The IGN office is abuzz this morning with the official announcement of the newest Shout! Factory must-have, the Special Collector's Edition of G.I. Joe: The Movie, the animated classic from 1987, based on the animated series G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.
In our review of the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero - The Complete Series (Collector's Set) box set we noted the empty DVD slot labeled G.I. Joe: The Movie and speculated that a new edition may be in the works. Looks like that has finally come to pass. The movie hasn't been available on the retail market since Rhino released it in 2000, and that version has been out of print for some time.
The best part of the announcement is that it marks the first time the movie will be available in high definition. Expect the DVD and Blu-ray releases to arrive on July 27, 2010, for the MSRP of $16.97 for the single-disc DVD and $26.97 for the Blu-ray, which will also come equipped with a DVD copy of the flick. Go Joe, indeed.
Could this pave the way for the original animated series on Blu-ray? We're certainly hoping so, but color us cautiously optimistic; TV sets on home video, especially ones as backdated as the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero series, have yet to start arriving on a consistent basis in HD. Our fingers are officially crossed, though. Our common-sense guess is that if this one sells like hotcakes, it's a greater possibility. So, y'know, go buy it, please.
Check out the official synopsis below, for all of you G.I. Joe aficionados:
A 40,000-year-old race of snake people resurface and with the help of Serpentor, Destro, Baroness and Dr. Mindbender, they plan to eliminate all of mankind and rebuild COBRA-LA. Once rulers of Earth, the snake people were driven underground by ice-age temperatures. While in exile, they developed a plant whose spores turn ordinary men into mindless, weak animals. The key to their plan is the G.I. Joe team's secret project – the Broadcast Energy Transmitter. Only this device generates enough heat so that the spores can mature. Humankind's very existence depends on the G.I. Joe team, but are they strong and smart enough to fight a warrior race with 40,000 years of experience?
The Blu-ray version of G.I. Joe: The Movie (Special Collector's Edition) will be presented in widescreen, while the DVD will feature both widescreen and full screen options. Both will include the following bonus materials:
-- Audio commentary with story consultant Buzz Dixon
-- The final 8 "Knowing Is Half The Battle" PSAs that were not on the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero - The Complete Series (Collector's Set) DVD box set.
-- Original Printable Screenplay – this script was written prior to Duke's miraculous recovery and, thus, Duke is dead. The script was not altered from this version on paper, but the audio session had an added line where Duke was going to survive the attack.
-- Art gallery
Stay tuned to IGN DVD for more information about this and other upcoming releases!