JBL Reviews Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

That’s right, true believers!  JBL is actually posting a review of Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, the film that dares to retell the cinematic origin of the the Joe’s most enigmatic team member from when it was first presented in 2009.  Our resident hack admin was able to go and catch a Thursday night screening of the film a week and a half ago as our local theater has finally reopened. 

Did this film take the character to new heights?  Was our trusty reviewed wow’ed to such an extent that it replaced Big Trouble in Little China as one of his favorite films? 

Check out the review for yourself and find out one Joe fan’s opinion…

JBL Reviews Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins (2021)

Hasbro Cinematic Universe gets its Writer’s Room

Hasbro Cinematic Universe

The Hasbro Cinematic Universe is coming!

This afternoon media sites across the web received a press release with the official announcement of the formation of the Hasbro Cinematic Universe writer’s room.  Headed by Oscar-winning writer Akiva Goldsman (A Beautiful Mind), the group includes an incredibly talented collection of individuals whose credits range from film to television to comic books.

The Hasbro Cinematic Universe is getting real, people!

The full text of the press release is below: Continue reading

Can a Hasbro Cinematic Universe work?

Hasbro Cinematic Universe

A Hasbro Cinematic Universe is on the way, but can it actually work?

Earlier this week, the Hollywood Reporter dropped an exclusive bombshell on the G.I. Joe fan community– the announcement that Hasbro’s Allspark Studios and Paramount pictures were creating a “Hasbro Cinematic Universe” centered around five 1980’s brands.  This endeavor would blend the universes of G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K., the Micronauts, Visionaries, and ROM: the Spaceknight into one cohesive entity similar to what Marvel Studios has been doing for the past several years.

There’s only one small detail about this new shared universe— most of these properties have very little relation to each other.  Even worse, aside from G.I. Joe, most of these have been absent from toy shelves and popular culture since at least 1990.  Outside of some die-hard fan circles, the general public is generally now completely unfamiliar with most of these brands, as evidenced by this installment of Nerdist News hosted by Jessica Chobot:

Continue reading

Sharpshooter recreates G.I. Joe Retaliation trick shot

Remember this scene from G.I. Joe Retaliation?  You know– where Roadblock and Duke have a post-operation shooting contest to determine whether Roadblock takes his next promotion or if Duke babysits Marvin’s daughters?

Well, it seems that professional sharpshooter Kirsten Joy Weiss wanted to put the scene to a Mythbusters-style test and determine if it was possible to shoot out the flame from a candle.   Was she successful? Continue reading

G.I. Joe Retaliation Ultimate Roadblock Review

G.I. Joe Retaliation Ultimate Roadblock

It’s no secret that Roadblock was the focal point of the G.I. Joe Retaliation marketing efforts.  Simply put: you don’t put someone like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in a film and then ignore his presence.  This also means that the accompanying toy line is going to be chock-full of Roadblock figures– each with something just a bit different to make them unique from the rest.  Such is the case of the wave 3.5 release of “Ultimate Roadblock” which attempts to be the most screen accurate version of the character to date.

So, is this really the “Ultimate Roadblock” or just “yet another Roadblock”? Is he worth a purchase after the wave 2 Battle Kata Roadblock version?

Head on over to the G.I. Joe Retaliation Review Index and check it out!

G.I. Joe Retaliation Ultimate Flint Review!

ultimateflintteaser

The backlog of G.I. Joe Retaliation figures gets a bit smaller with the Ultimate Flint review!

In the film, Flint was portrayed as a brash, cocky, and headstrong member of the team who found himself tested when Cobra Commander’s brutal plan was put into action.  Some fans felt this didn’t jive with his portrayals in various media over the past 30 years while others found it to be spot-on with his early appearances in Larry Hama’s Marvel Comics run.  Regardless, wave 3.5 of the Retaliation line brought fans “Ultimate Flint”– a figure sporting a more movie-accurate deco and enough accessories to outfit a platoon.  Is this figure worth a purchase considering there was a Flint figure released just one wave earlier?

Check out the Ultimate Flint Review in the G.I. Joe Retaliation Review Index and find out one Joe fan’s opinion!

JBL Reviews the G.I. Joe Retaliation Extended Action Cut Blu-Ray

G.I. Joe Retaliation Extended Action Cut

Yesterday was a great day for the Joe Community– the release of the G.I. Joe Retaliation on Blu-Ray and DVD.  True, the film had been available digitally for two weeks but this was the first chance for fans to be able to run out and purchase a tangible copy of the film for their home library.  As with most major home media releases, there were a bevy of different retailer exclusives from steelbook cases to bonus feature discs of interviews.   (Most of these are broken down excellently by Justin over at YoJoe.com in his DVD/Blu-Ray Buyer’s Guide.)

However, only one version really caught my attention– the Extended Action Cut offered by Best Buy which promised more action and about 15 minutes of footage that wasn’t shown in theatres.  So, in the midst of the rain I ran out over my lunch hour and snagged a copy and, after what seemed like an eternity at the office, sat down to watch it last night.

How was it?  Read JBL Reviews the G.I. Joe Retaliation Extended Action Cut Blu-Ray and find out this Joe fan’s opinion.

SDCC 2013: Jon M Chu discussed G.I. Joe 3!

SDCC 2013 is winding down and G.I. Joe news has been a bit scarce.  However, the folks at CraveOnline decided to go straight to the source and talked to Jon M. Chu at the Hasbro booth about G.I. Joe 3!

Once again– I like what I’m hearing!  The fact that he’s open to bringing back characters from the first film that were noticeably absent in G.I. Joe: Retaliation is fantastic!  It’s very clear after reading all of the Retaliation interviews that director Jon M. Chu is a Joe fan from “way back” but that his hands were somewhat tied by having to acknowledge the events of Rise of Cobra.  However, that didn’t stop him from taking a pre-existing script and turning it into a action tour-de-force worthy of the Joes we all know and love.  Now, with more creative control and a self-professed love of the Marvel Comics series I can only speculate just what lies in store for the third film in the series.

Bringing back Scarlet because she has “more stories to tell”?  YO JOE!!!

A big thanks to the folks at CraveOnline for posting the interview!

G.I. Joe Retaliation returns to AMC Theaters August 5 – 7

Spend Your Summer Nights at AMC - Google Chrome_2013-07-08_21-28-11

 

Would you like to see G.I. Joe Retaliation on the big screen just one more time?  Would you consider donating to the Autism Society of America, Will Rogers Institute, or Autism Speaks?

If you answered “Yes” to either of these questions, AMC Theaters has a deal for you.  Introducing the “Spend Your Summer Nights at AMC” program!

The program is simple– for the rest of the summer AMC Theaters is hosting a special screening of a previously-released film each Monday – Wednesday night at 10pm.  For only $3.00, you can have the chance to revisit a number of blockbuster films on the big screen one more time including The Amazing Spider-man, Django Unchained, and G.I. Joe Retaliation!  That’s right– the incredibly fun Joe movie directed by Jon M. Chu and starring Bruce Willis, the Rock, and Ray Park will be on the big screen from August 5 – 7.

So, not only can you revisit all the thrilling action of the Joes taking down Cobra one more time but you can also feel good about doing so by knowing that your ticket dollars will go to help one of three key children’s medical charities.  C’mon– what could be better than that?

As they said in Starship Troopers– do your part!  Hit AMC Theaters today!  (Okay, maybe I added that last bit.)

Check out AMC’s Spend Your Summer Nights at AMC website for more information!

Today is G.I. Joe Retaliation day – G.I. Joe

It’s time for the final image in Twitziller‘s fantastic “40 Reasons to be Excited for G.I. Joe Retaliation” series with the best reason of them all – G.I. Joe!

g.i. joe retaliation - joe colton

 

Some things just speak for themselves.  When Larry Hama first introduced Joe Colton into the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero title I was floored!  It was the first honest attempt to draw a connection between the world of the 12″ Joes and the Adventure Team and the 1:18 ARAH era.  In a flawless move, Larry gave a name to the 12″ Adventure Team Commander and made him the inspiration for the then-current team.  Brilliant!!!

When Jon M. Chu and his team set out to cast the movie there was one name to which they looked to bring such an iconic character to life: Bruce Willis.  No other American actor today has the presence, cinematic history, and attitude to bring General Colton to life– even if he doesn’t have “life-like hair and beard.”  Bravo, team.  Bravo.

Now we’re at the end— G.I. Joe Retaliation is now in theatres.  So, quit lolly-gagging around looking at your computer and go out and see the movie already!   Yo Joe!!

A HUGE thanks to Twitziller for all of his hard work in crafting these images.  We’ve never met, good sir, but when we do the first brew is on me.