Yeah, I know I’m a day late and a dollar short, but as my Twitter followers know, I was on the road all day yesterday doing a bit of toy hunting (without any luck). During my road trip, Hasbro’s PR Agency released a note in regards to the SDCC Exclusive Sgt. Slaughters. The note has been met with a mixture of humor, distaste, and optimism by Joe fans and other fans around the ‘net.
Humor and distaste because the letter is pretty adamant that there was Sgt. Slaughter stock that hit HasbroToyShop, but nobody can really find evidence that this was truly the case (especially in regards to the TTT version). However, in more positive news, Hasbro also pointed out that they were working on plans to get the figure(s) reissued and re-released through other means in Spring, 2011. Most likely in a different packaging format, and not through the single pack main line, but through some other means, which is good news for those 25th Anniversary fans who want to add Sarge to their ranks. Of course a lot of those same fans love the single pack format, so this news probably won’t make everyone happy.
To read the full letter/press release click the “Read the Rest of this Entry” link below.
So, for a week or two now we’ve heard debate over what was revealed at SDCC from a G.I. Joe: Renegades perspective. Now, thanks to “OpenYourToys” on YouTube, you can watch the entire SDCC panel yourself!
At the risk of being labelled a Joe cheerleader as usual, I really enjoy how the producers interact with the crowd…they do seem to know their Joe history, and in my opinion, they have a real vested interest in not just making a G.I. Joe cartoon, but making a good cartoon. We’ll find out if my assumption is correct this fall. Thanks to dj7000 from HissTank.com for the info.
Somewhat overdue, Comic Book Resources has posted a recap of the IDW and Hasbro SDCC Panel, though honestly not much new G.I. Joe related information was revealed. Below you can find the text of the recap, which was pulled from CBR directly.
“Schmidt nicknamed September’s “G.I.Joe Origins”#19 “Silent Crescendo” as it features a silent Snake-Eyes story by Larry Hama and Joe Benitez. Hama noted that he actually choreographed the fight sequences for the layouts with weapons from his own collection. IDW will also release a recolored reprint of the classic G.I.Joe story “Silent Interlude” with a new cover by Ashley Wood as a retailer incentive.
“G.I.Joe Origins” #20 in October by David Lapham and Werther Dell’Edera will feature “Sedition By Numbers,” a story that introduces a new character and “a horrifying insight into the Cobra organization.”
In the last week of September, IDW will publish “G.I.Joe Cobra Special” by Mike Costa and Antonio Fuso that will feature fan favorite character Erika Le Tene in “The Trial Of Erika Le Tene.” The story will pick up where the events in IDW’s “G.I.Joe: Cobra” left off while “G.I.Joe: Cobra” Issues #10 through #13 by Christos Gage, Mike Costa and Antonio Fuso finishes the Cobra Commander & Chuckles trilogy. The subsequent storyline of the series will feature the origin of the Croc-Master.
Schmidt joked that the storyline in issue #23 through #27 of the ongoing “G.I.Joe” series by Chuck Dixon and Robert Atkins would be entitled “Critical Mass…or Mass Destruction” and noted that the storyline not only concluded “Season One” of “G.I.Joe” but also introduced Storm Shadow to current Joe continuity.”
So, as I said, not a whole lot of new information, but some information, just the same. Check out the original article over on Comic Book Resources for cover images and other little tidbits.
Hey everyone, Gary here with a rare post. Which I am sure will be a hot topic of discussion for today and into the short term future (most Joe fans have short attention spans), dozens and dozens of the online Joe fandom who camped out HTS found that Slaughter is a hot commodity – the HARD way. At approximately 11:30a EST, the good sarge popped up on HTS and went from IN STOCK to OUT OF STOCK about as quick as it took you to read this sentence. While other Hasbro SDCC items flux between the two states, Sarge’s status has remained unchanged since. Yes, there are no Sarges today…
So, for Joefans, SDCC is already mostly done. Renegades info flooded in on Thursday, we got IDW stuff yesterday. Sideshow is doing their thing tomorrow, but by and large, we’re ready to move on.
However, the rest of the comic world is still trucking right along, and while I don’t read a whole lot of comics these days, I still really love the concept of super heroes and I try to catch as much of that stuff as possible in other media. And holy crap does DC Comics have that covered with two awesome looking events coming up.
First of all, the new animated series Young Justice. Not being a comic fan, I don’t know who the hell Young Justice is, other than apparently the Teen Titans, only no longer called the Teen Titans. Didn’t we have a Teen Titans cartoon a few years ago? Now they want another one? Well, once I saw this video feature, I want another one, too. This looks like a whole lot of fun, and I love how connected the Justice League is! Check the video out below.
But of course the really “holy shit” moment so far of SDCC to me, is the cinematic teaser for the DC Universe Online MMORPG (or however the hell that acronym goes). Now, not only am I not really a DC fan, but I pretty much can’t stand MMORPG’s so there’s no way in hell I’ll ever play this, but this cinematic teaser makes me regret not having 20 spare hours a week to devote to a video game. It is… stunning. Absolutely stunning.
Okay, in all the combing through the internet, I found a few sources of information for stuff that was discussed at the Hasbro IDW panel, but unfortunately none of it ended up really being of any consequence.
The first intel came from YoJoe, who had a representative in the panel, and the recap can be found right here, though honestly not much was revealed.
Essentially most of the panel seemed to focus on Cobra and how they got in the position they’re in now, which is pretty fascinating to consider. Cobra’s whole history back in the day was pretty odd, considering how much force and technology they amassed without it really being discussed just how they did it, where the money came from (beyond a “pyramid scheme”) or how they built their empire. The IDW universe is playing into that a LOT more, and it’s pretty neat.
One of the more interesting notes was the fact that an upcoming issue of G.I. Joe, the first appearance of Storm Shadow proclaims itself as the end of “Season 1″ of G.I. Joe. I’m not entirely sure how they break up the “seasons” or if they simply mean the book is moving in another direction from that point on.
The most comprehensive coverage of the IDW panel was posted on The Terror Drome (with some props as well to iFanboy) and their run down is as follows:
After 3-part Zartan story in Origins, Croc Master “origins” story in issue #18.
Hama returns to Origins for one more story with G.I. Joe: Origins #19 which will be another “silent issue” featuring Snake Eyes.
Then G.I. Joe: Origins 20-23 will focus on Cobra organization.
G.I. Joe: Cobra Special #2, available last week of September, featuring the trial of Erika le Tene.
Chuckles story concludes in G.I. Joe: Cobra #10-13
In the main ongoing G.I. Joe title, critical mass device #23-27, Storm Shadow first appearance in IDW verse.
G.I. Joe: RAH will pick up from Marvel’s run with Cobra presenting itself as a “Blackwater” type organization.
Both G.I. Joe: Renegades and Transformers Prime will have books debuting in October”
So, in all honesty, not a whole lot of juicy new intel was released…but we’ll take what we can get. Thanks to everyone for chipping in links and coverage so we could get this all together. Big thanks to Wild Weasel of The Terror Drome as well, for finally getting some comprehensive details of the panel.
Now that we know just a little bit more about G.I. Joe: Renegades, we know that in this new series, Cobra starts off as a legitimate (or supposedly legitimate) pharmaceutical corporation called Cobra Industries.
Well, on the West Coast, apparently recruiting has started!
HissTank reports that Cobra Industries propaganda has started appearing throughout Comic-con and has some great images hosted on their site, which I have mirrored below. I love this sort of stuff…here’s hoping we get more of it leading up to the animated series this fall.
Thanks to the glorious wonders of YouTube and sneaky convention attendees. Woop!
From what we can see, pretty neat stuff. Sure, mostly gun fire and Snake Eyes beating crap up, but the animation is fluid…the action is crisp and well choreographed. Looking forward to seeing more!
Well, not holy crap because of his name, because it’s pretty likely you’ve never heard of him before. I know I hadn’t. But if you’re a self-respecting geek, you’ve no doubt seen some of his work. His name is Henry Gilroy, and the guys at the Terror Drome confirmed at SDCC that he is one of the lead writers for G.I. Joe: Renegades.
So why is this important? Why is it a “Holy Crap” moment? Check out his resume:
Star Wars: The Clone Wars Animated Series (Writer)
The Secret Saturdays
Transformers: Animated (The Sound and the Fury)
Bionicle
The Tick
The Adventures of Batman and Robin
Batman: The Animated Series
Uhhh yeah. I think Renegades is in pretty good hands. As I’ve already covered in this post, we’ve got some very experienced veterans involved here, and experienced veterans with a great background. Some of the folks who worked on some of the greatest animated series in the past 15 years now have their hands in G.I. Joe, and I think that can only be a good thing. I can understand how some of the art and character designs might be a turn off to the adult Joe fan, but I still think we need to give the actual content a try before we prepare to write it off.
Information was absolutely flying around the ‘net today with the Renegades panel, and I’m endeavoring to gather it all into one sensible location. Been a bit challenging so far! I’ve been following the Cover It Live stream over at HissTank, and also following the fantastic coverage at Toy News International… the tweets coming in from Action Figure Insider have also been terrific.
This is what I’ve gathered together so far:
As discussed at JoeCon, Renegades is a “Year One” event. See things as they began.
Cobra is a large, mostly benevolent Pharmaceutical Company
“The Joes” start off as grunts mostly, on the run from the law for a crime they did not commit (no word on whether or not they drive a black van or are afraid of flying).
The Joes may not even start off with code names.
Current cast of characters: Duke, Scarlett, Tunnel Rat, Roadblock, Snake Eyes, Ripcord
Yes, ROAD-FREAKING BLOCK. And no, he is not a “rapping chef”.
For the style, they did not want to compete with Resolute, so went back to a more 50’s like “artistic” style.
Cobra tech is futuristic, but a familiar “15 minutes into the future” type of style.
We will learn about characters as they learn about themselves. See the evolutions of characters like Zartan, the Dreadnoks, Cobra Commander, etc…
They’ve worked with Joe fans in the industry trying to make sure the spirit and the mythology are alive.
Yes, voice actors for Scarlett and Duke will be in the series, but not AS Scarlett or Duke
Characters will have a slightly different look and take, but the spirit of the character is intact.
Obviously the cartoon will not be as violent as Resolute, but it will also NOT be dumbed down. Expect a similar level of action and violence as Batman: The Animated Series (I just squealed).
Epic stories that have ramifications throughout future episodes
Stories will be very character driven, sometimes focusing on one or two characters at a time
Speaking of two characters, expect to see Tomax and Xamot down the line
No concrete timeline for toys, but expect some news at Toy Fair, 2011 (I most certainly WILL BE THERE).
Renegades will focus on the small core team, but lots of fringe characters will come and go. Nobody is off limits!
Heavy Duty will make an appearance in the show as well.
A good balance between fantasy and reality. There will be some fantasy elements, but they will be grounded in the real world.
Lifeline and/or Doc will likely make an appearance
I think that about covers it. There was a video clip shown, but recording was not allowed. :(
Apparently a few folks still had vid cams rolling, so it may show up on YouTube eventually. Perhaps we’ll get lucky and Hasbro will get it out there somewhere as well. Apparently the video clip showed Snake Eyes “kicking ass”, Scarlett in a helicopter and various other action shots. Dying to see it.
