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02-17-2013, 06:36 PM | #1 |
Ne Plus Ulta
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Brooklyn
Posts: 4,693
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or at least put on hiatus. You know how in comics, the new movement is to start a line over with a "# 1" issue under the guise of "breathing new life into the series," "attracting new readership," and all of the possible stories have been told under that particular editorial direction? I feel that's legitimately true with G.I. JOE, Hasbro and Larry Hama have fucked around and over the course of a thirty year period has allowed JOE of be piegon hole into this one particular area. Which is ninjas, S.E., Duke, and COBRA Command as the protagonist.
Mind you, G.I. JOE is the reason I collect comic books, action figures, and related memorabilia, so the brand is near and dear to my heart, but I feel for the overall prosperity and longevity of the brand, it's time for G. I. JOE to become something else. The thing is that "something else," can't involve ARAH because ARAH is always "x" in most people's mind. S.E. is a special ops dude with ninja training, Duke is "overrated," hated by some of the JOE fandom is always captured, and is field commander, C.C. is the head of group ruthless organization that wants to control the world, Destro supplies the weapons, Zartan is a master of disguise, the Dreadnoks like chocolate doughnuts and grape soda. These are things that are associated with ARAH and when they're not included in and/or changed in an other interpretation of G. I. JOE i.e. RoC we bitch to high heaven about the needless changes to the source material. However, if you do something different, you have free reign to do whatever you want because it's a new telling of the story. The biggest failing of RoC was that it had too many "WTF," moments. In order for that particular version of G. I. JOE to have been acceptable to fandom, there would have had to been about two or three ARAH JOEs with some new recruits and going after an entirely new enemy you eventually tie that enemy into COBRA. Or if Hasbro is insistent upon using ARAH, I think they need to embrace what ARAH is, (military special ops team,) and they need to give under used characters some shine. Not that he's was under used, putting Roadblock in the forefront is a step in the right direction, and I strongly support that movement. I know it's a reach, but I love to see the JOEs fight somebody other than COBRA also. The bad thing about G. I. JOE is that Larry Hama gave the Joeverse character and depth, the good thing about G. I. JOE is Larry Hama gave the Joeverse character and depth. Now if a writer keeps focusing on the same characters and themes, things can get quite constricting real fast, however, G. I. JOE has a plethora of characters and myriad of stories to tell, I think it's time to start to delved into some of those untold stories. In the interest of full disclosure, I haven't read or seen every JOE comic or cartoon, so some of the things I've mentioned my have started to have been already addressed.
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02-17-2013, 06:58 PM | #2 |
Ex-Pharisee
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: 742 Evergreen Terrace
Posts: 12,216
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I don't disagree. I think keeping the Joe name only but reinventing it with some of the same military and sci-fi themes might work. But what if it's reinvented and it sucks?
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02-17-2013, 07:06 PM | #3 |
The Viper is Not Coming
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Cobra-La
Posts: 1,532
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aside from the 25th anniversary figures and the ARAH comic...they are the only things in recent past to sport that name. None of the toys since ROC have called themselves "A Real AMerican Hero" so it more less is retired.
And if I may add...they have started fresh on things multiple times...Sigma Six, Sgt. Savage, GI Joe Extreme. None of that went over well. so some elements from the beginning will always be around. so with that said, count on SE, Duke, SS, CC, and now Roadblock to be common staples. Last edited by Rainbow Viper; 02-17-2013 at 07:09 PM.. |
02-17-2013, 07:34 PM | #4 |
Ne Plus Ulta
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Brooklyn
Posts: 4,693
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You roll it out slowly, if possible. A few figures here, a storyline there, just to see how the marketplace will react.
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02-17-2013, 08:21 PM | #5 |
I LIVE!
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Altus, OK
Posts: 6,087
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Quote:
The idea of the "slow burn" product line is pretty much dead outside of some collector venues. Quote:
or at least put on hiatus. You know how in comics, the new movement is to start a line over with a "# 1" issue under the guise of "breathing new life into the series," "attracting new readership," and all of the possible stories have been told under that particular editorial direction? I feel that's legitimately true with G.I. JOE, Hasbro and Larry Hama have fucked around and over the course of a thirty year period has allowed JOE of be piegon hole into this one particular area. Which is ninjas, S.E., Duke, and COBRA Command as the protagonist.
Quote:
it's time for G. I. JOE to become something else.
The thing is that "something else," can't involve ARAH because ARAH is always "x" in most people's mind. S.E. is a special ops dude with ninja training, Duke is "overrated," hated by some of the JOE fandom is always captured, and is field commander, C.C. is the head of group ruthless organization that wants to control the world, Destro supplies the weapons, Zartan is a master of disguise, the Dreadnoks like chocolate doughnuts and grape soda. These are things that are associated with ARAH and when they're not included in and/or changed in an other interpretation of G. I. JOE i.e. RoC we bitch to high heaven about the needless changes to the source material. I think the problem isn't the concept, it's the fans (even those working on the brand at Hasbro) are simply unwilling to accept ANY changes to "their version" of the brand. Transformers has THRIVED for over 20 years by taking the concept and presenting it in different ways (constant change), even doing things fans didn't like. Up until Retaliation, GI joe was basically presenting the same concept and characters with minor window dressing changes since 2002. Quote:
Or if Hasbro is insistent upon using ARAH, I think they need to embrace what ARAH is, (military special ops team,) and they need to give under used characters some shine. Not that he's was under used, putting Roadblock in the forefront is a step in the right direction, and I strongly support that movement. I know it's a reach, but I love to see the JOEs fight somebody other than COBRA also.
I'd also argue the term "what ARAH is" is loaded term since the brand was never a hard military concept, and depending WHICH version one came in on, the term "military special ops team" is equally ill-defined. That also ignores the fact much of Joe's success in the 80s came at a time when the military had a pretty high acceptance in the country on a cultural level...something it doesn't have today. For whatever reason, it isn't "cool" to play army. Quote:
The bad thing about G. I. JOE is that Larry Hama gave the Joeverse character and depth, the good thing about G. I. JOE is Larry Hama gave the Joeverse character and depth. Now if a writer keeps focusing on the same characters and themes, things can get quite constricting real fast, however, G. I. JOE has a plethora of characters and myriad of stories to tell, I think it's time to start to delved into some of those untold stories.
Going back to Transformers, for the past 15 years, it has been Autobots, led by Optimus Prime, versus Decepticons, led by Megatron. There is a yellow kid appeal character and Starscream, Megatron's often-traitorous lieutenant. From there, the concept is pretty wide open in interpretation, and creators have used that leeway in presenting new AND old concepts in different ways, keeping the brand fresh. Do I think the ARAH mythos need a break? Maybe. ARAH-based stuff is pretty good about that "blast from the past" initial peak, but sales never sustain. I think GI JOe, as a brand, just needs to stretch it's legs and try something different. Bring back Adventure Team (I still think that was a lost opportunity back in 2007, I saw a LOT of kid interest, and you could still play the concept off ARAH nods like the characters). Or if they are going to insist on the "Joe vs Cobra" ideology....Do something NEW! Make Duke black. Turn "Snake Eyes" into a woman. Make Destro a rocket launching military commander. Turn "Storm Shadow" into a stealth pilot. Make new characters. But I think, barring Retaliation being a big hit, Joe is going to continue its downward slide into the realm of forgotten toys as long as it keeps rehashing the EXACT same stuff we've been getting in various forms since 2002.
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02-17-2013, 08:26 PM | #6 |
Combat Medical Specialist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Marysville, WA
Posts: 670
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You know, you're right!
Lets get new characters! We got all the Duke, SE, CC's we need New people! New stories! |
02-17-2013, 08:33 PM | #7 |
They Won't Stay Dead
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: the arctic
Posts: 2,624
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Im for new storie's if done right but i think another main problem is there are so many different charactos in GI JOE and they are never focused on.
Sometimes it almost feels like snake eyes is gi joe. Its like they all get beat up until se show's up and to me thats not right. Also they need to make cobra commander a ruthless, leader, they alway's make him into this giant wussy. He's the effin commander, I want to see him bitch smack destro, lol and just regulate.
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"Into Hell's Mouth We March" vapors buy/sell/trade thread http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...ml#post2156369 my feedback thread http://www.hisstank.com/forum/buy-se...ck-thread.html My Ebay Thread http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...ml#post3054820 Last edited by vapor; 02-17-2013 at 08:38 PM.. |
02-17-2013, 08:35 PM | #8 |
Crimson Guard
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Fredericksburg, VA
Posts: 2,038
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This concept has so many threads on it here, Kirk Bozigian has spoke about it at conventions (Prior Hasbro marketing manager that started ARAH)... Bottom line though is that the fan base is not for throwing away something we remember so fondly from our childhood and something that in many ways shaped our lives.
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02-17-2013, 08:41 PM | #9 |
H.A.T.E.
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Pocatello, Idaho
Posts: 635
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I can never retire nor do I want ARAH retired. It's what Joe is to me.
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02-17-2013, 09:12 PM | #10 |
twitter viper
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: SD
Posts: 4,909
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When people can accept GIJOE as being a team, and a concept instead of particular characters, that is when it will be ok to move on.
New leaders and characters for Joe and Cobra, place it in a fictional versus type of storyline loosely based on the present with a look at near futuristic weapons and vehicles. and NEVER connect it to any previously established characters including adventure team super joe etc. You do that and you bring everything right back to the same old story and the same old plotlines. You fall into the "That's not Duke, "That's not Cobra Commander", "That's not Snake Eyes' tragic story" trap. GIJOE has been Duke and company since 1982. including Sgt. Savage and Extreme because they had ties to the ARAH universe and characters. No 12 inch fan/collector had ever heard of Clutch, Scarlett, and Cobra Commander in 1982. It would be a huge risk to start over fresh but it would not be as stale either.
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