For a short while we were getting monthly updates to a new animated G.I. Joe short-format “web series” that takes place in the Rise of Cobra universe, called “Operation: HISS”. Initially designed to bridge the story between Rise of Cobra and Pursuit of Cobra, but is obviously something that was not necessarily created with the highest standard in mind.
Regardless, it’s been a couple of months since we saw anything new from the Operation: HISS series, and some folks (probably not many) were wondering what the heck happened. No idea. But I do know at least, that Hasbro posted a short Scarlett Spotlight on their video page, and the MS G.I. Joe Collectors’ Club posted a very nice high def encode up on their Facebook page.
I’ve encoded it below.
I know this is pretty hokey, but I was at least hoping to see someone like Helix show up somewhere along the way…
With a huge thanks to friend of GeneralsJoes and member of JoeCanuck.com Stealth Viper for reporting that the third wave of Alpha vehicles from the G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra have started hitting retail at various Wal-Marts in Canada!
The sighting was first reported here by akpayne, and several other JoeCanuck members have chimed in, including images!
This is finally confirmation that these have hit mainstream retail somewhere, and will fill some holes in many Joe fans’ collections! Check out the sighting thread here, and if you’re in Canada, or know someone who lives there, start cashing in those favors.
You would think with the internet, the purveillance of the overseas gray market sellers, and the resources at our disposal, there wouldn’t be much out there that we haven’t at least gotten a sniff of by now. Well, the Terror Drome has dug up a pair of figures that really haven’t been on anyone’s radar. Most likely cancelled figures from the Rise of Cobra line (at least the one with the Reactive Armor vest), we have two figures that may or may not be more Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow updates that folks hadn’t heard of.
The original sightings come from TaoBao, and comes via ilovesw, a seller that has been around the block a number of times.
While the figures themselves don’t offer a whole lot of cool, new excitement, it’s always pretty neat catching a glimpse of “what might have been”. Who knows, these may end up seeing release down the road somewhere. With how much Hasbro is distancing themselves from the Rise of Cobra, I strongly doubt the figure with the reactive armor will see release, especially because Hasbro already announced the cancellation of Training Duke, who shares many of the same parts.
Time will tell, I suppose.
Quite suddenly, over the past 24 hours, a rumored leaked script for the sequel to G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra has gotten quite a bit of focus, from many online sites like Collider, FilmDrunk, and Den of Geek. It even started a Twitter war between FilmDrunk and elmayimbe from Latino Review. So, you know this thing resonates with the geek film crowd out there. Whether it’s due to the disappointment of the first film, or a love of the G.I. Joe franchise deep rooted in the 80’s, I’m not sure, but whatever the reason, it’s already sparked some debate.
So what caused the outcry?
Well, let me preface this by saying something… I have read the script in question. I received it a few weeks ago and ran it through some filters, and it certainly did not appear to be legit based on what I heard and saw.
That’s not to say it didn’t look legit on the surface. In fact, I’ve read quite a few scripts in my day, and I’ve seen some fanboy dream scripts, and some authentic scripts, and on the surface, this script read like a real script. It didn’t have much of the fanboy angle, it drew a lot of elements from the first film.
But at the same time, it also introduced many great elements from the cartoon and comic, and actually wove it into a pretty interesting, cool story. But there are reasons I didn’t post anything about this mysterious script:
If the fandom didn’t like it, we risk backlash against a film based on a script that might not be real
If the fandom loved it, and it ended up being fake, there could be backlash against Hasbro and Paramount for not using this script.
Either way, Hasbro/Paramount loses, in my mind, and based on the virulant reaction to The Rise of Cobra (much of it well deserved), that’s not a chance I really wanted to take.
So, before anyone asks…no, I will not be sharing the script. I know there will be fans out there who claim Hollywood is muffling it because they don’t want people to know it’s real. I don’t know the truth 100%, but I have strong suspicions that the script is not legit. It is a very entertaining read, but ultimately I suspect it will not represent what we see on screen in 2012, so rather than get the fandom in an uproar over something that may not have any actual bearing on the final product, I’m going to keep a lid on it.
I think we can all agree… the G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra video game wasn’t the pinnacle of video game capabilities. In fact, many would say it was downright awful. Personally, there were parts of it I enjoyed…enough that I played it all the way through the end and unlocked all of the characters. But, by far the best part about the game, bar none, was the music. It had some elements of the Rise of Cobra film, but it’s done in a purely orchestral style, and even with some generic techno-mix thrown in there, it really is a great listen.
Well, the guys over the MS Gulf Coast G.I. Joe Collectors Club have gathered the songs together from the game, (which also had some nice homages to the Sunbow theme mixed in there) and has collected it all into a massive soundtrack .zip file.
I’ve been listening to it tonight, and it’s been surprisingly entertaining. Really good stuff, for a pretty mediocre game.
They’ve posted it up on MegaUpload right here. Give it a shot!
Tomorrow is wednesday, which means today we’ve got a five page preview of the upcoming fourth issue of G.I. Joe: Operation HISS. Written to take place after the events in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, it injects a bit more seriousness into the source material than its animated counterpart.
Speaking of the animated counterpart, we were supposed to get a new episode last Friday…wonder what happened.
Anyway, the five page preview is below. G.I. Joe: Operation Hiss #4
Brian Reed (w) • Agustin Padilla (a) • Joe Corroney, Padilla (c)
With G.I. Joe captured and held prisoner, Major Bludd puts his master plan into action… and makes sure that the Joes take the fall! *2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
