Ice Cream Soldier
This custom figure has a very strange origin. While going through some storage boxes in my apartment recently, looking for items to sell on eBay and Amazon, I came across a small ziploc bag that contained a complete set of Ice Cream Soldier parts. Most of the parts had been painted tan. The boots had been painted dark gray.
Clearly, this was a custom that I had started at some point, years ago, and had forgotten. Having some time on my hands, and using the color scheme as a cue as much as anything, I decided to break out some more appropriate paints, and finish and assemble the figure.
I never had the dislike for Ice Cream Soldier, or the brightly-colored figures of the later years, that some collectors had. In fact, I rather liked him, although I'll readily admit that I think the uniform design worked better as the Cobra Shock-Viper some years later, and the code-name was pretty silly.
Nevertheless, when I came up with the file card, I decided to reflect Ice Cream Soldier's general reception, as well as work in the Shock-Vipers, and my own years-long unintentional neglect of this custom, as best as I could. I hope you like it. Here's the file card information:
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ICE CREAM SOLDIER
Desert Flamethrower Commando
File Name: Ragan, Tom-Henry
Primary Military Specialty: Fire Operations Expert
Secondary Military Specialty: Barbecue Chef
Birthplace: Providence, Rhode Island
"You can find Ice Cream in the desert, but you won't like the taste!"
Ice Cream Soldier was one of the last new recruits to the G.I. Joe Team before its initial temporary shutdown. Following that, he went on an extended leave of absence, and was declared Missing-In-Action when he didn't report for duty when the team restarted. His whereabouts remained unknown until recently, when Cobra operations in a particular desert region were disrupted by an individual largely matching the description of Ice Cream Soldier, but with a modified uniform better suited to the desert environment, and with flamethrower equipment more powerful than ever. It is believed that the uniform has been upgraded with a built-in cooling system and other survival equipment. Assuming this is Ice Cream Soldier, he has yet to respond to any attempts at communication.
From General Hawk's Files: "Ice Cream Soldier is someone that, unfortunately, we let down. We get this genius kid who built this advanced flamethrower equipment, and what happens? He gets this painfully brightly-colored uniform, and arguably the most ridiculous code-name in the history of the team, all of which subjected him to a ribbing that he really didn't deserve. Then on top of that, Cobra successfully stole his designs and implemented them in their own Shock-Viper troopers. That was really the final straw. Psyche-Out believes that if this desert flamethrower specialist is Ice Cream Soldier, then he's doubtless a very bitter, angry, and lonely individual at this point, who might not have any more use for the Joes than he does for Cobra. But we want him to know, he's welcome back whenever he wants."
