art – European Joe's

A.I., G.I. Joe and a Chinese webshop… What could go wrong?

Regular readers/followers of the blog will know that I like to scour the internet shops to find special and original G.I. Joe related stuff. This time around I was browsing a certain Chinese webshop where you can shop like a billionaire, when I came across some G.I. Joe art I could not pass on. I’m not 100% sure, but I do believe that this may have been A.I. generated. I can’t really put my finger on it, but something feels off. What do you think?

The G.I. Joe logo is rendered true to its original logo. That’s a plus I guess, as for the rest… Well, they look like some military dudes and dudettes. The background is cool, too. I’m struggling to make something good out of this 🙂

The main character front and (a little of) center, could look a bit like Scarlett if you squint a bit and had a few drinks too many. The guy in the back then probably starts looking like Stalker. The bald guy reminds me of Von Totenschadel (see this post), not sure that’s a good thing.

The people on the right could be interpreted as (from left to right) Lady Jane, Flint (Falcon?) and General Hawk (he does look a bit older than the others).

The guy in the middel has to be Duke if I had to take an educated guess.

For fun and giggles, I asked AI to give me the names of the Joes depicted here. Truth be told, it immediately told me that they are not pulled directly from original art, but that they appear to be an artistic impression.

Center Figure (Red-haired woman in yellow-blue outfit)
This character resembles Scarlett, one of the original and most recognizable female Joes. Known for her red hair and combat skills, she’s often depicted in a bodysuit with a crossbow. The bikini-style outfit here is a more exaggerated, pin-up reinterpretation.
Man in Beret with Mustache (Left side)
Strong resemblance to Sgt. Slaughter, the drill instructor with a signature campaign hat or beret. He’s a fan-favorite and was even voiced by the real-life wrestler in the animated series.
Man in Green with Rifle (Right side)
Could be Flint, known for his shotgun and beret. Flint is a key field leader and often paired with Lady Jaye in the lore.
Other Soldiers in Background
These figures seem to be generic Joes or inspired by characters like Duke, Beachhead, or Gung-Ho, depending on their gear and facial features. The art style leans more toward homage than exact replication.

That’s all for now, until next time. Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

The very next day

As I was writing the previous post (the next day), the bell rang again and the mailman delivered the Classified Major Bludd figure. I honestly didn’t think I could have gotten that one easily, but here goes to show that you shouldn’t lose faith and never stop hoping.

Once again, the art on this box is awesome. Check out some close-ups below. During last Friday’s YoJoe June Fan Friday event, they told us who the artist behind these pieces of art are. Karl Kopinski. Check out his website for more of his awesome art.

While we’re on the topic of the YoJoe June Fan Friday event, I really enjoyed it. Sure, we’re getting another Snake-Eyes, but he comes with Timber this time around! And yes, there is the 4th (yes, the FOURTH) edition of Roadblock in the Classified series, but he does look the coolest of them all. They announced Breaker and the R.A.M. Definitely not a deal-breaker. I already have put in my pre-order for the Heavy Artillery Roadblock figure over on Amazon. I’m hopeful that I will be able to get the other figures as well. I really think the issues we have seen have been a wake-up call for Hasbro and I personally hope that we will be seeing higher production numbers and sales figures.

That’s it for now. Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

Just a little paperwork

I’ve been enjoying the video/podcast from G.I.Joburg on the Benelux catalog with ultimately the best G.I. Joe photography in the world. The art and photos have been discussed by Paul Panfalone on Plastic Battles (part 1 & 2). I highly recommend to watch/listen to both shows.

Anyways, I was inspired by them and the incredible photography and did some searching. I rediscovered the 1989 G.I. Joe Dossier we got over here in the Benelux. They released 3 of these Dossiers which contain nice pictures of the Action Figures and vehicles on one side and on the back side there was a description similar to the filecards in both Dutch and French. I knew there were 2 sets, but recently I found a 3rd set being offered on a local site. I made a deal with the seller and I’m now the proud owner of the full set of 3 Dossiers.

Get ready for a huge set of photos.

Now that was a whole lot of awesomeness! What’s your favorite image? Let me know in the comments or over the Socials (Twitter, Instagram or Facebook).

See you again soon! Happy Collecting and YoJoe!

Comic books are art!

Convince me otherwise. You can’t. I know. Don’t sweat it. Give in to it and become an art collector as well.

In preparation of the previous blog post on the Marvel ARAH Special Missions #1, I came across the website of artist Mike Zeck, who did the cover art for that issue. As it happens, he is selling some Joe prints in his shop and naturally I placed an order. Below you can see the prints I got. They were shipped in very sturdy packaging and very fast considering they had to travel halfway across the globe to get here.

Anyway, check out his site and shop for yourself and order some of these gorgeous prints for your mancave, study, living room or art wall. Visit the site on https://www.mikezeck.com/shop.

IMG_20190226_124832_745 This is just iconic! Check out the last post where I go into more detail about this Special Mission.

IMG_20190226_124832_746 Spot Roadblock?

IMG_20190226_124832_751 Snake and Scars… A better couple than Kim & Kanye if you ask me. IMG_20190226_124832_743 New comic book, still great cover art!

Let me end by saying that this post is not sponsored in any way. I’m doing this all for the love of Joe (boy, that doesn’t sound as good as I thought it would) and my love for fine art! Support your local comic book shops and the artists bringing you joy and fun every Wednesday!

Happy Collecting and YoJoe!