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G.I. Joe Tidbits - This Is Why You Should Be Excited!

by Alex Billington
April 23, 2008
Source: io9

We all know there is a G.I. Joe movie in the works, but not everyone smiles at the mention of it. In fact, I think I'm one of the few who is genuinely excited for it even a year out. We've been writing about it since it was first announced and even shared the first photos of Snake Eyes and Scarlett. However, if you're still skeptical, here's a few new details that might perk you up. A new script review popped up over at CC2K (it has since been removed), but io9 made sure to write down a few of the details that really stood out, including: accelerator suits, nano-bombs, the Neo-Vipers, and more.

Here's a recap on what we know about the storyline for the movie so far. This movie will be a modern telling of the "G.I. Joe vs. Cobra" storyline and its compelling characters that Hasbro created 25 years ago. The G.I. Joe team will not be based in Brussels. Instead, they will be based out of the "Pit" as they were throughout the 1980s comic book series. And, in keeping with the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra fantasy, the movie will feature characters and locations from around the world. Duke, the lead character and head of the G.I. Joe team, will embody the values of bravery and heroism that the first generation of G.I. Joe figures established.

In essence, the G.I. Joe team, led by Duke (played by Channing Tatum), fights for freedom whenever there is trouble - which involves Cobra Commander and his Cobra Force this time. Beyond that, the exact story hasn't been revealed, and we're not going to spoil anything for you, but we are going to share some of the cool things that were discovered in this most recent script review.

Accelerator Suits - These allow the G.I. Joe squad to "run faster, jump super-high, smash through walls, and shrug off bullets."

Nano-Bombs - A bomb that Cobra Commander is developing that launches a swarm of nanites that eat all non-organic material in the surrounding area including buildings and machinery but none of the people.

Neo-Vipers - A legion of ninja-like super-soldiers that are controlled by Destro that have been enhanced by nanotechnology to not feel any pain or remorse. They were created by a "mad scientist" known as the Doctor. Check out some photos of the old Neo-Viper figures here.

Destro's Mask - Also created by the same Doctor is a mask made of nanites that Destro wears because his face is disfigured after a fight. This gives Cobra the ability to control his mind.

Scarlett's Armor - You've already seen the photo, but apparently that armor allows her to become completely invisible for her missions, or so they say...

The G.I. Joe movie is being referred to as "a cross between X-Men, Saving Private Ryan and Starship Troopers." The real reason I'm excited for it: I have a good feeling that G.I. Joe is going to be as badass (or more) than Transformers. Paramount is kicking it up a notch with this one and Stephen Sommers and crew are really going all out. I've been excited from the start and now these tidbits have gotten me even more revved up. I don't know how you can hear about accelerator suits, nanotechnology, and epic battles and not be excited for this movie?

I'd actually love to hear why people aren't excited for it? I know it's still very early, but I'm certain in due time you'll all be foaming at the mouth for more G.I. Joe. Just wait until Comic-Con this July - I'm sure we'll see some footage then. I really have a good feeling about this, despite Sommers' shaky track record, but I feel like it's the producers, specifically Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who are really keeping this one on track. I just don't think we know of any of the real details that will get everyone excited yet, which is why is this our first taste of what's to come. And I definitely hope it has whet your appetite for G.I. Joe!

G.I. Joe is directed by Stephen Sommers (Deep Rising, The Mummy, Van Helsing) and written by both Stuart Beattie and Skip Woods. The movie arrives in theaters on August 7th, 2009.

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The Delighful Deviant

Accelerator Suits make me cringe, i was excited until now, super suits and robot ninjas make me want to avoid this at all cost.
NotyomommasCat

I'm afriad of the way Sommers directs. I am glad they switched a few things around with the script (no more Brussels), but I'm still skeptical. I'm going to hold the hate off though, at least until I see a trailer.
http://www.theaterhopper.com Tom Brazelton

I thought G.I. Joe was bad enough when there was a maelstrom of blue and red lazers flying across a battlefield and no one getting shot. But "accelerator suits" make it sound like no one will get hurt, ever. Where's the risk? Where's the sacrifice? These soldiers sound more like cartoons than the actual cartoons!
http://www.thestopbutton.com/ Andrew Wickliffe

The nano and nanite bits certainly suggest some great scene possibilities. But Stephen Sommers is one of the worst directors working and Skip Woods is a terrible writer (Swordfish?)
Hallack

I have to agree nano-technology for Destro's mask? What the hell happened to the family curse? Super ninja's? Are you kidding me? This is what scared me when I first heard about the movie. Just another Hollywood ninja flick! Cobra has legions of soldiers and over 75% of them are not ninjas!!! Accelerator suits that stop bullets, let them jump higher, etc...? Come on this should not be some sci-fi flick? And what is with the look of the outfits that have been posted on other sites? They look like the outfits the Joe's where in Sigma Six!! That is not what GI Joe needs to be turned into... I don't want to see this turn out to be some anime gone live-action like that rediculous Speed Racer movie!! I am trying to keep an open mind, but the more comes out the more I worry!!
Christopher Goudos

Yeah, GI JOE should be realistic like the original 1982 line up with Flash and his laser gun, and the HAL laser cannon and they need the JUMP jet pack. Maybe they could include Cobra’s Battle Android Troopers. It should be just like real war… What’s that? You mean the guys in Iraq don’t have laser guns or jet packs? You don’t say. Well, in that case everything sounds like it should be pretty sweet if they don’t flub it up and that we won’t know until we see the film next year.
Fatal Error

If Sommers screws this up there will be no mercy for him...
darrin

u made me say it," forget transfrmers 2 g.i. joe is the shit
http://bulius.com Julius

Nano-bombs? I was really hoping that GI JOE would have to stop the BET again. Sigh.
Jojo

This movie will be just as good as transformers with shit load of action and kickass stuff except done with much more flair and passion.
heckle0

I agree with a few people here. This is getting too scifi. GIJOE was a bunch of soldiers who did their own fighting but had cool vehicles and laser guns. Not special suits and nanites and all this other crap. Modernizing it makes it no longer GIJOE
http://www.modelmayhem.com/kevjohnphotography kevjohn

I have 2 things to gripe about... 1. I don't like the Nano-Bombs idea. Wouldn't the ruthless Cobra Comander devise nano bombs that eat the people and leave the buildings and machines for his own use later? 2. Scarlett's Armor... Wouldn't it be much better for Scarlett to have to get naked to become invisible? That was one of the best parts of the FF series. *wiiinnk*
http://www.paynebyname.com Payne by name

There is something about this that generates a little excitement, maybe it's your enthusiasm but I can't help but remember the simply huge amount of hype that Van Helsing received to turn out to be a pile of rancid sh*t. The fact that Sommer directed that as well bodes very badly for the quality of this. That for me is the biggest negative against this film.
Joefan

I snuck a read of the GI Joe movie script before Skip Woods had a part in it. I hope he added something brilliant because even though it's a great concept for a lead-in movie based on a comic, the script sucked for someone like me who is a long time Joe fan (no offense to Stuart Beattie because he wrote it in 3 weeks before the strike). Duke isn't the leader, he's a new recruit along with Ripcord who are 'following a mission' they botched that landed in the hands of Hawk's Joe squad. Destro's nanotech mask doesn't come into play until the last scene with some other big surprise which I liked, even though they ruined another classic storyline involving the Baroness, her brother, and Snake-Eyes from the comics. Speaking of which, the entire history of Snake-Eyes and Storm shadow from the comics is ruined, too. And to make matters worse... Snake-Eyes is French in the script I read and isn't scarred nor does he lack a voice (granted he doesn't speak until the end). Snake-Eyes is like the Wolverine of GI Joe and I don't think the filmmakers understood that from the get-go when they started changing his history and character. They also botch up the love affairs from the comics/cartoon. Duke and The Baroness? Ripcord and Scarlett? If they ever make a sequel I hope they at least keep Flynt and Lady Jaye together. And my biggest fear is that it WILL be like Transformers... ie suck. Oh well, they remade The Hulk so hopefully in 6 years someone will make it correctly.
Joefan

Want to add that the nano-bombs and okay even the suits are kinda neat in the script. The suits are used poorly, but does have a good action sequence surrounding them and they are used sparingly. Destro is also written very well.
The Delightful Deviant

Christopher Goudos no one is arguing that that the 80's cartoon wasn't with out it's Camp, just that there is a limit. if you want to tickle people's nostalgia bone, don't do it with a cattle prod. lasers and flight packs =/= "ninja robots and anti bullet super suits".
Sinner

Being a fan of G.I. Joe, I'm not too excited about this film. I've heard much more negative news than positive & I can't think of one reason to like Sommers. I don't believe he has the talent to direct anything close to the caliber of the X-Men trilogy, which was SIICKK! Remember, this is coming from a G.I. Joe fan so I would like nothing more than to be wrong.
Curtis

im excited for this movie should be one hell of a fun movie like transformers i dont think it will be as good but it'll still be what im looking for in a movie action packed, i loved the cartoon movie and really looking forward to see it on the big screen in live action.
marco

Am I the only one hoping that Sargent Slaughter makes it in the movie, and it better be the real Sargent Slaughter from the WWE. He still wrestles once in a blue moon and I think he would be great having a small role in the movie. What do the rest of you think???
http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington

#13 - You make a good point about Sommers, and I'm worried because of Van Helsing, but at the same time I feel like this is still its own project. First off, I love The Mummy, so that's definitely a plus. Second, just because he did Van Helsing doesn't mean he can't come back around for G.I. Joe and actually direct something awesome (as a summer blockbuster). This isn't going to be Oscar worthy, it's going to be mindless summer fun more than anything...
Brad

I don't see how anyone could get excited about this. Sommers has doomed himself ever since he created The Mummy.
Carlo

The real problem is how some people refer to Lorenzo di Bonaventura as a producer. One should pay attention to other names AROUND his name in the good movies he's credited with.
Michael Miller

Actually, I'm one of the (apparently few) people who was really excited about this project. And the more I learned, the better it got. I've been extremely happy with some of the casting, satisfied with other parts, and cautiously optimistic on others. The shots have been great, and nothing I've learned about the story sounded too out of whack. Contrary to everyone here, I've really enjoyed everything Sommers has made, so, there you go. I obviously have issues. That being said, the whole exo-skeleton super suit is a huge disappointment for me, and the first really negative thing I've learned. GI Joe is a military team of heroes... but not super heroes. The fact that they are human, albiet with gadgets and training, is precisely what makes a lot of the stories about them so enjoyable. These are soldiers, and they get hurt, and fall down, and succeed because of their teammates. Remember the military group in Transformers? That was based on the Joe's, and that's what I always imagine. But leaping tall buildings and defying explosions and bullets, well.... maybe another movie, but that's a bit too much X Men and not enough Saving Private Ryan. Destro's mask being composed of Nanites sounds as a way to get around him having a mask and yet somehow have expression and speak. It makes sense to me.
Joefan

#21 - "The Mummy" was awesome, loved it. Didn't go wrong until "The Scorpion King". "Van Helsing" was a turd, though. But overall Sommers is kinda a campy director. I wish someone had the guts to make a darker GI Joe movie. I think if Sommers had a great script he'd do great as the director, but this script is only a small step up from Van Helsing and that's what scares me. #22 - I completely agree. #23 - The thing that scares me even more is that people keep comparing "GI Joe" to "Transformers". "Transformers" was a horrible movie... great Visual FX and action, but not one thread linking any of the scenes together except bad dialogue, bad story elements, and bad writing overall. But what more can you expect from Michael Bay? It's all about the box office and flash for him... he doesn't care much for acting or drama or suspense, just eye candy. As for Destro's mask... like I say above, his mask doesn't come into play until the final scene of the movie. Like someone leaked... he gets wounded and scarred and The Doctor injects nanites into his face and they create a mask.
http://www.paynebyname.com Payne by name

I liked the Mummy and also Deep Rising as they were both fun, entertaining films. When Sommers hit Mummy 2 one could see he was wrapping himself up in the delusions of his talent and this was certainly the case in Van Helsing. You can imagine him and others excitedly going on and on about how 'cool' this would be and how 'cool' that would be and forgetting to actually make a film. He was more concerned with creating apparently 'cool' scenes rather than the business of making a film. Surely if there are enough cool moments, he thought, people won't notice the lack of content.
Matt Suhu

#9 - the BET!!! hell yeah...cobra lalalalalalalalalaaaaaa! perhaps serpentor will make a quick cameo at the end, but i highly doubt that due to the lack of creativity (or too much thereof).
Joefan

"He was more concerned with creating apparently 'cool' scenes rather than the business of making a film. Surely if there are enough cool moments, he thought, people won't notice the lack of content." In other words he's a poor man's Michael Bay
Michael Miller

#24 - I should clarify that while I enjoyed Transformers for what it was - big robots, ooh, ahh - I don't want a GI Joe movie like that. What I appreciated was how they depicted a fairly tight military team. It's not some huge achievement... it's not hard to pull off, and I'm mystified as to why producers (seem to be) have such a tough time just implementing that. GI Joe stories aren't about any one guy... they are about a group of commandos, each with distinct personalities and abilities. While they (seem) to understand that, this bit about power suits seems like someone said 'Okay, superheroes are in, how do we make these guys like that? We need to ramp it up a notch'. But the whole point is that they aren't superheroes. This isn't IronMan, it's flipping batman. Cool gadgets, great training, plain ol' human. Crazy villains. I didn't read your original post as it seemed to be headed toward divulging a fair amount of the script, and bad or not, I prefer to let it soak in more or less purely the first time around.
xantern

Don't make this movie a crapload of dissapointment. When I first saw snake eyes pic I thought that this movie gonna be great but when I saw scarlet and the rest of the characters wearing same typical black uniforms, then this will gonna be like those typical swat action movies of crap. Also I hate snake eyes wearing black fatigue pants, it would have been great if it will all be skin tight custom just like a ninja...I like the characters wear there colorful uniforms instead..just to show the audience how it will work in real combat situations and also add spice to the movie. then again its too early to be disappointed.
TCox

I've been a G.I. Joe fan since I was probably 5 years old. I loved the cartoon, I had all the toys, and I read the comics. I loved the sillyness of the cartoon, and the backstories the comics provided. After seeing Ray Park in the Snake Eyes costume, I became excited about this project. Then came Scarlett. ehh...not quite as excited. I don't care for the accelerator suit concept very much, but I have to remember this is based on toyline for kids. There was a lot of crazy stuff in the original TV series, which apparently will be updated to "crazier" for the movie. We have to accept right now, that this is going to be a cheesy, over the top, camp fest, much like Street Fighter, minus Van Damme. It will be ok. Just relax, take a deep breath, and try to enjoy it for what it is. A kid's movie.
Joefan

#28 - No worries, I don't go spoiler happy in my initial post but I do say what's not in the script and what they screwed up from GI Joe's history. Yeah, I guess the military unit in Transformers stuck together... they just had no overall purpose in the movie. In the Joe script they give everyone equal time and the Joes work together well, but it does divide up the lackluster storylines well. Anyway, the most important line I wrote is the last... "Oh well, they remade The Hulk so hopefully in 6 years someone will make [GI Joe] correctly."
jep

I have to admit that I'm a tad bit excited for this flick, but then again...I was excited to go see the first Hulk movie...and I was excited to go see Blade 3...and I was excited to go see Spiderman 3, all of which sucked because they were way over played. The GI Joe characters all had different identities and even outfits. They all look the same here!!! Granted Snake Eyes looks super bad ass, but iunno...I guess this is just one of those movies that seems too good to be true. I'm almost expecting them to frak this one up.
OZ

The more i hear about this movie the more aggravated I become and after reading some of the comments I was bothered even more. How can anyone possibly see anything to get excited about? are you people kidding me? the nano mask is cool? ya frigging right! Nano-machines that eat buildings? and where does the waste go? a giant pile behind them? Supersuits? Then why should I care about the Joes if they're mindless enhanced soldiers just like the Neo-Vipers? That's just what bothered me today! The casting has been horrible to say the least except for snake-eyes which in truth doesn't even matter because he wears a mask. Now I read that he's gonna be french and speak at the end? really am I the only one who thinks this is not the Joes at all? Duke is too gay! there I said it. You cant be in a teeny bopper dancing movie to leading the Joes im sorry. Second aren't they all to young and aimed at a young Hannah Montana audience to be considered an elite fighting team? This Movie might be good if you take some acid and hallucinate your hardest and substitute all of the Joe names for Power Rangers charachters. Or you could be the moron who wrote this article and the few that wrote that they too are excited. One last thing it's because of you schmucks who say you like it so far and that will pay to go see it at the theater which will make this movie a sure fire idiotic summer hit and you will be responsible for making us live through friggin Mighty Morphing GI Joe 2! I dislike you people.
Super Paul

"I'd actually love to hear why people aren't excited for it? I know it's still very early, but I'm certain in due time you'll all be foaming at the mouth for more G.I. Joe. Just wait until Comic-Con this July - I'm sure we'll see some footage then. I really have a good feeling about this, despite Sommers' shaky track record, but I feel like it's the producers, specifically Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who are really keeping this one on track. I just don't think we know of any of the real details that will get everyone excited yet, which is why is this our first taste of what's to come." Ok so wait... you want to know why I'm NOT excited? Then you present the following points: 1)I know it's still very early, but I'm certain in due time you'll all be foaming at the mouth for more G.I. Joe. - Um... why? 2) I really have a good feeling about this, despite Sommers' shaky track record, but I feel like it's the producers, specifically Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who are really keeping this one on track. - Oh so because you FEEL like the producers are keeping it on track... it'll be fine. Let's all go to the movies based on your feelings. 3) I just don't think we know of any of the real details that will get everyone excited yet, which is why is this our first taste of what's to come. - So having absolutely zero "real details" we should be excited? Seriously... tell me who your dealer is, because I have to get some of what you're on.
Shocked

You guys need relax, what do you want a movie made out of the original G.I joe action figures. Adaptations have to be made, especially in an era were a lot of the technology being talked about is not that far of. You sound like the guys who think the design of the star trek movie ship is too modern, maybe we should use the soap box set of the original series, or make a movie using the original G.I joe action figures. It could be a dark gritty movie with serious toy actors, relax it's a summer movie. We know you played with dolls as a kid and thought up really interesting scenarios for the joe characters, boo hoo.
Raul

Look at what you can do with a comic book if you add some gritty realism. Dark Knight had far less futuristic technology or outlandish morphings than say The Penguin and Mr. Freeze from the previous trilogy—and I think this current crop made a LOT more money.