Head, arms - Doc
All other parts - Clutch v2

Often when doing a custom I often like to think of where it would have fit within the ARAH toyline. When I did a custom C-130 years ago, it was mentally placed in the 1982 series since such a plane was used in the GI Joe comic from the earliest issues. Merlin was one of the pilots of this massive plane, and his file name was taken from the stickers for the Sky Hawk. So when I upgraded the 1984 Sky Hawk, it seemed appropriate to make a new version of this Joe to go along with it. But the original Sky Hawk was released without a figure, so how do we explain this in terms of the toyline? Easy. Following the precedent of the JUMP Jet in 1983, we'll say that in the second year of release (1985), a pack-in figure was added to the Sky Hawk to encourage sales. Since such a figure would not be an all-new sculpt, only parts from earlier figures are used. And following in the footsteps of Grunt v2 and Clutch v2, the new Merlin figure would also have a tan colour scheme, facilitated by the fact that the first Merlin used Clutch's torso already.

File Name: Bama, Frederick L.
Service Branch: Air Force
Rank (Grade): 1st Lt (O-2)
Primary MOS: Generalist Pilot
Secondary MOS: Fighter Weapons System Operator
Birthplace: Queens, NY

Graduated: Air Command Training, SERE School. Qualified Expert: Model 15 pistol. Qualified Pilot: C-20B Gulfstream III, E-2 Hawkeye, C-130H Hercules, AC-130 Spectre, EC-130E, AC-130X STORCC, Sky Hawk One-Man VTOL.