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When Cobra Commander makes his boldest move yet, the Joe team only has 24 hours to save the world.
Detailed summary
'G.I. Joe: Resolute is an animated series bringing back the classic G.I. Joe franchise premiering on Cartoon Network. Being one of the most successful shows in the past that led to a climatic high-production animated movie, it is now reinvigorated once again with a fresh spin of brutal style and animation. This new production brings a high-octane feature for more newer audiences while exciting regular fans of G.I. Joe for it's next come-back. Joe fans will immediately recognize many faces even with the new stylized format. One distinctive difference that this show has which strays away from the legend is the focus on the character known as "Snake Eyes". Bringing the change of Snake Eyes to being a martial artist is in contradiction to the successfully aired G.I. Joe franchise however fits perfectly with the animating teams very lethal style and takes this cue from the magazine. Many Joe fans may be disappointed by the major alteration of the Cobra ninja's arch nemesis, who is the character "Spirit", a tribal Indian master fighter, changed instead to being Snake Eyes, now branded a martial artist. Despite this and despite the edge of it's rougher attitude, Joe fans will not miss appreciating this new cartoon for basing it's foundation heavily on the G.I. Joe lore, while newer audiences will want to see more. Popularly being compared to what the "Mike Young Productions" had done for "He-man and the Masters Of The Universe" it is also receiving the buzz of being the "real" G.I. Joe movie as oppose to the upcoming Hollywood live-action feature. The show is directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, a director who has worked with the animating crew before on the hit cartoon Avatar: the last air bender, which gives the audience an idea of what type of material to expect.
In G.I. Joe: Resolute, the raging battle between G.I. Joe and Cobra has never been more intense. Every life is at stake… and even the good guys can die. But mostly BAD guys.
This is no game.
Your favorite characters are back... but this time, no one is safe. No parachutes (instead there are body gliders) No lasers (Instead there are giant laser cannons nuking Moscow). No rules (Except for "no guns" rule when Storm Shadow battles).
All games end today (Yet the ending contradicts this as Cobra Commander still lives, thus going into overtime> Now you know... and knowing is half the battle.|Hasbro official synopsis}}
Webisode 1
In Washington DC, police have cordoned off the Lincoln Memorial. A body lies on the floor inside, with a Cobra dagger stuck in its heart. A CSI tech scans his fingerprints, and gets confirmation: Major Bludd is dead. Passing a trashcan, the tech sheds her cap and jacket, revealing herself as Scarlett.
The U.S.S. Flagg floats in the middle of the Pacific ocean, with its crew going about their duties, when a series of bombs in the sub-level armory rip the ship apart and leave it smoking. Simultaneously around the world, the pieces begin to move into place:
- At the H.A.A.R.P. (High Frequency Active Aurora Research Program) facility, the antennae begin to glow, causing the sky to turn red.
- On Cobra Island, overgrown missile silos open, sending their payloads skyward. The satellites spread open and form a constellation around the globe.
- In Siberia, the Omsk-23 missile station shoots a pulse of energy into the sky.
Back on the Flagg, the Joes discuss the damage to the ship. Bazooka was on guard duty, but someone managed to get by him. The reason why is soon discovered: Bazooka is dead, killed without leaving a mark.
In Manhattan, Firefly assembles a rocket launcher and fires at the United Nations building. The missile smashes into the general assembly hall and embeds itself in the front wall, projecting a holographic communication from Cobra Commander. He gives a speech about money and power, and threatens the delegates. To prove his intentions, he destroys Moscow, killing all 10,382,754 residents.
Webisode 2
Onboard the Flagg, Doc prepares to autopsy Major Bludd's body and withdraws a rolled note from the corpse's mouth. Scarlett recognizes the Arashikage clan symbol, and Snake-Eyes uses a black light to reveal Storm Shadow's hidden message, inviting the ninja home. Duke gives him permission to go, but tells him to be ready when he's needed. Forced to choose between going with Snake-Eyes or staying with Duke, Scarlett clarifies if it is the team unit she must chose over assisting Snake Eyes or Duke himself over Snake Eyes, and with zero hesitation she opts to remain on the Flagg with Duke.
The hypersonic transport carries Snake-Eyes to his destination, and the man leaps out. He uses a personal flight suit to glide to the island, and night-vision goggles to find the best landing zone. Selecting a convenient dock, he sheds his suit and, without breaking stride, charges the lone Cobra Trooper on guard there and kills him. When a second Trooper comes by on his patrol, Snake-Eyes hides in the shadows, then jumps him, breaks his neck and ruthlessly stabs him.
Near the entrance to the temple, three more Cobras are startled by a sound: they focus their lights on the source, and see one of their fellow troopers, hanged from a tree and swaying in the breeze. As they cut down his body, they notice his grenade belt is missing; Snake-Eyes has used the grenades and a monofilament line attached to the dead man's back to set a trap for his enemies. The resulting blast is visible from a great distance.
One of the Cobra Troopers survives the explosion, and gets to his feet to see Snake-Eyes silhouetted against the flames. He raises his gun, but Snake-Eyes dashes past with his sword drawn, cutting the man down. As Snake starts up the temple steps, Storm Shadow watches from a nearby mountain.
Webisode 3
On the Flagg, Duke addresses the assembled Joe team, informing them of Cobra's strike on Moscow. After hitting them with the hard news he counters it to give inspiration by reminding them that G.I. Joe is more than one good soldier and that Cobra underestimates them, and then sends them to the situation room, telling everyone to get to work with the support staff. Cover Girl works with the computer techs, Wild Bill calls Brussels to get the vehicles warmed up, Flint tries to figure out why radios still work if satellite communications are down, and Gung-Ho tells his group to figure out how Cobra incinerated Moscow without using a nuke. One of the techs says she can think of five ways to do it, and Gung-Ho declares her his new favorite Joe.
Shortly, the Joes assemble again to share what they've learned. The ionosphere has been superheated, blocking sat signals, but reflecting long-range radio waves. The techs also put together enough data to confirm Cobra used a particle cannon, firing it skyward and collecting the energy over a target anywhere in the world and destroying it. They also figured out where the cannon is located: the Siberian missile silo.
Flint points out that in order to accomplish all this, Cobra must have been working for months: a full-scale assault would be detected a mile away and chewed up by their built-in defenses. Duke recognizes it will have to be a one-man job and as leader he automatically implies that it will be him; but Scarlett reaches out to Duke insisting her partnership for a two-person infiltration unit, giving Duke a sly but tender smile with the gesture of her hand touching his shoulder.
Webisode 4
Deep in Cobra headquarters, Cobra Commander pontificates to his assembled troops, explaining why he's always lost in the past, and how things are going to be different this time. He reminds them that it was he who killed "the traitor" Major Bludd, and warns them that his days of playing the weak fool are over. Anyone who works against him he will gut like a fish.
In the Pacific, Dial-Tone - the female tech who figured out how Moscow was destroyed - is going over data from the New Mexico radar station when she finds a string of anomalies mid-stratosphere. Meanwhile, in the wreckage of the armory, Gung-Ho, Flint and Roadblock discuss what to do next. Duke and Scarlett are prepping for their mission, but that still leaves questions unanswered. How is Cobra staying in formation if they don't have satellite access?
Dial-Tone dashes in and says she knows how: Cobra has set up a ring of stratellites, a technology barely in prototype, floating 20 miles above the ground. Flint assigns Tunnel Rat to take out the communications, but Dial-Tone warns him that when they tried to put a UAV up there to examine the devices, something shot it down. Tunnel Rat points out that even if the Joes do take out the stratellites, that doesn't fix the ionosphere, but Gung-Ho has the answer to that - a research station 100 miles away from the H.A.A.R.P. can see the antennas glowing. Flint orders the Joes to set up two strike-teams.
Cobra Troopers are standing guard at the H.A.A.R.P. facility. Inside, the scientists kneel on the ground with their hands behind their heads. The Baroness demands silence under the threat of death, pleased that she finally gets to spend some quality time with Destro.
Webisode 5
On the Arashikage island, Snake-Eyes climbs the stairs to the training grounds. All is silent. The buildings are dilapidated and grass grows through the stone walkways. Pushing aside a tattered curtain, Snake-Eyes remembers what the compound used to look like.
- Students practice their sword forms as the Hard Master counts off. A pair of students hone their striking power by punching a large tree stump.
- Tommy breaks off from the group, and asks to speak to his uncle, the Hard Master. The Hard Master says the younger man should address him as "sensei" in front of the other students, but Storm Shadow counters that he is not speaking to him as his student. He knows that the Hard Master has been tutoring Snake-Eyes privately, and is unhappy about it. Hard Master reassures Storm Shadow that while he had been training to be a ninja since childhood, Snake-Eyes started later in life, and needed extra help to keep up with the others.
- Storm Shadow is upset, however, that his uncle has not yet finished teaching him the Seven Steps to the Sun, the martial arts form he had created, and on which the reputation of the Arashikage school was founded. Despite being the greatest student in the school and the Hard Master's nephew, Storm Shadow had not yet been taught the final step, and wanted to know why. The Hard Master simply replies that Storm Shadow is not ready. He should still be grappling with the implications of the Sixth Step, itself a terrible move.
- Hard Master claps his hands, and the two students who had been striking the log lift it from its platform and hurl it toward him with all their might. With a single strike, he shatters the thick wooden stump - the Sixth Step. He says that Storm Shadow can already do this, but that the Seventh Step is death. Passing that knowledge on to anyone must be a careful decision. When Storm Shadow asks who will carry on the tradition when his uncle dies, the Hard Master repeats what he said before, adding that Snake-Eyes is more ready than Tommy. Violence is a burden to him, while to Storm Shadow, it is less than air.
- Storm Shadow offers his uncle one final chance to teach him the Seventh Step. When the man refuses, Storm Shadow removes the scarf wrapped around the lower half of his face and throws it in the air. On a distant hill, an unknown figure steps from the shadows and raises a sniper rifle. Realizing what is happening, Snake-Eyes rushes forward to save his master, getting a bullet through the jaw for his trouble. When the Hard Master turns around to see what is the matter, a second bullet zips cleanly through his head, and he falls to the ground.
- Storm Shadow tells Snake-Eyes it had to be done - they were meant to be ninjas, not schoolboys. Unable to speak, Snake-Eyes draws his sword and challenges his best friend. Tommy reminds him that if you strike a fellow Arashikage, it means vendetta. Snake-Eyes' vision is blurry, but he does not back down. He swings at Storm Shadow, but misses. Storm Shadow knocks him to the ground, causing him to lose his sword. As Storm Shadow prepares to strike again, Snake-Eyes bashes him with his elbow, knocking him to the ground. When Storm Shadow gets up, Snake-Eyes is gone.
His memory over, Snake-Eyes hears Storm Shadow join him on the training arena. Storm Shadow repeats what his note said: all games end today.
Write up
Featured Characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| G.I. Joe | Cobra | Civilians | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
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Featured Vehicles & Equipment
| G.I. Joe | Cobra | Civilian |
|---|---|---|
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Featured Locations
| G.I. Joe | Cobra | Civilian |
|---|---|---|
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Notable quotes
"A ninja? I didn't know we had a ninja!"
- --Well now you know, Roadblock...
"You can go with him, or stay with me; your call. Make it now."
"You mean stay with 'the unit.'"
"You heard what I said."
- --Duke, perhaps this isn't the best time to give Scarlett an ultimatum.
"It suited me once to appear weak and cowardly, because it motivated you people to think, but today...is a new day. There will be no moves to take over my command. There will be no mistakes. There will be none of your crap! None of it!"
- --Cobra Commander, seriously laying down the law.
"You've been tutoring my friend privately."
"You have been training since you could walk. Your friend came to us as an older child, an orphan. He needs a little help to keep up with you. He is your best friend; do you deny him aid?"
- --Storm Shadow and the Hard Master discuss Snake-Eyes' training.
"You do not understand that to be able to deal utter destruction with only seven blows is a responsibility like no other!"
"Uncle, you will not live forever! Who will pass on the soul of your school to new generations if you do not teach me the Seventh Step?"
"This is not the soul of my school. Do you really comprehend so little? Do you really believe I have nothing to teach, but death? Your friend is more ready than you. Violence is a burden to him - to you, it is less than air."
"I ask you one last time: will you teach me the Seventh Step?"
"No, I believe I will not."
- --Hard Master shuts down Storm Shadow's childish demands.
"Aw, that's just bloody cheating!"
- --Destro after realizing the gun battle he was in was just to to keep him occupied in order to allow his hostages to escape.
Other notes
Animation and/or technical glitches
Continuity errors
- If Cobra Commander killed Major Bludd in Springfield, why is there so much blood in Washington DC?
Real-world references
- The H.A.A.R.P. program really exists in Alaska, and it looks almost exactly the way it is depicted in this cartoon.[1]
Miscellaneous trivia
- This version of Roadblock doesn't speak in rhyme.
- Destro has a pronounced Scottish accent.
- Steven Blum (Cowboy Bebop, Wolverine and the X-Men) seems to do about 90% of the male voices.
- Webisode 4 was the first not to open with a shot of the U.S.S. Flagg.
Mission Codes
Each webisode was followed by a code that would unlock content on Hasbro's G.I. Joe: Resolute website.[2] The codes, in order, are:
- HAUSER
- NINJA
- OHARA
- HINTON
- OLDSNAKE
Project history
The G.I. Joe: Resolute cartoon was announced as a series of 10 five-minute webisodes to be capped off by a 10-minute finale. The webisodes were originally going to be streamed from Hasbro's G.I. Joe website. Together, the webisodes comprise a one-hour movie that could be shown on television later or released to DVD. However, before any episodes premiered online, it was revealed that the full one-hour movie would be shown on Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" block on Saturday, April 25.[3] In Canada, the full movie will air on Teletoon in the Teletoon Detour block on April 24.
However, the individual webisodes began to appear online on April 17, leading up to the broadcast premiere.[4]
300px|right|An audience video of the Resolute footage shown at SDCC'08 The cartoon has a more serious tone comparable to the G.I. Joe comics from Marvel Comics.
The story is written by noted comic book author Warren Ellis (Planetary), produced by Sam Register (former vice president of Cartoon Network) and directed by Joaquim Dos Santos (Justice League Unlimited, Avatar: The Last Airbender). Character designs are by comic book artist Dave Johnson. Their approach to the project is that of a PG-13 cartoon.[5]
A one-minute preview was shown at the Hasbro panel at the 2008 Comic-Con International at San Diego. The preview is not meant as part of the movie's story but illustrates Hasbro's direction for this project. Viewers may expect highly-detailed animation and a more realistic approach to the story: no lasers, real bullets and open fates for the characters (i.e., any one of the "majors" may die). Several classic characters and vehicles will be updated. The success of the webisodes may transfer to other similarly-themed Hasbro properties but nothing is clarified at this time.
References