This spring, IDW revisits the world of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero in a four-issue miniseries inspired by Hasbro’s classic 80’s cartoon.
IDW will celebrate the 40th Anniversary of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero with an adventure that takes readers back to the ’80s. IDW previously announced the miniseries for a February release. It now appears the title will be available a little later than planned.
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero – Saturday Morning Adventures — a four-issue miniseries that serves as a sequel to the beloved animated series of the same name — is set to be released this spring with writer Erik Burnham, artist Dan Schoening and colorist Luis Antonio Delgado attached. The series commemorates the 40th anniversary of G.I. Joe‘s “Real American Hero” toys, which made the property a household name. In addition to this series, the publisher teased to The Hollywood Reporter that it will be producing “several special projects” to celebrate the brand’s milestone.
In 1982, Hasbro expanded on its popular line of 12-inch G.I. Joe action figures with a substantially smaller product, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. Where the original toys were designed to mimic real-world military personnel, A Real American Hero was more outlandish, as the likes of Duke, Snake Eyes and Scarlett teamed up to fight the villainous organization Cobra and its leader, Cobra Commander. To promote the series, Hasbro commissioned an ongoing comic from Marvel and subsequently, an animated cartoon. These efforts combined to make G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero one of the most popular properties of the ’80s, a legacy that continues to this day.
The launch of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero – Saturday Morning Adventures coincides with the end of IDW’s G.I. Joe comics. The publisher originally began producing G.I. Joe comics in 2008 with their own rebooted continuity that reimagined the heroes in the modern era. Later, IDW opted to revisit the timeline of Marvel’s comic with the return of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, which brought back iconic writer Larry Hama and continued the series’ original numbering. That title will be ending later this year at the momentous milestone of issue #300.
While IDW’s line of G.I. Joe comics will be ending in 2022, the property may find a new home soon at Skybound Entertainment. Reports suggest that The Walking Dead co-creator Robert Kirkman, who is the chairman and founder of Skybound, has taken a personal interest in acquiring the rights to both G.I. Joe and Transformers. However, IDW’s current deal would prevent Skybound from producing any new comics until 2023, at the earliest.
Hasbro is looking to replicate G.I. Joe‘s success with some of its other top brands. In an investor’s call last fall, then-interim CEO Rich Stoddart suggested the toy company currently has 30 different brands in various stages of development for projects in film, video games and television. This push for more media adaptations is a continuation of Hasbro’s “Brand Blueprint,” a plan that has also included the recent acquisitions of production company Entertainment One and well-known properties such as Power Rangers.
Source: THR
About The Author
For all the latest Comics News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
