Customer Reviews

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Vol. 1 (GI Joe) (Marvel)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's an exciting time to be a nostalgia freak, especially if you're a fan of 80's pop culture, particularly G.I. Joe and the Transformers. Hasbro, the company that owns these characters, have licensed two independent comic companies, Devil's Due and Dreamwave, to produce new comics based on their products, and the company itself has (slowly) been reproducing their toy lines for a new generation of kids and toy collectors. Recently, Marvel got into the nostalgia fray by releasing "G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Vol. 1", a re-colored, glossy, spiffed-up trade paperback collection of the first 10 issues of the popular early 80's comic series (which lasted more than 10 years). The series was written by Larry Hama, who, along with writing the chunk of the stories during that 10-year span, also wrote the filecards on the back of the action figure packages (that's why, I guess, Marvel wrote that Hama is the man "irrevocably" linked to the franchise).
The first 10 issues are, if one has the proper attitude, a nostalgic delight for the most part. Remember, this is pre-Watchmen and Dark Knight Returns, and admittedly, one may first be a bit impatient by the classical, almost simple-minded, level of comics story-telling. More than anything else, these comics were made for kids during the early 80's. They lack the sophistication and detail of contemporary comics, which, unfortunately, are aimed towards adolescents and adult males (comics today have a limited audience after all). These stories hark back to a more innocent, simpler time; full of illogical circumstance (killer robots), over-expository characterization (evil characters describe their nefarious plans of destruction and world domination to the heroes/reader), and an artistic style/composition which hasn't evolved much since the Kirby/Ditko era of the 60's.

The stories themselves are fun and are not to be taken too seriously. The heroes are an elite anti-terrorist task force created primarily to eliminate the threat of Cobra, a terrorist organization led by the often hysterical Cobra Commander, bent on ruling the world. Led by then-Colonel Hawk, the G.I. Joe team includes a number of familiar favorites; including occasional field leader Stalker, token tough girl Scarlett, and of course, the silent-but-deadly Snake-Eyes. Writer Larry Hama certainly seemed to have a passion for the military aspects of the book; there's a lot of military lingo scattered throughout, as well as an enthusiasts' investment of detail for weapons and artillery. There are a few hokey, B-Movie style elements; not only the aforementioned killer giant robot (replete with killer bugs in its head), but also an unlikely incursion into space, and don't forget the mad scientist with mind controlling devices (with the name of "Dr. Venom" to boot). Don't take these as complaints or fanboy nitpicking; on the contrary, it adds to its distinct charm and innocence. The artists, led by Herb Trimpe, though unspectacular by today's standards, do the job; they tell the story in a forward manner without any fussy rendering or needless distraction, if lacking just a hint of individual style.

To Hama's credit, however, he does occasionally bring political topicality to his stories; quite thoughtful for that period. For example, in the two-part story "To Fail Is To Conquer...To Succeed Is To Die!" and "Walls Of Death", our heroes are sent to Afghanistan to procure a fallen Russian satellite. There, they encounter rebel Afghan fighters and C.I.A. liaisons. At the time the comics were published, the "Cold War" was occurring between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and the U.S. was in fact supporting the Afghans in their fight against the Soviets, with C.I.A. providing aid and supplies. For a little kid just wanting to read the exploits of the action figures he was collecting, he also got a partial exposure to current events. (In reading this story in particular, in light of the 9/11 tragedy and the U.S.'s current "War Against Terrorism", one can't help but be unsettled by the fact that the real U.S. Military is waging a real war in the actual place depicted in the comic against a real terrorist). And while Hama certainly isn't the first to allude to current event situations in a widely-held "children's medium", the fact that this had a focused military aesthetic, and not littered with superheroes in capes and masks, made the stories somewhat more relevant and immediate.

Besides, does one really collect these types of things for story or art? Of course not. People want to recapture a bit of their childhoods; playing in the backyard or in the living room and creating their own stories and adventures. Though just a bit on the ... side ([money]for just 10 issues is pretty high), they're much cheaper than getting the real individual issues. On the whole, Marvel, without a doubt, deserves plaudits for exceeding expectations with their packaging and re-release. Can't wait to catch the next volumes.

I had occasionally read Marvel Comics' GI Joe series during my childhood, but I had never concentrated that hard on the overall storyline being developed by writer Larry Hama. Instead, I used the comics more as a supplement for planning the adventures of my vast collection of 3-3/4" Joes. Over the past several years, Marvel has made a half-baked attempt at reprinting the series, so I decided to pick them up to see what I remembered and what I could make of it. Unfortunately, the 5 volumes only covers 50 issues - that's right, 50 of 155 issues, not even counting the yearbooks and other related titles. But hey, when you consider that Marvel was asking twenty-five bucks for only 10 issues per book, it's no wonder this series of reprints lost steam.

Overall, these GI Joe issues are a standard example of a writer working within the confines of a licensed property; meaning, that over the course of the stories, very little happens to change the status quo. At the end, it's still GI Joe vs. COBRA, and when Hasbro has a property to sell, it can't be worked into a corner. Because of this, you may get bored seeing the same characters in similar situations over and over again. Despite this, Hama does provide some occasional diversions from the standard fare, such as plots that almost resemble EC war comics, or that give us insight into the lives of specific characters in the GI Joe universe. The best example of the former is issue # 34, which features a tense dogfight between the high-flyers Ace and Wild Weasel. For the latter, there are no better examples than issues 21, 26, and 27, where Hama builds a history for the mysterious Snake Eyes. These 3 issues in particular are pure gold (in fact, # 21, titled "Silent Interlude", is commonly referred to as the best GI Joe story ever written), and it can be clearly seen why Snake Eyes became the fan-favorite, as no other Joe received this degree of analysis.

Art-wise, this series was somewhat of a disappointment. Herb Trimpe provides great pencils for the first several issues, with his Kirby-esque style giving an interesting twist to the military hardware and scientific gadgets. The great Marie Severin drops by for one issue. Writer Larry Hama even takes time for a few penciling jobs, notably the aforementioned issues 21 & 26. Sure, this sounds pretty good so far, but thereafter, it's primarily a rotation of Rod Wigham and Frank Springer, neither of whose work has any real depth. What's really unfortunate is that Larry Hama wasn't able to illustrate more stories in the series, as he is truly a talented artist who obviously knows how his stories should be depicted. He's good - really, really good. In addition, while Michael Golden does provide some covers, his work from the GI Joe Yearbooks was not included. What a shame.

Overall, this was a fun trip back to my childhood, but for the cost, the quality of the material doesn't quite add up. This is the rare case where I feel a talented inker should be allowed to spruce up an older comic.

No, I am not exaggerating. While obviously preferences are subjective, I still have yet to read another comic -- or another fictional book created in the same time period, for that matter -- that can come close to those Golden Years and first 50 issues of GI Joe. It is just something that has to be experienced to believe.

Each Volume contains around 10 issues, so the first 50 issues are in these five volumes for the Trade Paperbacks. I haven't bought anything comic book related that wasn't written by Larry Hama since the early 90s, so that should tell you all you need to know about his ability to draw in non-comic book fans to his work. It is even more impressive considering the pressure Hasbro placed on Hama to insert all of their various new characters and toys on a regular basis.

I give the first five volumes of GI Joe a perfect five out of five stars. Even though apparently the main method of buying them is a used version for a high price, it is the one comic Trade Paper Back I would do it for if I had not already purchased the books.

Let me start by saying that this was my first exposure to G.I. Joe comics. I collected a few figurines when I was a kid, but only recently have developed some interest in graphic novels. I figured this re-release of the original G.I. Joe comics would be a great place to start, and I'm glad I did. Reading these old issues helped me establish a reference point with which to judge newer comics and reveals just how far the whole genre has come in the last 25 years.

That's not to say that I think newer comics are necessarily better than these old Marvel issues. They are just very different. Obviously meant for a much younger audience, they are way more simple, straight-forward, and naive. They don't contain near the amount of violence and other 'R-rated' material that many new graphic novels (including the more recent G.I. Joe material) contain. So, for a look back at times when comics were meant for kids and "Yo, Joe!" was a much more familiar phrase, this re-release is a treasure. For more exciting and realistic stuff aimed at a more mature audience, I'd recommend the newer material, starting with GI Joe Vol. 1: Reinstated from Devil's Due.

One curious note is why Marvel halted the production of these new collections. They discontinued the line after the first five volumes, collecting the first 50/155 issues. I can tell from the extravagant prices people are charging here on Amazon and on EBay that they must have sold all the copies they printed. I know a lot of people are wishing they would continue the series.

For me, I'll keep reading these old volumes for nostalgia's sake (assuming I can find the rest for a reasonable price). For anyone having trouble finding the next volume, here's the link: G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Vol. 2 (GI Joe) (Marvel).

Ah yes, the start of the GI Joe craze. The comics are far better than the TV series ever was. The interesting thing about the first ten issues of GI Joe is that, except for the 2-part Oktober Guard intro, they are all single-issue stories, most of which impact very little on the rest of the series.

I liked having them in a single volume, but I do not like the fact that the back-up story in issue 1, nor the pin-up extras that were in the original somics, are included in this volume. Would it have hurt them to have put those add-ons in the back? That's why I can only give this volume a 4 out of 5.

A great collection of stories by Larry Hama, a master of the craft. You can't go wrong with this volume of G.I. Joe comics. These are the stories that shaped the G.I. Joe story and a generation of fans. I hold these stories very dear to my heart and you will too.

This is Volume 1 of what i hope to be the entire Gi Joe Marvel Comic Book series reprinted in mind blowing digital color. Volume 1 covers Gi Joe issues 1-10, and I have already gotten Volume 2. for some reason amazon is not showing you the true cover art of the books which is just beautiful!!!! This takes me back to 1982, where Reagan was president, and the Russinas were still the scariest people on the planet and Eddie Murphy was still funny. This volume captures the sweet simplicity of mainstream comic books. All the heroes are good, and the villians are bad. No shades of grey in these here comic books!! Buy this volume. Savor the simplicity of a summer spent reading Gi Joe when it was first run. Don't think of it as marketing a new line of toys, cuz I'd like to think that that was not what the comic was about. it was just good ole fashioned Good VS Evil, and the fate of the world lay in the hands of the men and woman of the GI Joe Team.
YO JOE!!!

Being too young when these comics came around the first time, I can really appreciate the value of this. The quality is wonderful (all pages are glossy, and I'm betting earlier comics weren't this nice.) [...]

Great comic! BUY NOW!!!

An excellent re-release from Marvel Comics in a glossy, illustrius,paperback edition which includes the first 10 stories (Volume 1) of the G.I.JOE team that had originally been published (at seperate issues) back at the 80's. If you are a G.I.JOE fun or/and a collector of this popular comic series you definitely must add this item in your collection! I can't wait for the next volumes to be released!

I have the first two G.I. Joe collections. They are pretty expensive for the limited amount of issues covered in them. Any episode of G.I. Joe is more entertaining than the comic so far. In the first book there is a two issue story arc. Unlike the cartoon there is some blood coming out of shot soldiers. Cobra Commander seems to be an underdeveloped character, since all you see him doing when he is not leading troops is practicing firing a machine gun. He is a good shot though, he shoots the leader of G.I. Joe in the head. Cobra Commander is revealed to be an escapist, at the closing of battles he makes some great getaways.