Home  Episode Summaries Season 1 Cobra CLAWs are Coming to Town - Notes
Credits: story by Roy and Dan Thomas and script by Carla and Gerry Conway
Production Number: 600-33
Original Airdate: November 7, 1985
Cobra makes a generous donation to the Joes’ “Toys for Tots”-type campaign: Scrap Iron, Firefly, and a battalion of Cobra troops, miniaturized to look like toys. Once inside Joe Headquarters, however, the Cobra forces sabotage the defense, open the gates, and let the rest of the snakes inside. The Joes have to fight with Cobra weapons to regain their occupied headquarters, which Cobra defends with the Joes’ own arsenal. [Note: Scrap Iron was not in the episode and the Joes fought with Cobra’s weapons above a nearby town, not at Joe headquarters; the episode's original title was "No Table Left Unturned"]
| THE PERSONNEL |
| G.I.Joe: Cover
Girl, Dusty, Shipwreck, Polly, Roadblock, Mutt, Junkyard, Tripwire, Duke,
Blowtorch, Wild Bill |
 |
Cobra: Wild
Weasal, Firefly*, Cobra Commander, Destro, the Baroness, Zartan, Ripper,
Torch, Buzzer |
| THE GEAR |
| G.I.Joe: AWE
Striker, VAMP Mark II, APC, Skystriker, VAMP, Mauler, Sky Hawk, Silver
Mirage motorcycle, Dragonfly, RAM |
|
Cobra: Rattler,
SNAKE, FANG, CLAW, Trubble Bubble, Stinger, ASP |
|
* indicates the character was silent during the episode
The Trojan War was a ten-year siege of Troy by the Greeks which started
when Paris kidnapped Helen, wife of Menelaus. The Trojans successfully
defended themselves under the leadership of Hector, however, the Trojans
were tricked when they brought into their city a large wooden horse thought
to be abandoned by the Greeks but was actually filled with Greek soldiers
who were able to destroy the city. In the episode "Cobra CLAWs are Coming
to Town," two references were made to the siege, which was the subject
of Homer's work "The Iliad:" one, the rocking horse was Cobra's Trojan
horse because it was made of wood, contained soldiers and was brought behind
the G.I.Joe "city's" defensive barrier since it looked like a gift when
placed in the toy wagon; two, Cover Girl comments that they should "not look a gift
horse in the mouth," which is a cliché that may have originated from the myth of the Trojan Horse.
And like so many stories with a Christmas theme, one of the Joes, Shipwreck,
mutters Ebenezer Scrouge's famous line from the Charles Dickens tale A
Christmas Carol: "Bah, humbug."
The tabloids Star Magazine and The National Inquirer were
a sources of parody for the Inquiring Star Magazine, which was read
by one of the two truck drivers who were attacked by the Dreadnoks.
During the fight in Keystone City, Tripwire was not present during the
fight. Given his character's trait of clumsiness, he probably wrecked the
HISS tank after breaking the controls.
I
Dialogue:
Roadblock: Smack your lips and feast your eyes, Roadblock’s
cooked you a big surprise!
Wild Bill: Hombre, you outdid yourself!
Roadblock: Duke, will you do the honors?
Duke: You bet! Who wants a leg?
Junkyard: (barks)
Duke: Junkyard, I might have guessed. That’s one hungry dog,
Mutt.
Mutt: Yeah. I’ll, uh, chow down later, okay? I want to be alone
for awhile...
Junkyard: (whines)
Tripwire: What’s wrong with Mutt?
Duke: Beats me, Tripwire. Holiday blues, I guess...
Mutt: Now that’s loyalty. How many dogs would give up a turkey
leg to mope around with their master?
Junkyard: (whines)
Time: 56 seconds
Commentary:
I will never forgive the editor for splicing this scene out of the episode because (s)he carved out a perfect example that demonstrates one
of the many reasons why this show so is great - the very sincere depiction
of people and their pain. The edit is available for viewing in the episode highlights
section below.
II
Dialogue:
Roadblock: We’ve got to stop Cobra before they reach Keystone City.
Time: 9 seconds
Lifeline
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Original:
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Unknown |
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USA:
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Lifeline explains that an apple is a healthier snack when compared
to a candy bar. |
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Movie Clip: Mutt leaves the table and notes the loyalty of his friend,
Junkyard, who left a turkey leg so that he could mope around with the Joe. [2.41 mb]
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