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Series 4: 1974 PDF Print E-mail
Monday, 08 December 2008

Hasbro rearranged the numbers and added Devil of the Deep and Fate of the Troubleshooter, finally dropping five sets no longer in production including the Headquarters. The new comics have a matte cover stock with older "flat" AT logo design. The Training Center is curiously unlisted. Several store exclusives also have comics which are not listed.

  1. Secret Mission to Spy Island
  2. Danger of the Depths
  3. Devil of the Deep (1974-75)
  4. Eight Ropes of Danger
  5. Fantastic Freefall
  6. Capture of the Pygmy Gorilla
  7. White Tiger Hunt
  8. The Secret of the Stolen Idol
  9. Fate of the Troubleshooter (1974-75)
  10. The Shark's Surprise
  11. The Secret of the Mummy's Tomb

Comics from this series which are NOT LISTED include:
Training Center Adventure
(1974 regular release version); 12 pages, old logo, matte cover
Training Center Adventure
(1974 Sears exclusive); 16 pages, old logo, matte cover
Mystery of the Boiling Lagoon
(1974 Sears exclusive); new 3D logo, gloss cover
Search for the Abominable Snowman
(1974 Sears exclusive); new 3D logo, gloss cover


3.  Devil of the Deep (1974-75):
 A tragic earthquake has hit a small village in the Amazon. The natives rebuild, but the fish upon which they depend have mysteriously disappeared. G.I. Joe is called in, and he brings the Turbo Swamp Craft. He quickly discovers a rare hammerhead stingray - combination of shark and ray. The stingray must have been eating all the fish. After fierce battle, he catches the ray. Highlight: The cool Turbo Swamp Craft. Lowlight: The plot. One large ray consuming all the fish in the Amazon for miles around? Starring: Sea Adventurer in green fatigues.

9.  Fate of the Troubleshooter (1974-75):
 A spy device has been transmitting secret information about our satellites. Joe must find the device. A call comes through on Troubleshooter communications panel - "emergency at Spy Island - send help!" The helicopter airlifts Joe to the island. He meets with Agent X-7, who tells Joe rumors of a "crazed vulture" up in the mountains. Joe takes the Troubleshooter into the mountains where he finds the unguarded spy device. He is attacked by the vulture, and kills it (presumably) by smashing it into the rocks with Kung Fu grip. Joe sabotages the spy device and radios HQ about the successful mission. Highlight: A Joe called Agent X-7. Lowlight: The super powerful spy device was unguarded except by a crazed bird? Starring: Land Adventurer; Agent X-7 (Air Adventurer in tan fatigues).

Training Center Adventure (general release version; 12 pages):
 G.I. Joe and his men undergo a two-week training exercise at the Training Center, with only a cave and survival tent to keep them from the harsh desert elements. They undergo training in obstacle courses (with razor sharp barbed wire), target range, orienteering, and climbing time trials. During the training, a giant snake attacks a man - Joe swoops down from the tower on the Training Slide. The snake tries to attack Joe, but he shoots it dead with the .45 pistol. Joe applies first aid to wounded man - another job well done. Highlight: Use of weapons in Adventure Team. Lowlight: Atrocious artwork represents the low artistic quality of the AT comics. Starring: Land Adventurer in dark brown outfit; Air Adventurer in OD green outfit. Background characters: Black Talking Commander, Man of Action, Land Adventurer in OD fatigues; Sea Adventurer in OD fatigues; blond MOA in OD fatigues.

Training Center Adventure (Sears version; 16 pages):
Same start to the story, but it changes on p. 4, picking up some panels but remaining somewhat different. The AT trains at night "on little food and no sleep." A giant mutant vulture (instead of the snake) attacks a team member, and Joe leaps off the training tower and quickly slides down the rope ladder. Joe shoots the bird down in mid-air. Starring the same cast, only this time the injured man is the blond Man of Action.

Mystery of the Boiling Lagoon (Sears exclusive):
 G.I. Joe is contacted by the "Space Committee" to undertake a death-defying mission (didn't Joe learn from Flying Space Adventure and Spacewalk Mystery?). A radioactive satellite has splashed down in the West Indies, which has caused the water to boil, killing off wildlife. Joe sets out with the pontoon boat and his deep sea suit, which has been "treated for high heat intensity." Joe dives into the lagoon, but man-eating piranhas attack his oxygen lines. Joe pulls the self-destruct pin on the satellite, then gets out just in time as the lagoon blows up. Highlight: None. Terrible story. Narrative drifts in and out of first person. Plot holes: Suit is treated for heat, but what about deadlier radiation? Man-eating piranhas attack the rubber air hoses instead of tasty morsel Joe? Wrong gripper arm is shown - the one in the comic is yellow Missile Recovery arm, not correct Demolition arm. Starring: Talking Commander, MOA in blue outfits.

Search for the Abominable Snowman (Sears exclusive):
 G.I. Joe sets off across the vast Himalayan mountains to capture alive the abominable snowman. Joe easily finds the cave, but the monster surprises Joe. There's a fierce fight; Joe manages to shoot the Snowman with the tranquilizer gun and ties him to the sled for transport back to a warmer climate. Highlight: The pre-Politically Correct Joe is an environmental terrorist. Lowlight: Lame story. Joe finds the cave easily in "vast Himalayan mountains." Starring: Land Adventurer.

 
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