G.I. Joe: Difference between revisions

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[[File:GiJoe_TV-Title1985.jpg|frame|"G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Fighting man from head to toe [[Jingle|On the land, on the sea, in the air...]]" <ref>Image-appropriate version: "He'll never give up, he's always there, fighting for freedom over land and air..."</ref> ]]

 

{{quote|''"G.I. Joe is the code name for America's daring, highly-trained special mission force. Its purpose: to defend human freedom against COBRA, a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world."''}}

The second incarnation of the franchise began in 1982, four years after Hasbro's rival Kenner launched their popular ''[[Star Wars]]'' toyline. Unlike ''G.I. Joe'', which had 12" action figures, ''Star Wars'' figures were 3 3/4" tall, allowing them to also sell playsets and vehicles and make even more money. [[Follow the Leader|Seeing the massive profit Kenner was making]], Hasbro decided to relaunch ''G.I. Joe'' in the new scale and hired [[Marvel Comics]] to create a story, characters, and media tie-ins for the line. Marvel eventually came up with a premise that is still the core of the franchise today - G.I. Joe was no longer one person <ref>Except in some continuities, where the team is named in honor of General Joe Colton, the man responsible for its creation</ref>, but the name of an elite American military unit engaged in a battle against the terrorist organization Cobra and its plans to [[Take Over the World]]. To promote the line (now dubbed ''G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero''), Marvel launched two tie-ins:

 

* [[Western Animation/GI Joe A Real American Hero|An animated series from Sunbow Productions]]. Though the more remembered of the two continuities today, the cartoon is also infamous for its less realistic depiction of violence: [[Family-Friendly Firearms|both sides used lasers instead of bullets]], [[Nobody Can Die|there were no deaths]], and whenever an aircraft was destroyed its pilot had to be shown parachuting out of it. Sunbow produced two seasons and a movie intended for theatrical release, but the failure of ''[[Transformers: The Movie]]'' caused it to instead be released direct-to-video. [[DiC Entertainment]] took over following the movie and produced two more seasons before ending the show in 1991.

** ''[[G.I. Joe: The Movie]]''. The 1987 film of the series.