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1986: The Figures, Part 1

May 15, 2026May 15, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, G.I.Joe, Hasbro0 comment

By Destro Designs – Viper Den Studios As my deep dive into all things G.I.Joe 1986 continues, I am going to rap about the figures first, and then the playsets and vehicles. As for the figures, I am going to sort of sidewind all over, but I will leave my favorites for last. One of the more important, but simple, figures is General Hawk. With his release, I was able to saddle him into the base that was comprised of the Bivouac, Machine Gun Nest, and various dio pieces I…

When the Harlem Globetrotters Visited Gilligan’s Island

May 13, 2026May 13, 2026 Serpentorslair Staff1970s pop culture, 1970s television, 1980s pop culture, 1980s television, basketball entertainment, childhood TV memories, classic comedy shows, classic sitcoms, classic TV crossovers, classic TV memories, Gilligan’s Island, Gilligan’s Island castaways, Gilligan’s Island mystery, Harlem Globetrotters, Harlem Globetrotters history, Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s Island, Harlem Globetrotters Pope Leo XIV, Harlem Globetrotters Scooby-Doo, Harlem Globetrotters TV appearances, nostalgic TV shows, old TV specials, pop culture icons, Pope Leo XIV basketball, retro entertainment, retro pop culture, retro television, Saturday morning cartoons, Scooby-Doo guest stars, strange childhood memories, TV nostalgia, Vintage television1 Comment

Story by @GIJoeRepairShop I have a strange memory from childhood. I know that I’ve watched the Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s Island. In the 1970s and 1980s, the Harlem Globetrotters were everywhere. They were even on Scooby-Doo. Indeed, they’re still everywhere. Just last month, they had Pope Leo XIV spinning a basketball on his finger! So, their appearance on the show alone isn’t that surprising. As an adult, I have to question how the entire Harlem Globetrotters organization managed to get onto, and then off of, Gilligan’s Island so easily, while…

You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Summer: How Jaws Changed Movies Forever

May 13, 2026May 13, 2026 Serpentorslair Staff1970s movies, Amity Island, classic summer movies, first summer blockbuster, Hollywood blockbuster history, Jaws 1975, Jaws movie, Jaws movie review, Jaws pop culture, Jaws soundtrack, John Williams Jaws theme, Peter Benchley Jaws, Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider, shark movies, Steven Spielberg Jaws, Summer blockbuster, You’re gonna need a bigger boat0 comment

Before Jaws swam into theaters in 1975, summer was not considered the prime season for major movie releases. Studios often saved their prestige pictures for the fall and winter. Then Steven Spielberg unleashed a great white shark on Amity Island, and Hollywood learned a very important lesson: summer audiences were ready to line up around the block for thrills, chills, and unforgettable movie moments. Jaws did not just become a hit. It changed the way movies were released, marketed, and remembered. Based on Peter Benchley’s novel, the film told a…

No Case Too Small: How Chip ’n Dale Became TV’s Tiniest Big-Time Detectives

May 12, 2026May 12, 2026 Serpentorslair Staff1980s cartoons, 90s Disney cartoons, after school cartoons, Alan Zaslove, Chip and Dale, Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers, classic Disney cartoons, Disney Afternoon, Disney animated series, DuckTales era, Fat Cat, Gadget Hackwrench, Monterey Jack, nostalgic cartoons, Rescue Rangers cartoon, Rescue Rangers history, Tad Stones0 comment

Before they were solving mysteries in Hawaiian shirts and bomber jackets, Chip and Dale were already Disney veterans, causing chaos in classic animated shorts. But by the late 1980s, Disney television animation was looking for its next big afternoon hit. DuckTales had proven that kids would race home for high-quality animated adventures, and Disney wanted another show that could capture that same magic. Out of that search came an idea that was not originally built around Chip and Dale at all. Early concepts reportedly centered on a mouse adventurer named…

G.I.Joe Half The Battle

Main Character May PT. 2 with Storm Shadow On HALF THE BATTLE!

May 12, 2026May 12, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, G.I.Joe, Hasbro0 comment

On this week’s episode of G.I. Joe Half The Battle, it’s MAIN CHARACTER MAY with Storm Shadow Pt.2! Check out this week’s video below and join in the conversation. And as always be sure and subscribe to my YouTube channel for all my latest videos!

G.I. Joe, 1986: Houston, We Have Lift-Off

May 11, 2026May 11, 2026 Serpentorslair Staff1 Comment

By Destro Designs – Viper Den Studios To understand 1986, the nexus point of G.I. Joe, I think it’s important to understand what the line had in mind when it came to the brand as a whole. A major change was afoot at Hasbro’s brain trust, and they were pushing the idea of a new leader for Cobra to emerge in the G.I. Joe Movie. Starting a ground campaign for this was the five-part mini-series that kicked off Season 2 of the Sunbow cartoon: Arise, Serpentor, Arise. Anyone who knows…

The Toys Every Kid Wanted… But Never Actually Saw in Stores

May 11, 2026May 11, 2026 Serpentorslair Staff1980s action figures, 1980s toy stores, 1980s toys, 80s nostalgia, 80s pop culture nostalgia, classic toy lines, Dino-Riders T Rex, forgotten 80s toys, hard to find 80s toys, He-Man rare figures, M.A.S.K. Thunderhawk, rare 80s toys, Rare G.I. Joe Figures, rare Masters of the Universe toys, rare vintage toys, Real Ghostbusters Slime Pit, retro toy collecting, SilverHawks toys, TMNT Technodrome, toy hunting in the 1980s, Toys R Us memories, Transformers Jetfire, USS Flagg, vintage action figures, vintage Transformers0 comment

In the 1980s, some toys became “shelf ghosts” not because kids imagined them, but because the toy aisle worked against them. A figure like G.I. Joe Sgt. Slaughter was not originally a normal retail release at all; YOJOE notes that he was available through Hasbro Direct mail order in early 1986, then only returned “on and off” from 1987 through 1989. Larger toys had their own problems: Snake Mountain was a big villain headquarters playset, the Technodrome was a huge 1990 TMNT playset at the height of Turtlemania, and Dino-Riders’…

The Breaking News Report

Now You Know With YorktownJoe – SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE REVIEWED!

May 10, 2026May 10, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, Soldiers of Fortune0 comment

WE ARE SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE! All New Soldiers of Fortune Review by @Yorktownjoe! Check it out in the player below, and be sure and follow him on Instagram and YouTube for his latest videos and photography!

DC TV

SUPER FRIENDS PREDICTED THE AI APOCALYPSE IN 1973 — AND NOBODY LISTENED!

May 10, 2026May 10, 2026 Serpentorslair StaffAI, Aquaman, Batman, DC, Robin, Super Friends, Superman, TV, Wonder Woman0 comment

In 1973, long before the internet, smartphones, or ChatGPT, the legendary animated series Super Friends delivered a surprisingly eerie warning about artificial intelligence. The episode “Professor Goodfellow’s G.E.E.C.” may have looked like harmless Saturday morning entertainment, but beneath the colorful animation was a chilling prediction about machines gaining too much control over humanity. The episode centers around Professor Goodfellow, a brilliant scientist who creates G.E.E.C., an advanced computer system designed to help mankind. At first, G.E.E.C. appears to be the perfect invention. It can solve problems instantly, process information faster…

Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 Recap

May 10, 2026May 10, 2026 Serpentorslair StaffCharlie Cox Daredevil, Daredevil Born Again Easter eggs, Daredevil Born Again ending explained, Daredevil Born Again review, Daredevil Born Again Season 2, Daredevil Disney Plus, Daredevil Season 2 recap, Jessica Jones MCU, Jon Bernthal Punisher, Marvel Cinematic Universe, MCU Daredevil, Vincent D’Onofrio Kingpin, Wilson Fisk Mayor of New York1 Comment

By: R.A. Rayne When Marvel brought back Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock in Spider-Man: No Way Home, fans of the Netflix series Daredevil were thrilled. His portrayal of the blind vigilante lawyer of Hell’s Kitchen was pulled directly from the comics and exactly what fans had hoped the character would be. But Marvel didn’t stop there! A short time later, Marvel surprised audiences by bringing Vincent D’Onofrio back for the Disney+ series Hawkeye, further cementing the legacy of the Netflix Marvel series within the MCU. D’Onofrio’s portrayal of Wilson Fisk,…

G.I. Joe Classified G.I.Joe

G.I. Joe Classified v1 Scarlett Review On HALF THE BATTLE!

May 9, 2026May 9, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, G.I.Joe, Hasbro1 Comment

On this weekend’s Half The Battle shorty, We take a look at the G.I. Joe Classified Scarlett v1! Check out this week’s video below and join in the conversation. And as always be sure and subscribe to my YouTube channel for all my latest videos!

1986: Further Down This Rabbit Hole of My Life Surrounding G.I. Joe

May 7, 2026May 7, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, G.I.Joe, Hasbro1 Comment

By Destro Designs- Viper Den Studios 1986, the Year of the Joe, was put on a pedestal because of the explosion of imagination surrounding my entire habitat. I lived across the street from a Pizza Hut with an arcade game, and there was a laundromat down the street with 3–4 rotating arcade machines. I had family scattered in all directions throughout our grid-style neighborhood that stretched from the hill to the river, end to end, with my house sitting right in the middle of it all. With family “close enough,”…

Adventures of the Gummi Bears: About That Flying Machine…

May 6, 2026May 6, 2026 Serpentorslair StaffA Gummi in a Gilded Cage, Adventures of the Gummi Bears, Carpie Mountain, Carpies, Disney Afternoon, Disney Gummi Bears, Gruffi Gummi, Gummi Bears cartoon, Gummi Bears episode, Gummi Bears Flying Machine, Gummiberry Juice, Sunni Gummi kidnapped, Zummi Gummi0 comment

Story By @GIJoeRepairShop Recently, there was a short article here detailing the background and legacy of “Disney’s Adventures of the Gummi Bears.” This got me thinking about my favorite episode. It is one in which the bears finally escape the trees and take flight. They soar high over their home, seeing the forest from above for the first time. I was happy to see them doing something so unusual and cool. The memory has stuck with me all these years later. As an adult, though, I have to ask what…

G.I. Joe Classified G.I.Joe

Rise of the Valkyrie: Why Cobra’s Deadliest Strike Force Deserves Center Stage

May 6, 2026May 6, 2026 Serpentorslair StaffBaroness Valkyrie squad, Cobra army builders, Cobra elite troops, Cobra female soldiers, Cobra squad builder, Cobra troop builder ideas, Cobra Valkyrie, Cobra Valkyrie design, Cobra Valkyrie figure, Cobra Valkyrie history, Cobra Valkyrie origin, Cobra Valkyrie spotlight, Cobra villains lineup, GI Joe cartoon deep cuts, GI Joe Classified Series ideas, GI Joe Classified Valkyrie, GI Joe Classified wishlist, GI Joe collector blog, GI Joe female troopers, GI Joe nostalgia 80s, GI Joe Spell of the Siren, GI Joe Sunbow Valkyries, GI Joe toy photography, Hasbro GI Joe figures, Valkyrie GI Joe review0 comment

There are moments in G.I. Joe history where a concept appears briefly—almost like lightning—and then disappears before it ever gets the spotlight it deserves. The Cobra Valkyrie is one of those moments. Introduced as elite female operatives, the Valkyries weren’t just background troopers—they were something more. Precision-trained. Highly disciplined. Unflinchingly loyal to Cobra’s command structure. But what truly set them apart came during the unforgettable episode “Spell of the Siren.” And that’s where their legacy should have begun… not ended. Picture this: a remote island shrouded in mystery, ancient power…

Main Character May Begins with Storm Shadow On HALF THE BATTLE!

May 5, 2026May 5, 2026 Serpentorslair Staffaction figures, G.I.Joe, Half The Battle3 Comments

On this week’s episode of G.I. Joe Half The Battle, we kick off MAIN CHARACTER MAY with Storm Shadow Pt.1! Check out this week’s video below and join in the conversation. And as always be sure and subscribe to my YouTube channel for all my latest videos!