Me with entire GI Joe ARAH figure line 1982-1994
While i had GI Joe figures as early as 1983 (born in 1981), I eventually switched from play to collecting. From 1997, until 2023 or so, I set about collecting all of the ARAH line figures, with all file cards, and all accessories. I did so largely from the help of online group, buying and selling lots on Ebay, and perusing vintage stores wherever I went.
My parameters for collecting were to complete all the figures: every accessory and file card that would have originally come with the figure. I was never too into vehicles - so I was really just focused on completing the figure line. I also decided that my version of being a "completist" would mean that I would approach "completion" from the perspective of a child. For example: if I was a kid and I had sent away for Starduster, I wouldn't care about getting a slightly different version (if I had even known that there was a difference) - I would think "I already have that figure". The same thing for the original versions of Steel Brigade. However, if I was a kid and I saw the Gold Head Version, I would think "that's a different figure - I need him!". So I didn't get too into variations of figures to complete my collection - I wanted one complete version of every distinct figure from the perspective of my child self. I believe that resulted in a total tally of about 523 figures.
I have since began collecting some of the smaller scale vehicles as well, and have been working on displaying them. I'll post that in the future.