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Behind the Scenes of G.I. Joe’s First Micro-Movie is on YouTube

I’ve been going to JoeCon for a long time.  My first visit was in San Francisco in 2003, and I’ve been going, more or less, ever since (besides three or so shows that I missed along the way).

The panels and panelists all deserve a huge amount of credit for taking time out of their busy schedules to talk to fans and provide information that isn’t always available elsewhere.  Every once in a while, too, a panel appears at JoeCon that completely changes my perspective and entertains me in a way that I haven’t been entertained recently.

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The Behind the Scenes of G.I. Joe’s first Micro Movie was one of those panels.  Carson from 3DJoes spent the entire panel with G.I. Joe marketing guru Kirk Bozigian, showcasing never before seen behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the 1990’s live action commercials, all interspersed with other information about the commercials, while making sure to show the actual commercials along the way as well.  The result was a panel chock-full of laughs, cheers, and a real appreciation for the work that went into making G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero the landmark, retail-altering brand it was back in the 80’s (and 90’s).

There was fantastic insight from Kirk Bozigian himself, unbelievable behind the scenes footage, and so much great stuff along the way.  I can’t give Carson enough props for what he worked hard to put together.  This was one hell of a way to celebrate JoeCon’s last harrah, and I truly hope there’s more to come.  Carson has put a terrific video up on YouTube.  You need to stop what you’re doing and go watch it right now.  It’s just incredible.

Collecting the art of G.I. Joe: Volumes 5 and 6 (1990-1994)!

One piece of news that cannot go unnoticed is the latest in a line of Kickstarters by Robert Carson Mataxis of 3D Joes.  Robert is in the final week of his Kickstarter for volumes 5 and 6 of Collecting the art of GI Joe.  These volumes cover the years 1990-1994 and are a celebration of the painted art of GI Joe A Real American Hero.  As of writing this post the Kickstarter has smashed its goal and currently sits at $35,830.  You still have 6 days to get in on this Kickstarter and own a great piece of collecting art.  Volume 5 will feature 158 unique pieces of art and will cover three years of material.  Volume 6 will cover the last two years of figures, vehicles, playsets and peripheral painted art for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.  It will also feature 20 pages of unreleased and international painted art.

Head over to Kickstarter before it’s over.

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The state of GeneralsJoes – 2018

Hey, all.  So what’s new?

If you’re a regular visitor to GeneralsJoes, you’re probably thinking that a lot of stuff is new, I just haven’t been talking about it.  And yeah, you’d be right.

Why is that?  Honestly, I don’t really have an answer.  I think it’s a lot of things. 

After holding the torch of the G.I. Joe fandom for near twenty years, I think I’ve gotten a little tired.  I’ve posted hundreds of reviews over twenty years, thousands of news stories, and seen many of the same themes come and go.  Popularity swings from one extreme to the other, but a solid core of devoted, motivated fans who love the brand and want to continue to see it evolve.

One thing social media has done is provided an outlet for many of those motivated fans to continue expressing their feelings of the brand at large and as things have become more social media driven, I’ve felt like a place like GeneralsJoes hasn’t had a very large role in that.  Mostly my own fault, but it is the truth.

Also I can’t help but say that my own motivation has been somewhat lacking.  As many of you are aware I’ve begun focusing a lot of time and energy on my career as an independent author, an endeavor I’ve found to be exceedingly rewarding and unbelievably enjoyable.  Unfortunately as a husband and father with a 50 hour a week job, I only have so much time outside of daily life to contribute to what are essentially “hobbies” at this point.  Posting new FSS reviews or writing 20,000 words on a new novel?  The novel is going to win out at this point.  I need to do what’s best for my own self worth and my own reward system.

Lots of you will say it’s a lack of news or interest that’s driving the site into relative silence, but I can promise you that’s not the point.  My site begun in 1998 when we were getting maybe 15 new figures a year (and then none in 1999).  My site has  survived the Direct to Consumer doldrums, the disintegration of one of my favorite brands, Sigma 6, the rise and fall of the G.I. Joe film franchise, and GeneralsJoes was right there the whole time.  It didn’t go anywhere, and it’s still not going anywhere.  I’m never going to abandon this site, I’m never going to abandon the G.I. Joe brand,  I just have only so much time to go around, and for the moment that time is being spent on other endeavors.  I truly hope everyone reading this understands.

That being said, if there is anyone reading this who wants to assist in keeping the heartbeat of GeneralsJoes alive, please drop me line (justin AT generalsjoesreborn.com).  I hate to see the site dwindling into obscurity, I desperately want to keep it active and keep it relevant, but there’s only so much I can do personally, and as I said, for my own mental well-being and self-reward, I really want to continue to focus on being an author.

Who knows, if my author career takes off to the point where I can do that for a day job, then that changes my whole landscape.  I don’t see that happening for a while (if ever).

That being said, there are rumors that the next G.I. Joe film will be landing in early 2020.  Along with that will likely be a new action figure line.  The G.I. Joe Collectors Club is officially winding down with their last convention in Chattanooga this coming year.  The good news is that there are so many fans of the brand still keeping the fires lit, and trust me when I say I’m doing the same thing, I’m just doing it a bit more quietly than some others.  That may change in 2018, but I can’t promise anything at this point.

Until then, keep hitting The Full Force, 3D Joes, YoJoe, JoeBattleLines, HissTank, and so many other online G.I. Joe fandoms who are doing a much better job keeping the torch lit than I am.

Like I said, I’m not going anywhere, and if anyone wants to help keep the light on, please drop me a line.  Time will tell how things look going into 2018.

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First ever HasCon impresses, surprises, and satisfies

First and foremost… for some of the best coverage of HasCon you MUST check out the following two places:

Both Christopher and Carson went above and beyond documenting the experience in video and image form, and have a lot better detail there than I’m providing below.  This is just my own take on the experience.

On paper, it looked like kind of a crazy idea.  The coordination, the early mornings, the blood, sweat, and tears.

Oh, I’m not talking about HasCon itself.  I’m talking about my plans for HasCon weekend.  Deciding to forego the VIP treatment this year (going by some peer reactions, this was a significant lack of judgement on my part) I elected instead to make HasCon a day trip.  Grab a ticket, cruise down to Rhode Island for the day, have some fun.

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(Image courtesy of the 3DJoes Facebook Page)

Then they decided to bring James White from the New England Patriots, and my daughter caught wind of it, and those plans went out the window.  She had to see him on Sunday, and I had to see my friends on Saturday, so I decided on back-to-back road trips of nearly 3 hours each way.

I don’t regret one second of it.  If anything, I regret not bringing my second daughter along for the ride.

As we near the end of Fun Publication’s license for the G.I. Joe Convention (with Botcon already come and gone) Hasbro had elected to take over some of the convention reigns themselves, putting together a combination con involving all of their various brands.  HasCon as it was dubbed was immediately greeted by mixed reactions (my own included).  But as more and more of my friends expressed their interest in attending, I decided I’d go along for the ride.

(Images Courtesy of the 3DJoes Facebook Page)

Next year, it’s VIP all the way.

While I missed Friday, from everything I heard, the G.I. Joe panels were informative, interesting, and fun, a deep, introspective dive into the history of the world’s first action figure.  Certainly a lot of the discussion focused on the Real American Hero side of things, Hasbro pulled out all of the stops with actually recreating some of the old prototype vehicles and restoring many items for display.  Alan Hassenfeld himself was on site during the dinner to give a rousing speech, with the always present and always enthusiastic Derryl DePriest carrying the torch as well.  By all accounts they were both fantastic.  If you missed Friday like I did, you absolutely must go check The Full Force on Facebook, as the stalwart Chris McLeod managed to capture the majority of it on video.

I showed up on Saturday, shortly before noon, and the place was slamming.  It was wall-to-wall people waiting in line for autographs by David Ortiz, or playing along with a DJ, having a blast in the HasCade, or enjoying the G.I. Joe history lesson courtesy of Dan Klingensmith and an entire cadre of design legends from the hallowed halls of Hasbro.  I gravitated towards the G.I. Joe display of course and ran into some great friends there from 3D Joes and the Flag Points podcast, Dan K. himself, as well as members of the G.I. Joe Discussion Group on Facebook.  Less than thirty minutes into my arrival and it was like old homes day, especially for this old man who had missed the past two JoeCons in a row.

After chatting the guys up for a few minutes, I was swept into the main exhibit hall which was simply astounding.  Every single Hasbro brand was represented there from Transformers to Nerf to My Little Pony and Magic: The Gathering.  Disney Princesses, Star Wars, the whole ball of wax.

Well, except for G.I. Joe, which maintained its position on guard outside the front door.  If anything, though its placement gave it more visibility, not less.

Each section of boys toys goodness was crammed with new and old toys, fantastic, elaborate diorama displays and a bunch of great Hasbro designers to talk with.  I was able to play catch up with John Warden (though I kept missing Bobby Vala in the Marvel booth) and the enthusiasm with which they talked about their craft and the product lines they work on was infectious.  Moving from booth to booth (dodging the 15 foot tall Bumblebee dancing around) was an experience in glorious sensory overload.  HasCon is like JoeCon + Botcon x 10 squared.  It was really amazing.

(Video Courtesy of The Full Force Facebook Page)

But the audience was manageable.  It was large, but not TOO LARGE if you get my meaning.  Things rarely got to San Diego ComicCon shoulder-to-shoulder level, but on Saturday there was a constant stream and presence of people, but it never quite reached overwhelming status.

As a collector, though, once you pulled yourself away from the Boys Toys alley, things got even cooler, especially for those of us parents in the room.  Sprawling out throughout the rest of the exhibit hall was booths upon booths of fun, colorful, interactive demonstrations of Hasbro’s core brands.  Stuff like My Little Pony (full make up stations), Littlest Pet Shop (you could customize your own pet, or win free pets by spinning a hamster wheel), Baby Alive (changing stations, feeding stations, the whole nine yards), Nerf (shooting ranges and Dude Perfect trick shots), and even a Troll section where you could get your hair done up like one of those crazy plastic dolls that actually have names and a mythology now.

I’m so old.

There were kids and families.  Everywhere.  Just as it should be.  Boys and girls of all ages being exposed to Hasbro brands, discovering just how cool the various Nerf weapons or the latest Beyblades were.  Getting smacked in the face with a whipped cream pie or sprayed by a toilet (don’t ask)…  it was a tradeshow, a family fun day, and a full blown fan convention all wrapped up in a single package.

And it all worked.

Upon my return trip on Sunday, with my 12 year old in tow (who was thrilled to meet and get her picture taken with James White) the crowds were smaller and more scattered, making the floor more manageable.  She was able to play at the various game stations and although she was ‘way too old, dad’ for Baby Alive or My Little Pony, she eagerly traveled the floor with her little passport to collect all the stamps and get her free water bottle.  She customized her own Littlest Pet Shop and won a couple of free ones to bring home to her sister.  All that plus enough free Play-Doh to choke a stable of horses.

Sure, there were hiccups as there always are the first year around, but overall the experience was exceptionally smooth.  Busy, but not packed.  Lots to do and see, but not sensory overload.  Just enough great stuff happening at regular intervals, but not so much that you felt like you were going to miss something.

I’m not sure HasCon will become a regular thing, I can’t even imagine the coordination it took to bring it all together.  But I hope it does.  And if it does, I’ll be there next year.  I may even bring the whole family.

Dan, Derryl, the G.I. Joe legends, and everyone involved deserves some serious props for what it took to pull this off.  Yes, the best part (as always) was seeing all my friends and hanging with great people, but the Convention itself was a blast, and something I can see myself attending every year, and even better, something I can bring the family to as well.

Great success and congrats to all.

G.I. Joe themed book Kickstarters hit two at a time!

You don’t see a whole lot of G.I. Joe themed Kickstarter campaigns out there, but now all of a sudden we’ve got two excellent looking G.I. Joe books with campaigns running simultaneously.

Folks who have been reading GeneralsJoes know that I always throw some support behind the offerings of 3DJoes.  Carson does great work on his website, and always puts out a quality product.  You can check out the Kickstarter for The Art of G.I. Joe (Volume 2) here.

Along with this, Dan K. is also working to fund a great looking G.I. Joe book filled with fantastic early concept art for figures and vehicles.  Lots of never before seen details and looks at some concepts that may have never reached full production.  It’s a very unique and intriguing look at some of the concepts behind A Real American Hero and deserves a place on your shelf!

You can check out the Kickstarter for 3.75 Joe right here.

Pretty exciting stuff for a fanbase who is out there excited about all things G.I. Joe!