- Sep 22, 2013
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The American paramilitary fantasy-adventure comics-stylized franchise G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (Hasbro) presents stories about patriotic crusaders called G.I. Joes vying with a diabolical terrorist organization called Cobra for dominion on Earth.
The G.I. Joes are led by valiant soldiers such as Duke, Snake Eyes, and Scarlett. Cobra is led by furious 'agents' such as Destro, Serpentor, and Baroness.
Often, the franchise pairs off important characters from both sides as idealized foils. Duke (G.I. Joe) has been paired with Serpentor (Cobra) in battle scenarios, while Flint (G.I. Joe) has been paired with Destro (Cobra).
The G.I. Joe 'assassin' Snake Eyes works mostly alone and has therefore been paired with random Cobra agents as an ideal 'hunter' --- e.g., Snake Eyes vs. Cobra Commander; Snake Eyes vs. Firefly.
Likewise, the Cobra 'ninja-assassin' Storm Shadow works alone and lives by his own 'code of honor' and has therefore been paired randomly with various G.I. Joes as an ideal 'combatant' --- e.g., Storm Shadow vs. Snake Eyes; Storm Shadow vs. Beach-Head.
In the live-action Hollywood (USA) film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes are depicted as knowing each other since childhood and growing up (on opposite sides of the fence) as becoming 'ideal foils' or 'rivals.'
Since Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes work very well together and as 'lone-ranger' type 'agents,' I wanted to emulate the live-action film and create an alternate background story to give these two characters in this franchise a special 'redemption' mission.
After all, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (Hasbro) is really a 'pedestal' about complex American perspectives on the confusing and intriguing aspects of terrorism in our new age of networking-gauged geo-politics (e.g., NATO, European Union, ISIS, etc.).
Do you feel this terrorism-themed franchise is controversial/offensive or expressive/symbolic?
It might be a politico-cultural question that U.S. president Donald Trump may have to address in his modern treatment of 'terrorism criminalization psychology.' We certainly know that Trump has the 'bravado megaphone' to deal with such a problematic concept. After all, Trump's critics and supporters are equally measuring his ability and intention to be the 'macho bravado' leader he has made himself out to be with his extremely controversial campaign comments.
Will life mimic art?
I love politics, almost as much I love comic books...
====
Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes, both aged 12, were being raised to be skillful martial arts warriors in the mountains of the Himalayas in Nepal. Brothers with different mothers (but the same father), Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes quickly became their master's favorite pupils. Storm Shadow preferred the use of sabres and arrows, while Snake Eyes preferred the use of standard swords and batons. Storm Shadow took an oath never to use guns, while Snake Eyes took an oath never to use daggers.
Far away, in Syria, a ruthless and shrewd philosopher-politician named Destro was recruiting war-minded upstarts to be part of his new crusade-minded terrorist organization called Cobra. Destro, once the teacher of a U.S. Navy Seal named Duke (who himself was assembling an anti-terrorist paramilitary outfit in America called G.I. Joe), was now interested in more radical approaches to political action. Destro got a call from a martial arts guru from the Himalayas (the teacher of Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes) who urged him to take on his two 'star pupils' for his anti-imperialist organization.
Storm Shadow was very excited to join Cobra, but Snake Eyes parted ways and joined Duke's team --- G.I. Joe. Snake Eyes wondered what his half-brother Storm Shadow would do in his absence but remained confident that their spiritual and combat training would lead them both towards the personal dreams they formed. Snake Eyes met a beautiful young woman who called herself Baroness who was trying to convince him to join Cobra; Snake Eyes felt very conflicted, but suggested kindly to Baroness that she find satisfaction for her interest in recruiting a 'martial-arts guy' for Cobra in his half-brother Storm Shadow.
When Baroness told Storm Shadow that she tried to recruit Snake Eyes for Cobra, Storm Shadow laughed and said, "Snake Eyes will always be a 'ronin' of sorts but never the kind of 'ninja-assassin' that Cobra seeks; I, on the other hand, am the ideal 'ninja-assassin' Destro is trying to recruit for Cobra!" Storm Shadow tried to court Baroness, but she still felt the slight sting of separating from Snake Eyes and politely told Storm Shadow that if she ever dated an 'assassin,' it would be Snake Eyes. Storm Shadow took this to hear and swore he would always remain a rival of his half-brother Snake Eyes.
Duke realized that Destro had assembled an entire army for his organization Cobra in Syria and was planning an invasion of Washington, D.C. on Halloween Eve 2010 with bio-chemical weapons. Destro had assigned the Cobra super-soldier Serpentor to 'spearhead' the invasion on his missile and tear-gas equipped jet-glider device. Storm Shadow was ready to take an active role in the mission, but he wondered secretly if his half-brother Snake Eyes should be fighting against Baroness or was too 'romantic' and 'sensitive' to be tackling a woman he may rather be courting.
On Halloween, the day of the Cobra invasion, Duke ordered the G.I. Joes to man all positions and create a polygon-shaped perimeter around Washington. Snake Eyes was given the order to assassinate Destro, while Storm Shadow was given the order to assassinate Duke. As the Cobra agents (in jeeps and cars) stormed the nation's capital, the G.I. Joes (in hang-gliders and off-road vehicles) met them head-on. Serpentor swooped in on his hang-glider and began launching his tear-gas grenades. Storm Shadow realized Snake Eyes was reaching towards Destro in an assassination attempt.
Storm Shadow put aside his intention to assassinate Duke (violating Destro's orders) and decided to 'yank' Snake Eyes out of the battle so he could 'flee' with Baroness --- a Cobra woman he may love rather than hate. Storm Shadow found Baroness and tied her up with his rope-gun and then used his rope-gun to tie up Snake Eyes' feet. He then dragged them off to the side and told them he was 'extracting' them from the battle. Snake Eyes and Baroness were shocked but were rendered vulnerable by Storm Shadow's wily action.
The Halloween invasion was a failure for Cobra, even though Destro managed to escape (swearing to meet Duke on the battlefield again someday), but Storm Shadow took Snake Eyes and Baroness to his master's fortress in the mountains of the Himalayas. Storm Shadow told his master that the two 'love-birds' should be kept in isolation and care and fertilize their secret love for each other, and Storm Shadow's master assured him that the two 'combatants' would find revelation in the Himalayas. As Storm Shadow rode away on his hang-glider, he whispered to himself, "This whole G.I. Joe-Cobra 'rapture' seems to be, more than anything, a 'fascism test'!"
====
The G.I. Joes are led by valiant soldiers such as Duke, Snake Eyes, and Scarlett. Cobra is led by furious 'agents' such as Destro, Serpentor, and Baroness.
Often, the franchise pairs off important characters from both sides as idealized foils. Duke (G.I. Joe) has been paired with Serpentor (Cobra) in battle scenarios, while Flint (G.I. Joe) has been paired with Destro (Cobra).
The G.I. Joe 'assassin' Snake Eyes works mostly alone and has therefore been paired with random Cobra agents as an ideal 'hunter' --- e.g., Snake Eyes vs. Cobra Commander; Snake Eyes vs. Firefly.
Likewise, the Cobra 'ninja-assassin' Storm Shadow works alone and lives by his own 'code of honor' and has therefore been paired randomly with various G.I. Joes as an ideal 'combatant' --- e.g., Storm Shadow vs. Snake Eyes; Storm Shadow vs. Beach-Head.
In the live-action Hollywood (USA) film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes are depicted as knowing each other since childhood and growing up (on opposite sides of the fence) as becoming 'ideal foils' or 'rivals.'
Since Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes work very well together and as 'lone-ranger' type 'agents,' I wanted to emulate the live-action film and create an alternate background story to give these two characters in this franchise a special 'redemption' mission.
After all, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (Hasbro) is really a 'pedestal' about complex American perspectives on the confusing and intriguing aspects of terrorism in our new age of networking-gauged geo-politics (e.g., NATO, European Union, ISIS, etc.).
Do you feel this terrorism-themed franchise is controversial/offensive or expressive/symbolic?
It might be a politico-cultural question that U.S. president Donald Trump may have to address in his modern treatment of 'terrorism criminalization psychology.' We certainly know that Trump has the 'bravado megaphone' to deal with such a problematic concept. After all, Trump's critics and supporters are equally measuring his ability and intention to be the 'macho bravado' leader he has made himself out to be with his extremely controversial campaign comments.
Will life mimic art?
I love politics, almost as much I love comic books...
====
Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes, both aged 12, were being raised to be skillful martial arts warriors in the mountains of the Himalayas in Nepal. Brothers with different mothers (but the same father), Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes quickly became their master's favorite pupils. Storm Shadow preferred the use of sabres and arrows, while Snake Eyes preferred the use of standard swords and batons. Storm Shadow took an oath never to use guns, while Snake Eyes took an oath never to use daggers.
Far away, in Syria, a ruthless and shrewd philosopher-politician named Destro was recruiting war-minded upstarts to be part of his new crusade-minded terrorist organization called Cobra. Destro, once the teacher of a U.S. Navy Seal named Duke (who himself was assembling an anti-terrorist paramilitary outfit in America called G.I. Joe), was now interested in more radical approaches to political action. Destro got a call from a martial arts guru from the Himalayas (the teacher of Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes) who urged him to take on his two 'star pupils' for his anti-imperialist organization.
Storm Shadow was very excited to join Cobra, but Snake Eyes parted ways and joined Duke's team --- G.I. Joe. Snake Eyes wondered what his half-brother Storm Shadow would do in his absence but remained confident that their spiritual and combat training would lead them both towards the personal dreams they formed. Snake Eyes met a beautiful young woman who called herself Baroness who was trying to convince him to join Cobra; Snake Eyes felt very conflicted, but suggested kindly to Baroness that she find satisfaction for her interest in recruiting a 'martial-arts guy' for Cobra in his half-brother Storm Shadow.
When Baroness told Storm Shadow that she tried to recruit Snake Eyes for Cobra, Storm Shadow laughed and said, "Snake Eyes will always be a 'ronin' of sorts but never the kind of 'ninja-assassin' that Cobra seeks; I, on the other hand, am the ideal 'ninja-assassin' Destro is trying to recruit for Cobra!" Storm Shadow tried to court Baroness, but she still felt the slight sting of separating from Snake Eyes and politely told Storm Shadow that if she ever dated an 'assassin,' it would be Snake Eyes. Storm Shadow took this to hear and swore he would always remain a rival of his half-brother Snake Eyes.
Duke realized that Destro had assembled an entire army for his organization Cobra in Syria and was planning an invasion of Washington, D.C. on Halloween Eve 2010 with bio-chemical weapons. Destro had assigned the Cobra super-soldier Serpentor to 'spearhead' the invasion on his missile and tear-gas equipped jet-glider device. Storm Shadow was ready to take an active role in the mission, but he wondered secretly if his half-brother Snake Eyes should be fighting against Baroness or was too 'romantic' and 'sensitive' to be tackling a woman he may rather be courting.
On Halloween, the day of the Cobra invasion, Duke ordered the G.I. Joes to man all positions and create a polygon-shaped perimeter around Washington. Snake Eyes was given the order to assassinate Destro, while Storm Shadow was given the order to assassinate Duke. As the Cobra agents (in jeeps and cars) stormed the nation's capital, the G.I. Joes (in hang-gliders and off-road vehicles) met them head-on. Serpentor swooped in on his hang-glider and began launching his tear-gas grenades. Storm Shadow realized Snake Eyes was reaching towards Destro in an assassination attempt.
Storm Shadow put aside his intention to assassinate Duke (violating Destro's orders) and decided to 'yank' Snake Eyes out of the battle so he could 'flee' with Baroness --- a Cobra woman he may love rather than hate. Storm Shadow found Baroness and tied her up with his rope-gun and then used his rope-gun to tie up Snake Eyes' feet. He then dragged them off to the side and told them he was 'extracting' them from the battle. Snake Eyes and Baroness were shocked but were rendered vulnerable by Storm Shadow's wily action.
The Halloween invasion was a failure for Cobra, even though Destro managed to escape (swearing to meet Duke on the battlefield again someday), but Storm Shadow took Snake Eyes and Baroness to his master's fortress in the mountains of the Himalayas. Storm Shadow told his master that the two 'love-birds' should be kept in isolation and care and fertilize their secret love for each other, and Storm Shadow's master assured him that the two 'combatants' would find revelation in the Himalayas. As Storm Shadow rode away on his hang-glider, he whispered to himself, "This whole G.I. Joe-Cobra 'rapture' seems to be, more than anything, a 'fascism test'!"
====
