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ℹ️ Fate: Later releases kept the character but dropped the 1980s UV color-change gimmick.
Dreadnok chameleon whose figure shifted color in sunlight.
Zarana hit the 3.75" *G.I. Joe* line in 1986 as a Dreadnok infiltrator and sister to Zartan. Her original figure featured UV-reactive plastic so that, in sunlight, exposed ‘skin’ areas shifted to a bluish tone, reinforcing the clan’s disguise/chameleon theme. Packed with gear and a punk-inspired sculpt, she rounded out the trio of color-changing siblings (Zartan, Zarana, Zandar).
In the 1990s and beyond, Hasbro refreshed characters and scales, but the sunlight color-change was largely retired in favor of updated sculpts, articulation, and accessories—leaving Zarana v1 (1986) the iconic release for the UV effect.
Timeline
- 1986
Zarana v1 debuts with sunlight/UV color-change plastic.
- 1980
Color-change Dreadnok trio becomes a playground favorite.
- 1990
UV/photochromic gimmicks phased out of most new releases.
- 2000
Reissues/new lines bring Zarana back without the UV feature.
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