NOW the war's over; Iraq has geeks too

By now, most people
have heard that this
American G.I. doll
(a.k.a. Special Ops Cody)
was reportedly taken
hostage and threatened
with decapitation. I don't
know about you, but I have
to think that the occupation
of Iraq is having a positive
affect on the sense of humor of your average insurgent.
The Al Mujahedeen Brigade must be the Monty Python's
Flying Circus of Mesopotamia to think that this was
going to work for very long without giving Americans
a hearty laugh. It does look pretty realistic, but
that actually says more about our ability to make
awesome action figures. See dad, I told you they
weren't just for girls.

Why couldn't we have had great action figures like
this when I was a kid. I had fun with my line of
8-inch DC and Marvel dolls, but they were cheap
as hell. Superman's "S" was a sticker that fell
moments out of the box, the Hulk was actually
shorter than everyone because he was bulkier,
and all the heads were hollow, soft and squidgy.
Been in a comic shop lately? Kids today can buy
action figures that are detailed works of art
worthy of display. No wonder there are so many
geeks with stacks of dolls in the box.

My prediction now is that Special Ops Cody is
going to be a big seller in the next few weeks.
Wait for that story to turn up on FOX.