#serpentor

[gijoe-forever]

Zartan kills Serpentor during the Cobra civil war on Cobra island

[animated-geisla]

[triplexmile]

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[wanderingmind867]

I feel like Transformers never explains where Astrotrain, Blitzwing, Red Alert, Inferno, Beachcomber, etc all came from. They were not part of the original Transformers, and you can't just retcon them in! That will not work for me. So there's gotta be an explanation for them suddenly showing up, otherwise I'm just gonna be deeply annoyed.

At least GI Joe had the perfect excuse for them introducing new characters: they're an army group. Of course they get new recruits! What are the Transformers doing, soliciting fresh blood from Cybertron? They've been powered down for 4 million years, nobody probably even remembers them on their home planet except as myths or historical figures! Transformers is inconsistent while having a very strong origin story, and that origin makes the inconsistencies hard to miss.

If I were to try and fix Transformers G1 season 2, I think I have some specific demands. Demand 1: I want to pitch a GI Joe and Transformers five part crossover. And demand 2: I want to pitch a story where the Transformers and Atlantis episode stars Namor as the Prince of Atlantis. I don't care about the rights, this is purely fanfiction anyway. So give me Namor meeting the Transformers!

Now, my pitch for the GI Joe and Transformers crossover actually involves a few different things. It's a five parter, true. But parts 1 and 2 take place during season 1 of GI Joe, and parts 3 to 5 take place during season 2. That way, we can get an almost equal amount of Cobra Commander and Serpentor. Also, I think parts 3 to 5 of this storyline can be used to introduce all those new Transformers that start popping up. Those new Transformers don't start popping up until (going by the transformers wiki I found) season 2 episode 11 or 12. So let's assume that the first ten episodes of season 2 all happen before parts 3 to 5 of this miniseries.

Anyways, parts 1 and 2 of the crossover would involve Cobra and the GI Joes finally meeting the Autobots and Decepticons. Cobra is planning a big mission out on the west coast, something massive like earthquakes or the siege of a city. But they arrive at their planned location only to discover the Decepticons have beaten them to it! This is the first time Cobra is hearing of these aliens, whereas some of the GI Joes already know vaguely about the Autobots (due to US government intelligence).

Cobra and the Decepticons end up brawling in the streets, until GI Joe and the Transformers both end up teaming up to stop them. Overwhelmed by their foes, Cobra and the Decepticons retreat. After a few days of silence and regrouping, Cobra Commander sends a delegation to the Decepticons. He wishes to make an alliance. If the Decepticons help destroy GI Joe, then Cobra shall tackle the Autobots!

This leads to part 2 of the saga, where the four different groups all tangle once more. This time Cobra takes on the Autobots and the Decepticons take on the GI Joes. But they both fail in their missions, predominantly because both groups refused to trust each other. Cobra Commander had privately had some of his best men sneak into the Decepticons base and mess with their tech, while Megatron had also sent some of his men to destroy Cobra's weapons. Because of their hatred for each other, Cobra Commander and Megatron both fail disastrously in their attempts to conquer their enemies. They both end up retreating again, while GI Joe and the Autobots learn that they can both count on each other to come to their allies defense.

After this, there'd be a timeskip. A few things might happen in the Transformers plotlines, but GI Joe is really where all the actions at. Cobra Commander has been couped by Serpentor, the temperamental super soldier Cobra created out of the DNA of famous warriors and dictators. Serpentor is much crueller than Cobra Commander, and he has the brilliant idea to go toe to toe with Megatron. Specifically, he builds a massive magnetic device that he uses to try and subjugate the Decepticons. He bends them all to his will, and he forces them to serve him! But Megatron doesn't go down easy, and he manages to get one of his Decepticons to flee to Cybertron for backup.

In the meantime though, the Decepticons are now the puppets of Cobra! Cobra, the new and improved. Cobra, the mighty! And in the wake of Serpentor's great victory, he interrogates the Decepticons for information on how to best conquer earth for Cobra. He learns that Megaton and his Decepticons had once used a giant robot named Nightbird in their evil, and that they still might be able to reactivate her and control her. With this knowledge, Serpentor easily comes up with a new scheme to destroy GI Joe…

What Cobra alone could not do, Serpentor figures these Decepticons might be able to do. He offers them a proposal: destroy GI Joe and help Cobra conquer the globe, and Serpentor will in exchange destroy those Autobots Megatron hates so much. He'll kill all of them and melt them into thrones for his earthly empire! But if he does this, Megatron and his men must leave earth and never return. Should they return, Serpentor will not hesitate to destroy the Decepticons like he'll destroy the Autobots! Seeing no alternative left to him (and willing to try making the best of a bad situation while awaiting reinforcements from Cybertron), Megatron makes the deal with Serpentor. And lo, the world's deadliest alliance is born!

Together, over the course of episodes 3 and 4 of this 5 parter, Serpentor successfully manages to capture all of the Autobots (except the idiotic little ones, Cliffjumper and Bumblebee), and he has them all immobilized. Soon they will be dissected by Dr. Mindbender. Then Cobra will know what makes them tick, and they can create new things from them. Perhaps they may be useful for improving the B.A.T. soldiers. Or perhaps they can be used to create weapons for subjugating those Decepticon fools!

But while Serpentor succeeds brilliantly, Megatron fails spectacularly. He tries to snuff out the GI Joes with the aid of his fellow Decepticons and of the newly freed robot Nightbird, but nothing he does seems to work. Megatron never learns why, but he was failing because Starscream and Cobra Commander had teamed up. Cobra Commander and Starscream never really bothered talking before, but they quickly find they have a lot in common when they're both forced into the raid on the Joes. Cobra Commander wishes to retake Cobra from Serpentor, whilst Starscream wishes to coup Megatron and become leader of the Decepticons.

Together, Starscream and Cobra Commander aid the GI Joes in fighting the Decepticons. They do this in secrecy, and without either the Decepticons or the GI Joes knowing. But they succeed, and they make Megatron retreat from battle. From here on, Cobra Commander and Starscream think that victory is within grasp for both of them! They're ecstatic. But when they get back to Cobra HQ and find the Autobots about to be smelted (with the Decepticons soon to follow), they know that they both may be in deep trouble.

This is where episode 5 comes in to wrap up the whole big storyline. It turns out a whole battalion of new cybertronians (both Autobot and Decepticon alike) have arrived on earth to save their compatriots. This is how characters like Astrotrain, Blitzwing, Inferno, Beachcomber, Smokescreen, Dirge, Ramjet, Grapple and Hoist all show up in time for Transformers season 2. The Decepticon troops were already helping Shockwave keep the peace back on Cybertron as part of the Cybertronian army, but the Autobots had to be recruited and discovered by Cliffjumper and Bumblebee (both of whom were forced to sneak around Cybertron together). Honestly, Cliffjumper and Bumblebee's big adventure could be it's own bonus episode.

But in any case, they successfully manage to find new forces just in time for them to free the other Autobots and Decepticons. From here, it's a simple matter for the Autobots and Decepticons to both turn on Cobra! GI Joe even get into the fun, having trailed Megatron all the way back to the Cobra base. It turns into a total free for all, with almost everyone against Cobra. Serpentor barely manages to escape, and he vows that he'll have his vengeance on all these fools! Autobot, Decepticon and GI Joe alike will receive no mercy under his future regime!

Meanwhile, the Autobots and Decepticons return to their status quo battle. They have a whole lot of new members, but their fight still remains the same. And Cobra Commander and Starscream are both left dreaming of what might have been. Together, they were so close. So close. They could've both won. But no…they're still stuck as second fiddles to maniacs. But perhaps one day, if the stars do align, Cobra Commander and Starscream might meet again. Not as second fiddles, but as leaders of their armies! And then Serpentor and Megatron will learn the folly of picking fights with them!

So…yeah. This is my pitch for how the Transformers could've added in all those new characters. It has everything. A plausible explanation, a team up between both of Chris Latta's evil characters whom I adore (Starscream and Cobra Commander), Serpentor coming this close to actually destroying the Transformers, Cliffjumper and Bumblebee having a team up adventure, etc. It's got everything! And I think it's a shame Hasbro never had the idea for this one. Because it would have worked. I swear it would've. I swear!

[evilhorse]

G.I. Joe #6

[super116love]

That is Cobra's Ass

So sexy......

[crisisofinfinitemultiverses]

Cobra by Dave Rapoza

[cirex101]

G.I. Joe: Major differences between characters in comic and cartoon

For no reason in particular, I've decided to talk (type out?) my observations on the differences between the two main pillars of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero; the Marvel comic and the Sunbow cartoon (we're not going to talk about DiC).

First off, let's establish the timeline for each. The comic ran from June 1982 all the way to December 1994; twelve years. Not bad for a toy tie-in comic. The cartoon meanwhile had two seasons of 95 episodes total and a movie, and lasted from September 1983 to November 1986; three years, also not bad. The comic a longer lifespan than it's animated brother, but the cartoon is better remembered by the general public, so it all evens out I suppose.

To say that the toyline had a lot of characters would be an understatement. By the end, there were quite literally hundreds of named characters. As expected, both series would develop a core cast of "Main" Joes and Cobras that would get the lion's share of the focus, while other characters would be supporting cast, with a chance in the spotligt if they were lucky.

Let's compare and contrast some of the main Joes and Cobras and see how they differ in each medium.

G.I. Joe:

Hawk: The leader of the G.I. Joe from the start, back when everyone (save for two) was wearing green. Hawk was the classic 80s "blonde, blue-eyed leader guy" that was common throughout the toylines of the era. Now, while Hawk was always the commander in the comic, he wouldn't make an appearance in the cartoon until Season 2, which is when his new toy and his promotion to general came about. The cartoon also changed his hair to brown, so that we wouldn't mix him up with Duke, a change that has carried on to other Joe media, and even the comic has retconned Hawk's hair color.

Duke: The face of G.I. Joe to many, the team's First Sergeant was a relative latecomer in the comics, only appearing a little over twenty issues in alongside Roadblock, while in the cartoon he was in charge from episode one. Like Hawk, Duke was another 80s blonde leader archetype; unlike Hawk, he got to keep his hair color. While Duke remained prominent throughout the cartoon, even after the introduction of Hawk, the comic didn't really know what to do with him until the IDW continuation in the 2010s, where his wife Claire was introduced. Also, the comic version was best friends with Roadblock, whom he debuted alongside.

Snake Eyes: Arguably the most well known character, and certainly the Joe with the most action figures sold, the mute ninja commando is porbably the best example of the differences between comic and cartoon. In the comics, despite (almost) never seeing his face or hearing him talk Snake Eyes is more or less the protagonist; his backstory is large (to the point of being convoluted) and intertwined with multiple characters (his romance with Scarlett, his wartime friendship with Stalker, ninja training with Storm Shadow, and the center of a grudge held by Cobra Commander). In the cartoon though, despite major roles in the first three mini-series, Snake Eyes fell off into a background role as the show went on, most likely as a result of Sunbow not knowing what to do with a character who doesn't speak.

Scarlett: G.I. Joe's counter-intel specialist and most prominent female character, Scarlett has the distinction of being a major character in both comic and cartoon. She's mostly depicted the same in each, being a touch, no-nonsense soldier. However, she also finds herself at the center of one of the oldest shipping wars in the fandom. Y'see, in the comics, she's in a long-term romance with Snake Eyes, while in the cartoon she's in a "will they won't they" deal with Duke.

Flint & Lady Jaye: Putting these two together to save time. Like Scarlett, they are major characters in both comic and cartoon, though their roles and even personalities differ depending on the medium. In the comic, Flint is kind of an arrogant blowhard, though he can back that up with legitimate skill, while in the cartoon he's more of a straight-laced leader type. Speaking of which, he's almost used interchangeably with Duke. Lady Jaye in the cartoon gets to show off her undercover skills more often, and has about as many "trick javelins" as Green Arrow has trick arrows. Also, both characters are a couple in each medium.

Shipwreck: The differences between comic Shipwreck and cartoon Shipwreck are like night and day. In the comic, Shipwreck's appearances are limited to whenever the Joes go out on the ocean, which makes sense, given that he's a sailor. He's also presented as a tough, no-nonsense sea-dog. Cartoon Shipwreck on the other hand is very laid-back, alost lazy guy, based on Jack Nicholson's character from "The Last Detail." He's also a major character in the cartoon, appearing in more episodes than anyone short of Duke, Flint, Cobra Commander, & Destro, and was the main protagonist of the Season 1 finale.

Sgt. Slaughter: A fictional version of WWF star Sgt. Slaughter, real name Robert Remus. The good Sgt wasn't the only real world celebrity who got an action figure in the toyline, but he was by far the most famous, as well as the face/spokesman for the entire franchise for much of the 80s. Outside of his introduction and a few issues afterwards, Slaughter was never a major presence in the comics. Compare and contrast the cartoon, where he was a one-man army and frequent team leader. He'd have a major presence throughout both Season 2 and the movie.

Stalker: One of the original thirteen Joes, and Hawk's first second-in-command. In the comics, he remained as a senior member of the team even after the arrival of Duke, and Flint, regularly leading squads into battle. He also had a long history with both Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, being their squad leader during the Vietnam War. Larry Hama considers Stalker to be one of the "core" Joes alongside the three "S's".

Cobra:

Cobra Commander: The leader of Cobra, as if you couldn't tell from the name. What he lacks in martial skill and military strategy, he more than makes up for in ruthlessness, cunning, and getting like-minded people on his side. His origins also varied depending on the medium. In the comics, the man who would become Cobra Commander was a failed used-car salesman, mad at an uncaring system that led to his brother getting himself killed, and the ruin of his business. He would form Cobra out of people left behind by society, and forge them into a militaristic quasi-fascist organization. The Cobra Commander of the cartoon, due to it's more pulp-adventure themes, was a scion of the hidden civilization of Cobra-La, sent out into the human world as the vanguard for his people's eventual takeover. Despite his grandiose plans and larger than life persona, he wasn't very good at the whole "world domination" business, to the point that the rest of Cobra got together to overthrow and replace him with Serpentor. Cobra Commander in the comics also had a son named Billy, with whom he was at odds with, and even tried to kill on several occasions.

Destro: Scottish arms dealer, known best for his iconic metal mask, a family tradition, along with selling weapons to both sides of a conflict. Not actually a member of Cobra, but is instead Cobra's most important business partner, supplying most of their advanced weapons and technology. Also, occasionally, tries to usurp Cobra Commander and take over, alongside his longterm love interest Baroness. The Destro of the comics, despite being a villain, was also a man who held fast to his own personal code of honor, which at times aligned him more with his Joe adversaries than his nominal allies in Cobra. Halfway through the comics, he wouldgo solo with his own organization, the Iron Grenadiers, and later on even stopped being a villain. By comparison, the cartoon version wasn't nearly as complicated a character, being more straightforward with his villainy.

Baroness: Cobra's head of intelligence and easily the most recognizable female character in the franchise for obvious reasons. Hailing from an unnamed European country, Baroness was a self-professed revolutionary looking to tear down the old order, while also hypcritically benefiting from her aristocratic title and heritage and looking down on the "peasants." Despite being Cobra Commander's second-in-command, she's more loyal to her boyfriend Destro than she is Cobra (though that doesn't stop the cartoon version from getting his ancestral castle wrecked due to jealousy). Halfway through the comic, Baroness would discover that she was mistaken about the inciting incident which led her to a life of terrorism, and after reflecting on things, left Cobra and went straight alongside her lover Destro. The cartoon version never got to have that level of depth, unfortunately.

Storm Shadow: Cobra's top ninja, and the Commander's bodyguard. Like his fellow ninja Snake Eyes, his appearances in comic and cartoon are wildly different. The comic version was, almost from the start, planned by writer Larry Hama to secretly be a good guy (Hama, Japanese-American himself, didn't like that the only Asian character was evil, and took the initiative to correct that), who only joined Cobra to discover who killed his uncle, the Hard Master. He was also tied heavily to Joes Snake Eyes and Stalker, with whom he served alongside in Vietnam, and was as close as brothers with the former. By comparison, the cartoon Storm Shadow was just an evil ninja, though one with his own code. His main rival also changed depending on the medium as well; in the comic, it was initially his sword-brother Snake Eyes while he was with Cobra (and in every continuity since then; can't beat White Ninja vs Black Ninja), and then later Zartan, his uncle's killer, when he defected. In the cartoon though, Storm Shadow's main rival was, for some reason, Native American (of the Pueblo Peoples to be specific) Spirit.

Zartan & The Dreadnoks: Mercenary master of disguise plus his gang of Mad Max rejects, as well as one of the most enduring and well known aspects of the franchise. While the Dreadnoks (initially Buzzer, Ripper, and Torch, then expanding to include Zarana, Zandar, Thrasher, & others) are more or less the same in both mediums, Zartan hmself gets a spotlight on his backstory in the comic, where he's tied into the greater narrative surrounding Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, being the man who actually killed the Hard Master. Zartan, who always regretted that murder, would eventually, like so many other comic Cobras, defect and join the good guys, and leadership of the Dreadnoks would fall to his sister Zarana. After Zartan, Zarana is the next most prominent 'Nok. In the comics, due thanks to a number of murders and defections within Cobra's High Command, would eventually find herself as de facto second-in-command. The cartoon version would never rise that far in the ranks, but she made up for that thansk to a spotlight episode where she (in disguise mind you) entered a doomed romance with the Joe computer expert Mainframe, which wold be brought up several more times whenever the two interacted in later episodes. The other Dreadnoks are probably best known for the episode Cold Slither, where a broke Cobra has them pose as a rock band, also named Cold Slither.

Serpentor: Cobra Emperor, and Cobra Commander's main rival for leadership. Serpentor is a genetic cocktail of some of history's most (in)famous conquerors; though the people that made up his component genes changed depending on the medium. Shared donors included Napoleon Bonaparte, Julius Ceaser, Alexander the Great, Hannibal Barca, Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Vlad the Impaler, Ivan the Terrible, and Philip II of Macedon. The cartoon version would also have the DNA of Grigori Rasputin, Montezuma, Eric the Red, Geronimo, fictional Egyptian general Xanuth Amoth-Toth, and King Takshaka. Additionally, each version would have one final geentic donor; in the comics, it was Storm Shadow, and in the cartoon it was Sgt. Slaughter (originally suppsoed to be Sun Tzu, but Cobra couldn't get his DNA). The "why" of his creation also changed depending on the medium. In the comic, Cobra Commander wanted the best field general possible to lead Cobra's armies, only to realize too late that the DNA donors were also great leaders, and that Serpentor might try to usurp him. In the cartoon, Serpentor was made by Cobra High Command to replace the Commander, who had led Cobra to defeat one time too many. While both Serpentors were strong, tough, and brilliant generals, there were prominent differences between versions. In the cartoon, Serpentor was a loud-mouthed hothead, whose first act was the launch a full scale invasion of Washington DC, which quickly blew up in his face, since he had no way to hold the city after he had taken it. He would then spend the rest of Season 2 and the Movie continuing to shout orders and only being slightly more competent than his predecessor, who stuck around to play the Starscream (ironic given that they were voiced by the same guy) to Serpentor's Megatron. The comic version, while no less ambitious, was far calmer, and was charismatic enough to actually gain supporters among the Cobra rank-and-file. Eventually, Cobra devolved into a civil war between Serpentor and Cobra Commander (actually an imposter at the time), which would lead to his death via Zartan shooting an arrow into his eye.

Tomax & Xamot: The Crimson Twins, leaders of Cobra's elite Crimson Guard. Former acrobats and members of the Unione Corse, the twins were never really prominent characters in the comics; Larry Hama reportedly didn't care for them, and as a result, used them sparingly, even though he got great mileage out of their Crimson Guard subordinates, specifically the "Fred Series," multiple individuals who udnerwent plastic surgery to look identical (notable Freds include Fred II, real anme Wade Collins, old army buddy of Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, and Stalker, and step-father of future Joe Kamakura, and Fred VII, who would impersonate and take the place of Cobra Commander for years). The brothers were far more important in the cartoon, as they were in charge of Extensive Enterprises, a corporation that served as Cobra's front to the world. They were more like Destro, being more like important partners to Cobra rather than a proper part of Cobra's hierarchy itself.