Monday, October 1, 2007

G.I.J.O.E.

Posted by Zach in News

In 1942 the military magazines Yank and The Army Weekly ran a syndicated column by cartoonist David Breger. He called it G.I. Joe. Playing on the military acronym for “Government Issue,” G.I. Joe became byword for the common American foot soldier. The term was later the title of a film starring Burgess Meredith.

In the 1960s, Hasbro resurrected the name for their toyline. The soldier figure trademark was, “G.I. JOE, A Real American Hero.” By the 1970s G.I. JOE sported a fuzzy beard and “Kung Fu Grip.” He was less worried about fighting the enemy than he was capturing Pygmy Gorillas and recovering mummies. In 1978 the line was discontinued. Not surprisingly, Hasbro finds that only six percent of people surveyed favor the G.I. JOE from the Carter Administration.

Eleven percent select the 1960s as their favorite G.I. JOE decade. The 1990s earns eight percent, and the 2000s solicits thirteen percent. Overwhelmingly, sixty-three percent of people surveyed prefer the 1980s Reagan-era G.I. JOE. The 1980s JOE cast off the brown and orange packaging in favor of a logo replete with a star and red white and blue stripes. Unlike the tiger-capturing 70’s JOE, this JOE embraced both a strong military and the world-wide defense of liberty.

G.I. JOE lost his footing a bit in the 1990s. The 90s featured Eco-warrior trucks equipped with the hugely threatening “Water Cannon.” No sooner had Cobra commander dumped a barell of toxic waste than he was confronted by droplets of justice. GO JOE! Surprisingly, kids failed to be awed by the strong moral conviction of Eco-warrior Joe, and sales fell. Hasbro switched to collector nostalgia and several other hero teams in different sizes, but nothing captured the glory of the 80s run.

What’s new in G.I. JOE news? Glad you asked. Paramount is producing a G.I. JOE film. It’s due out in 2009. Biran Goldner, head of Hasbro toys and creator of the G.I. JOE brand, says, “A live-action film will deliver high energy and non-stop excitement to the millions of fathers and sons that share awesome memories of G.I. JOE.” At first, I was a bit excited. A film that pays homage to A Real American Hero. Cool right? Wrong. What’s the first thing Paramount does to solidify the connection with the memories of millions of fathers and sons? They scrap the Real American Hero part of the trademark. The brand no longer refers to a patriotic-liberty-preserving-special ops-Government issued Joe. That’s too bourgeois and nationalistic for Paramount’s taste. They prefer Comrade Mao Tse-tung’s catchy maxim, “For us, patriotism is intimately connected with internationism.”

G.I. JOE, meet G.I.J.O.E., which stands for “Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity.” The “entity” is not located in the USA, but in freedom fighting Brussels Belgium. Presumably, they squeezed the G.I.J.O.E. headquaters somewhere between the NATO offices, EUROCONTROL, the European Comission, and the Council of the European Union.

I guess it makes sense from a marketing perspective to reject the overwhelming fan-base for the 1980s patriotic G.I. JOE, and tap into the a-national adventure task force concept of the 70s. I mean, apparently, 6% of fathers and sons looove that! Besides, think of all the toy tie-ins.

NEW, European Parliment playset!
NEW, “Fighting Francois” with appeasment action!
TALKING figure “Lambert” with mildly dynamic statements like, “No agreement possible on liberalising postal markets!”

They say every issue has two sides and I shall close with the side represented by retired army Col. David W. Hunt. “G.I. Joe is not an international hero. That’s crap.”

Now you know.

And knowing …

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