The Good & Bad On G.I. Joe

Oddly enough, it seems we've become a bit of an unofficial source of tons of G.I. Joe movie information. Seeing as it's one of my favorite childhood sources of entertainment, I have absolutely no problem with that. And seeing as I stumbled upon two new articles about the movie this morning, I proudly present...

The Good & Bad On G.I. Joe

Our first source of info today comes from an interview that Dennis Quaid [who will be playing General Clayton Abernathy aka Hawk] did with MTV. Some scary stuff mixed in here. Take a look.

** Quaid is quoted as saying he'll be transforming the character to make him a "Hefner-like playboy."
First impression? BAD!
Second impression? Oh, that's bad. I see absolutely no benefit in making a Hawk a play-on Playa no matter how much on-screen tail that Dennis Quaid gets out of it. This seems like an attempt to make the character younger or in a Simon Cowell world "more relevant." But I don't like it... not one bit.

** Quaid was also given a list of characters to confirm or deny that they'll be in the movie.

Tomax and Xamot, the twins fronting the Crimson Guard? Negative, although he claims they may be in the second movie [that he has already signed on for.]
First impression? GOOD!
Second impression? Probably a good thing. I like the characters but we're already going overboard on villains with Destro, CC, the Baroness, and Zartan. Storm Shadow too [who is presumably a villain.] But I better be getting me some twins finishing each other's sentences in a future sequel.

Shipwreck? Negative.
First impression? GOOD!
Second impression? They probably couldn't have cast the parrot right anyways.

Wild Bill? Negative.
First impression? BAD!
Second impression? Would it really have been hard to toss in Wild Bill as a cameo in a helicopter flying scene?

** “‘G.I. Joe’ is kind of close to James Bond, the old James Bond with Dr. No,” Quaid said of the script he’ll begin shooting soon. “[Cobra is like] S.P.E.C.T.R.E., where they take over an entire island and are a sort of crime country unto themselves.”
First impression? BA-GOOD?
Second impression? I don't know about the Bond analogy but... excuse me? Did he mention Cobra taking over an island?! If we get a Cobra Island story, I just may wet myself.

** Catchphrases: Quaid confirms he does not get to scream "YO JOE!" during the movie but he does get a "Knowing is half the battle."
First impression? Mixed again.
Second impression? I like the nod to fans of the old cartoon but I'm going to be bummed if there's no "Yo Joe!" bellowed at some point.

Our other source of Joe info this morning comes from an interview MTV did with one of the Exec Producers...

** Comic writer Larry Hama is on board. Apparently he helped polish the script into something that he feels Joe fans will enjoy. And according to the exec producer, we may "even see him on screen." Who gives a fuck?
First impression? GOOD!
Second impression? Hama being on board with the script is a good thing. The comics were the best Joe stuff ever produced and he was responsible for them all. This increases my faith tenfold.

** All about the comics? The producer says they are going to largely avoid the TV show and tell the stories from the comics. He mentions delving into the Arishkage story with Snakes and Stormy. He mentions doing the origin story for Destro. Awesome stuff if they do it right. And he says, "this is really all about the rise of Cobra Commander." Again, awesome if they do it right.

And that's that.