by generalsjoes | Jun 12, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comics, IDW
G.I. Joe: Origins #4 blew me away. Honestly. Granted, I’ve been enjoying the title thus far, but mostly in a “hey, this is neat” kind of way, with no real emotional commitment or feverent desire to immerse myself further into the Joe’s past. But this issue changed all of that. For some reason, everything just kind of came together into one very cohesive, excellently paced story that drew me deeply into this G.I. Joe mythos.
There was mystery, plenty of action, some very cool obscure homages and Mike Hawthorne’s art was absolutely terrific this time around. Him and Larry Hama both really knocked this one out of the park. Reviews are also online at some of the usual haunts:
I’ve also posted a mini gallery of images from the issue, too. I was extremely pleasantly surprised with the fourth issue. The other 3 have been good, but this one was GREAT.
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by generalsjoes | Jun 12, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Toys, G.I. Joe: Resolute
Huge props to JoeCustoms member, DreamsJoes admin, and friend of GeneralsJoes, Dream for hooking me up with some great images of the so-far unreleased Resolute version of Scarlett! Included in these pics are some awesome comparison images of Scarlett and Helix. A lot of folks knew that they both shared the same legs, but what we didn’t know is that there were some subtle scale and size differences between the two.
Check out all of the awesome images below, and thanks again to Dream for hooking us up!
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by generalsjoes | Jun 12, 2009 | G.I. Joe, Sigma 6 (8" Scale), Sigma 6 Celebration
If there was anything that the G.I. Joe purists hated more than the Sigma 6 toys or the Sigma 6 concept itself, it was the animated series. We got our first taste of the cartoon at the G.I. Joe convention, and all came away pretty impressed. With designs and animation by Gonzo studios, this seemed like a potentially great (if not somewhat “kiddified”) new super-hero type animated series, but featuring our favorite Joe characters. While at the beginning, the animation impressed, the writing was an immediate drawback, as the cartoon came across as if it were almost written for the kindergarten set. Overly emotional, wacky vocal patterns, and over-exaggerated expressions gave us the worst parts of the Japanese animation culture, but not much of the good stuff. Still, there were some things to look forward to, if you could overlook the silliness.
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by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: The Movie
El Mayimbe joins Latino Review cohort El Guapo in confirming that Stephen Sommers has NOT been fired from the film. According to his Twitter Page:
“GIJOE update from Gracie Mansion: don’t belive the hype folks. Stephen Sommers has final cut. 100% confirmed. Trust me. No spin, just fact.”
Latino Review is very well connected in the film world, and El Mayimbe had an accurate script review online well before everyone else on the internet. If he says it, I buy it. This, of course, does not guarantee the film is any good, but it sounds a lot better than it did this morning.
by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary, G.I. Joe Toys, G.I. Joe: The Movie
HasbroToyShop.com reports that they now have the MARS Trooper 3-Pack in stock for $24.99 plus shipping. You can find that item right here.
They also have a special deal going on right now where if you buy a DVD Battle Pack, you get to choose any single figure for FREE. Check out the details here, and shop their DVD Battle Packs here.
EDIT – Don’t forget to use gijoe10 as a discount code to save some cash!
by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: The Movie
El Guapo from reputable film website Latino Review has spoken directly with Lorenzo Di Bonaventura about the testing for the film and the whole firing of Stephen Sommers rumor. This is straight from the horse’s mouth:
**UPDATE**
Latinoreview wanted to get to the bottom of this so we spoke directly with Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura about this whole firing mess and here’s what he had to say:
Lorenzo: It’s very unfair to Steve, it’s completely untrue he was never asked to leave or been fired or any of that. That’s ridiculous. The movie tested very well.
I hear it tested as good as the first Transformers.
Lorenzo: Well listen, we tested very well and I don’t compare the movies because they are different movies, but you know I think its really destructive for a director…It hurts a guy’s career when people go around talking about that he was fired or he didn’t do a good job and truth is he did a really good job. People are going to enjoy the movie and the test audiences enjoyed the movie.
He did a very good job the movie tested well and it couldn’t be more false that the studio in anyway did anything negatively to Steve.
So what really happened in the editing room?
Lorenzo: Nothing that doesn’t happen on every other movie, which is that you constantly work and work and work and you make it better and better. We had a delay on visual effects so we waited a long time to finish the movie but that’s the only thing. I don’t really know why that would be interpreting it negatively but I guess it was.
In regards to the testing the film has had so far:
Lorenzo: Everybody was happy, the studio was happy, the filmmakers were happy, the audience was happy with the movie. We had three test screenings, three different times and tested it and each time it just got better and better. We started off in a good place and we ended up in even in a better place, which is what you hope on a film from testing it.
So there you go. Straight from Lorenzo as he debunks the firing story. Like I said, I’ve heard from my sources that the film was tracking well. We’ve stuck up for this film from the get go. Why? Because we’re fans of G.I. Joe. And I’ve mentioned on Twitter and here numerous times that I think the movie looks kick ass.
All know is fans want a good G.I. Joe movie despite the Hollywood politics. We’ll find out when it hits theaters on August 7th.
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Everyone here knows I’m an uber-fanboy, and that I’m a devout supporter of G.I. Joe and Hasbro, but I’m straying on the “false rumor” side of things. Latino Review has SCATHED early examples of the G.I. Joe film in the past, they have no reason to support it, and they’re supporting it, I see no reason to go against that grain. Regardless of the Hollywood political garbage or potential implications, there’s nothing we can do at this point, I’m just going to enjoy the ride.
At this point the haters are going to hate, the supporters are going to support, and little will change anyone’s mind this close to the film’s release. I’m still staying cautiously optimistic with hopes of 2 hours of entertainment on August 7th. Even if I’m not entertained, I’ve got at least a few years worth of awesome toys coming in 2009 that’ll take care of that for me.
by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | Sigma 6 (8" Scale), Sigma 6 Celebration
As part of the celebration of Sigma 6 and what made the line so appealing to myself and others, I had an opportunity to speak with the folks at Hasbro about Sigma 6, and they were kind enough to answer some questions. Take a peek at the Q & A below.
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by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comics, G.I. Joe Video Game, G.I. Joe: The Movie, IDW
Huge thanks to Jeff Bohn who has supplied GeneralsJoes with some nicely detailed information about the 6-page Helix comic that comes with the upcoming Electronic Arts G.I. Joe: The Rise of COBRA video game. The comic leads directly into the IDW Helix special edition, for sale in August. The information is below:
G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra: Helix Special EA Edition
Writer: Brian Reed
Artist: Joe Suitor
6 page comic
Hawk shows Duke video of Agent Helix, who has “Total Organic Battlefield Awareness.” Hawk explains that she is missing, that Duke is to find her, and details some of her backstory…
Master practicioner of Capoeira, Muay Thai, Wing Chun, Shuai Jiao, Kendo and Fencing. Rumored to be able to master a fighting style after encountering it only once. Fought in underground fights, battling to the death and walking away without a scratch. Traits of savantism, but not autistic. Can identify and solve complex physical calculations quickly. “Everything she sees has a Data Set. Miles left before a car will run out of gas, Ammo counts in the bad guys guns…”
Hawk thinks Cobra may have her.
- 1 page advertisement for the Helix comic special (which continues the story). Also mentions that you can be Agent Helix in the game.
- 4 page fold out poster advertising the video game.
- 2 page interview with game writer Brian Reed. Mentions that Helix was created as a “gamer turned soldier”, which gets fleshed out in the Helix comic special. Mainframe is in the video game as support, non-playable.
- 2 page interview with Electronic Arts Senior Producer Matt Marsala.
- 1 page picture of Scarlett.
- Back cover is an advertisement for the video game (same as the fold out poster).
Thanks again to Jeff for this great information. I’m really digging Helix’s backstory. If nothing else, the film is opening up some nice new doors into the G.I. Joe mythos.
by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: The Movie
A scary article for any G.I. Joe fan has been posted on FirstShowing.net regarding the production of G.I. Joe: The Rise of COBRA. It states that the film received such low scores during test screenings that director Stephen Sommers was actually fired during post-production and Paramount has been in damage control mode ever since.
This is, of course, only rumor…but I’ll say it leaves me nervous about what we should be expecting come August 7th. Accelerator Suits? I can deal with them. A disfigured COBRA Commander? I’ll roll with that. But low test screening scores, chaotic beaurocratic BS, and frantic damage control all spells “danger” and does not look good going forward. Is any of it true? Nobody really knows at the moment. But whether or not you think you’ll like the film, if it tanks as bad as the article suggests it might, it could be disastrous for the G.I. Joe brand as a whole.
Time will tell, but I’m certainly at least somewhat more trepadacious about the movie now than I was this time yesterday. Click here to check out the article.
I suppose no matter what, at least we’re getting some kick ass toys this year, that may be all we end up with to remember this run by… I certainly hope that it’s not, I guess time will tell. Thanks to Mercer from JoeBattleLines for the intel.
by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2009 | G.I. Joe, Sigma 6 (8" Scale)
During the heyday of Sigma 6, rumors were flying around that a variant version of the popular Lt. Stone figure was coming out, this time done up in blue armor instead of the normal black. In the end they just proved to be rumors, though, as none were ever spotted at retail or anywhere else, for that matter.
Well, that all goes straight out the window, as Sigma 6 Central forum member hktoyking has posted a photo of this mysterious blue-armor variant! Click here to check out the thread, or view the image below.
