"He'll fight for freedom whenever there's trouble, G.I. Joe is there..." or rather, was!
Ever since I was a kid growing up in the early eighties, there was a certain intellectual property that helped to redefine that decade. No, it wasn't your go-to comicbook Superhero like Batman or Spider-man, nor was it some blockbuster movie intellectual property.
Instead, it was a franchise based on of all things, a friggin' toyline! What began as this reboot or resurgence of a beloved action figure from the 60's to70's, became an instant pop culture phenomenon decades later!
G.I.Joe A Real American Hero, not only branched out into comics, but a successful syndicated Television series, which along with the 30 second animated spots, propelled Hasbro's toyline to unprecedented heights!
Not to mention that Archie Goodwin, also from Marvel, who came up with the nemesis, Cobra Command, that "ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world"!
What was part of ARAH's appeal, was the nuanced worldbuilding within the franchise. Not only did you have a diverse array of characters from various backgrounds, ethnicities and gender for instance, a red haired Counter Intelligence expert who was the first female action figure marketed for boys mind you, a silver faced arms dealer, some Master of disguise, but changes color in sunlight.
Oh, did I mention that on his filecard, Zartan was labeled as a "Paranoid Schizophrenic "?
I had the good fortune of attending the annual 30th Salute convention held at the Intrepid Air/Space Museum around the month of August exactly 25 years ago, where the event, hosted by Hasbro, honored the 30th anniversary of the G I. Joe brand.
I remember chopping it up with various collectors and the very courteous people at the sales booths and oddly, or some reason, television and news magazine reporters approached me out of the many Joe enthusiasts for an interview. I had no idea what was so special about me, other than wearing some dark blue jumper matched with a light blue T-shirt with the iconic "G.I.Joe" logo. perhaps, i was mistaken for a cos player? 😅
The big highlight was meeting and talking to then Vice President Kirk Bozigian, a very down to earth person who acknowledged my praise and even complaints of the direction the toyline and comic was going.
If Kirk wasn't signing autographs, he would be making snarky commentaries on the side, one in particular was Bill Clinton's infamous Crime Bill. Perhaps he knew something way before the rest of us caught on. But I digress.
He asked if I wanted to attend the major press conference, closed to most of the public, except for the press junket and, of course I was more than obliged at the opportunity!
What started off as a inspired video presentation of G.I.Joe's history from the 1964 figures, Adventure Team and even Super Joe- which I really liked but Kirk hated, finished with the most popular of the line, A Real American Hero the toyline that redefined G.I.Joe and further revolutionized the action figure industry.
After the presentation wrapped up, Bozigian gave a passionate speech reminiscing about Joe and his past experiences, while praising the other co contributors.
Then, like an atomic bomb dropped on an unprepared populace, "Boz" announced that the Real American Hero line has been officially "retired", as in discontinued or in the lexicon of 1982's Blade Runner, killed off!
During the fanfare music, all that was heard was a huge collective of sighs, me included.
Then Kirk makes the following announcement of a new line of G.I.Joe to replace the ARAH line, "Sgt. Savage and the Screaming Eagles"?!? What the f^&$?!?
Okay, for those not familiar with Savage, basically, he's a World War 2 Soldier who had the misfortune of being frozen in suspended animation, only to awaken in the modern era. (Sounds familiar??)
The line was crossed promoted with an animated special and I think a mini comic illustrated by the late Joe Kubert, who I also spoke with prior to the big announcement. Joe was very gracious as we discussed his tenure with Sgt. Rock and the legacy of Jack Kirby who also passed in 1994.
After the conference ended, I expressed my disappointment to Kirk, who responded with "that's the nature of the business, Jeff.
Kirk was right in a sense. Hasbro had merged with its main rival company, Kenner. The same rival who put G.I. Joe (Super Joe also counts, believe it or not!) out of business until the great resurgence in 1982, is now part of the Hasbro family!
This probably explained why ARAH was discontinued in favor of an inferior product like Sgt. Savage, which only lasted for about a year.
Then sometime afterwards, Hasbro attempted to recapture that "lightning in a bottle" with the G.I. Joe Extreme format y'know how everything in the 90's was labeled as "Extreme?" to the eyes of many collectors, these poorly constructed figures were nothing more than rip-offs of the Real American Hero line.
While the animated series couldn't hold a candle to the OG syndicated show, it was way better than the inferior 1990 series produced by DIC.
So, as I walked away from the Intrepid, there was a crowd of anti-war G.I.Joe protesters waving picket signs "Hasbro sells war toys to kids" with a Mark Bright . illustration used from the Marvel comic.
I didn't bother to engage the angry protesters because whether I agree or disagree, it's their right to exercise the first amendment. And that's what Joe’s initial purpose was; "To protect Human freedom".
Y'see, the premise of G.I. Joe wasn't some jingoistic intellectual property birthed during the patriotism unearthed by the Reagan era, but instead, as with Star Wars it was a nuanced take on good vs evil. Or as Kirk would unapologetically mention, to sell toys!
As for the Comic which was an integral marketing tool, followed by the announcement, G.I. Joe A Real American Hero, issue # 155, was the last Joe issue, released by Marvel.
Despite the discontinuation of the toyline , it was the Intellectual Property itself, that lived on thanks to Comics, Animated specials and two live action Movies, with more coming down the pipeline, courtesy of Hasbro's partnership with Paramount pictures.
G.I. Joe without a doubt is still, there!
Yo Joe!
Special thanks to all the amazing contributors of Joe's legacy throughout I have had the honor of meeting or corresponding with.
.
Kirk Bozigian
Larry Hama
Joe Kubert
Christy Marx
Jim Duffy
Special thanks to all the amazing contributors of Joe's legacy throughout I have had the honor of meeting or corresponding with.
.
Kirk Bozigian
Larry Hama
Joe Kubert
Christy Marx
Jim Duffy
and
Michael Golden
