This is it…the final issue in the so-called “Season One” arc of the mainstream G.I. Joe title from IDW. It’s been a roller coaster ride, through various ups and downs, and I’ll be the first to say that issue #26 was one of the downs. The story itself was exciting, the art was great, but it felt a bit like wasted potential for all of this build up to feature essentially the two character we know and feel the least about. We’ll see if Chuck Dixon can make amends with issue #27 tomorrow. Check out the 5-Page preview below. G.I. JOE #27 Chuck Dixon (w) • Robert Atkins (a & c)
“M.A.S.S. DESTRUCTION” concludes here with Snake Eyes and Helix stranded at the top of the world in a desperate battle against time, the elements and COBRA. Expect an armored vehicle battle on the frozen wastes of an Arctic wasteland like you’ve never seen before. And a chilling shock ending you never thought you’d see!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Yes, that’s a question, because I have no idea…but I was perusing some of my favorite G.I. Joe sites today, and what do I see in the upper corner of JoeCanuck.com?
This guy:
Okay, so that’s definitely Jason Loo’s artwork…or seems to be, anyway. He’s the guy that typically does the art for the Canadian JoeCon Exclusives. So of course, I eagerly jumped into the site and looked around, but saw no mention of this anywhere. What the–?
I guess it could be a mistake, or perhaps a sign of things to come, but whatever the case, the figure looks really cool. So, of course, you’ll want to keep June 18th in mind if you’re at all interested. No guarantees, but it certainly seems to be leading that way. The full information for the upcoming Canadian JoeCon can be seen below:
You can also, of course, go to CanadianJoeCon.com for the full skinny as well!
Well it must be that time of year again… sick and tired of the publicity the Joes are getting from the annual JoeCon, Cobra Commander has led an all out assault on JoeCon 2011 in Orlando! In fact, it looks like he’s taking it over for Cobra!
Check out CobraCon.com, and take a peek at the YouTube video below.
Fellow Renegades fanatic kennywr22 noticed that MSN’s G.I. Joe: Renegades page has updated with a description for another upcoming episode, this time, “Knock Offs”.
“The Baroness is transporting a high-tech suit to Cobra Commander.”
Now, on first glance, that looks like no biggie. Fairly typical Cobra themed episode, eh? Well… let’s take a look at the character bio for Zartan shall we?
“A ruthless biker gang-leading thug, ZARTAN becomes a valuable asset to Cobra (and an incredible threat to the G.I. Joe team) when he stumbles upon and becomes the only person who can wear an experimental Cobra “chameleon tech” suit — giving him the ability to perfectly mimic the appearance, voice, and mannerisms of anyone the suit comes into contact with.”
Hmmm… “Chameleon Tech Suit”? Could this be the suit that The Baroness is delivering? The title “Knock Offs” also seems to indicate some sort of copy of something else (as Zartan might be using the suit to copy another person). Could this mean we’ll soon see Zartan as he was meant to be? Let’s hope. Knock Offs is slated to air March 18th. Seems so far away! Time will tell.
Thanks again to kenny for the information!
Well, they’re not posted on CartoonPaperwork.com themselves, but admin of the site David Thornton has passed along some great links to some cool artwork that’s floating around out there. First of all, an unused cover to the Marvel Series has appeared on Comic Art Fans. At one point a cover to issue #79, it was apparently not used for one reason or another, but here it is for your viewing pleasure.
Also, David passes along word of a very cool auction over on Yahoo Japan which features what appears to be some production art for the Sigma 6 animated series. I know there isn’t much love lost for that particular G.I. Joe themed media, but I still love checking out this behind the scenes stuff! Take a peek right here.
Well, here we go! Yesterday I posted a review of G.I. Joe: Cobra #13, somewhat lamenting the end of that run, as we prepare to launch into another. Well, IDW has released the solicitations for May, 2011, and the next run is now in sight. Judging by the solicitations, it looks like it could be quite the run!
I am absolutely loving these Zack Howard covers, I’ll tell you that right now. Totally cool. A character totally out of left field, and another one who I’m not entirely sure about at all.
Click the “Read the Rest of the Story” link below to read the full rundown of G.I. Joe comic releases for May. (more…)
Oh my.
It’s only a small image, with only a small portion of the figure revealed, but I’m already trying to figure out how I’m going to afford one of these things, much less the 15 or 20 of them that I want. He looks amazing. Of course, I don’t see any goggles on the helmet, but chances are, if past history is any indication, Sideshow will include them somewhere along the line.
More details will be revealed in the Sideshow Production Blog on the 22nd, with pre-orders (wahhh!) starting February 24th. I smell quick sell out. Check out the image below, and check out the page itself right here.
First we got a great clip of the upcoming Brothers of Light episode. Then G.I. Joe Renegades appeared on iTunes. Then . Now, the G.I. Joe: Renegades section on Hubworld.com has been revamped and we have the latest episode posted, “Firefight”!
Introducing Cobra saboteur and arsonist Firefly, as well as former Cobra agent turned rebellious firefighter Barbecue, Episode 10 leads right up into the now infamous “Homecoming” 2-Parter. It’s all onward and upward from here.
Check out the G.I. Joe: Renegades section at Hubworld.com, and check out the episode itself right here.
From the first minute I laid eyes on the original G.I. Joe: Cobra title way back I knew we were on to something good. Over the years, G.I. Joe has been many things…in the cartoon, it was campy satire. In the comic, it was a hybrid military realism with supernatural science fiction.
But never has it really been gritty film noir. I mean, how could it be? We’re talking about a property with genetic engineering, technologically impossible weapons and vehicles, and no laws of physics or scientific sense. How can someone possible build a gritty, dark, and “real world” universe out of that?
Well, somebody could, and somebody did. A couple of somebodies named Mike Costa and Christos Gage. They showed the world that the bright, super-powered, laser firing world of G.I. Joe could hide a dark underbelly. Initially written as a short four-issue limited series, G.I. Joe: Cobra redefined Cobra’s image in the IDW world and introduced many readers to the property to rave reviews.
As I think everyone expected, after the first series ended, a second series was sure to come, which was then extended to a continuing series, and it has continued until now. Thirteen issues later we’ve seen backwoods Crocodile experts, a secret cult worshipping snake gods, and a mysterious gypsy who can read minds. But through it all, that dark and dreary noir style brought a sense of realism and despair to the universe (but only in the best way possible, of course).
So now, as we stand on the precipice of another “re-invention” (so to speak) of the IDW universe, we can reflect back on G.I. Joe: Cobra and see how well it did what it did, and finally, how it ended. Which of course, begs the question, where do we go from here?
To avoid spoilers, click the “Read the Rest of this Story” link below for the full review. (more…)
Anyone who has been around the online fandom has heard of the name Bill Merklein by now. Back in the 80’s he was a big part of the design process for the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero line, and his own two hands sculpted many of our favorite figures.
Gyre-Viper and Roshan had the privilege of being able to sit down and talk with him one-on-one quite a bit over the past year or more, and one of the things that came from this conversation was the fact that many fans really don’t know what goes into sculpting, designing, and producing a toy. Well, Mr. Merklein agreed to film a very detailed sculpting tutorial focusing mainly on the head sculpting techniques he has used over the years.
Keep in mind, while he’s working at a 1:1 scale in the videos, all of these skills and techniques can be utilized at a 1:18 scale as well. And remember while watching these that this is the guy who sculpted Zartan, Recondo, Mutt & Junkyard, and plenty of other 80’s figures from your youth…I would estimate most of your favorites. Check out the videos below, and give a huge thanks to Gyre-Viper, Roshan, and video editor jaimanstone for getting this all together. This really is a rare opportunity and a very insightful series.
Click on the “Read the Rest of this Story” link below to check out all of the videos in their entirety. (more…)
