Mega G.I. JOE Skystriker vs. Cobra H.I.S.S. brick-built review! Mattel ♥ Hasbro now?!

[@DemarcationMedia]

The Legend has returned to MEGA!! YESSSS!! I'm not a GI Joe fan but this is gonna make me one. And I agree, we need more. This needs to be a consistent line from Mega for years to come. If the GI Joe brand can last for so long, these sets could too.

[@DefaultNPC14]

AH HA! So it wasnt just in the Mattel creations website, also Hasbros!

[@imahaloguy]

He’s back! Halo Mega reviews have a chance to return guys!

[@muisverriet]

If Mega actually stocks the dang things anywhere

[@scar7091]

@@muisverrietI see Halo only at Fred Meyers

[@HammerBrickBlock]

Is Mega Bloks still making HALO? I never see them anywhere!

[@muisverriet]

@HammerBrickBlock They are but they have serious trouble with stocking the sets.

[@nimmersattempty6031]

Yes please

[@Alventador]

Really loving your videos on the "competing brands" it's so refreshing to see.

[@SO-ym3zs]

It's so cool to see what other designers (and business models) come up with, instead of the same predictable, overpriced stuff from Lego.

[@Loremastrful]

Lego = Transformers, Mega = GI Joe. This makes some kind of sense. Lego has a rule against war toys. That rule has gotten riddled with more holes than swiss cheese, but GI Joe was probably too far over the line. It's why Soundwave will be the only Decepticon to receive the Lego treatment.

[@Dre5420]

@@Loremastrful I didn't even think about Megatron being a tank or firearm. Was wondering why they went with soundwave

[@benjaminhuether3846]

Devastator is on the table as well, though it would be super expensive as a single set. But, as far as the other main G1 Transformers, you're probably right. Insecticons are cool, but nowhere near as recognisable as Megatron, Starscream, etc..

[@Slytalion]

Surely there will be a Megatron, you can't have a Optimus and then not have a Megs

[@Gzilla313]

If Lego could figure out Unicron would be awesome. A transforming planet!

[@FlymanMS]

I think we all can understand why a small family business like Lego can't provide tissue paper to keep their big transparent pieces protected.

[@SO-ym3zs]

With the billions they make each year, they could afford to wrap the transparent pieces in cash and still end up rich :)

[@HammerBrickBlock]

It would be really, REALLY cool if Mega Bloks made the whole line of GI Joe vehicles. Maybe we could even get a more in-scale USS Flagg this time!

[@JANGBRiCKS]

Yep I've reviewed some of their KreO stuff like 10 years ago. It was bad and rightly failed, which is why they exited that market and thankfully license to LEGO & Mattel for bricks.

[@kev_mcx]

Jang returning to MEGA?? Nature is healing 🥹

[@TonyStark-uu9us]

The brick building world is shifting beneath our feet and Jang's showing us the way!

[@norbertk2254]

I had the original toy plane with the wing lever feature. Seeing it again in this modern form brings back some good childhood memories! Thanks for the review.

[@Playaj711]

Yes the OG MEGA review we all wanted. Thanx for doing this Jang!!!!!!Mine is already on the way more please Mega

[@Wisewolfbruh]

I’m so happy for Mega’s reviews returning

[@HammerBrickBlock]

Hasbro's first attempt at brick built stuff was about 20 years ago. BTR = Build To Rule. It came with 3.775" action figures with special forearms that had studs to attach bricks to the figures.

[@joevictor53]

Oh my God I had one of these sets. I live in the UK and I'd never heard of GI Joe up until then. We mainly had Action Man in the 90s/00s. My mum and I saw a BTR set on sale in a discount store and she got it because it looked like Lego for a few pounds. It was like a truck type thing that split in the middle. It had a black cannon with a silver missile and it came with a figure of Duke. That was my introduction to GI Joe

[@jestersantiago1175]

The mega community missed you man!!! :)

[@malcolmar]

Awesome! I also see the value here. With this Mega Skystriker and Hiss Tank and their already great Mega Masters of the Universe line, Mega is nailing the 80's nostalgia. Thanks for the review.

[@hexenhammer483]

It's a great-looking set and I hope other companies get into the brick-built market. I want more options and competition to drive the price down. The specialized pieces can be used for Robotech builds, which is nice.

[@khoonkitlim5963]

I can't stop drooling over that F-14/Striker. It's a good thing the wings has mechanism that doesn't need a lever to open and close, just push one of the wings like I used to have an F-14 model jet!

[@Larry-Lobster]

Pretty sick! I wonder how the jet compares to the Cobi F-14

[@HammerBrickBlock]

It's JANG Joe!

[@Exar_Kun]

Didn’t pick up this set, but I’m shocked it actually shipped out so fast, that’s awesome!

[@bi9macintosh399]

OMG its happening hes doing a mega review 🤗🤗🤗🤗 ive waited for a review from you on any mega stuff glad you decided to start on this one .hope we get more

[@empatheticrambo4890]

Always a joy to see Mega from you Jang...I remember the old days where Halo Mega was a huge part of the channel and its why I got into it! All the best

[@ebomb1133]

By the rings.....Jang has returned with a Mega review! It was nice seeing his genuine kid like joy in that beginning 😢

[@chrispone1966]

Yes , Great to see another Mega review by you thanks , does your room 117 exist still ?

[@isolategaming6572]

YOOOOO jang is going over mega again? Nice!

[@migatron1]

Hopefully they drop a Rattler vs Triple T set, or a Rattler vs something Joe

[@EllieoftheBog]

I feel like Mega Construx has the best minifigure design out of any other building toy company. Something just works about them for me. The Cobra Commander is solid. Really amazing looking jet too super impressed.

[@dronessential]

All these brick systems, including Lego, desperately need Cobi's upside-down building capabilities.

[@JANGBRiCKS]

Mega has some of it. Not the half plate thick tiles or pure stud inserts, but various plates with studs top & bottom at least, plus studded slopes.

[@SO-ym3zs]

Funwhole has some. Anyone who is used to only Lego and starts building Cobi is going to have their eyes opened. The ability to change direction opens up all kinds of ideas.

[@HammerBrickBlock]

Considering how well Mega Blos has done with Call of Duty and HALO then GI Joe should be a piece of cake.

[@TheCesmi23]

Mattel and Hasbro made a multi year licensing agreement back in 2023. There are Barbie Monopoly and Transformers Hot Wheeles now which is amazing imo.

[@RetroActionUK]

It’s amazing that it happened. Good luck finding the Transformers Hot Wheels though! I’m not into G.I. Joe but appreciate some of the figures and a lot of the vehicle designs; this set looks incredible. The Skystriker is super accurate and so is the HISS Tank. Two extremely iconic vehicles done really well! I wonder if we’ll see a USS Flagg?!

[@Rocket1377]

Also, Hasbro are doing a He-Man x Transformers crossover next year.

[@lulushishi]

The day Lego's paintjob gets this good is the day I will pay for their outrageous prices

[@migatron1]

Sick set!! I've only recently got into G.I. Joe having watched the G1 animation from start to finish a couple months ago, and now I'm hooked on the Classified line! I'm definitely gonna look into finding this for the H.I.S.S. Tank alone as soon as posssssssssssssssss🐍🐍🐍

[@Lihtsleeper]

More proof that LEGO needs to step up there game

[@CabbageFace_]

The prints are incredible on that plane

[@sergeipohkerova7211]

As an adult looking back, I wonder how GI Joe functions as a military with only single models of random vehicles that have widely varying performance, that have single, specialist drivers. Like, uh oh, the Conquest X30 and Lt. Slipstream were shot sown, I guess we no longer have supersonic air superioroty capability... 😂

[@DemarcationMedia]

Plot armor I guess XD They can just speed rebuild it

[@failedgrace2891]

GI Joe was a special forces unit primarily designed around small unit covert missions where Joes chosen were objective specific. Also there were non-named Joes, based on both old cartoon and Marvel comics, who were used to fill out numbers for larger operations until the roster got filled out by newer Joes.

[@SO-ym3zs]

Getting shot down in the cartoon didn't really mean anything. It was like the A-Team: a million rounds fired per episode, zero deaths :) And apparently the Appropriations Committee just wrote a the Joes a blank check for whatever they wanted!

[@TonyMontanaDS]

Waiting for mine to arrive! I really hope they continue with the GI Joe line and also return to the Masters of the Universe line. They seem to have abandoned it, at least for now.

[@DemarcationMedia]

Yeah sadly MOTU got only one set in the last year or so

[@samferraro6756]

Wow! What an incredible find. I would have never known about this so thank you for making this video.

[@migatron1]

Ditto

[@dalton7935]

This gave me major nostalgia from watching G.I. JOE and playing with the action figs as a kid.

[@TheCobraReport]

When I 1st saw this I was beyond excited but man that price. I pulled the trigger on one because I am such a huge G.I. Joe fan and they are incorporated into my lego city thanks to the older Kre-o stuff but man if this set was closer to $50 I would have bought several of them. Great review! and yeah MORE of these from Mega please!

[@jonathanmarois9009]

Black electrical tape

[@gorrbaczow]

I think 80 is quite fair for the size of that jet. And I'm not even a G.I.Joe fan or nostalgic for it. Sure, 70 to 75 would be nicer, but I don't think it's a bad deal.

[@MaxRawhide]

I've never been into GI Joe, but when I saw the first pictures I was immediately tempted. Still am and even more thanks to your review. However, not going to give in. Cobi makes beautiful jets, existing ones, with the only negative they don't really hold figures. But I do really like the look of this.

[@SO-ym3zs]

Cobi does indeed make beautiful planes (and sets in general), but I think the main point behind this set was to generate nostalgia for 80's kids rather than to make a cool F-14. Though they accomplished both :)

[@MaxRawhide]

@@SO-ym3zs Oh, no doubt. The whole existence of this set is because a) to draw fans of GI Joe and b) the nostalgia from fans of the original toys. Oh, and c) fans of building brick sets, let's not forget those 😀 And that's why I'm ultimately not getting this set: I don't have nostalgia for the original and never was into GI Joe. I judge it just based on being a brick build set. And though I love many things about it, I realise that the majority of the draw is because it's a brick build jet. And that Cobi imo does better. But if I had any interest in GI Joe, now or back then, I would absolutely get this. No hesitation. Because for fans of both GI Joe and brick building, this must be a dream come true. (At least, I'd imagine, because despite having collected TF's since 1985 with only a small break, I have no interest in the Lego Transformers toys. Unless the rumour about a 2025 Soundwave release is true, because that I will get.)

[@jasonmadwell9426]

I wish they were sold separately. I would get a couple Hiss tanks. Cobra would be invading my city set up. The Skystriker is nice but just a little too big for me to do much with besides display.

[@mrawesome2524]

Flag on his arm is backwards, Stars always face front as to not be in retreat.

[@JANGBRiCKS]

Good catch! Looks like this matches his appearance in the Marvel comics line. He had no flag patch in the 'toon or original figure.

[@mrawesome2524]

That’s interesting I wonder why they omitted the flag on those?

[@DerrickAliyas]

If only Lego would learn [Insert long and exaggerated exhalation here]

[@garyolsen6018]

Be real, if that were a Lego set, it would be $120

[@SO-ym3zs]

With sticker sheets!

[@sIosha]

Considering what you can get from LEGO, this is a great deal. This would be at least $100. There's a lot of big pieces there. I have 5892 and 31039 sitting on my shelf and those were $60 and $70, respectively. This has amazing detail! Perhaps LEGO has slightly ruined my value judgement 😂

[@Bucketroo]

NOSTALGIA! Oh yeah, as a former owner of everything G.I. Joe from the first 3 years, that Skystriker really hits me in the feels, as the kids say. I'm not sure I would buy any of it, but if they drop a Rattler, I'm so there!

[@sqrabbit1]

Just a heads up on Mega’s white parts. Half of my Mega Xbox 360 yellowed after sitting in its own box for a year. Hopefully they figured whatever the issue was/is and these don’t yellow in a year either.

[@brandonaskew2428]

Solid intro into Mega doing these - my nostalgia button is pressed hard!!! We'd never get this from Lego given their stance on military. Are Mega pieces better than they used to be in terms of tolerance and clutch?

[@SO-ym3zs]

Wait, what?! Yo Joe! I haven't bought a Mega set since the giant Star Trek Enterprise. I may need to change that!

[@cabrown0525]

I had the original toy from back in the day. This hit me right in the nostalgia feels as soon as I saw the thumbnail. Great review and awesome subject matter! Thanks Jang!

[@Gzilla313]

These look more like model kits than a brick based building toy.

[@Tigershark_3082]

7:25 The Joes: Man, I sure wish we had a missile that combined the fin configuration of the Vympel R-23/AA-7 Apex with the warhead and active radar homing seeker head of the Hughes AIM-54 Phoenix... AIMAA-547 Phoenixpex in question:

[@scottjackson3446]

Great review! Thank you!

[@octobotimus]

Surprisingly not the first recent collab. Hasbro partnered with Mattel to do transformers hotwheels as well.

[@HammerBrickBlock]

OH COOL! JANG is Joe fan!

[@dmvideos7913]

Are you kidding me ! Love the specialist pieces . This set looks fantastic , I really wish Lego would make specialist parts for aircraft

[@SO-ym3zs]

One word: Cobi.

[@AVeg-f2k]

Saw this a week or so ago, so tempted! Afraid if I get this and more Joe sets are made I’ll be collecting a new theme😱. If there is a Vamp vs Rattler set in the works, I’m screwed, would love a Vamp set.

[@MidichlorianMaster]

Thanks for the honest review Jamg. This set brings back fond memories as a kid in the 80s when I played with Lego and GI Joe & Transformers. I want this. Perhaps Santa will see my letter and bring it for a good boy.😂

[@PltOffPPrune]

Great overview Jang. I love that print on the back of the fuselage replicating the slider for operating the wings and undercarriage. I was always annoyed with the original that I couldn't have the wings forward with the gear retracted.

[@shawnp4155]

I think LEGO has skewed our whole Interpretation of "value". I see a LEGO set(if possible) being $99USD at minimum. Taking out all the printed pieces etc. And that's not to say they could have charged more for this set, but more at the inflated level of "value" LEGO has created

[@SO-ym3zs]

Absolutely. The strange idea that roughly $.10 per piece is somehow a normal, acceptable average benchmark (and sets usually with stickers, and without lights): how and why did the masses come to swallow this uncritically? It's like Stockholm Syndrome or something. Competing companies sell sets of equal quality for half the price per piece, often with prints, sometimes with lights. Why isn't that "normal"?

[@Normonaut]

if they do Tiger Force vehicles I'm helpless

[@buick2005]

I love it!! That takes me back to my childhood. I never got one, but always wanted a Skystriker!

[@thlinux]

So glad these exist and you reviewed them. Thank you!

[@SarrissElite]

Small nitpick and it happens all over the place but Duke's flag is backwards. If its on the right arm it should be the other way so it looks like its flowing behind you. As it is now he's technically running away. All kinds of stuff get this wrong like the letering on the front of an ambulance becasue the right way looks wrong to most.

[@masterchefowl]

WHAT?! Jang doing Mega reviews?!!! Oh MY.. Glad to have another. Hope you keep doing them.

[@dirkfierce2525]

As an 80’s kid who had the original of both, this thing hit me right in the feels. Instant buy.

[@DerrickAliyas]

As always jang another great video

[@mauricegreen8014]

Finally! Mega embraced the GI Joe franchise. Best company to do so. Yo Joe Mega! Hope there are more being produced. Great review Jang. Ordered my set already. Can’t wait ti see more.

[@adancastro9027]

He slightly revisits mega🎉

[@KonguZya]

The specialized nose and cockpit just makes this for me. I'm happy to have pieces like that if they improve the model to that much of a degree.

[@BenBuckton-te2pm]

Please return to Mega coverage Jang. We miss you

[@MonkeysxMoo]

Not a big G.I. Joe guy but it's just nice to see Jang covering more Mega stuff. Also Mega has been making figures that have hair and can wear helmets since the Halo Infinite line started. I believe it was only female marines that received head molds like that though. The new molds for Kat, Miranda, and Palmer/Dare's faces can all support helmets while keeping the hair intact

[@CAJUNAFOL]

This is my entire childhood right here.

[@Daddadye]

This is a dream come true! G.I. Joe, Mega Construx and Jang!

[@derickwelch7942]

He back the legend has returned back again we all missed you man we all do I hope now mega halo has a chance now

[@timokusu]

I never had any GI Joe stuff, it never was a thing over here, but the Skystriker makes me nostalgic anyway. Such a weird feeling lol.

[@bostontoys]

I can not wait for mine to arrive Sat! Something always I wished for.

[@jpuggy6793]

If this becomes a full line, it would be so AMAZING. All the videos they could make, a rattler, vamp, maybe even a super expensive USS Flagg…

[@michaelcasserly5861]

Yo Joe! I love this JANG. I am happy you got this set. It looks like the real toys. I agree about the HISS canopy shame they did not make it more sleeker. It does bring me back to the days where I had a lot of GI Joe toys.

[@darthrizzen9349]

Thanks a lot for this review. Quite frankly I doubt Mega will bother selling this set where I live due to the licence’s lack of popularity. Would I get one? I have no nostalgia for GI Joe or the Skystriker, I just see an approximation of a F14 Tomcat. Cobi released a superb brick built F14 from Top Gun, so this one feels a bit pointless. Nice minifigs though

[@vjl323]

I sold all my GI Joe action figures ages ago, but when you turned the Duke figure around - that backpack gave me all kinds of warm and fuzzies as I haven't seen that shape since I was a kid - that is nearly identical to what the original 80s figures used, I am certain of it. I owned action figures and maybe *one* vehicle with GI Joe [jeep thing or swamp buggy or something?]. I basically, as a kid, made GI Joe fight Star Wars figures. I was/am a giant Star Wars fan, but man, the GI Joe figures had elbows and knees, something the Star Wars figures lacked. And they had better head articulation, and I believe even wrist articulation. So when you're showing off the Mega figures, It just amazes me that they have as much articulation as the original bigger figures had, as these Mega ones are so much smaller! I'd love to know how Hasbro and Mattel came to an agreement about this collab. And what is the profit sharing setup to be like?

[@SO-ym3zs]

Swivel-arm battle grip ftw!

[@BoltHardcheese]

I wish they had made the HISS tank a bit larger and then, instead of the Skystriker, paired it with G.I. Joe's MOBAT tank. However, I have a feeling we will next see the Cobra Rattler vs the MOBAT.

[@lrf233]

Great review! I got one because I couldn’t resist and I’m hoping they continue the line. I think you are absolutely correct about the price point. $50-$55 seems about right. $80 + shipping and tax put it at almost $100.

[@funeralmotors2994]

Imagine a Veritech that way.

[@failedgrace2891]

I hope this becomes popular enough to not only prompt more vehicles, but a release of these vehicles separately. I'd only really only want one Skystriker but would love multiple HISS tanks.

[@mycoolbeernuts6870]

HISS has real treads! Even as a kid, I hated the fake treads. Did they think we were stupid? Not Touching the $500 Haslab HISS - Good Stuff!🤟

[@starlightpurplesky]

I hope they release a Skyhawk and Wolverine! I’m actually surprised (and glad) that Hasbro doesn’t own Mattel. To quote the Secret Galaxy channel, “Hasbro…Until all are one”

[@ashnodmtg]

would love to see the skystriker vs the cobi maverick and how those compare, given the maverick set was like 80 alone

[@johnnyg2501]

Do MOTU next, Pleeease

[@samuelohare6884]

that’s an awesome cobra commander figure

[@londond9800]

Wow, for. Minute I thought you bought the old toys. I still have both in a basement somewhere. This is really exciting. If they do a Rattler I might need to start getting these.

[@dustybricks113]

I want this set....😅

[@thebutterstick8659]

Mega gets G.I. Joe and Lego gets Transformers. Seems like we’re living in the good timeline

[@omarluna7068]

lol didn’t kreo do both years ago?

[@DemarcationMedia]

I personally think Lego's TF sets have been weak.

[@J3TF1RE]

@@DemarcationMedia Agreed.

[@ludwigvonkoopa900]

@@DemarcationMedia nah the Transformers sets go hard. Hyped for soundwave next year

[@joevictor53]

Hot Wheels also gets Transformers

[@Benjamin0119]

F-14 is awesome, my favorite fighter jet. So yeah I like the Skystriker. This set is tempting. It's a shame about the cheater pieces, but you're probably right that it wouldn't work well at this scale to use standard parts. I didn't realize the HISS Tank was so much smaller than the Skystriker, but I don't have a Skystriker to compare it to. It's interesting they used a specialized canopy piece for the Skystriker, but a more general piece for the HISS Tank. Yeah, my nostalgia is for the toys. I couldn't get into the cartoon, because it was a show about a war where no one died. This is expensive? LEGO would never charge only $80 for this many prints haha.

[@Halcyon554]

This is part of a bigger initiative by Hasbro and Mattel who started crossing over their properties. There were also Transformers x Hot Wheels earlier this year including a premium RLC Optimus Prime car. 2025 we're supposed to be seeing the other side of the Hot Wheels portion with transforming Hot Wheels cars into robots. Gonna be exciting. I wasn't sold on this set by how "meh" the HISS Tank is, but I'll keep my eye out on any potential future sets.

[@jonreeves3993]

I had the f14 tomcat with sliding wing back in the 80s

[@Perradocx]

To be fair, Mega figures only have four more points of articulation than the original '82 Joes! And they don't have the excellent O-ring waist joints that made those toys so good to pose with

[@saltytbone]

I wanted to like the Kre-O sets really badly but just couldn't. I bought the recent (worse) GI Joe block sets because they were really cheap. Thanks for your detailed review. I can't go down this road again so it's nice to get to experience this set virtually.

[@Sleesus]

Peopel have been making customs of the Halo/call of duty mega bloks/construx figures into Gi joe characters for a good number of years now, crazy to see that this is real now I can't afford this set with my budget, but if they had sold the HISS part separately I'd have bought several of them, honestly.