If you're an '80s kid with a fondness for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, you probably have memories of pining after the massive ships and playsets that accompanied the Hasbro action figures. Now Super7 is teasing the ultimate G.I. Joe playset for any fan with deep pockets and plenty of free space.
Super7's latest G.I. Joe release is a truly massive replica of the Cobra Mothership, as seen in the opening of the Real American Hero cartoon. This ship measures nearly three feet in width and features a detailed interior with all manner of accessories and battlestations. It's the sort of playset old-school Joe collectors could only have dreamed of.
IGN can exclusively debut a first look at the Cobra Mothership playset. Get a closer look in the slideshow gallery below:
The Cobra Mothership measures 32 inches wide and 11 inches tall. The ship is designed to fit both Super7's G.I Joe ReAction figures and the classic Hasbro O-Ring figures from the '80s. The playset boasts a detailed interior with a Command Center, an armory, a prison cell and other interactive elements. The underside of the ship features 16 light-up thrusters and a movable ramp.
The Cobra Mothership will include two exclusive action figures to help fill out the Cobra ranks in your collection - a Cobra Viper Gunner ReAction figure and a Cobra Viper Gunner O-Ring figure. Super7 will also sell additional 5-packs of the Cobra Viper Gunner in both the ReAction and O-Ring varieties.
To get a better idea of what the Cobra Mothership looks like in person, check out this interior walkthrough video:
Similar to Hasbro's various HasLab creations, Super7 is crowdfunding the Cobra Mothership online. The campaign will last from October 12-December 11. The ship needs at least 4,000 backers to enter production. Additional stretch goals will be unlocked at 5,000, 6,000 and 7,000 backers, adding extra accessories and bonus figures to the package.
The Cobra Mothership is priced at $495 plus $100 flat rate shipping and can be ordered directly through Super7's website. Should the project be successfully funded, preorders are expected to begin shipping in Fall 2024.
"From the moment I saw the first G.I. Joe animated mini-series, the opening intro with the giant Cobra Mothership flying across the screen was amazing," Super7 CEO and co-founder Brian Flynn tells IGN. "It was huge, almost more spaceship than traditional flying craft, and it had a snake for a head! What more could a kid ask for? When we jumped in on G.I.Joe it was one of the items on the top of my list, as it was both ridiculous and never made in the past. It was like the G.I. Joe universe had been waiting for me to catch up to it and make it a reality!"
Flynn adds, "With G.I. Joe, you have a deep history of vehicles, with nearly every known iteration made in some capacity over the years. For G.I. Joe more than any other line, the vehicles are just as important as the figures. In that regard we had a great blueprint of where to start aesthetically, and then add all the bells and whistles we could think of inside the Cobra Mothership to make it as much of a playset inside as it is a vehicle outside."
This isn't Super7's first time crowdfunding a massive playset based on an iconic '80s property. Earlier this year, the company revealed a Cats Lair playset for the Thundercats line that dwarfs even the Cobra Mothership. Flynn explains that the Cats Lair was good practice for launching the Cobra Mothership.
"In some ways it is very similar," Flynn says. "The Cat's Lair is the ultimate Thundercats display and play piece, at a scale unprecedented for playsets new and old, the only thing rivaling it being the USS Flagg. For the Cobra Mothership, the concept is similar, luckily it is scaled for 3.75" ReAction Figures and Classic O-Ring Figures, so it does not have to be the size of a house! But the intent behind the projects is the same—make the greatest vehicle/playset you can for the collector, so that it becomes the centerpiece of their collection."
Let us know what you think of this epic G.I. Joe collectible in the comments. Will you fork over the $600 necessary to bring Cobra Commander's ultimate weapon home?
Previously at NYCC, DC revealed that it's reviving the Elseworlds imprint in 2024, with a new line of comics that includes a sequel to 1989's Batman: Gotham by Gaslight. They also revealed an ambitious new direction for Action Comics in 2024. Stay tuned to IGN in the coming days for more news and reveals from NYCC.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
