TIMELESS COLLECTION

In 2002 Hasbro did something they had done years earlier. They took a pre-existing set and repurposed it for the Adventure Team. In the late 1990s, Hasbro produced Deep Sea Diver, and excellent reproduction of the vintage set of the same name from the pre-Adventure Team era. In the early 1970s they repurposed the gear and slapped an AT logo on it, and tossed in an octopus, and bam they had Eight Ropes of Danger (#7422) . (Pop quiz: Guess what the eight ropes of danger referred to? Hint: Not an eel.) But wait. They had an Eight Ropes of Danger (#7950) before the AT, didn't they? Yes, they did. This deep sea diving gear has proven to be one of Hasbro's most popular and re-used sets. The "Adventures of GI Joe" line from 1969 carried smoothly over to the Adventure Team. Hasbro repeated this tactic in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

So in 2002, Hasbro pulled a repeat performance and repurposed the 1990s KB Toys exclusive, added an octopus, and bam, we have Eight Ropes of Danger again. The major differences between the two sets were that the KB exclusive DSD set had a die-cast sledgehammer and helmet. Many people complained about that gorgeous helmet because it weighed down the figure. Not me. I loved it. Heck, I'm a fan of die-cast toys. Also, DSD had an eel as an antagonist. This set has an inflexible, hard-plastic octopus.

The story on the back of the box tells the tale of GI Joe and his uncle's desk.

GI Joe receives an old desk from his uncle. Hidden inside is a map for locating a lost treasure in the South Seas! The ADVENTURE TEAM sets out to find the treasure, undaunted by the warning on the map: "Beware the eight ropes of danger!" They follow the map to a spot just off a remote island. GI JOE dives into the ocean, where he finds a treasure chest! He is about to bring the chest up, when an octopus attacks him - it's the guardian of the treasure! GI JOE lures the creature away from the chest long enough for the team to haul it to the surface. When they open the chest, they find gold from a sunken priate ship!

The figure is a Kung-Fu Grip Timeless Classic GI Joe with flocked hair. People hoped this figure would be a Sea Adventurer, a Joe with red hair and beard. We kind of got part of that wish. Joe has red hair, but no beard. He has red hair. Red hair. Like red, not orange like a human would have.

The white diving suit is nice, with elastic neck and cuffs, white gloves, black boots and weight belt. There's a nice AT logo on the chest, and Joe comes with a metal AT dogtag.

Joe's gear includes oxygen hose with gauge, weighted boots, treasure chest with three coins, and of course a black octopus. And the infamous map. Note, this map is not the map that came with Deep Sea Diver, which is a larger, beige and brown map.

(Click for larger image)

1969's "Eight Ropes of Danger"	1971's "Eight Ropes of Danger"

This box recalls the nostalgic feeling of the vintage 1970s sets. On the cover, Joe is seen with knife in hand about to attack an octopus which is winding its tentacles around its leg. The octopus is sitting on top of a treasure chest. The painting style is vintage, and I'm wondering if it is original vintage artwork. (?)

Box Front

The back of the box shows a miniature of the Joe painting against a background of the floor of a lagoon, reef, or other shallow underwater location. Like the other TC AT sets, this one features five AT members in vintage artwork.

Box Back

(Click to read the back)

The side of the box shows Joe as he appears on the front, about to savage an octopus in the name of treasure.

This set was the third in a line of Timeless Collection Adventure Team reproductions. Bringing back the always-popular deep sea diving outfit worked well. Everything is crisp and nice. Two things bug me a little... the Octopus should have been made of rubber, or perhaps even been a bendy with wire in the tentacles. The other is as I mentioned before. That hair! Why could Hasbro not simply have made this an accurate Sea Adventurer? (My favorite AT Joe, by the way.)

Overall Rating