G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
File:ARAH.JPG
Publication information
First appearance	1982
Created by	Hasbro

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is a military-themed line of action figures and toys. Produced by Hasbro, the toyline lasted from 1982 to 1994, producing well over 500 figures and 250 vehicles and playsets. The line reappeared in 1997 and has continued in one form or another to the present day. It was supported by two animated series as well as a major comic series published by Marvel Comics.

The toyline continues to play a large part in Hasbro's G.I. Joe franchise. This version of G.I. Joe is still much recognized by many people who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s, overshadowing the original G.I. Joe. Despite being an American-centric property, its popularity has crossed over to several countries.

Origin

"A Real American Hero" was brought about as a revival of the original 12 in (30 cm) G.I. Joe brand of the 1960s and '70s. After the 12" figure had been absent from toy shelves for a few years, G.I. Joe was re-introduced in a 3+3⁄4 in (9.52 cm) action figure format following the success of the Star Wars and Micronauts 3 3/4" scale toylines.

Prior to G.I. Joe's relaunch in 1982, Larry Hama was developing an idea for a new comic book called Fury Force, which he was hoping would be an ongoing series for Marvel Comics. The original premise had the son of S.H.I.E.L.D director Nick Fury assembling a team of elite commandos to battle neo-Nazi terrorists HYDRA. The idea was nixed, but Hama used the basic premise when he learned of Hasbro's plans to resurrect the G.I. Joe toyline. Each G.I. Joe figure included a character biography, called a "file card". Hama was largely responsible for writing these file cards, especially for the first ten years. When developing many of the characters, he drew much from his own experiences in the US military.

The overall premise for the toyline revolves around an elite counter-terrorist team code-named G.I. Joe, whose main purpose is to defend human freedom from Cobra, a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world.

In 1994, Hasbro transferred control of the G.I. Joe toyline and brand name to the newly acquired Kenner division, who promptly cancelled the A Real American Hero toyline and replaced it with the new "Sgt. Savage and his Screaming Eagles" toyline instead. After brief revivials in 1997 and 1998, the toyline was revived as the "Real American Hero Collection" in 2000 to the mass market. In both cases, previous molds were reused and some characters had to be renamed due to copyright issues. Another relaunch was made in 2002 under the theme "G.I. Joe vs. Cobra" and new designs and characters were introduced.

Hasbro.com officially announced a new line of "25th Anniversary" 4" G.I. Joe figures on January 18, 2007. The line is primarily based on the characters and designs from the early part of the Real American Hero line.

Toyline

• For a complete list of G.I. Joe and Cobra characters, see List of G.I. Joe ARAH characters

The figures were 3+3⁄4 in (9.52 cm) tall, at roughly 1:18th scale. Throughout the original toyline production from 1982 through 1994, figure construction remained relatively the same. The most notable changes were the second series' addition of "swivel-arm" articulation in 1983 which allowed the forearm to rotate above the elbow (initial figures could only bend their elbows), and the fourth series' ball joints replacing the former swivel necks, both dramatically increasing a figures poseability.

Hasbro designed vehicles and playsets to be used with the figures. The vehicles and playsets were influenced by theoretical or real military technologies that were being developed during the 1980s, or actually existed at some point in time. Some examples are the G.I. Joe Sky Striker fighter plane inspired by the F-14 Tomcat, the Cobra Rattler, which has similarities to the A-10 Thunderbolt II, and the Dragonfly, nearly identical to the Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter. Examples of similar army equipment include the MOBAT tank, which resembled the M551 Sheridan tank and the Mobile Missile System (MMS), which was strikingly similar to the HAWK surface-to-air (SAM) missile system.

The 1982-1994 toy line actually lasted longer than the 1980s Sunbow and 1990s DiC television cartoon series themselves.

Line history

A Real American Hero (1982-1994)

1982

The first eleven characters were introduced in carded packs while four others were bundled with vehicles. The first series of action figures had straight arms with elbow joints. While it is common for many characters to share the same mold for producing a body part, it was much more noticeable in the first year as for the original thirteen G.I. Joe figure, only six head molds were created. Three unique molds were assigned to Stalker, Snake-Eyes and Scarlett, while the other ten characters utilized one of three generic heads. Despite these limitations, the new toyline was a success.

1982 arm compared to post-1982 arm

1983 to 1985

With the success of the first line of toys, Hasbro expanded the line the next year with new characters and more original body part designs. In 1983, "swivel-arm battle grip" articulation and some extra tweaks were added to the new characters and the existing figures in order to make them more poseable. In 1985, the base of the action figures' heads were given a ball joint which gave the figures' heads the ability to look up and down.

The years from 1983 to 1985 are considered by many to be the golden years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero as many of the most popular characters were introduced around this time. Vehicles and playsets became bigger and seemed to top the design of the previous year, culminating in 1985's impressive USS Flagg playset, an aircraft carrier that measured 7 ½ feet long.

1982 neck compared to post-1984 neck

1986

Like Hasbro's other main franchise at the time, Transformers, G.I. Joe saw its popularity peak around this time. This year is also notable for the overhauling of toy packaging, which the background artwork being changed from the familiar explosion background to a pixilated pattern of a red, yellow and white explosion.

1987

In toy stores, two of the largest playsets of the entire line were introduced: the G.I. Joe Defiant space shuttle and the Mobile Command Center. Before the end of the year, the G.I. Joe special team Battleforce 2000 was introduced in time for Christmas.

1988

The toyline continued to sell well, despite its lack of multimedia support. A new enemy, Destro's Iron Grenadiers, was introduced. The new Cobra line-up was composed mainly of Viper-type henchmen. Issue #86 of the comic series celebrated the 25th anniversary of the G.I. Joe toyline in general. Another G.I. Joe sub-group - Tiger Force, a line of classic characters and vehicles re-colored with tiger-striped camouflage patterns - was introduced before the year's end.

1989

Classic character played a factor in 1989. The relative success of Tiger Force the year before led to the introduction of Slaughter's Marauders and Cobra's Python Patrol.

1990

The lackluster performance of 1989 convinced Hasbro to scale back on production. They concentrated on the action figure line-up and reduced the number of new vehicles for that year. The logo for the toyline was slightly redesigned as well.

1991 to 1992

Hasbro concentrated on action figures rather than vehicles and came up with new gimmicks for them. Special teams such as Ninja Force, Eco-Warriors and Star Brigade were introduced.

1993 to 1994

In the final two years of the line, characters who were not part of any sub-group were branded as part of the all-encompassing Battle Corps. The background artwork for the cards was replaced by a design featuring laser-like lines. The Star Brigade sub-series was revamped with a more science-fiction storyline involving an extraterrestrial enemy, the Lunartix Empire.

The characters from the Street Fighter II video game became part of the G.I. Joe line up as Hasbro bought the toy rights to the characters.

Although the line would officially end in 1994, design elements of the G.I. Joe figures and vehicles would continue in later toylines, such as a line based on Street Fighter's motion picture (starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia), as well as another based on the game's equally popular competitor, Mortal Kombat. 1985's AWE Striker vehicle was also converted to accommodate larger figures for Hasbro's Stargate line.

Relaunch

1997 to 1998

In 1997, G.I. Joe returned in a limited Toys "R" Us exclusive line. The Real American Hero Collection, as it is called, included Team Packs of three figures grouped together by a common theme such as Commando and Cobra Command, and Mission Packs, which featured classic figures packaged with a small vehicle like a Cobra Flight Pod or Silver Mirage motorcycle. The "Stars and Stripes" boxed set was also released, featuring members of the original thirteen Joes from 1982. The line continued as a Toys "R" Us exclusive in 1998.

One of the rarest G.I. Joe figures, the so-called "Pimp Daddy Destro" (or PDD for short), was released for a short time in 1997 before being replaced in production by the regular version in the Cobra Command Team pack. It is said that only a handful were released into the market.

2000 to 2002

In 2000, The Real American Hero Collection continued, this time in wide release. Figures were sold in two packs and continued using the original molds as well as 'kit-bashed' figures made from parts of various molds. The wide release of The Real American Hero Collection continued through 2001.

In 2002, the line was limited to one wave, which was only available to online retailers. Also in 2002, a set called the Sound Attack 8 pack was released as an exclusive to BJ's Wholesale Club and Fred Meyer stores.

2002 to 2006

Main article: G.I. Joe vs. Cobra

The A Real American Hero concept was relaunched in a newly-sculpted design as G.I. Joe vs. Cobra, subsequently becoming the Spy Troops, Valor Vs. Venom and "Direct-to-Consumer" (or DTC) lines.

2007 to 2009

Hasbro announced the release of G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary Edition figures, which features figures primarily based on A Real American Hero designs but with updated sculpting. The line continued through 2008, and Hasbro has revealed that it will continue into 2009, with a new line of figures to coincide with the release of the G.I. Joe movie.

Animated series

• G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1985 TV series) - a 95 episode long animated series which was produced by Marvel Productions and Sunbow Productions to follow the success of the toyline by Hasbro. The cartoon had its beginnings with two five-part mini-series, then became a regular series that ran in syndication from 1985 to 1987.
• G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987) - Created at the height of the G.I. Joe craze in the 1980s. In the film, it is revealed that the Cobra Organization was created by Golobulus, the ruler of an ancient race of part human/part snake/part insectoid people who were the rulers of the Earth before humanity, but their culture was all but wiped out by the ice age, and they fled to the Himalayas as humanity evolved and developed its own technology. Biding his time to retake the Earth, Golobulus sent a Cobra-La citizen, who turns out to be Cobra Commander, to go out and destroy humanity. When Cobra Commander fails, he is de-evolved into a snake in favor of Serpentor; it is also revealed that Golobulus implanted a psychic motivator into Dr. Mindbender's brain to inspire him to create Serpentor. The other Cobra heads, Destro, the Baroness, Dr. Mindbender and the Dreadnoks agree along with Serpentor to help Golobulous take over the world in exchange for their preserved humanity. Golobulus wants the human race's Broadcast Energy Transmitter or BET so that he can accelerate the maturity of his space spores, which will shower the human race upon ripening and turn them into mindless animals, while all those in Cobra-La are protected by the Ice Dome. Only G.I. Joe stands in their way.
• G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1989 TV series) - a 44 episode long animated series which was produced by DIC Entertainment. The cartoon ran in syndication from 1989 to 1991.

Spin-offs:

• G.I. Joe: Spy Troops, a 2003 direct-to-DVD CGI-animated movie
• G.I. Joe: Valor vs. Venom, a 2004 sequel to Spy Troops
• G.I. Joe: Resolute (2009) - an 11 episode animated mini-series produced by Sam Register which debuted on the web at Adult Swim Video April 18, 2009, and premiered on U.S. cable television on Adult Swim April 26, 2009. The mini-series departs from recent depictions of futuristic technology, adopting a more realistic aesthetic intended for a more "mature" audience.

Comics

Main article: G.I. Joe (comics)

In 1982 when Hasbro relaunched their G.I. Joe franchise with G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero it was supported by a Marvel Comics series. The comic book history of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero has seen three separate publishers and four main-title series, all of which have been based on the Hasbro toy line of the same name. The first series was produced by Marvel Comics between 1982 and 1994, running for 155 issues and spawning several spin-off titles throughout the course of its run; the second and third series, published by Devil's Due Productions from 2001 to 2008, totaled 80 issues and included several spin-off titles as well. The fourth series is being published by IDW Publishing since October 2008, and various spin-off titles were launched as well.

See also

• Cobra Command
• Action figure
• G. I. Joe Extreme
• G.I. Joe: Sigma 6
• G.I. Joe: America's Elite
• G.I. Joe: Resolute

External links

• Official website
• Joe Index - 9.5 cm (3 3/4") G.I. Joe Reference and Resource Site
• G.I. Joe at TV.com
• G.I. Joe at the Internet Movie Database
• JoeGuide.com - G.I. Joe cartoon guide
• JoeCustoms.com - Custom G.I. Joe figures, forums and resources.
• Joepedia: The G.I. Joe Wiki
• The Definitive G.I. Joe " Pimp Daddy Destro " Action Figure Resource.