Am I losing my mind?
  -- Gerber Landsford (after "Honest" Gerky tells him that he is fired)
Home Comic Book Commercials G.I.Joe #25

Issue #25: Zartan!
Publication Date: July 1984
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciler: Frank Springer
Inker: Mike Gustovich
Lettering: Rick Parker
Colorist: George Roussos

SUMMARY

"Junkyard! Come back here you low-down, no-account blankety-blank-blank such and such!"
- Mutt (to Junkyard, who is running away)

Roadblock and Short-Fuze escort Storm Shadow to Alcatraz while Destro, Cobra Commander and the Baroness meet Zartan in his shack, which is located in the Everglades swamp. Meanwhile, in the Gulf of Mexico, Wild Bill and Zap hook up with Rock 'n' Roll, Tripwire, Torpedo and Airborne for a mission into the Everglades on Dragonflies and accompanied by Deep Six, the pilot for the SHARC. Hawk receives a message from Gung Ho regarding the tattoo on Snake Eyes arm and immediately orders Duke to visit Storm Shadow's cell. Mutt, Junkyard, Torpedo and Tripwire hop off the rails of the Dragonflies and take cover in the swamp while Firefly and Wild Weasel attack the Joes in a Water Moccasin. However, Deep Six attacks the Cobra agents and wins the battle. And while the four Joes who were deposited into the swamp catch the two Cobra agents, Junkyard runs off to Zartan's shack, where Cobra's master of disguise opens a door, draws a gun and takes aim at Junkyard, who is sitting on his doorstep.

THE  PERSONNEL
G.I.Joe: Short-Fuze, Duke, Roadblock, Torpedo, Wild Bill, Zap, Mutt, Junkyard, Cutter, Deep Six, Airborne, Rock 'n' Roll, Gung Ho, Tripwire, Scarlett, Hawk, Steeler Cobra: Destro, Cobra Commander, the Baroness, Storm Shadow, Firefly, Wild Weasel, Zartan
THE  GEAR
G.I.Joe: Dragonfly, SHARC Cobra: Water Moccasin, Chameleon


THE  COMMERCIAL
[ issue25.zip - 1.20 mb - 30 seconds ]

Description
After hopping over a Cobra Water Moccasin with his Chameleon Swamp Skier, Zartan rips off a mask and briefly cowers from the sunlight as Cobra Commander, the Baroness and Destro enter his base, which is located in a swamp. The four Cobra agents gather around a large monitor and watch two Dragonflies fly toward the camera and attempt to destroy the agile Cobra Water Moccasin boat, but Cobra's boat evades all of the Joes' shots. Suddenly, the SHARC streaks out of the water dives under the Water Moccasin and emerges on the other side, causing Cobra's boat to flip over. The SHARC flies back and destroys the Water Moccasin with a couple of shots from its gun. Cobra Commander berates Zartan since the plan appears to have failed, however, Zartan calmly replies, "Wrong, Commander."

THE  PERSONNEL
  Cobra: Zartan, Cobra Commander, the Baroness, Destro
THE  GEAR
G.I.Joe: Dragonfly, SHARC Cobra: Water Moccasin, Chameleon

Lyrics
Evil master of disguise
Zartan
Changes color before your eyes
Zartan
Zartan has an evil plan just for G.I.Joe
G.I.Joe a real American hero
Fighting a fiendish new foe.

Tagline
Follow the further adventures of G.I.Joe in Marvel Comics!

Notes Two years have passed since the advertisement for the first issue debuted on television, but the G.I.Joe Sunbow animation scene was far from quiet. As more commercials for the comic book series were produced, Hasbro and Sunbow also created a miniseries called "G.I.Joe: A Real American Hero," which featured the very talented Christopher Latta as Cobra Commander. The commercial for issue number 25 marks the first time that a member from the voice cast (in this case, Latta) was part of the advertising blitz; and because of his presence in the marketing formula, the threads between the comic, toy line and cartoon are strengthened and the story of G.I.Joe versus Cobra was launched into an even more fantastical realm and ensnaring the imaginations of many viewers. This commercial also features the animated debut of The Baroness in her all-black leather outfit.

Scenes from the commercial were reused in the animation segments for following toy advertisements:
· Zartan
· G.I.Joe SHARC and Cobra Water Moccasin

Screen Captures

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