I might go see this again in the theater. There's a lot of stuff going on in the background and a lot of stuff left open-ended throughout the movie.
I would like to discuss this movie online in the social media sphere more but the hard-liner nationalist people there are spending more time attacking their fellow fans in those G.I.Joe groups for liking anything without blonde hair and blue eyes. I'll retreat to my HQ basement.
First, I like that "G.I.Joe" wasn't really there.
Scarlett is awesome. We don't get to learn much about her or her role, but as G.I.Joe fans we know that this is a person that has intelligence and covert operations in the background. From what little we get, that's my impression.
"Scarlett is confident and resilient...it's remarkable that a person so deadly can still retain a sense of humor."
I really want to know where and who was on the helicopter that dropped her off, we didn't even see it.
Snake Eyes is really brought back down to that total mystery. Heck, Snake Eyes doesn't even know who he is in origins.
"The man is a total mystery, but he's real good at his job, heck, he's the best."
" "Snake-Eyes was tempered on the anvil of life until he was as dangerous as a razor-edged sword, flailing in the dark. The G.I. Joe Team sheathed that sword and harnessed its deadly energy but even they are wont to forget that even within the safety of its scabbard, the blade retains its cutting edge."
The character on the screen fits this file card inspired image for me. I had never given this much thought before but Snake Eyes on screen really is good and that razor-edged sword flailing in the dark is only just starting to get sheathed in this movie.
The loss of the Marvel comic L.R.R.P. angle or any military conflict seems to be an irk-thing for some fans but we don't get to see what happened after Snake Eyes approached the burning cabin to cage-fighting. For a modern take, I could see Snake Eyes entering into a mercenary role at some point, perhaps why he wasn't interested in Kenta's initial solicitation.
And we don't know much more about why Cobra wanted Snake Eyes dad killed and exactly who that was that killed him. But we know that cabin safe-house had a G.I.Joe connection. In the Marvel Comic Snake Eyes had a cabin that was destroyed.
Storm Shadow has a lot left out here, such as who were his parents? The whole ninja clan has a lot going on that is not shown on screen. Storm Shadows rage after not being able to best Kenta on the rooftop as well as the full-blown flip when faced with a life of servitude in the clan instead of commanding it reminds me of the Marvel comic story where Storm Shadow had been bested by Snake Eyes leading to the more favorable eye of the Hard Master.
I thought Akiko was Jinx, but was this stated in the movie? Did we really get a background story on her? Same with the Blind Master and the Hard Master, both really awesome but I'm left wanting to know more about these characters.
The Baroness felt Marvel comic personality with a little cartoon flair, I really liked this. The Baroness had a scheme and totally played this one out until that "f-this, I'm outta here" slide away after Kenta decided to keep the stone.
The most cartoon-ish vibe was the heart stone moment but it didn't feel too outlandish at first. Something with that kind of power and ability is definitely reminiscent of Sunbow cartoons and the aim of Cobra to get a super-weapon. At the same time, a ninja clan with that kind of power would ascend to a powerful position and that makes me wonder if the Arashikage were much more influential and well-known in general in this universe, almost like feudal nobility. Tommy did state that his whole life was grooming to command the Arashikage.
Maybe there is something in the ego of having a powerful weapon that Tommy's Grandma knows.
Man, there is a lot stuff to discuss in here. And the possibilities of where this could go.
I didn't miss the Rise of Cobra Neo Vipers or accelerator suits not being in this movie. Or Duke.