World Comic Book Review

28th March 2024

Revolution #1 (Review)

Revolution #1
IDW Publishing, September 2016
Writers: John Barber & Cullen Bunn

And now it seems IDW Publishing are following the tired, weary path of cross-selling. The title does not immediately make it clear but “Revolution” #1 is the first installment in a massive inter-franchise crossover event from IDW Publishing, featuring popular toys and cartoon properties including “Transformers”, “G.I. Joe”, “Action Man”, and “ROM”. While not present in the first issue, IDW also announced the inclusion of “MASK: Mobile Armored Strike Kommand”, another toy line from the 1980s. This follows on from an announcement in 2015 between IDW Publishing and Hasbro, a toy manufacturer, to extend their licensing arrangement for an unspecified period of time. The license apparently had an initial duration of ten years. Unsurprisingly, the crossover event excludes one of Hasbro’s most successful toy lines, “My Little Pony”.

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Better to Burn the World than Rule the World

G.I. Joe: Deviations (review)
IDW Publishing, March 2016
Writer: Paul Allor
Review by Neil Raymundo, 30 March 2016

Comic book villains have a variety of motivation. Some are propelled by a lust for power (Julius Caesar in “Asterix”; the Kingpin in “Daredevil”) and some because they embody power (Lucifer Morningstar in “Lucifer”; Death in “East of West”). Others are motivated by psychosis (The Joker in “Batman”). Some reform (Magneto in “X-Men”) and some are motivated by vengeance and incapable of reform (Lex Luthor in “Superman”). Some are motivated by something else.

The “G.I. Joe” franchise started as a line of toys produced and owned by toy company Hasbro, originally created in 1964 and consisted of 12-inch figures representing four branches of the U.S. armed forces ( both “G.I.” and “Joe” were generic terms for U.S. soldiers in World War Two though the latter term has become derogatory in some South East Asian countries.) The toyline is responsible for popularizing the term “action figure,” and at the time developed a small following among young boys.

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