Escape Armour & Red Shadow Super7 GI Joe Super Cyborg JoeFest 2024 Reveal

In addition to the Super7 GI Joe ReAction o-ring Wave 1 and Tomax and Xamot Extensive Enterprises 2-pack, Super7 revealed their next jumbo Super Cyborg figure. A throwback to the original Escape Armour and Red Shadow Action Force set, the Super Cyborg Escape Armour is part repaint and reuse of the Super Cyborg Snake Armor that revealed last year by Super7 at SDCC 2023 as an exclusive! The Action Force Escape Armour with Red Shadow is an iconic part of the Action Force toy line, a British counterpart to the American G.I. Joe series. Developed by Palitoy, a UK-based toy company, Action Force was introduced in the early 1980s, featuring military-themed action figures and vehicles.

Escape Armor & Red Shadow Super Cyborg

Special thanks to toyhuntershollow for posting images of the Escape Armour in box. The Escape Armour is packed exactly like the Super7 Snake Armor, featuring a layered, jumbo version of the armor with Red Shadow inside. The armor pays homage to the vintage Action Force Escape Armour (described below) and will make an amazing addition to your collection.

Up close, we can see the details and sticker design for the armor. The set features stunning details and various ways to display it as each armor piece is a layer that you can either include (or not) on your shelf!

Action Force Escape Armour & Red Shadow

According to yojoe.com, In the early 1980s, the European toy company Palitoy released a line of 3 3/4″ military toys called Action Force. While most of the line was entirely original and similar to Kenner’s Star Wars toys in articulation, many early G.I.Joe figures and vehicles were recolored, renamed, and incorporated into the Action Force line. Action Force toys were sold in most parts of Western Europe – including the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Spain, West Germany, Italy, and Greece.It was created using the same mold as the Cobra S.N.A.K.E. Armor, but molded in red.

The Escape Armour is an item of survival, design to allow the wearer to escape from otherwise fatal situations. Baron Ironblood always keeps a set close by, encase of a catastrophe. It is the strongest material known to man, with strong anti-missile armor plating that can withstand most missile systems.

Although relatively light for body armor, the weight of the suit is offset with built-in hydraulics. Self-propelled, the suit contains sensors which can detect enemy personnel and vehicles via audio, radar and infrared warning systems, and would attack anything or anyone without a proper IFF device. The powerful hydraulic arms have interchangeable claws and weapons. The only major difference aside from decals between the two versions was the colour with the Cobra version being either blue or white and the Red Shadows version in their ubiquitous red.

Like all of the GI Joe vehicles, the Escape Armour came with blueprints.

The Red Shadows are the fictional fighting force opposed to Action Force as depicted in the UK Battle Action Force comic books. They were also portrayed in action figures by Palitoy as a European version of the G. I. Joe range. Later, US G.I. Joe storylines have revived the Red Shadows as an additional enemy faction in the G.I. Joe universe. Red Laser is an Action Force action figure and comic book character. He is a Red Shadow and the gunner of the Laser Exterminator.

The first release of the Red Shadow Escape Armour came packaged with a standard Red Shadow figure however the difference in moulding from the Red Shadow (fixed-limb) action figure and the multi-jointed Cobra action figures, caused some difficulty in the using the toy. A later version was packaged with the European Cobra release and used the H.I.S.S. Driver character and new decals to incorporate it into the range.

The vintage Escape Armor is very hard to find but there are couple sellers from the UK that have some sets available and they are in amazing condition!

Cobra SNAKE Armor Super7 GI Joe Super Cyborg Review

The Cobra S.N.A.K.E Armor was revealed as an SDCC 2023 exclusive and is a total throwback to the vintage figure that debut in 1983. When Cobra needs a formidable weapon system to protect the key radioactive crystal elements used in the M.A.S.S. device, Major Bludd deployed the Cobra S.N.A.K.E. Armor in an attempt to thwart the Joes. In a format inspired by the vintage Japanese Henshin Cyborg toys, this 11” articulated G.I. Joe Super Cyborg Cobra S.N.A.K.E. Armor figure features four removable plates that reveal the inner workings of one of Cobra’s most menacing weapons as well as the Cobra Trooper operating it. Armed with interchangeable flame thrower, missile launcher, machine gun, and power claw weapons, the S.N.A.K.E armor hits all of those vintage feels and looks like a ginormous version of his vintage predecessor. Before we delve into the review and photos, we wanted to send a special thanks to Entertainment Earth for providing this S.N.A.K.E Armor figure for our review.

One of the cooler features of the S.N.A.K.E armor is the removable panels so you can see the inner details and the Cobra Trooper that is operating this behemoth of a Cobra weapon.

You can also check out our YouTube video review!

Box Design

The outer box is a feast for the eyes and features a huge window display cut out that shows off the middle layer of the S.N.A.K.E Armor and a nod to the vintage figure with the GI Joe burst featuring the vintage figure design. On the back of the box, it is detailed like a blueprint that shows off the various inner workings of the S.N.A.K.E Armor.

The sides of the box also show instructions as well as a S.N.A.K.E Armor file card, which privides details and backstory on this Cobra weapon.

Figure Details

The S.N.A.K.E Armor is a large version of the vintage design and if you were just looking at these photos, it’s hard to tell the scale but the Super7 version stands a tower 11″ tall! It features a blue paint app on the front of the S.N.A.K.E Armor that is a nice Cobra blue.

I am so happy that Super7 printed the decals on the S.N.A.K.E Armor as that was a pleasant surprise to not have to deal with stickers. It features similar stickers like the vintage figure.

The legs of the S.N.A.K.E Armor feature black and red squares in the right places and are sculpted in a larger than life way that really mirrors how the vintage S.N.A.K.E Armor was sculpted and designed.

S.N.A.K.E Armor Accessories

The S.N.A.K.E Armor comes with four classic attaches, which include the flamethrower, machine gun, rocket launcher, and power claw. There are also 4 removale panels that with show or cover the inner workings of the S.N.A.K.E Armor.

Here are some up close shots of the power claw (left) and the flamethrower on the right. The attachments are held in place by pressure and have some nice sculpted details on them.

The machine gun (left) and rocket launcher (right) are sculpted in a similar fashion and are also held in place with pressure.

At the base layer of the S.N.A.K.E Armor, you can see half of a Cobra Trooper at the helm! The Cobra Trooper does not have articulation as he is sculpted inside of the S.N.A.K.E Armor. The blacks have a nice shiny paint app while the blues, whites, and reds have a matte finish. The Cobra Trooper is also holding on to two joysticks and there is a chonky keyboard with large red buttons.

The middle panel has a silver paint app and the details are set off in blues, reds, and yellows where you can see all of the inner workings!

The panels come off and on really easily and here is what the S.N.A.K.E Armor looks like with the white panel coverings off (left) and on (right). There are many ways to display the S.N.A.K.E Armor, which gives collectors some nice options as you can change up the look pretty dramatically with a few swaps of the the armor.

Getting a close look at the inner workings of the legs, they are filled with components and circuitry that are accented with reds to break up the silver and gray color pallete. The legs also feature articulation and only turn out (versus moving front to back.

Cobra S.N.A.K.E Armor Reveal and History

In the tradition of the vintage Gi Joe S.N.A.K.E armor sets, Super7 brings us this beautiful homage to the it’s vintage counterpart. Complete with an exclusive Cobra Trooper Figure included inside and some absolutely beautiful window box packaging!

According to Super7 (@super7) • Instagram photos and videos:

When Cobra needs a formidable weapon system to protect the key radioactive crystal elements used in the M.A.S.S. device, Major Bludd deployed the Cobra S.N.A.K.E. Armor! In a format inspired by the vintage Japanese Henshin Cyborg toys, the latest 11” Super7 Super Cyborg of the S.N.A.K.E. Amor gives you a window to the inner-workings of this impressive weapon with 4 removable plates and interchangeable accessories. Available at the Super7 G.I. Joe pop-up event during SDCC! #Super7

Super7 (@super7) • Instagram photos and videos

Vintage S.N.A.K.E Armor

The original SNAKE Battle Armor set was released in 1983 as part of Wave 2 and came in a white finish. It was later also released in a blue armor color in 1985 as part of Wave 4. You can see what the 2 vintage package looked light here.