50 years ago the United States was on the brink of entering what we would come to know as the Vietnam War and it was rare to find a boy who didn’t have a relative that was serving or had served in the military. What initially started off as an idea to honor those veterans became one of the most popular toy franchises in the world and coined the phrase “Action Figure”.
The original man of action, G.I. Joe. The originals were born as a four-man team of 12 in figures, each representing a branch of the US armed forces, but later was shrunk to the 3.75 in size made popular by the Star Wars figures and exploded into a number of iconic figures both friend and foe.
Extremely detailed in design, characters like the courageous Duke, the devious Cobra Commander, the fiery haired Scarlett and the raven haired seductress The Baroness had their own characteristics and equipment some even with their own vehicles which made them high on every kids must have list. In honor of G.I Joe’s Birthday we decided to pick out the 10 of our favorites in the G.I. Joe Lexicon.
Duke
First Sergeant Conrad “Duke” Hauser is the figure that people identify with when talking about G.I. Joe. Though most people identify him as the leader of the Joes, Duke’s role has changed from time to time with him as leader, field commander and even being demoted to second in command at times under General Hawk.
Cobra Commander
Every hero has his nemesis and for G.I. Joe it’s Cobra and no one epitomizes the evil of Cobra than their leader the mysterious Cobra Commander. Easily identified by his metal shielded face and whiney voice Cobra Commander is a despot’s despot. Cruel, manipulative and cowardly the commander has never met a world domination plan he didn’t like, or an escape route he wouldn’t exploit.
Destro
What is a megalomaniac without his Brutus, and no one plays that role better that Destro. Born James McCullen Destro XXIV, he is Laird of Castle Destro in Scotland and is responsible for most of the armaments that Cobra employs. Easily identified by the metal face he wears, Destro only allegiance is to himself and his beloved Baroness. So while the commander has his hands full dealing with the Joes, Destro is content to watch and wait until the right moment to take command and lead Cobra.
Snake Eyes
Silent and deadly, Snake Eyes is G.I. Joe’s resident ninja. While his origins have changed from time to time depending on what version of the cartoon or comic, what has endured is that he was trained by the Arishikage Clan, the family of Cobra’s Storm Shadow. The two have a complicated history that includes growing up as brothers and a long standing feud which stems from the killing of the head of the Arishikage clan. It’s not clear who killed the head of the clan and who is hunting the other for revenge, but what is clear is that the two clearly don’t like each other. Snake Eyes never speaks as the result of an injury and is often accompanied by his pet wolf “Timber”.
Lady Jaye
Alison R. Hart-Burnett is a master at mimicking a subject’s voice and mannerisms and hence was the Joe’s covert options specialist. She was also highly trained in hand to hand combat often employing javelins with an array of tips that included a laser, a force field generator and a diamond. While one of the most outspoken Joes she was also a bit of a mystery as it was hinted that she had a romantic relationship with the Joe’s second in command Flint and was a relative of Destro.
Storm Shadow
A son of the Ashikigare Clan master the ninja known as Storm Shadow is loyal, focused, ruthless and obsessed with the Joe’s Snake Eyes. His ninja code and attachment to Snake Eyes has had him change sides on more than one occasion but always returning to the side of Cobra.
The Baroness
Cobra intelligence officer and lieutenant, Baroness is the prototypical femme fatale. Long black hair, black-rimmed glasses and usually a black leather bodysuit, she is as beautiful as she is deadly. Born Anastasia Cisarovna, she is the offspring of European aristocrats and was trained as a spy and saboteur and is an expert in a variety of covert tactics, warfare, weapons and vehicles. She also has a history with Destro.
Zartan
A master of disguise, little is known about the man called Zartan. He can mimic almost any voice, is fluent in over 20 languages and practices various martial arts and is a ventriloquist. What made him most popular is his skin’s ability to change color to adapt with his surroundings like a chameleon. A mercenary by trade, he and his comrades at arms The Dreadnocks were often hired by Cobra to take on various tasks.
Serpentor
When Doctor Mindbender and Destro tired of the failures of Cobra Commander, they decided to create the perfect leader for Cobra. So raiding the tombs of some of history’s greatest leaders they took the genetic code from the likes of Napoleon, Julius Caesar, Hannibal, Vlad the Impaler, Attila the Hun and others to create a clone that would lead Cobra to greatness. This was Serpentor. Ruthless, calculating, genius and charismatic, he had all the traits of the perfect despot and eventually rested power from Cobra Commander for a time.
Sgt. Slaughter
Based on the wrestler of the same name, Sgt. Slaughter was born in Parris Island, South Carolina. He serves as the Drill Instructor for the G.I. Joe team and has led the team on a number of special missions. He also led the special units the Renegades and the Marauders for a time.
