The Comic Box #5!!!

[Sonneilon]

Welcome to The Comic Box. This is a discussion thread for the GI Joe comics. We start at Marvel’s #1 and move thru the series every Wednesday. It’s a chance to give your thoughts, opinions and remarks about the comic in question.

GI Joe #5. Tanks For the Memories

General Flagg has this grand idea of putting the MOBAT into a regular parade w/ other tanks to show off to the big wigs that the MOBAT, while being majorly hi-tech, looks like any other tank. But things go awry when Cobra tries to steal it. Can the Joes navigate thru a crowded city? Can tanks sit at the bottom of a lake? Only by reading this issue, will you know!

Special Notes. Old Iron Butt Austin makes his appearance. It is revealed that General Flagg is a marksman with a pistol.


Discuss Away!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/Sonneilon/Misc/Joe005.jpg
-image from yojoe.com-

[Lava Boss]

First time I saw the Baroness (my brother would go back and get issues 1 and 2 at a comic shop).

I remember being disappointed that the Cobras in the issue were disguised as a marching band.

Also the downside is that it reminds you how inadequate the Mobat toy was when it came to figure interaction. If only we'd have been able to actually crew the tank with Clutch and Breaker as well as Steeler.

It was a decent issue though. Maybe 6/10.

[Jay]

Loved this issue. It really showed the Joes as being very intelligent as they defeat Cobra without firing a single actual shot.
It also featured the very first mention of Springfield.
And let's not forget all of Cobra's undercover operations, which are quite impressive. I believe this was the first time they were featured extensively (from the spies catching info about the MOBAT to two different portions of the parade being ran by Cobra agents to being able to construct a command center right under the generals' parade seats).

Character-wise, we got a good treat, with Cobra Commander being completely unscrupulous, and Flagg being the "good guy", not even taking a shot at CC despite his flawless aim, on the .0000001% chance that he MIGHT hit an innocent bystander.

The issue wasn't dumbed down for kids, either. After Flagg gets shot, Cobra Commander flees as girl scouts look on...
"Look Susie! That man shot the soldier and is running away!"
"Don't worry, Julie! They'll catch him! They always catch the bad guys!"
And Flagg, hearing this, simply whispers to himself "I wish that were true, little girl..."

And G, General Austin doesn't appear in this issue. He's mentionned by Steeler at the beginning, and Flagg sends him a memo, but he's never seen.

[General Scarlett]

I've got to echo what Jay posted-hands down this is a 'Top 10' issue of the series. I know personally it was a part of the template that has guided my unique Joeverse over the past 25 years.......

[Sonneilon]

I was going off what yojoe.com was saying. It's possible that Austin is actually there in the bandstand. There's no reference to whether he IS in the stand, of course...

I loved the issue. IIRC, this might be the 1st issue that actually had a tv ad for it. I know by #9 or #10, the toys and comic ads went hand in hand.

[Jay]

[QUOTE=Sonneilon]I was going off what yojoe.com was saying. It's possible that Austin is actually there in the bandstand. There's no reference to whether he IS in the stand, of course...[/QUOTE]
I re-read the issue prior to my posting. General Austin is nowhere to be seen.

I don't know why the Yojoe summary guy said so... maybe he mistook the generic joint chiefs general who speaks with Flagg (who was thinner than Austin, and sported grey hair instead of red) with old Iron-Butt.

[lehsreh]

[COLOR=Red]i remember this issue, actually i reread the whole series a few months ago. this was one of the best early issues. i think i liked the face that it focused on fewer joes, which at that time there werent many anyway. having a few joes together in a tank made them seem more like friends and not teammates, which in the last days of the marvel comic thats exactly what they were, teammates. there were so many that there was no focus on friendship. thats what i liked about the earlier comics and cartoons. in the comics you had rock n roll and clutch and the cartoons you had alpine and bazooka, and sometimes shipwreck and snake eyes. i always though the latter was a great matchup, since snake eyes didnt talk shipwreck gave him character. sorry, i got off the subject there,lol.[/COLOR]

[Sonneilon]

Good call on the team mate/friendship idea. I think that's what Hama may have set out to do originally. The 13 were team mates but they were buddies. They have a closeness that the other Joes weren't able to have (due to the toys taking precedence and Hama having to do what hasbro said). It's also nice that these initial stories only have 13 Joes so the story could focus on them. I'm sure it's ok as you get thru the 40s, but at some point, there are just too many characters to focus on. And then faves start to get played and fans want to see particular characters.

This is part of the reason why I try to keep my dio casts small. I want to work with a small group and flesh out a story thru them. Sure, I'll do cameos but I want the reader to feel like they are there and that the chars are coming to life.

[Acantilado]

[font=Tahoma][size=2]That issue left me the impression of being a transition one, between the previous stories, and the coming plots, while at the same time was a very good way to show how both Cobra and the Joes operate. It's like a introductory scene of what we are going to find in future issues. I personally found the end a bit too "funny" :D, but anyway sometimes it is fine this way.[/size][/font]

[Self-Modifier]

I've always liked this issue. Steeler and Clutch are two of my favorites, so it's nice to see them in leading roles. You have to love the title, too. Or at least, I do. I like puns. Plus the clever way the Joes mimic the cannon firing is pretty neat too.

I always thought Cobra hiding right under the grandstand/dais was pretty funny, and I too enjoyed the characterization of General Flagg. As was already said, this was the very first mention of Springfield, which would go on to become a main piece of the comics' Cobra mythos.

All in all, this is my favorite of the very early issues.

[Outrider]

This is one of the issues where I felt the series started to find it's feet and establish the sort of quality, characterisation and story telling which became it's hallmark. If the series had have stayed this good throughout the later issues, it might have survived longer, although whether or not it could have survived without the toyline or Hasbro's blessing is debatable.