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Exclusives refer to G.I. Joe toys that are not available for purchase anywhere else but only through selected avenues. They are generally produced in limited numbers and are often hard to find anywhere else. These exclusive toys may be purchased in any of the following manner:

  • Direct-to-Consumer - Before the days of the internet, these were mail-in orders that one places directly to Hasbro. These days, Hasbro's website has an online catalogue that one may choose from.
  • Convention exclusives - To drum up collector interest in conventions, a number of particular action figure(s) is produced for that event only.
  • Store exclusives - A toy store such as Toys "Я" Us, Kaybee or Target may enter into a contract with Hasbro that would enable them to be the sole distributor of particular edition of toys or select figures.

All these do not necessarily mean that the toys remain exclusive to a single avenue for long. Characters such as Duke and Major Bludd were mail-in orders before they became available in carded packs the following year. Some toys that were Toys R Us exclusives moved to wider market availability.

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