by generalsjoes | Jul 13, 2010 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary, G.I. Joe Toys, Marvel Comics Toys, Marvel Media, Other Toys, SDCC, Show and Convention Coverage
The San Diego ComicCon has moved into a whole new stratosphere in recent years. Initially merely a large comic convention, it somehow migrated to a Geek Mecca where Hollywood, Comics, and Toy Companies collide to give us glimpses at what cool new things are on the horizon for our nerd pleasure. It is pretty astounding to see just what it has become.
Of course as part of the allure of ComicCon, there are the SDCC Exclusives…toys that are launched at SDCC and for sale initially only at SDCC. This has always created a conflict between the “haves” and the “have nots” which has sometimes generated some hostility not just in the fandom, but directed back at the manufacturers. But Hasbro seems to have found a balance. By offering the items through SDCC, but also at HasbroToyShop, they seem to be able to please everyone, and in recent years there hasn’t been an obvious shortage of opportunities to get what you want.
This is not the case with Mattel, who year after year generates mountains of frustration among their fans with a strange voucher pre-order system that doesn’t even guarantee you a figure if you travel all the way to ComicCon. Not to mention when they post items for sale after the fact, MattyCollector.com gets so hammered that nobody can access the retail store. In general, it seems like a mammoth cluster… you get the idea.
Now not only does Hasbro seem to have the system at least somewhat ironed out, but the numbers of cool exclusives they are getting out there is amazing. Now, most of this is probably because they’re far and away the #1 Boys Toys brand in the market, but it really is incredible just how many cool toys they can get into collectors’ hands through SDCC. Anyone reading this right now already knows about Sgt. Slaughter:
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I mean, look at this figure! Sure there are complaints about the lack of musculature and the placement of the torso joint/USA logo (which I can certainly appreciate) but there is a metric ton of new tooling, great accessories, and even new points of articulation. Any long time fan who has been clamoring for Slaughter is gonna be loving this.
And while I haven’t been keeping up with the Marvel stuff as much as I’d like to, I can’t help but drool at what Hasbro has there as well:
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Before I go on…let me say one thing. Yes that is a TWO FOOT FREAKING TALL CARDED ACTION FIGURE. How awesome is that? Not to mention the bad ass WW II Captain America and an impressive Thor figure to tie into the upcoming movie as well.
Hell, even Star Wars has my interest this year!
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Bet you thought Darth Maul was dead, eh? Hell, I’m an uber-geek and even I thought Darth Maul was dead. What the hell is this? It’s Darth frikken Maul with cyborg horse legs. ROCK.
So yeah…for G.I. Joe fans or for toy fans, Hasbro has got it going on this year. Maybe one day I’ll make it to SDCC…but until then I’ll sit back and enjoy it vicariously through the hundreds of thousands of others. Can’t wait to hear what’s on the horizon!
by generalsjoes | Jul 8, 2010 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: Renegades, SDCC
With the reveals of every Pursuit of Cobra figure through spring, 2011, some folks (myself included) were questioning just what Hasbro would talk about during the San Diego ComicCon. Well, that question has been answered.
Comic-Con.org has posted an updated schedule of events and featured on the Thursday block is the following panel information:
“1:00-2:00 Hasbro GI Joe— The Hasbro design and marketing teams and representatives from Hasbro Studios — including Derryl DePriest (Hasbro Marketing),John Warden (Hasbro Design), Aaron Archer (Hasbro Brand IP Development), Jeff Kline (executive producer, G.I. Joe Renegades), and Michael Vogel (Hasbro Studios) — discuss new initiatives for Hasbro’s G.I. Joe brand. Fans won’t want to miss details from the showrunner and members of the creative team for the new G.I. Joe Renegadesanimated television series coming to The Hub network this fall! Also includes Q&A time. Room 25ABC
Categories: Action Figures – Toys – Collectibles | Action/Adventure | Animation |Television“
With John Warden in attendance, there will no doubt be some Pursuit of Cobra talk as well, but I think everyone is waiting to hear more about Renegades, which could prove to be G.I. Joe’s resurgence into television animation after nearly two decades of obscurity. No, Sigma 6 does not count (as much as I hate to admit it).
by generalsjoes | Jun 22, 2010 | 5 Page Previews, Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comics, IDW
Operation: HISS has been a pretty enjoyable read thus far, even being somewhat predictable along the way. The art is a bit hit or miss, and the characterization of Duke as a traitor has been a stretch. It was obvious he was going to get back on the good guys’ side again, it was just a matter of how long it took. However, I do enjoy the series as a whole, and find it pretty neat to get a continued look at the Rise of Cobra universe. Honestly, unlike a lot of fans, I think there is a place for the Rise of Cobra universe in the myriad of G.I. Joe continuities, and it’s cool to see this world continue along in the comic page. The latest issue is released this Wednesday.
Looking at the 5-page preview below, my only thought would be… I thought Neo-Vipers were nanomite enhanced super soldiers… how is Scarlett is whupping their asses?
G.I. Joe: Operation Hiss #5
Brian Reed (w) • Gianluca Gugliotta (a) • Joe Corroney, Augustin Padilla (c)
Major Bludd has convinced the United States government that G.I. Joe has gone rogue. One wrong move could spell disaster not just for the Joes, but for the whole world!
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
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by generalsjoes | Jun 17, 2010 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comics, IDW
Wow. The IDW Universe is really starting to pick up steam, and September looks no different, with a wide assortment of fun and interesting looking titles. Some very cool artwork on these covers, and some serious intrigue scattered throughout. Looking forward to seeing what the months ahead are going to bring us!
I mean come on…in one month we’ve got another G.I. Joe: Cobra Special…a tribute to the original silent issue (and a first peek at Snake Eyes’ origin)…and Rod freaking Whigham drawing a G.I. Joe cover again! Click the “read the rest of this entry” link below to get all of the details!
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by generalsjoes | Jun 15, 2010 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comic Reviews, G.I. Joe Comics, G.I. Joe Reviews, IDW
Warning – There are Spoilers abound in this review! If you don’t want to be spoiled, stop reading.
As I sit down and read through this issue, it suddenly occurs to me. We are well over a year into G.I. Joe’s run through the IDW universe, and we haven’t even seen Storm Shadow yet. How is that possible? Or did I just miss it somewhere along the way?
I don’t have a clue why I suddenly thought of that as I was reading the issue…perhaps it was seeing Snake Eyes meditating in the darkness as Scarlett welcomed him back to The Pit in a sort of awkward non-conversation. I don’t know whether I should commend Chuck Dixon for holding off that long, or if I should ask “what the #@$ are you waiting for?” Granted, there really hasn’t been a place for Storm Shadow to fit in yet, but part of me does hope they don’t just reserve the “Origins” book to show all of the…you know… origins. I mean, something like that has to happen in the main title, right?
G.I. Joe’s flagship book continues to move at a decent pace, though I’ve grown a bit weary already of the “Destro in the gulag” storyline. It at least takes a step in the right direction this time around, and it was cool to see him have some direct (sort of) interaction with Cobra Commander. I find myself really digging Cobra Commander’s “look” in this universe, and part of me hopes maybe this is a new evolution of the character. As comfortable as we all are in his typical battle helmet or hood, this fanged faceplate is growing on me. It would be neat to see this look in Renegades as well.
We get a small taste of Destro’s ancestry in this issue, too, which follows pretty typical norms as his Scottish ancestor uses grenades to scatter a French invasion force just prior to the events of Waterloo. Gallant’s art continues to have a great flow and feel in this issue, and he draws landscape scenes and action with similar energy. I find myself consistently reminded of Mark Bagley, and I enjoy that style of art, so I have no issues with that whatsoever.
The issue wraps up with a possible cameo of Cobra Island, as the Joes look to pay a little visit to this mysterious piece of green forest in the middle of the ocean.
As I said, the pace continues pretty steadily this month, and things actually continue to happen. Action was mostly concentrated in the gulag, but it looks like that could potentially change next month as the Joes crawl into enemy territory. It does continue to surprise me that we have a glaring lack of certain core characters, but there’s always something to look forward to. One just hopes they don’t wait a little bit too long.
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by generalsjoes | Jun 11, 2010 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: The Movie, Operation: H.I.S.S.
Looks like Hasbro is making up for some lost time. After a few months in limbo, a couple of days ago, we got a short Scarlett spotlight, which was the first Operation: HISS update we’d gotten in quite a while. Now this morning, it would appear that even though Hasbro hasn’t posted them on their site yet, MonkeybarTV.com has Episodes 4 and 5 posted for the animated series that has gotten quite mixed reviews.
Well, not so mixed. Pretty much just bad. But hey! Look! It’s Agent Helix!
Seriously, this is obviously made for kids…not much money invested in it…and not a whole lot of emotion either. But it’s always cool to see Joe characters come to life on screen, and I can’t help but smile seeing Helix running around alongside Snake Eyes in animated form. Check out the episodes at the links below. These actually have a nice little helping of action…and yes, it’s quite obvious they’re simply using the video game models to make these, but hey, I guess it’s something, right?
Episode 4
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Episode 5
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