Head, arms, upper legs w/sheath: Valor vs. Venom Gung-Ho modified with sculpted grenade ammo.

Torso: Target BBI Figure

Lower Legs: Spy Troops Duke

Hat, Pistol, Grenade Launcher: Valor vs. Venom Gung-Ho

Backpack: Misc. new sculpt G.I. Joe figure

Rifle: Unknown

When I was younger, the vintage Gung-Ho figure was one of my favorites. He saw a lot of action in the vast jungles and swamps of my back yard and bedroom floor. Between his bare-chested over-the-top appearance, intensely descriptive file card, and definitively Cajun portrayal in the comic book, he was a memorable and exciting character that broke away the typical heroic conventions. Gung-Ho was the kind of character you wanted on your team because in addition to being tough, resourceful, and skilled, he had a distinctive and appealing personality. When I wanted to try some new techniques and materials in a custom, it seemed fitting to take another look at this classic character and see if he could be updated, while holding true to his esteemed origins.

The concept for this figure came about as an experiment in the integration of Target stores' BBI exclusive figure parts with new sculpt Hasbro pieces. The Target figures represented a great new addition to the 1/18th figure world, but had limitations in their design. Combining one of the highly detailed BBI torsos with the expanded Joe articulation was top on my list.

At the same time, the figure was also an experiment in painting techniques for more realistic clothing and flesh tones. Detailing the clothes was fairly straightforward, but acrylic paint isn't the best choice for smooth blending or subtleties, so shading skin tones can be difficult. Many layers of dry brush and wash were used to give the figure soft, almost smoky shadows, which could work as the effect of lighting or camouflage.

In both cases, the results came out very much as I'd hoped, with particular success in the use of parts. The result is a highly articulated figure that is unmistakably Gung-Ho, but with an updated, slightly more realistic approach.