Customer Reviews

G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra: Mission Dossier (G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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Length:: 0:20 Mins

Mission Dossier is the film companion to the movie G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra. It's basically the catalog with high quality photos of the characters and the weapons they use.

Just like the movie, this book has a lot of whams and bam -- big talk. It's one thing to say that the assault weapon can fire 900 rounds per minute, it's another thing to show that the magazine can only holds 30 bullets. And then there's the 80 pound mini gun carried by Hershel "Heavy Duty" Dalton which can fire 600 rounds per second. All these gadgets and numbers are making me dizzy.

There are plenty of high-tech gadgetry and vehicles, some pretty cool, some rather unconvincing. There's something about the swords of Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes. They are shiny and, er, blunt. It shows in the gloriously large photos.

The character profiles cover all the G.I. Joe members from the goodies to the baddies. Also, all the photos take the hero pose -- no candid shots except on the last page. Besides the character introductions, the actors and staff also provides some commentary on the production.

How much you like the movie will probably determine how much you'll like this book. It's not really my type of book, this one anyway, maybe because I didn't watch the movie.

3.5-stars

(More pictures are available on my blog. Just visit my Amazon profile for the link.)

This book is actually pretty comprehensive. It covers not only design and production notes but also tries to cover details on the technology that Joe and Cobra use in the movie. It's a very good effort, but I have to say if you're really into technical manuals of fictional weapons and vehicles this book does fall short. Otherwise it covers all bases and does a decent job of being everything to everybody.

The book starts off with a nice history of the G.I. Joe toy line from it's beginnings in the 60's to the meteoric rise in popularity in the 80's and into the history of how they merged it all into a feature film. That history also includes some nice full color pictures along the way. From there the book goes through each detail from the movie and logs entries on locations, vehicles, weapons, character profiles and more. Along the way the book is peppered with insights on designing the movie as well as quotes from the actors regarding their characters and the stuff they get to play with. Just about everything, everyplace and everybody has a listing in this book.

The book itself is loaded with full color pictures and is printed in a good quality glossy paper stock. The pictures include stills from the film, design concepts (mainly computer generated), and exclusive profile photos. Not a bad picture in the book so if you like images this is a gold mine.

Remember when I told you if you're into getting technical details of the imaginary stuff on the movie you will be disappointed? Well it is what it is. You get entries for ALL of the stuff, but the information is sparse at best. While you do get some interesting insights here and there a LOT of information is missing. Like what is the ammo capacity of ANY of the weapons? What's the effective range of the vehicles? What exactly does a pulse rifle fire? They don't even mention any names for the firearms. So while you do get to see all the gear and get SOME info on them it's not nearly enough to satisfy the tech junkie.

All in all this is the best book available for all things Joe movie-wise. You get a taste of everything, but my gripe is it's only a taste. If you like the movie and want to know more this is the book to get. If you want to really get into the G.I. Joe universe this book won't do it, but unfortunately it's the best that's out there.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Mission Dossier is a fine keepsake for any fan of the movie: it provides an official companion volume with exclusive cast and crew commentary and discussions of technology, weaponry, and concepts used in the G.I. Joe movie. Hundreds of color stills and visual effects shots make for an outstanding keepsake for any avid fan of the film.

I have actually been waiting for an "Art of Transformers" book to come out. But instead, this book comes along unexpectedly. Let me start by saying that having anticipated Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen far better than G. I. Joe movie, like almost everybody else, I ended up being highly entertained by the latter.

Perusing through the many tie-in G. I. Joe products that are geared towards kids, I came across this dossier. The book will definitely satisfy those with keen interests in production stills and behind the scenes aspects of movie-making. Great stills, both from the movie and production process are lavishly displayed not only as eye-candies but also as mock-up dossier to the Joe's world. From team members of both the Joe's and the MARS to the weaponry, secret quarters and vehicular scoops, it's all here in generous abundance. Fans of Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow should be well treated with the great stills and breakdowns on their history and perennial cofrontation.

I only wish they would have included some conceptual designs and the film script just to complement this otherwise great companion to the movie.