Action Force - The Enemy: Red Shadows by Palitoy 

I'll never forget, back in the 90s, I was at a carboot sale and came across a box full of Action Force figures. As a teen I was pulling away from toys and repressing my love for them. I bought a couple but remember thinking 'I could have bought that whole box for peanuts' A regret that haunts me to this day.

Why do "the bad guys" always have the coolest uniforms? The color combination decisions were great in this line, for my aesthetic. I never knew or saw any of these lines as a child but, even now in my 40s, they are gorgeous. Great start to what should be an amazing series.

The genius of Palitoy's designers really shows in this line. Their original figs & rigs, blending GI Joe products with Action Force touches make for a powerhouse of cool. Brilliant. Thank you Tony!

Had a few of these as a kid... The Red Shadows were kind of the successors to Star Wars stormtroopers... They were cheaper to buy than the later GI Joe ones which took over in 1985, and easier to find in stores too... Like your videos Tony!

I love the inventiveness of this line. It shows how true creavity comes when designers are working to a tight budget

I remember reading the comic and then getting a Red Shadow.. oh lord i loved that figure. Man how I wish i'd kept it. One of my all time fav figures. Another great video thank you.

And this was sheer genius, the problem with Action Man was he had no enemy. Action Force had it in spades.

This brings back halcyon memories! I still have my Action Force toys in the attic.

I Love that Larry Hama writer of Gijoe A Real American Hero(Marvel 1982-1994, issues 1-155) , has included The Black Major and The Red Shadows into the continuing IDW comic book Gijoe A Real American Hero(issues 155.5 -still ongoing) !!! I wish the USA had gotten the figures too back in the day. It would have been interesting if they did !!! Great video.

That Hyena looks gorgeous, Tony. Congrats on a successful restoration. 👍 Incrdible creativity on show here. Can't wait for the next episode! 😁

I can remember these toys, my brother and I had many years of fun play with all of them. We used to use star wars as civilians.

Still have my original Kraken, though his weapons long lost, and his paint applications long faded. he spent many years with my star wars figures as a bounty hunter along with Ree Yees (three eyes) and Hammerhead

Great video once again. My mother gave away a lot of toys when I got older. I was livid then, but now I know it was a nice thing to do. I still have a big box of my Battle Action Force and other comics though. Thanks for the great memories. 😊

To this day, I freaking love the sheer balls on Palitoy to retool a deep sea diver as the Muton.

The Red Shadows toys were the perfect mixture of inspired originality and economic adaption. Plus, the comics really brought characters like Baron Ironblood, Black Major, and Red Jackal to life. The whole story where Ironblood betrayed the Red Shadows and reinvented himself as Cobra Commander was mind-blowing as a kid. Plus, the Cobra Commander of the Battle Action Force comics is a way better villain than the Cobra Commander of the G.I Joe TV show/movie.

These take me back - as a kid I had Muton, the Red Shadows Infantryman, and the Roboskull, along with a mix of Q and Z Force stuff (including Quarrel and her bike) - sadly all long gone now, but the memories of them remain. Thanks for the awesome videos!

That Skull vehicle is super cool.

Never saw any of these as a kid here in the states. I learned of them in toy magazines in the 90s. Some of these 5pa figures are amazing. I been thinking about of looking for some. Good video.

Such great toys they did such a lot with few resources at the start I remember getting the Robo Skull for Christmas and it was awesome apart from needing a cigarette filter stuck into one of the wing joints to keep the pegs spread out far enough so it stayed onto the main body....ah happy days.

Loved Action Force as a kid. Always looked forward to the AF weekly comic

Superb, I had most of these apart from the Roboskull, although I remember playing with one that a friend had. I think I still have mine in a box somewhere. You know they are the bad guys, it's simple identification from the skull and crossbones! 😄

Excellent! Very comprehensive and informative!

The dedication of the company really paid off as they resulted with great quality.

I loved the original action force figures and still have a few left in storage

Red Shadows Officer, now there's a custom in need of making. For the 2 years they existed they made a pretty lasting impression. Thank you for casting a light on them (a long with Blood for the Baron).

I love the Red Shadows. IDW/DDP really did a bang up job in introducing them to American audiences in their comics. I'm currently in the process of making my own Red Shadow army using the Marauder Task Force Figures. It's nice to have an alternate bad guy for your Joe Verse.

Thanks for this video. I'm from the USA, so we never got these back in the day (apart from the original G.I. Joe toys). These are cool and would like to collect them some day.

Just SO SO COOL. Thanks for this one, Tony!!!!

Tony thanks for another Great Video

The best bad guys ever - with the Daleks!

Another excellent video Tony. I now have a complete (bar a few accessories) Red Shadow set myself. I already had most of the figures but it was your Roboskull video that finally got me looking for 1 for myself and once i had that, i had to get the rest and i'm very happy i did. Also, I had a 80% complete Roboskull on ebay and it sold today to a chap from the US! Coincidence? I might ask the buyer if he's a Analog Toys subscriber!

The vintage toy lines and their history is extremely fascinating, especially as they borrowed from other lines to build something unique! Your work documenting this is so very well done! Thank you!

Yes! Yes! Yes!😁😁😁 I have been anxiously awaiting these videos as I now have an interest in this 3.75 inch line! The video was all I hoped for with more to come. Outstanding!👍 Thanks Tony, great work friend. Bill

Really excellent video (as always)!

Fantastically well researched video. I still have a large Action Force collection boxed up in my parents attic. I keep thinking of doing an unboxing of all the stuff up there - Action Men, Dune, Star wars, Black Hole etc. but I couldn't do them justice like these Analog Toys vids do!

One of your best videos, Tony! Really enjoyed it. Man, I wish I kept on to these toys! I had almost of 'The Enemy' team except for the Robo Skull. Looking forward to the next video.

It's been a real pleasure watching these videos and finding out some things I didn't know about the toys of my childhood! I had the Cobra era toys too but I remember the original Action Force with fonder memories. Thanks!

I love Action Force! I'm from the US, but when I was stationed in Germany, there was a comic shop that sold action force comics at the time they changed to looking like Gi Joe Real American Hero, so I bought it even though it was in German.

These are the best videos! Well thought out and interesting. Cheers

Excellent work. This is going to be a great series.

These are some great villains

Despite growing up (in Canada) with GI Joe from the 70's onward it was only a few years ago that I first discovered Action Force. The initial line seems like a really interesting group of action figures, with the enemies the definite stand-outs. I love the zany look of Muton, Kraken and Skeletron and will have to hunt those down for my collection now. Great vid!

Baron ironblood makes a great bad guy looking forward to part two

I LOVE the kraken! i have 3 from my childhood! all though I lost all accessories...

Great video again - personally (probably because i'm English) the Red Shadows are far better and more cool looking than Cobra ever were... I know there have been a few JoeCon exclusive figures, but would love somebody to produce new versions of all original Action Force teams

Haven’t even finished the video, this is AMAZING!

Great video. My favorite toy line of all time. Im hoping someone will put a book out one day of all the concept artwork & unproduced toys.

Awesome video my childhood toys keep up the great work

I would have gone crazy for these as a kid. Not that I didn't love my cobra figure but I think I would have preferred the red shadows and it would have been fun to have these w my GI Joe figures.

The Red Shadows could use some more aircraft, two ideas I have would be a Dragonfry recolor called the Air Stormer which would come with a repaint of Cobra Officer called Buzzsaw and a Skystriker recolor called the Sky Raider that would come with repaints of Wild Weasel and The H.I.S.S Tank driver called Blitz and Thunderbolt.

‘Kraken’ video Tony ;) Love The Enemy, completely agree they’re the most iconic AF/GIJ baddies, love them all

These are awesome. Still trying to get all my classic joes. Now I'm gonna investigate getting these. Thank you sir.!!!!!!!!!

Thanks, brilliant video

I had no clue about this line; I really learned a lot from this video!

I’m going to enjoy this series. Thumbs up my man 👍🏻👍🏻

Excellent video tony. Didn't know much about these guys ( we didn't have them in North America ).

Wow another awesome video Tony loved the Action Force toys and comics

I literally subscribed waiting for these videos Tony. Looking forward to them all, and a lovely job restoring the Hyena

Very nicely done as always! While it was inevitable that the Hasbro assets were going to be used, it's a little sad they couldn't have continued with the Red Shadows. Some of the toys would have been amazing, like a red and black Rattler.

The Shadow Track seems ideal for aircraft towing.

Excellent review and history on the Action Force + Red Shadows. I missed out on these as a kid as I grew up in NY. I recently learned about this figure line and hope to find some figures and vehicles to add to my collection. Thanks for sharing this information.

I remember as a kid I got some of those figures I found them in a box of a yard sale along with the robo skull the kraken and I was like oh wow these are really cool and I put them with my GI Joe collection Man I miss that stuff

It took so long to get my "exclusive" mail-in Kraken it turned up in a local store, and ended up buying it there. Months later, I got a second Kraken through the door.

The Shadowtrak is one slick enemy vehicle! Originally, I thought the missiles on the side were torpedoes, since the Shadowtrak is usually depicted in the comics as an AAPC. It's probably one of my favorite designs of the line.

I had Baron Ironblood, Roboskull and the laser exterminator. A great aesthetic for the villains 👍

Brilliant and informative video. I only had a small handful of figures one being the black skinny diver and maybe a solder. I was 2 so can’t quite remember which others I had.

Such a great line. If we had Roboskull here in the states I would have list my mind. Great video bro, looking forward to more.

I wish I had access to those when I was little.

This is an awesome video thanks for making

Another fantastic video ...I always have baron iron blood fight cobra commander and serpentor with action force / g.i joe stuck in the middle

Tony happy 2020 yeah.Hey I see where Gi -Joe got their styles from other than star wars as well.Thanks once again toy history well explained.

my childhood in one video, star wars, action force, even action man. used to keep them at my grandparents house. had that green jeep thing, the z force figure with the red beret, a commander, one of the sas figures, and a couple of those red shadows figures, i seem to remember a couple of others one was white and another was like a beige colour, and rhey had like a camouflage effect on them. im guessing the white one was meant to be in snowy areas and the beige coloured one in desert areas.

I like that IDW with Hasbro universe brought back the red Shadows. It's really cool seeing Cobra working with I Baron ironblood in the comic Cobra Commander is missing or dead and they replace him with bear iron blood I got to get into that comic more

I might have to start collecting these properly; was too young back in the early Eighties to own them. I do have a carded Muton, though. So cool.

I recently built a Hyena out of LEGO bricks, and I'll be making some custom figures of Skeletron, the Black Major and Baron Ironblood. I'm hoping to show them off at JoeFest this year.

Always loved the Bad Guys more. Loved Kraken.

I'm jealous, as i kid, all I had was GI Joes, I would have loved to have played with Action Force toys.

Great video !

I was rolling on the floor listening to your comments on the Batman squirt gun..love the channel.. reddevils508

It's cushdy! I love it.

Military figures were never my cup of tea. But by god that Kraken dude is and that robo skull is just an awesome vehicle definitely gonna keep an eye out for them now

Tony, great video! The Heavy Artillery Laser fits better as an enemy weapon system; Palitoy color change looks great. It is a shame the team that came up with the Roboskull did not have the opportunity to allow their ideas to flourish. Imagine what could have come next. The Kraken's original backstory would have allowed kids to use the figure like an army builder, instead of a one-off mutant trapped in ice. Thanks for what you do!

Great start for the 1980s Action Force line. If Kenner's Stars Wars figures had a major flaw, it was its limited articulation, something surpassed by Hasbro's G. I. Joe A Real American Hero. The AF Red Shadows were definitely far better than the ones DDP presented when they had the G. I. Joe comic license. Developing an alternate enemy for G. I. Joe was something not really done by Marvel; even Nick Fury's S. H. I. E. L. D. had A. I. M., Swift Sword, the Yellow Claw & Leviathan to contend with; they weren't limited only to Baron Strucker's Hydra.

Anybody else think that Baron Ironblood looks like he's wearing a small Trash Can upside down on his head, with a hole cut out for the eyes, other than me?

I used to have these...

Classic toys

I guess that it would be safe to assume that Action Force figures are still compatible with GIJOE. Great video.

First off, thank you for doing this!! Baron Ironblood looks amazing, such a simple design that leaves an everlasting impression. The white uniform with the on the chest and skull and crossbones. The troopers too, are striking as well. Wonder if Hasbro got the idea for the Crimson Guard from them? Black Major also stands out as a well designed figure and character. Can't say anymore about the vehicles that you haven't said already, but that Robo-Skull is incredible, certainly my favorite of the bunch. The Muton is something right out of Doctor Who, and I love it!! Not sure about the Kraken, but that image of the Red Shadows Officer was cool. I wish these were sold in the States back then, or incorporated into the Cobra line, I would have definitely wanted some of these. Look forward to the next part!! Thanks Tony!!

Even when Cobra became the enemy in the Battle Action Force comic, the Red Shadows still appeared every so often, but now as a rag tag group led by The Black Major out for revenge on Baron Ironblood/Cobra Commander who had betrayed them. I've uploaded a few scans of this onto Pinterest if anyone's interested.

The Enemy were in my opinion far superior to Cobra mainly due to they employed"MAD SCIENCE"from the outset,it also helped that red was my favorite color when i was a child. Muton,Kraken and Skeletron were my favorite figures from the range,again because they showcased"MAD SCIENCE". I still have all my Enemy figures and vehicles(except the Laser Exterminator and Escape Armor,which i never had as a child and they are all in very good condition(being OCD sometimes has its advantages),except the Roboskull is missing its original stickers because if i remember correctly Battle Action Force released free stickers to upgrade your Enemy vehicles to Cobra,which i sadly did(the folly of youth) . One of me favorite stories in Battle Action Force involved the remaining Red Shadows,being led by the Black Major and Red Laser seeking vengeance on Cobra Commander and his new troops,its a shame they have never,to my knowledge,been collected

Why hasbro didnt import the roboskull to the states is beyond me.. Im sure the could have found a way to fit it into to the cobra arsenal.. I would have loved that toy as a kid

I always wondered about this toy line, as a kid I just figured that everyone had GI Joe and Cobra. I wonder now if your action force comic held a candle to my childhood reading GI Joe so ravenously.i can't imagine it was as life altering as the origin story and life of snake eyes was for me.

I really wish Baron Ironblood and the Red Shadows had been as you closed with....a thrid faction in the GI Joe Universe. There was some missed opportunities there in my opinion. If they were going to transition to Cobra, they should have made the Crimson Guard the elite next evolution of the Red Shadows. Ironblood could have become Cobra Commander, making an new organization, with Red Shadows being his most trusted men.

indeed awesome colours and awesome designs. And your figures are in great conditions. I always liked the evil characters far more than the good ones, in all series. They always have better colors and designs, the good guys are usually pretty boring.

Me: so... who's your ideal guy? Her: Um... kinda like a cross between Deadpool, a Nazi, a Death Star gunner, and a Pirate! Me: 4:54

I hope I didn’t miss this in the video, but was the Baroness released in this line in Action Force packaging. I lived in the Uk until 88 and I seem to remember my mother getting me a Baroness in AF packaging at some point before then. I was pretty young so I maybe remembering wrong.

I wonder how the Action Force designers reacted to the news that Hasbro was doing the same thing they were doing, but with more articulation.

I still got my action force figures in the loft had a few red shadows they were my favourites as they resembled German soldiers 👍🏼

Muton's accessories are pretty brittle, but otherwise, wacky or not, I love the figure! It's just such an odd idea! lol I have all of the Enemy Team (Red Shadow) figures accept Red Laser. I'd love to own this Cobra Commander repaint, but not at the prices he goes for. I love this video, Tony, and I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment! Great, well-thoughtout information as always! I love learning new things about toys!

Being from the states I'm new to Action Force but the thing I find interesting and really like is although it and ARAH G.I.Joe developed & came out relatively the same time G.I.Joe looks & feels like a 80s toybline but Action force feels like that and a blend of everything that came before and in some ways feels more connected to it's Action Man roots than ARAH does to G.I.Joe