos ?

[@dendostar5436]

Great look at Spirit! New Classified version is mighty good.

[@sirkowski]

I never knew he had a different name in Canada, but I never had this figure so I had never seen the card. I'm pretty sure he was named Esprit in the French-Canadian dub of the cartoon though.

[@markmierau5189]

he was called Spirit up here, not sure where HCC got that info from

[@alh4498]

As a french gijoe fan...i like this figure.

[@mikaelschaefer7720]

I kind of disagree I loved the v1 1980’s sprit being of Native American Ancestry I loved this character growing up I actually had a figure that looked like my moms side of the family he looked so much like my grandfather who was in ww2 but had short hair still have this same figure can’t wait to get my 6inch classified version I have ordered

[@yojoe2059]

Great video! Thank you!👍

[@RedneckOgre]

I loved Spirit on the original show.

[@dmathiass]

The figure's rifle seems to be inspired by the SPIW program or any of the subsequents equivalent programs for a flechette rifle from the 1960's.

[@biokido575]

You mean native Americans have been portrayed as savage villians, comic buffoons, and mystical sidekicks? That's crazy. It's almost like they are capable of running the gambit of characters and human experience.

[@studioshadowcross]

Did you think it was odd that Spirit has Army Sergeant Stripes on the sleeve of the figure, but the file card says he's an E-4 (Corporal)?

[@Straight0uttaCrofton]

fun fact: "Billy" from predator was also "Billy" from 48 Hours..... but wait, there's more: "Luther" from 48 Hours was also "Luther" from The Warriors

[@RC51Legend]

I always wondered about his chevron

[@ademirstabury4175]

heyyyyyyyyy joe...

[@mikeorgo1201]

Pursuit of Cobra Spirit is really the best Spirit. Wish HCC would look at more POC figures.

[@shawntherapidlyaginghipster]

I'm just as distrustful of psychology and psychiatry as Larry Hama. This makes me an even bigger fan of his file cards. No, I'm not crazy... just eccentric. By the way, does anyone know what music is played in Hoodie's older videos - specifically the Terror Drome episode? Great review, by the way. Keep up the awesome work. S

[@WWJD85]

Tied Up by Silent Partner

[@jakeproven256]

Spirit was in issue 155 and had apeared in the newer IDW issues.

[@jakeproven256]

I think the one that says "Charlie is a spirit" was the one you could get in 1985 and the other was the one you could get in 84.

[@tntsk868]

This is my figure I like good.

[@VorpalDerringer]

Fascinating that the Germans knew about code talkers and tried to eliminate that advantage in WW2! Had not heard that before. The figure is cool, but the design...yeah, it could be a lot more conventional military and less stereotypical. The arrow launcher and backpack with more ammo is good, and a removable belt is awesome, we needed more belts like that in the line. I loved Outbacks set and this one is good too...except the red cloth parts, that I could do without, for stereotype reasons. I do like the chest knife sheath, they could keep that. 6" Spirit is a good update that does away with almost all of my objections.

[@mikaelschaefer7720]

Actually I am of Native American ancestry how can non native people speak on whats right and wrong for one this are actual traditional look is not traditional military look my ancestors and family hated how there were made to cut there hair and dress in army uniforms because it wasn’t are look what your asking for is more offensive to my family an my people I know you mean no disrespect but people need ask first are you offended before speaking on our behalf this isn’t towards you it’s to everyone who think they know what’s write I loved sprit I had a figure that looked like my family I hated ripcord he was not seen as native to me or my cousins for one he looked more Mexican nothing wrong with that unless you wanted a more forced army look on the native peoples my family hated shaving there hair and wearing the uniforms but we’re proud to fight so no keep him traditional

[@wraith6776]

Larry Hama wrote a story a few years ago where Spirit had a rich family. I don't know how that fits with previous origins.

[@malcolmgreene8830]

Is it possible for someone to love their Native American culture especially if they were raised in it??? storm Shadow's a literal Japanese man and he dresses like a ninja I wonder do the anyone feel different about that??🤔🤔🤔🤔 great review but there was nothing wrong with this guy from the get-go, then again there is an Asian man called quick kick so you got a point🤔🤔🤣😂🤣😂🤣

[@sweetchristmas101]

But being a ninja is hardly a stereotype and it is far from being a hurtful caricature. A more meaningful equivalent would be if Storm Shadow looked like Tojo from a WW2 Bugs Bunny cartoon - short, bucktoothed, clumsy, always rolling his Rs. Do you think the Japanese would have a problem with that? As for Spirit, I think the issue is less to do with him featuring Native American iconography, and more with the fact he has ALL the iconography, enough for at least three more characters. For crying out loud, he has a gun that shoots arrows.

[@kyleholder3785]

the POC version is still my favorite but it's probably because it just looks almost exactly like Billy from Predator

[@user-si9fx4xb6v]

Yeah, I remember when that version of Spirit came out, a lot of G.I. Joe fans mentioned that online. In 2011, when Spirit's next action figure was included with the Slaughters Marauders box set, I immediately thought of Billy from Predator again, since the action figure wears identical web gear to what the commandos in the movie wear which you can take off to reveal a bare chest and he includes a machete as one of his accessories.

[@kilroywashere513]

This character didn’t bother, so yeah, even though; I do like this character, and he’s a part of G.I.Joe too.

[@allenbelk6222]

TBH, I didn't care for this figure originally. I didn't like how he was a bit stereotypical, and it felt a little silly to me. It was Larry Hama's fantastic characterization in the comics that made me fall in love with the character. After that, he became an essential member of my team.

[@510newguy]

It would be interesting to find out why his code name was changed from Spirit in Canada.

[@johnnahodil]

hey hoodie...( can i call ya hoodie? hoodster? ) i was wonderin what your take on the gi joe vs cobra, gi joe vs cobra spy troops and the gi joe valor vs venom lines was, have ya ever done any reviews on any of them, if ya did maybe i wasnt payin attention whats your overall attitude towards those lines?....im ( much like everyone else that watches your videos ) more of a fan of the original line but also have a few of these figures from the other lines still on card, just curious as to what you and everyone else thinks of those ....( i have one of the two packs spy troops with kamakura, or as duke called him in the new idw comic "green power ranger" and night creeper, i also have one three pack with comic with an all white " winter outfit" lady jay, snake eyes and tracker kwinn from the original comic line

[@jeromekennedy330]

i like spirit

[@adapedneau1114]

The Joe need 5 more Native Americans on the Team so they can have there own Sub Team !!!

[@bramzwingli]

If you were into moderns you would probably like the V6 that was released in 2015.

[@ryandaly01]

Great review! Spirit is one of my Top 5 Joes, but as you pointed out, he’s a complicated character. Part of me wishes the stereotypical aspects of his Native American heritage were dropped in favor of a more realistic military look… but then you’d have Airborne, essentially, and Airborne was largely forgettable because he didn’t have the unique toyetic characteristics and memorable personality traits that Spirit had in design and in the cartoon. I always wished we could’ve gotten something halfway between Spirit and Airborne, and the new Classified Spirit Iron-Knife comes close to that.

[@TerryTurner]

😎👍

[@jakeproven256]

I think the white skintone on spirit might have been a mistake.

[@guilhermescheidt4960]

✊🏼🏹🦅 👏🏼👏🏼🐻🐺🦉🦅

[@impossiblepie]

Where on the card does it explain his accessories? I thought the term "shaman" is a racist term to Native Americans?

[@redvitaminblue]

Stereotype, or homage to one's cultural heritage? The two are rarely differentiated, with the former often used (lazily) in place of the latter. Intentions matter, and any reasonable person would be hard pressed to ascribe ill-intention or callousness to Larry Hama. As for the figure itself, my most salient memory of Spirit is that my grandmother got him second-hand from a yard sale and the previous kid who owned him had cut off his ponytails. No accessories, no file card, and no ponytails. It was probably the most disappointing Joe in my platoon. Much later I learned to appreciate the character after I saw more of his appearances in the animated series, but it still couldn't remedy how odd he looked with cropped hair. Actually, it only made the alteration that much more noticeable. Which kinda proves that the character design itself was strong.

[@MrX-qf4ro]

Boy...the front of your Spirit's shirt has really yellowed, when you look at the side, it's almost like two different shirts! I didn't really think this figure was a terrible stereotype. As you point out, the year before they made Airborne who has no Native American cultural symbols or heritage in his uniform. Spirit does, of course, but if you go to New Mexico or the Southwest near reservation lands, you can and do still see Native Americans wearing their more traditional garb...and he is wearing a blue-jean shirt, so it's a blend, I would say.

[@josiahalcorne]

I always get a little worried when a divisive topic comes up. Our little corner of youtube does a decent job of not becoming toxic the way other fandoms do. It's odd that most of the toy vlogers with a special affinity for GI Joe don't on the surface appear to have adopted the worldview Hama and early Marvel was pushing outside of Xmen. The "code talker" thing would have needed at least one other Navajo character to make work. The idea of teaching Navajo to a non-Navajo is almost laughable. The language is beyond complex. Just the fact that it has male, female, neutral/non gender multiple male, multiple female, multiple neutral/non gender, and mixed gender versions of verbs and pronouns and adjectives would baffle even romance language speakers. In other words, I is different for a man or woman or even the first person perspective of a non-gendered or neutral gender like I "the wind" or leading an oath like repeat after me "I do solemnly swear" A good chunk of the people who just read that are lost already. That's just first-person perspective. Next there is you male and you female or you non/neutral gender. Like telling a snake to take it easy you don't know the gender or trying to will an object not to fall or break or instructions for one person like cooking instructions. Then there is a formal he/she you use for named individuals and he/she as a generic and an it. Then there is we all men and we all women and we mixed gendered. Next is you guys and you girls and ya''ll mixed group and ya'll neutral. Finally there is they male and they female and they mixed and they neutral/nongender. Most people have tuned out but now you go on to tenses the three easy ones past, present, and future but also like 10 to 15 more specific conditional tenses. This is the point that most people fail at when learning a new language and just speak Spanglesh or Broken English or Engrish. That's just the start of Navajo because then they have generations. Future generations as a generic, grandchildren, nephews, siblings, uncles, grandparents, and ancestors.