We’re on the verge of some huge events in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #200, and with Paul Allor wrapping up his run on G.I. Joe, what’s up next for our American Heroes?
Turns out… not a whole heck of a lot. 🙁
May solicitations have hit from IDW Publishing, and we have one title on the list. G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #202 throws us back into the RAH world, but as of this moment, there doesn’t appear to be a main IDW-verse G.I. Joe title on the list. We knew that Paul Allor’s run would last for four issues (which should wrap in April) but there is currently no apparent heir to that G.I. Joe throne.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t a plan in place, but apparently that plan will not involve the month of May.
I’ve reached out to IDW to see if I can figure out what’s up, but until I get a response, check out the solicitations for May, 2014 after the jump.
Straight from the floor at Toy Fair, 2014, Bloomberg Television sat down with Vice President and G.I. Joe historian Derryl DePriest to talk about G.I. Joe’s history and it’s present incarnation.
I’ll be honest, it’s not a softball interview. The host asks some hard questions about G.I. Joe’s military ties, about the role model it sets for boys, and about what the brand is doing to innovate, and to his credit, DePriest answers those questions, but quite artfully.
I find a lot of these interviews to be somewhat “more of the same” but this one stood out…it’s a good five minute watch, check it out.
G.I. Joe fans everywhere had been jumping up and down waiting for the reveal of the 2014 G.I. Joe Convention Toxo-Zombie, and now that they have it, we’re getting a second helping of detail in the form of an awesome control drawing by the designers Boss Fight Studio.
I suspect yesterday’s image was a Photoshop mock up, and I cannot wait to see this head sculpt live and in person. Until then, check out the amazing art below. If you like what you see, make sure you hit up Boss Fight on Facebook and give ’em a Like.
I will admit, I’ve been waiting for the Toxo Zombie with some trepidation.
At this point I’ll act like a big ole hipster and say “I liked Zombies before they were cool”… but I actually have proof! I have about 10 vintage Toxo Zombies as a little undead squad, and back in the 90s I thought those guys were pretty bad ass, even if they were pink and neon green.
For that reason, I must admit I was taken aback by the concept case presentation of the Toxo Zombie. By and large the concept case in New Orleans was mind blowing stuff, but the Toxo Zombie, was… well… kinda blah. I think some folks were nervous that the Collectors Club would try to replicate that with this figure (myself included).
Thankfully that’s not the case! They went all out with this one, leveraging the skills of the awesome folks at Boss Fight Studios to generate some great new parts and make it awesomely vintage. That new “battle damaged” head sculpt is terrific, and I kind of like that they went with the same colors as the Toxo Viper’s uniform rather than the bleached out colors of the vintage version. I am in LOVE with this thing.
Check out the full details on GIJoeCon.com and also see the mirrored images below. Down to Repulsor and Dawg (as well as Clean Sweep’s face)! Looking forward to seeing how this set rounds off.
Now that may not make a whole lot of sense on its own, but when you consider that Cobra Troopers who are “bad” at their jobs are transferred to the Toxo Viper corps, it sounds like we just might be getting a peek at a Toxo Zombie today!
Of course, the last time I assumed this was happening, it didn’t exactly turn out that way, but fingers crossed that I’m right this time.
That would leave just Repulsor, Dawg, and Clean Sweep’s big melon as the last three items to see… Registration time GOOOOOO.
Oreobuilder has been doing simply amazing things over the past several months. Even if you somehow missed his fantastic work on “Battle Corps” month last year, I think his spectacular job on his tribute to G.I. Joe’s 50th Anniversary most likely got your attention. I’ve actually seen many folks saying that Oreobuilder’s tribute was far more fitting to G.I. Joe’s legacy than Hasbro’s own offerings at Toy Fair, and it would be tough to disagree with that.
Well, now he’s taken things even one step further, and working alongside long time Joe Customizer Bucky, they are tackling something near and dear to my heart. The new sculpt era!
I was a huge supporter of the G.I. Joe era from 2002 – 2005 and have often reminisced about how great the coalescence between direct to DVD films, comics, and the toyline was back then, and that Hasbro was actually charting new territory and weaving new stories. The designs for many of those new sculpt figures were terrific, unfortunately the execution was just not quite there. Whether that was due to technology or desired format still isn’t really clear, but what is clear is that many of the new sculpt figures would greatly benefit from modern era treatment. Over on OreoBuilder’s blog he is already hip deep in the project and has already given some new sculpt figures fantastic overhauls in the more modern style. Agent Faces? I mean, come on! That stuff is gold.
Make sure you book mark and visit often, as we’re sure to see plenty of updates and check some of the past work while you’re at it. I’ve mirrored a couple of images below.
Relish new comic day tomorrow, G.I. Joe fans, as it might be one of the last times we get a “Two for One” G.I. Joe comic day. With Cobra already gone and Special Missions wrapping up in April, pretty soon we’ll be down to just the flagship title and A Real American Hero (with Scioli’s Transformers and G.I. Joe coming in a short bit). So soak this in while you can.
Brace yourself, too, as the race to Real American Hero #200 heats up with one more step towards the big G.I. Joe vs. Cobra showdown! Check out previews for these two issues below.
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #199
Larry Hama (w) • S L Gallant (a & c)
THE ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN! G.I. JOE has escaped the situation in Sierra Gordo intact… but COBRA has taken over their headquarters! That means only one thing: it’s time for a head-to-head confrontation between America’s best and the villainous COBRA COMMANDER’s forces. Join the battle in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #199 and prepare for everything to change in next month’s landmark issue #200!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Bullet points:
ONLY 1 ISSUE LEFT UNTIL G.I. JOE: A REAL AMERICAN HERO #200!
Variant Cover by Larry Hama!
G.I. Joe: Special Missions #12
Chuck Dixon (w) • Paul Gulacy (a) • Gulacy, Will Rosado (c)
DESTRO MUST DIE part three! It’s a three-way showdown between the JOEs, COPPERBACK and a mysterious Mark II B.A.T. in an abandoned town from the old Soviet Union. And HELIX is here to tip the balance. The search for DESTRO continues and the noose around the villainous highlander begins to tighten!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Bullet points:
Chuck Dixon and Paul Gulacy bring back a fan-favorite character!
When the images came out over Toy Fair weekend and revealed that the brown VAMP MK II w/ Flint and the Night Landing w/ Cobra Eel were marked “ComicCon” it caused a bit of a fan fury, as one might imagine. After all, a vintage accurate Flint figure was voted the #1 fan demanded figure in the Concept Case survey back in 2012, and many fans were over the top excited that he was finally finding a way to retail shelves.
This excitement was quickly muffled by the thought that he might only be arriving on “virtual” shelves via ComicCon and the general chaos of HasbroToyShop the week afterwards.
Seeking some clarification, I reached out to the Hasbro Public Relations folks, and the current plans are a bit more fan friendly. Take this with a grain of salt, as full details are still to come in the upcoming months, but the current plan is for the “Danger at the Docks” with vintage accurate VAMP MK II and Flint to debut at San Diego ComicCon, but then be available through Toys “R” Us afterwards.
This same formula was used last year for the Transformers Masterpiece Soundwave and Acid Storm, and early indications are that Hasbro will do this for the 50th Anniversary “Danger at the Docks” vehicle set.
Keep in mind, of course, the winds shift frequently in the toy world, so things might change, but as of this moment, fans can rest easy, it shouldn’t be as difficult to get this highly sought after vehicle and figure as some folks thought it might be.
Thanks to the always receptive folks with Hunter PR for responding so quickly amidst a very busy Toy Fair weekend.
In the fury of Toy Fair news, the new G.I. Joe: Battleground event Matter Transmuted kind of slipped under the radar, but it is on now!
Apparently taking some queues from the Sunbow “Worlds Without End” 2-Parter it looks to feature Steeler and The Baroness as headliners with some other rather interesting cards complimenting them.
I won’t lie, I’ve been eyeing these cool looking new “Acid Rain” vehicles from OrinToy for a while now, and have been really curious as to how well they’ve been executed.
Over on HISSTank.com (who has been rocking some great Toy Fair coverage, by the way) C.I.A.D. got his hands on one of these great looking items and did up a meticulous review with a ton of great images.
As I feared this product looks just as neat as I suspected it might. It is a high budget item, but with just a little Joe product destined for this year, perhaps it’s something to consider branching off into.
Check out the review right here, and I’ve mirrored one of the images below.
