As of August 7th 2009 two of Hasbro's big three toy brands have made the transition from toy to beloved cartoon to live action summer blockbuster. The latest outing is of course GI JOE: The Rise of Cobra. Unlike the first Transformers film, which can be seen as a reboot of the Transformers Series, the very title of the GI JOE film is a dead giveaway that it's ment to be a prequal to either the comic books or the TV Show, and the result is a mix between the GI JOE Toys and the James Bond Series.
The main plot of the film focuses onthe story of Conrad "Duke" Houser and his friend Ripcord and the outbreak of the war between GI JOE and COBRA. Unlike the previous GI JOE Film, Rise of Cobra catches Duke at the beginning of his career with the GI JOE Team, which has been expanded to include troops from numerous nations, and his confrontation with the ghosts of his past, while the subplot traces the transformation of Destro's MARS Industries into COBRA.
Fans of Destro will be pleased to know that their favorate character finally gets his chance to shine, as he is the main villain, although sadly he doesn't recieve his trademark metal mask until the end of the film. Destro's plan is to unleash three missiles, loaded with nanomite warheads that are capable of destroying an entire city on the capitals of the US, China, and Russia, as revenge for the humilation of his ancestor, in the 17th Century and the belief that the people of the world will turn to him in the after math of his attack. Assissting Destro in his plan are fan favorite characters Baroness, Storm Shadow, and the mysterous Doctor (the future Cobra Commander) who's actors take their roles fairly well.
While the film is over all excellent, with lots of action, and numerous fight scenes between JOE and MARS/COBRA Operatives, Rise of Cobra has distanced itself from the cartoon, comics and toys in numerous ways. The biggest change is that for the first time in any incarnation of GI JOE, Baroness, Cobra Commander, and Destro are refured through out the film by their REAL names as aposed to their code names, and for the first time fans see what Cobra Commander and Destro look like beneath their masks.
The film has also altered many romances and backstories for some of the characters. For example, in a flash back scene showing the origin of the feud between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow it is revealed that Storm Shadow killed his own uncle in a jeoulus rage after his uncle declared Snake Eyes a better student, as opposed to his uncle being killed by COBRA. However the biggest change in terms of backstory is that instead of the big romances being Baroness and Destro, Duke and Scarlett,or Snake Eyes and Scarlett,it's Duke and the Baroness and Ripcord and Scarlett. In this film it is also revealed that Baroness and Cobra Commander are in fact Brother and Sister
Of course the biggest altering that the film does is to Cobra Commander and COBRA. The biggest difference is that unlike the cartoon COBRA's Vipers actually have backbones and are portrayed as nearly unstoppable killing machines who are more then capable of holding their own against the best the JOES can muster,as opposed to a group of weaklings who panic and run at the first sign of trouble. Also unlike the cartoon, Rise of Cobra shows that COBRA and Destro's MARS Industries are infact one and the same, where as in the cartoon they were seperate with Destro selling arms to COBRA.
Of course it's the Doctor/Cobra Commander who deserves the biggest mention. Unlike his cartoon and comic book counter part, who's origines varies from an alien nobelman disfigured by a lab accident, to a used car salesman blaming everyone but himself for his own failures, and who as COBRA's leader is prone to fits of rage and is usually the first to retreat when things go wrong, this verson of Cobra Commander is a former US Army Science Officer driven completly insane by his passon for science and the injuries he suffered in an airstrike while on a mission in East Africa. Like the Cobra Vipers, this verson of Cobra Commander also has a backbone, and is capable of instilling absolute fear in his followers. Unlike his other incarnations, this Cobra Commander can best be described as a mix between Hannibel Lector and Dr. Frankenstien. He is amonster in ever sense of the word, a mad scientist who subjects people to horrific experiments often for his own amusement, including brainwashing his own sister and planting a bomb in her skull, which he claims he did out of love for his sister. However the biggest dissapointment is his uniform, which is black/dark purple instead of blue, and his mask has been completly redesigned. Had they kept his trademark featureless silver mask,he would have been far more intimidating.
Over all Rise of Cobra is a welcome addition to the GI JOE universe, and like Revenge of the Fallen it's ment to be fun, an escape from the world and all it's problems, and since this is the origin story maybe we'll see the JOE-COBRA War escilate in a possible sequal, and have the appearence of more fan favorite characters like Maj. Blood, Firefly, Bazooka, and Gung-Ho
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