020 Bruce

Bruce is the TDD martial artist.

He began as a loose parody of Bruce Lee, the most influential martial artist of all time.  He became a more specific parody of this actor as the figure evolved.

Bruce has distinct figures in G1, G2, and G3.

His G1 figure wears traditional Japanese wooden shoes known as geta. These are a type of sandal with an elevated wooden base.  The figure also wears a hachimaki.  This is a headband worn to symbolize courage and perseverance.  His has the Japanese "Rising Sun" flag on it.  Finally, he has a black belt.  This indicates that he has achieved mastery in his discipline.  This ranking system is a relatively new institution, originating in Japan and going back only to around 1900. 

I should probably note that Bruce Lee is Chinese-American and not Japanese.

His G2 figure was a new sculpt.  This figure is quite similar to the G2 figure of Timbo, the stuntman.  Both figures seem to be homages to the martial arts films of the 1970s (Way of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon, etc). This static figure has a set of nunchucks in his right hand.

His G3 figure was another new sculpt, this time resembling a specific role played by Bruce Lee.  He now looks exactly like Kato, a character from the TV series The Green Hornet.  This was a TV show from 1966-67 that derived from a radio show, which aired from the 1930s-1950s.  It's about costumed vigilante crimefighters.  Kato is The Green Hornet's sidekick, bodyguard, and a skilled martial artist.  It was Bruce Lee's popularity on this show that got him the famous movie roles of the 1970s.  He was only 32 when he died from an allergic reaction to a controversial painkiller.

The Kato version of Bruce was definitely a relevant parody.  In 2004 (when this figure appeared), Kevin Smith was working on a movie adaptation of The Green Hornet.  In 2007, the movie rights switched hands and Seth Rogen started working on the script.  In 2011, the movie finally came out with Seth Rogen starring as the lead character and Jay Chou as Kato.  The movie was directed by Michel Gondry.  It is awful.