Updated Font.

 A short note.  I've updated from Arial to Montserrat. A Small change, I know but I think the new one is easier on the eyes.  I've also slightly enlarged the text.  I'm getting older as are most GI Joe fans, so maybe this will help with our fading vision.

A Note on Scalping and Haslab Projects.

I have nothing against "scalping", a derogatory term assigned to those that resell merchandise they found at retail who then look to make a profit by selling them elsewhere.  I personally have enjoyed the benefits of purchasing a few things from online sellers at markup beyond retail.  I don't apologize for doing so.  I've also sold a couple things for significantly more than for what I've bought them.   I won't apologize for that either.  There's nothing to apologize about.  "Scalpers" have saved me immense trouble finding things I may have never found before.  They have saved me countless hours (and the cost of gas) rushing to every Target, Walmart and Walgreens I could find on the map, only to find nothing or to find things I already had.  I've done that.  It is only worth it if you enjoy retail adventure and I don't anymore.

That said, I can kind of see where these peevish criticisms are borne from.  A collector that goes out and hogs all the product is in theory, denying other collectors a fair chance at getting a "fair share" or "fair shot" at the more desirable goods at normal prices.   I don't agree that this makes reselling at a markup wrong in any way, but I can see the puerile logic behind it.  

There is however, zero logic behind the recent calls on social media against those who are selling from their surplus of Haslab Skystrikers for a premium.  It's simply stupid and it can in no way be called "scalping".  Haslab is an open ended project.  If someone buys one, two, five or ten units and looks to unload them for whatever the market will bear, they aren't selling anything you ever had a shot at anyway.  All those SkyStrikers exist because that person prepaid for them.  They were earmarked for the buyer from the beginning and those units wouldn't exist if they weren't ordered.  No one should be criticizing others over this.  If everyone bought only exactly what they knew they would keep, there would be very little left over for those whom allowed the opportunity to pass and then either changed their minds, saw their situations change, and that's assuming the project even cleared its initial trigger goal to begin with. 

That might make the covetous scalp-marms and collection-karens happy, but it wouldn't do anyone including themselves a damned bit of good. 

  

Haslab SkyStrikers being delivered. News from Hasbro.

So far, the HasLab SkyStriker's story is one of beating the expectations.  First there was the sudden influx of sponsors to not only put the project over the line, but in the final hours it was able to hit a few of its stretch goals.  Second was the surprise inclusion of additional figures beyond those secondary goals, including an O-Ring Cobra Commander.  Right now, it is months prior to HasLab's original promise to ship them out sometime in "Spring of 2023", yet in the deep of winter, GI Joe fans are widely reporting receiving their shipments.   

FedEx informs me mine are set for delivery before end of day today, and I'm excited.

The reviews have thus far been positive, though I've yet to see one exhaustive critique of it as of yet, though that sort of review tends to be relatively rare compared to the more glowing social media show-and-tells.  There are some early concerns voiced in Facebook Groups about problems with Scarlett's crossbow not being fully formed in the injection molder, so we'll see how bad that problem is, long with any others. 

Hasbro has put out a release video and an "official unboxing" of a trade-show sample.

Unboxing the G.I. Joe Skystriker HasLab – Hasbro Pulse

It's a good watch and better than previous showings I've seen by this duo.  Most notably is around the twenty minute mark where Emily announces future projects including a new "Joe troop-builder pack" and Lenny comments that it is "loaded" with stuff, along with new Classified releases.    

 

Update:

I've received both orders, and have gone through them and not seen some of the issues other peoples have been seeing.  I will likely do a review at some point, there's a lot of them out there now, though.