Destro

Destro…ahhh, Destro. The G.I. Joe universe simply wouldn’t be what it is without the enigmatic, honorable villain Destro. Born James McCullen Destro (or so we are lead to believe) he is the Scottish born arms dealer that had a big hand in making G.I. Joe famous. In every big event in Joe history, Destro was there in one form or another, fighting for Cobra, or the Iron Grenadiers, his own offshoot team. The Iron Grenadiers was the coolest subset in G.I. Joe, in my opinion, and in the opinions of many other Joe fans as well. There is no disputing Destro’s coolness, but there is some disagreement about which version of his is the best.


There is no question in my mind, which Destro is the ultimate version of this great character. The '83 version is a classic, yes. The silver chrome helmet, the wrist launching rockets, the open chest black leather jacket and high red collar. To many people, that version IS the definitive Destro. I would agree to a certain extent that this image is synonymous with the Scottish arms dealer, but in the strict action figure sense, his 88 version is heads and shoulders above the earlier one. His appearance is much more regal here, much more imposing, and is really fitting a lord of a Scottish manor. His large, muscular frame that was the trademark of the late '80’s series’, and the gold trim helmet just scream royalty. The red cape helps as well, and the intricate detailing adorning his whole black leather ensemble just puts the icing on the cake. This is Destro as he should always be remembered.


His accessories are simple, but effective. He has a ceremonial sword and scabbard that hang on his right hip. That’s pretty much it. Something befitting a leader and general of his caliber. But he also comes packaged with the Despoiler! A great small vehicle that fits him perfectly as the genius in mechanical engineering that he is. It is his personal assault craft, armed and armored well, and he looks perfect sitting in it’s seat, leading his Iron Grenadiers into battle!


While I was a bit disappointed at the selection of the mold for the ’01 version of Destro, I couldn’t help but be a little pleased as well. It keeps the 88 version unique to its time as it should be. A gem in a 12 year (and counting!) series of gems. Here’s to 12 more years of gems to come. In my book, Hasbro’s off to a good start.