G.I. Joe Classified 6" Duke Getting A Running Change Deco Variant Version From Hasbro

Shown below is an image first discovered by Dan Atwood who says he got it from someone on a Facebook page, (sorry we aren't sure the original source of the image). Dan says the person who took this image got the figure from Amazon. In the image we see a new G.I. Joe Classified 6" Duke figure from Hasbro that features an updated paint deco.

New Variant Paint Deco G.I. Joe Classified Duke Figure From Hasbro


The red on the shoulders and gloves have been removed, the knee pads and shin guards are now silver as opposed to gold, and the gold on the riffle has been removed. Not sure why they left the gold on the pistol, but whatever.

Original G.I. Joe Classified Duke Figure From Hasbro


Since the image surfaced for this unannounced variant, I've been doing some checking. First let me say this is 100% a legit figure. From what I can tell this is being done as a running change type of variant. Meaning as retailers and etailers order new stock of the Duke figure, instead of getting the original one they will now get this updated version.

I can't speak for all retailers since I don't know what kind of inventory they are sitting on, but I can confirm that if you pre-order the G.I. Joe Classified Duke from our sponsor BigBadToyStore.com now, you will get the new version, not the old one. Hasbro (as I type this) has not yet sent out updated images, which is why everyone is still shows images of the original figure. New official images of the updated Duke should be coming soon. Hasbro seems to have just kind of sprung this updated version on retailers, likely due to fan demand to have characters look more like their original counterparts.

Paint Deco Variant G.I. Joe Classified Scarlett Figure From Hasbro


Paint Deco Variant G.I. Joe Classified Roadblock Figure From Hasbro


The same goes for the Scarlett and Roadblock figures from wave 1. As retailers get new stock of those, it will be the updated versions that we originally reported as coming in wave 3 with the Zartan and the Cobra Trooper. I am told that some of the original Roadblock figures are still shipping from Hasbro, so getting an original of that one will likely be easier than the Duke and Scarlett.

If you have the original Duke, Scarlett and even Roadblock figures that were initially released, then you may want to hold on to them. They are likely going to be harder to come by as time goes one since the initial stock stores order of those was seemingly low. As popularity grows for the line and stores scramble to restock the original wave 1 figures, they are going to be getting the updated deco versions which hopefully should be easier to get. You can see on Amazon the figure now says (Deco may vary).

Amazon listing for Duke that says Deco May Vary


Someone like Amazon may still have a mix of new and older inventory, so its a crap shoot on which version you end up getting. Until updated images are released, you may want to check with the etailer on which version they will be sending you if you want to make sure what version you are going to get.