GI Joe Retaliation BUDO

Budo never appeared in the GI Joe Retaliation. Yet, we got one! Adding characters to a movie toy line that didn't actually appear in the flick is nothing new, though. Hell, with GI Joe, most of the movie toys didn't anyway! I think the mold for this toy was originally intended for something else, but they used it as a Budo figure for the movie line since it goes nicely with the perceived martial arts theme they kinda had goin' on with the toys.

Classically, Budo was an oddball on the Joe team. Cobra characters were usually always bonkers. The Joes were fairly realistic for the most part (until the line progressed). Before we got whole subsets of martial arts characters and ninjas, we had the only GI Joe samurai, Budo. I actually thought the old Budo was pretty cool. I never had him, but did own a Funskool version for a few years. I just like the look and feel of the classic Budo. This new version takes the samurai look to the realistic extreme by giving him a full set of traditional regalia! I'm very disappointed they didn't at least go with his traditional color scheme of mostly earth tones in brown, greenish, and greys. Too red, on this figure! Considering the evil ninja in the film are all red, a newer fan or kid may get confused.

Again, the traditional armor is kinda cool, but looks REALLY out of place for the Joes. He comes very light on the accessories since he's got all that armor and such. Bummer. Aside from his two swords he has a removable helmet, outer tunic thingie, and his chest armor can come off with a little bit of a struggle. The hip guards and pee-pee flap hinder his leg movement. Fully armored, even his upper body is a bit hindered. The helmet tends to flop off during playtime. Eh.

Budo? Not terrible, per se...but boring. They gave him a lackluster paint scheme. The armor is cool, but does hinder play a bit. I sincerely hope they give us a "classical" update for Budo in the modern GI Joe figures some day...even if it's some kinda con or club exclusive!