As much as I hate to say it, Beachhead is one of those characters in G.I. Joe that never really jumped out to me. While I was more of a comic fan, the toys came first. If a character didn’t have any cool toys, they just weren’t interesting to me. Beachhead was one of those unfortunate few. I never cared for any of his molds back in the day. They either looked too fat, or too lanky, or too goofy. Some of them looked too mean, while others didn’t look mean enough. There was just no winning in my eyes.
Now, while I could accept Roadblock in this set as a ninja since it seems like he trains to become one in the movie, I have no clue why Beachhead is in this set. He never struck me as any sort of martial arts guy. If he ever were to use his fists, they’d probably just be to choke some poor Cobra solider or something, not use a sword. Maybe someone at Hasbro said, “Hey, Beachhead wears a baklava; that makes him like a ninja, right? LET’S PUT HIM IN A NINJA SET.” Their logic never ceases to amaze me.
Since it looks like we won’t be getting a 30th Anniversary Beachhead any time soon, I think this figure is the closest we’re going to get. This figure uses a pretty obvious selection of parts: the head from Pursuit of Cobra Beachhead and the body of the 30th Anniversary Snake Eyes and Stalker. It’s a GREAT body and one I’ll never get tired of, and it’s used incredibly well here. Everything that body used is still here; the silenced pistol, the knife, the kneepads… it’s good to see that Hasbro didn’t skimp out on the accessories. His vest is also a new sculpt; the same one included with the Snake Eyes figure in the other two-pack.
However, despite the fantastic choice of parts, the color scheme is where this figure is severely lacking. The upper body is molded in a great green color and is adorned with a pair of patches, making it stand out from Stalker. The problem lies with his pants, which are molded in a really strange khaki color. They just make the overall figure feel… bland. Had they been a darker green with a camo pattern, or maybe even brown or black, that would have made this figure worth buying the whole set for.
While his paint job may be disappointing, his selection of weapons sure isn’t. He comes with the aforementioned silenced pistol, knife, and kneepads; plus an uzi, a carbine, a submachine gun, and a second knife. The weapons are all molded in the same weird khaki color as his body, though; probably to cut costs (again, why couldn’t his pants just have been BLACK!?), but hey, at least you can tell which accessories belong to him!
While his color scheme is lacking, I’ll say that Beachhead is easily my favorite figure in the set, and one that will probably even replace my Pursuit of Cobra version. He’s perfect by no means, but the part selection is excellent.
Now, do I think the three-pack is worth buying? Yes, yes I do, but only because the three figures as a whole make it so. No one figure is fantastic and stands out, making the entire pack worthwhile. If you like or are interested in all three figures, or at least two of them, then by all means, go for it, but otherwise, you can leave it be. If you want one of your own, be sure to check FPNYC for one!
