Action Force
Encyclopedia
Action Force was a 1980s range of Europe
an action figure
s initially based on Action Man
, and later used to introduce G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
toys to European markets. Several publishing companies have produced comic books based around the figures.
and released in two waves, the action figures were a response to falling sales of the company's larger Action Man range and the comparative success of the smaller Star Wars action figures which it was licensed to sell in Europe.
Called Action Force the figures were a mixture of historical military figures (for example a Desert Rat and German Stormtrooper
) and more contemporary soldiers (for example Arctic
and Naval Assault
characters). The range was kept international by including British
, German
, Australian and American
soldiers, in contrast to G.I. Joe
. However, unlike later releases the figures were not accompanied by file cards on the reverse of the figures' packaging giving the figures back-stories
nor were they featured in comic books, other than a series of mini-comics that were packaged with some of the vehicles (notably the AF-3 and AF-5, see below)
At this stage the figures were given comic book identities by a new range of stories featuring in the Battle Action Force comic (see Battle Action Force tie-in below). The toys were also supplied with file cards giving a brief profile of the character. These profiles were in turn expanded in Battle Action Force, often for key figures, with their own multi-issue storylines (for example The Black Major
)
See Z Force
See Space Force
See Red Shadows
According to research undertaken by collectors at the Blood for the Baron website, a fifth team had initially been planned. Five prototype figures were created but never released. The Force was to have been characterised as a 'special weapons' unit. Initially believed to be called 'F-Force', later research revealed a pair of photos from a toy catalogue which showed the figures in different colour schemes, along with vehicles with a logo marked 'SWS' leading to speculation the group should be called 'Special Weapons Section'. The catalogue photos also showed vehicles for the force, all US G.I. Joe vehicles which were released as part of the SAS Force and Z Force groups; these vehicles were a white and grey jeep, a white artillery piece and a white missile battery.
in the United States.
At this time the Action Force toyline was marketed heavily and branched out into Atari
video games (see Action Force
), audio stories on cassette tapes, stationery
and toiletries. There was also an Action Force fan club
promoted both on the figures’ packaging and in the Battle Action Force comic book.
In 1984 additional figures and vehicles were cast, borrowing more heavily from the G.I. Joe and Cobra ranges.
In 1985 Palitoy ceded control of the European market to Hasbro
following the death of one of Palitoy's owners (Alfred Pallett) and the winding-up of operations at their Leicester factory. Hasbro purchased the Palitoy factory, copyright
s and moulds
and began to package G.I. Joe figures under the Action Force brand. In characterisation terms, this move marked the end of the sub-grouping of the Action Force team and a new unified Action Force (or AF) also faced a new enemy in the name of Cobra.
The parallel comic book storylines also maintained continuity with a number of plotlines that blended elements of the second range of figures with the third, featuring the new characters as an international elite anti-terrorist unit of a wider Action Force still backed up by the Z Force, SAS and other units fighting Cobra, the Red Shadows and even a re-animated Adolf Hitler
and the Nazis
(despite being ostensibly set in the present day). Over time however the range evolved into an unreconstructed G.I. Joe force and its enemy Cobra.
The Action Force characters initially guest-featured in a comic strip serial in Battle
for four weeks in July 1983. The strip proved to be so popular that a further five promotional mini-comics were included free with every IPC publication
in the weeks to follow. On October 8, 1983 Action Force joined the pages of Battle full-time and the magazine was retitled Battle Action Force.
The comic took on the role of providing back-stories and plotlines to the popular action figures and helped to maintain the continuity of Hasbro’s move to marketing the G.I. Joe range in Britain.
In addition the yearly annuals
, mail-in offers, advertisements and free gifts were all focused towards adding detail and context to the Action Force universe.
Following the closure of Palitoy in 1986 and Hasbro acquiring the various intellectual property rights
to the Action Force toy line, the Action Force strip was cancelled. The Battle Action Force magazine was subsequently merged with Eagle
.
on March 8, 1987
, consisting of reprints of the U.S. G.I. Joe
comic book (which were adjusted to fit into the UK strip's continuity and had all references to G.I. Joe replaced with Action Force) and new UK-exclusive short strips which maintained a separate continuity from the U.S. G.I. Joe comic. The Action Force comic was cancelled in 1988
after fifty issues, due to low sales, and was replaced with Action Force Monthly, which was itself cancelled after fifteen issues. The Action Force Monthly title printed new stories as well reprinting stories from the weekly title. The magazine was released in the US under the title G.I. Joe—European Missions.
The G.I. Joe story reprints were continued in the UK Transformers comic until they were dropped in 1991, with the name changing to "G.I. Joe the Action Force" in late 1989 to conform to the toy line (and then later to just "G.I. Joe"). (In 1995, Panini Comics
obtained the Marvel UK licence and began publishing an Action Man comic, without reference to Action Force or G.I. Joe.)
In late 1989 the toyline and accompanying merchandise were renamed to G.I. Joe the Action Force. A mini-comic distributed free in stores and in issue #245 of the Transformers comic explained that the European Action Force had merged with its US counterpart G.I. Joe. However, this story did not match all previous portrayals of Action Force as an international team with branches in Europe and America.
In 1991 the name was changed further to just G.I. Joe.
The Battle Action Force creators retconned several aspects of the series to smooth over the transition to G.I. Joe-influenced characters and vehicles. However, due to fan pressure, the first wave of Palitoy releases and characters returned to the pages of the comic time and time again (see above).
Several fan attempts have been made to establish an official Action Force canon
, building on accepted official works (such as the Battle Action Force publications and Palitoy-endorsed releases). The most comprehensive of these to date is the Action Force Datafiles.
during the 1980s, albeit without the benefit of a comic book tie-in. The German releases went under the title of Action Force who fought the "Terror-Bande" (roughly translated as "Terror Gang"). The German release only extended to the first wave of second-generation figures and characters (some 30 figures and vehicles) however the characters and vehicles were still grouped in their sub-units: anti-terror team (or ATT) corresponding to Z-Force; the special anti-terror team (or SATT) corresponding to SAS Force, the deep-sea anti-terror team (or TSATT) corresponding to Q Force and the space anti-terror team (or WATT) corresponding to Space Force.
Without comic back-stories, the figures were given context by the following statement (translated) which was retrospectively attached to the German packaging:
In a country still concerned by its destructive past, German toy distributors modified certain aspects of the Action Force range to appear less violent. According to researchers of the German Palitoy range, most of the guns supplied with the figures were replaced by "less violent" stun
-weapons, laser-weapons or knives. Also the human skull
on the Red Shadow (or Terror-Bande) figures was removed from the toyline.
organisation was featured in the two part Dawn of the Red Shadows storyline in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (vol. 2) #42 and 43, following a series of mysterious attacks against both G.I. Joe and Cobra. This Red Shadows organisation was led by Wilder Vaughn, a British military officer gone rogue, and viewed organised governments as corrupt and in need of removal. After this appearance, where they caused substantial damage, they were not seen again; Vaughn made a cameo in the Black Major uniform in a later storyline, stating Cobra had decimated the organisation off-panel.
The Action Force characters Quarrel, Moondancer, Hunter and Blades then made a cameo appearance in G.I. Joe: America's Elite issue #30, as representatives of NATO.
; not to be confused with the Philippines' real-life Special Action Force
). Instead of being an international group, the Special Action Force are solely a British team and that nation's equivalent to G.I. Joe, though they have several foreign expatriate
members.
In August 2009 a limited edition Blades (complete with "SAF Copter") was released in both toy and comicbook character form as part of the 2009 G.I. Joe convention. He was portrayed as British rather than retaining the American nationality of the original character and assisted both G.I. Joe and their Argentine counterpart Commandos Heroicas (the South American branding for G.I. Joe).
In April 2010 the Red Shadows and Black Major returned in o-ring style articulation form as part of the G.I. Joe convention. Dubbed 'Vacation in the Shadows' the set featured new versions of Black Major, the Red Shadow trooper, Flint and Cobra's Interrogator as well as six new 'Red Torch' figures who were part of the Red Shadow forces, armed with flamethrowers. In addition to the boxset, other convention releases included Dolphin of Q-Force, a 3 3/4in Natalie Poole figure - based on the 1990s Action Man
character and retroactively made an SAF agent - and Z Force's Jammer and Gaucho who appeared in a three-pack with a new version of Joe medic Lifeline. (Unlike Blades, Jammer and Gaucho remained American and Mexican.) Starduster appeared in the comic tie-in. The convention comic featured Flint vacationing in Europe with Dolphin and Natalie before running afoul of Black Major and Interrogator, who were planning an alliance between Cobra and the Red Shadows. In a twist ending, Natalie is brainwashed into being a Shadows sleeper agent.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an action figure
Action figure
An action figure is a posable character figurine, made of plastic or other materials, and often based upon characters from a film, comic book, video game, or television program. These action figures are usually marketed towards boys and male collectors...
s initially based on Action Man
Action Man
Action Man is an action figure boys' toy launched in Britain in 1966 by Palitoy as a licensed copy of Hasbro's American "moveable fighting man": G.I...
, and later used to introduce G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is a military-themed line of action figures and toys in Hasbro's G.I. Joe franchise. The toyline lasted from 1982 to 1994, producing well over 500 figures and 250 vehicles and playsets. The line reappeared in 1997 and has continued in one form or another to the...
toys to European markets. Several publishing companies have produced comic books based around the figures.
First generation (1982)
First produced in 1982 by Palitoy LimitedPalitoy
Palitoy was the name of a British toy company.It manufactured some of the most popular toys in Britain, some original items and others under licence...
and released in two waves, the action figures were a response to falling sales of the company's larger Action Man range and the comparative success of the smaller Star Wars action figures which it was licensed to sell in Europe.
Called Action Force the figures were a mixture of historical military figures (for example a Desert Rat and German Stormtrooper
Stormtrooper
Stormtroopers were specialist soldiers of the German Army in World War I. In the last years of the war, Stoßtruppen were trained to fight with "infiltration tactics", part of the Germans' new method of attack on enemy trenches...
) and more contemporary soldiers (for example Arctic
Arctic warfare
Arctic warfare or winter warfare is a term used to describe armed conflict that takes place in an exceptionally cold weather, usually in snowy and icy terrain, sometimes on ice-covered bodies of water...
and Naval Assault
Naval warfare
Naval warfare is combat in and on seas, oceans, or any other major bodies of water such as large lakes and wide rivers.-History:Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Land warfare would seem, initially, to be irrelevant and entirely removed from warfare on the open ocean,...
characters). The range was kept international by including British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Australian and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
soldiers, in contrast to G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe is a line of action figures produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier , Action Sailor , Action Pilot , Action Marine and later on, the Action Nurse...
. However, unlike later releases the figures were not accompanied by file cards on the reverse of the figures' packaging giving the figures back-stories
Back-story
A back-story, background story, or backstory is the literary device of a narrative chronologically earlier than, and related to, a narrative of primary interest. Generally, it is the history of characters or other elements that underlie the situation existing at the main narrative's start...
nor were they featured in comic books, other than a series of mini-comics that were packaged with some of the vehicles (notably the AF-3 and AF-5, see below)
List of figures
- Arctic Assault
- Australian Jungle FighterJungle warfareJungle warfare is a term used to cover the special techniques needed for military units to survive and fight in jungle terrain.It has been the topic of extensive study by military strategists, and was an important part of the planning for both sides in many conflicts, including World War II and the...
- British 2 Para
- British CommandoBritish CommandosThe British Commandos were formed during the Second World War in June 1940, following a request from the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, for a force that could carry out raids against German-occupied Europe...
- British Royal MarineRoyal MarinesThe Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
- Commander (available by mail in offer only)
- Deep Sea DiverFrogmanA frogman is someone who is trained to scuba diving or swim underwater in a military capacity which can include combat. Such personnel are also known by the more formal names of combat diver or combatant diver or combat swimmer....
- Desert Rat
- Frogman
- German Stormtrooper
- Ground AssaultInfantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
- Helicopter Pilot
- Mission Pilot
- MountainMountain warfareMountain warfare refers to warfare in the mountains or similarly rough terrain. This type of warfare is also called Alpine warfare, named after the Alps mountains...
& Arctic - Naval Assault
- Night PatrolNight visionNight vision is the ability to see in low light conditions. Whether by biological or technological means, night vision is made possible by a combination of two approaches: sufficient spectral range, and sufficient intensity range...
- S.A.SSpecial Air ServiceSpecial Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
Frogman - S.A.S Trooper
- US Paratrooper
Vehicles, weaponry and armour
- Action Force Base (a cardboard headquarters with zip-lineZip-lineA zip-line consists of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline...
feature) - AF-3 (a JeepWillys MBThe Willys MB US Army Jeep and the Ford GPW, were manufactured from 1941 to 1945. These small four-wheel drive utility vehicles are considered the iconic World War II Jeep, and inspired many similar light utility vehicles. Over the years, the World War II Jeep later evolved into the "CJ" civilian...
-style patrol vehicle) - AF-5 Multi-Mission Vehicle (a wheeled patrol vehicle with extendable wings for flight and a detachable flotation collar for amphibiousAmphibious warfareAmphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...
use) - AF-7 Deep Sea Diver Platform
- AF-9 Mountain & Arctic (a snowmobileSnowmobileA snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, or sled,is a land vehicle for winter travel on snow. Designed to be operated on snow and ice, they require no road or trail. Design variations enable some machines to operate in deep snow or forests; most are used on open terrain, including...
-style vehicle)
Second generation (1983)
Following the success of the first range of figures, a second much larger range was launched in 1983. Action Force sales figures were in the region of almost one million over six months in 1983 and the range was further expanded with a second wave of releases in 1984, adding new figures and vehicles.Characterisation
This second range of figures took a different approach by grouping the allied action figures and enemies each with accompanying weaponry and vehicles (see below).At this stage the figures were given comic book identities by a new range of stories featuring in the Battle Action Force comic (see Battle Action Force tie-in below). The toys were also supplied with file cards giving a brief profile of the character. These profiles were in turn expanded in Battle Action Force, often for key figures, with their own multi-issue storylines (for example The Black Major
The Black Major
The Black Major The Black Major The Black Major (published name John Shepherd (name changed to protect his family ) is a fictional character from the Action Force series depicted in the Battle Action Force comic books and Palitoy action figures as a European version of G.I...
)
Z Force
See Z Force
Z Force (Action Force)
Z Force is a fictional infantry military unit that features in the Action Force universe, a European version of the G.I. Joe action figure and comic book series....
- An allied infantry and artillery-based unit
Space Force
See Space Force
Space Force (Action Force)
Space Force is a fictional space military unit that features in the Action Force universe, a European version of the G.I. Joe action figure and comic book series....
- An allied space operations team
Red Shadows
See Red Shadows
Red Shadows
The Red Shadows are the fictional fighting force opposed to Action Force and depicted in the UK Battle Action Force comic books. They were also portrayed in action figures by Palitoy as a European version of the G.I. Joe range. Later US G.I. Joe storylines have revived the Red Shadows as an...
- The unified enemy force known as the Red Shadows and led by Baron IronbloodBaron IronbloodBaron Ironblood is a fictional character from Action Force, the British equivalent to the G. I. Joe Franchise. He appeared in the Battle Action Force comic books and annuals of the 1980s and was cast as an action figure by toy-makers Palitoy and distributed around Europe.In West Germany, he was...
Special Weapons Force
According to research undertaken by collectors at the Blood for the Baron website, a fifth team had initially been planned. Five prototype figures were created but never released. The Force was to have been characterised as a 'special weapons' unit. Initially believed to be called 'F-Force', later research revealed a pair of photos from a toy catalogue which showed the figures in different colour schemes, along with vehicles with a logo marked 'SWS' leading to speculation the group should be called 'Special Weapons Section'. The catalogue photos also showed vehicles for the force, all US G.I. Joe vehicles which were released as part of the SAS Force and Z Force groups; these vehicles were a white and grey jeep, a white artillery piece and a white missile battery.
Toys
Both action figures and vehicles themselves borrowed elements from the first generation models and also new casts licensed from the G. I. Joe toyline from HasbroHasbro
Hasbro is a multinational toy and boardgame company from the United States of America. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world. The corporate headquarters is located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, United States...
in the United States.
At this time the Action Force toyline was marketed heavily and branched out into Atari
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
video games (see Action Force
Action Force (video game)
Action Force: International Heroes is a video game released by Virgin Games in for the Sinclair Spectrum and Commodore 64, and in for the Amstrad CPC. The game is set in the world of the Action Force toys by Hasbro. It was followed by a sequel, Action Force II.-Plot:Cobra have launched a...
), audio stories on cassette tapes, stationery
Stationery
Stationery has historically meant a wide gamut of materials: paper and office supplies, writing implements, greeting cards, glue, pencil case etc.-History of stationery:...
and toiletries. There was also an Action Force fan club
Fan club
A fan club is a group that is dedicated to a well-known person, group, idea or sometimes even an inanimate object . Most fan clubs are run by fans who devote considerable time and resources to supporting them. There are also "official" fan clubs that are run by someone associated with the person...
promoted both on the figures’ packaging and in the Battle Action Force comic book.
In 1984 additional figures and vehicles were cast, borrowing more heavily from the G.I. Joe and Cobra ranges.
Third generation (1985)
See also AF (Action Figures)AF (Action Figures)
AF or the Action Force were the third generation of Action Force action figures and comic book heroes released in the United Kingdom. Originally featuring in the Battle Action Force comics and cast as action figures by Palitoy, they were an internationally re-worked version of the G.I...
In 1985 Palitoy ceded control of the European market to Hasbro
Hasbro
Hasbro is a multinational toy and boardgame company from the United States of America. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world. The corporate headquarters is located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, United States...
following the death of one of Palitoy's owners (Alfred Pallett) and the winding-up of operations at their Leicester factory. Hasbro purchased the Palitoy factory, copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
s and moulds
Injection moulding
Injection molding is a manufacturing process for producing parts from both thermoplastic and thermosetting plastic materials. Material is fed into a heated barrel, mixed, and forced into a mold cavity where it cools and hardens to the configuration of the cavity...
and began to package G.I. Joe figures under the Action Force brand. In characterisation terms, this move marked the end of the sub-grouping of the Action Force team and a new unified Action Force (or AF) also faced a new enemy in the name of Cobra.
The parallel comic book storylines also maintained continuity with a number of plotlines that blended elements of the second range of figures with the third, featuring the new characters as an international elite anti-terrorist unit of a wider Action Force still backed up by the Z Force, SAS and other units fighting Cobra, the Red Shadows and even a re-animated Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and the Nazis
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
(despite being ostensibly set in the present day). Over time however the range evolved into an unreconstructed G.I. Joe force and its enemy Cobra.
Battle Action Force tie-in
See also Battle Action ForceThe Action Force characters initially guest-featured in a comic strip serial in Battle
Battle Picture Weekly
Battle Picture Weekly, at various time also known as Battle Action Force, Battle and Battle with Storm Force, was a British war comic published by IPC Magazines from 8 March 1975 to 23 January 1988, when it merged with Eagle...
for four weeks in July 1983. The strip proved to be so popular that a further five promotional mini-comics were included free with every IPC publication
IPC Media
IPC Media , a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Inc., is a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the United Kingdom, with a large portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year.- Origins :...
in the weeks to follow. On October 8, 1983 Action Force joined the pages of Battle full-time and the magazine was retitled Battle Action Force.
The comic took on the role of providing back-stories and plotlines to the popular action figures and helped to maintain the continuity of Hasbro’s move to marketing the G.I. Joe range in Britain.
In addition the yearly annuals
Annual publication
An annual publication, more often called simply an annual, is a book or a magazine, comic book or comic strip published yearly. For example, a weekly or monthly publication may produce an Annual featuring similar materials to the regular publication....
, mail-in offers, advertisements and free gifts were all focused towards adding detail and context to the Action Force universe.
Following the closure of Palitoy in 1986 and Hasbro acquiring the various intellectual property rights
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
to the Action Force toy line, the Action Force strip was cancelled. The Battle Action Force magazine was subsequently merged with Eagle
Eagle (comic)
Eagle was a seminal British children's comic, first published from 1950 to 1969, and then in a relaunched format from 1982 to 1994. It was founded by Marcus Morris, an Anglican vicar from Lancashire. Morris edited a parish magazine called The Anvil, but felt that the church was not communicating...
.
Marvel UK's Action Force comic
Following the demise of the Battle Action Force strips, a weekly Action Force comic was launched by Marvel UKMarvel UK
Marvel UK was an imprint of Marvel Comics formed in 1972 to reprint US produced stories for the British weekly comic market, though it later did produce original material by British creators such as Alan Moore, John Wagner, Dave Gibbons, Steve Dillon and Grant Morrison.Panini Comics obtained the...
on March 8, 1987
1987 in comics
- Year overall :* Independent publishers continue to enter the comics arena, including Amazing, CFW Enterprises, Imperial Comics, Matrix Graphic Series, New Comics Group, and Rebel Studios...
, consisting of reprints of the U.S. G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe (comics)
G.I. Joe has been the title of comic strips and comic books in every decade since 1942. As a licensed property by Hasbro, comics have been released from 1967 to present, with only two interruptions longer than a year . As a team fighting Cobra since 1982, the comic book history of G.I...
comic book (which were adjusted to fit into the UK strip's continuity and had all references to G.I. Joe replaced with Action Force) and new UK-exclusive short strips which maintained a separate continuity from the U.S. G.I. Joe comic. The Action Force comic was cancelled in 1988
1988 in comics
-Events and publications:* Jack Binder, creator of the original Daredevil, dies at c. age 86.* Tarpé Mills, creator Miss Fury, dies at c. age 73....
after fifty issues, due to low sales, and was replaced with Action Force Monthly, which was itself cancelled after fifteen issues. The Action Force Monthly title printed new stories as well reprinting stories from the weekly title. The magazine was released in the US under the title G.I. Joe—European Missions.
The G.I. Joe story reprints were continued in the UK Transformers comic until they were dropped in 1991, with the name changing to "G.I. Joe the Action Force" in late 1989 to conform to the toy line (and then later to just "G.I. Joe"). (In 1995, Panini Comics
Panini Comics
Panini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
obtained the Marvel UK licence and began publishing an Action Man comic, without reference to Action Force or G.I. Joe.)
Distinction from G.I. Joe
The characters created by Battle Action Force and detailed on the file cards were more international in their nature than their G.I. Joe equivalents. Character file cards and comic book storylines in both the second and third generation of figures were altered in the European market to have mixed nationalities in contrast to the US-centric G.I. Joe characters.In late 1989 the toyline and accompanying merchandise were renamed to G.I. Joe the Action Force. A mini-comic distributed free in stores and in issue #245 of the Transformers comic explained that the European Action Force had merged with its US counterpart G.I. Joe. However, this story did not match all previous portrayals of Action Force as an international team with branches in Europe and America.
In 1991 the name was changed further to just G.I. Joe.
Action Force Canon
Due to its split comic book heritage, there are some irreconcilable difficulties regarding the continuity of Action Force storylines. The Battle Action Force universe should be regarded as stand-alone, while the Marvel UK stories were designed to coincide with Marvel US continuity.The Battle Action Force creators retconned several aspects of the series to smooth over the transition to G.I. Joe-influenced characters and vehicles. However, due to fan pressure, the first wave of Palitoy releases and characters returned to the pages of the comic time and time again (see above).
Several fan attempts have been made to establish an official Action Force canon
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
, building on accepted official works (such as the Battle Action Force publications and Palitoy-endorsed releases). The most comprehensive of these to date is the Action Force Datafiles.
Action Force in Germany
The second-generation Action Force figures were also released in West GermanyWest Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
during the 1980s, albeit without the benefit of a comic book tie-in. The German releases went under the title of Action Force who fought the "Terror-Bande" (roughly translated as "Terror Gang"). The German release only extended to the first wave of second-generation figures and characters (some 30 figures and vehicles) however the characters and vehicles were still grouped in their sub-units: anti-terror team (or ATT) corresponding to Z-Force; the special anti-terror team (or SATT) corresponding to SAS Force, the deep-sea anti-terror team (or TSATT) corresponding to Q Force and the space anti-terror team (or WATT) corresponding to Space Force.
Without comic back-stories, the figures were given context by the following statement (translated) which was retrospectively attached to the German packaging:
"The world of Action Force. The story of Action Force takes place in the year 2011. The world population has for a long time lived in peace and liberty, united under the rule of a democratic world regime. Baron Ironblood, the last criminal, strikes terror with a gang of enslaved adventurers, with intelligent robots and the world's most innovative weapons. His goal: to take over the world. Action Force was set up by the world government and fights this dangerous enemy with various special units: ATT, SATT, TSATT and WATT. Their orders: all terrorists must be captured, no one shall be killed."
In a country still concerned by its destructive past, German toy distributors modified certain aspects of the Action Force range to appear less violent. According to researchers of the German Palitoy range, most of the guns supplied with the figures were replaced by "less violent" stun
Stunning
Stunning is the process of rendering animals immobile or unconscious, without killing the animal, prior to their being slaughtered for food.-History:...
-weapons, laser-weapons or knives. Also the human skull
Human skull
The human skull is a bony structure, skeleton, that is in the human head and which supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones...
on the Red Shadow (or Terror-Bande) figures was removed from the toyline.
Devil's Due revival
In 2005 and 2007, the Action Force characters were partially revived. The Red ShadowsRed Shadows
The Red Shadows are the fictional fighting force opposed to Action Force and depicted in the UK Battle Action Force comic books. They were also portrayed in action figures by Palitoy as a European version of the G.I. Joe range. Later US G.I. Joe storylines have revived the Red Shadows as an...
organisation was featured in the two part Dawn of the Red Shadows storyline in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (vol. 2) #42 and 43, following a series of mysterious attacks against both G.I. Joe and Cobra. This Red Shadows organisation was led by Wilder Vaughn, a British military officer gone rogue, and viewed organised governments as corrupt and in need of removal. After this appearance, where they caused substantial damage, they were not seen again; Vaughn made a cameo in the Black Major uniform in a later storyline, stating Cobra had decimated the organisation off-panel.
The Action Force characters Quarrel, Moondancer, Hunter and Blades then made a cameo appearance in G.I. Joe: America's Elite issue #30, as representatives of NATO.
2009 and 2010 G.I. Joe convention revival
Action Force characters have appeared as limited edition toys and comic characters as part of the International G.I. Joe Convention, under the name Special Action Force or SAF (a riff on the SASSpecial Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
; not to be confused with the Philippines' real-life Special Action Force
Special Action Force
The Special Action Force is the National Mobile Unit of the Philippine National Police. It is formed along the lines of the British Army Special Air Service, but with different recruitment and selection procedures...
). Instead of being an international group, the Special Action Force are solely a British team and that nation's equivalent to G.I. Joe, though they have several foreign expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
members.
In August 2009 a limited edition Blades (complete with "SAF Copter") was released in both toy and comicbook character form as part of the 2009 G.I. Joe convention. He was portrayed as British rather than retaining the American nationality of the original character and assisted both G.I. Joe and their Argentine counterpart Commandos Heroicas (the South American branding for G.I. Joe).
In April 2010 the Red Shadows and Black Major returned in o-ring style articulation form as part of the G.I. Joe convention. Dubbed 'Vacation in the Shadows' the set featured new versions of Black Major, the Red Shadow trooper, Flint and Cobra's Interrogator as well as six new 'Red Torch' figures who were part of the Red Shadow forces, armed with flamethrowers. In addition to the boxset, other convention releases included Dolphin of Q-Force, a 3 3/4in Natalie Poole figure - based on the 1990s Action Man
Action Man
Action Man is an action figure boys' toy launched in Britain in 1966 by Palitoy as a licensed copy of Hasbro's American "moveable fighting man": G.I...
character and retroactively made an SAF agent - and Z Force's Jammer and Gaucho who appeared in a three-pack with a new version of Joe medic Lifeline. (Unlike Blades, Jammer and Gaucho remained American and Mexican.) Starduster appeared in the comic tie-in. The convention comic featured Flint vacationing in Europe with Dolphin and Natalie before running afoul of Black Major and Interrogator, who were planning an alliance between Cobra and the Red Shadows. In a twist ending, Natalie is brainwashed into being a Shadows sleeper agent.
External links
- Blood For The Baron!!! Action Force Website
- Battle Action Force Battle Action Force comic scans
- MUK Action Force Marvel UK Action Force comic scans
- YoJoe.com figure and vehicle archive
- A short history of Action Force from ActionFigure.com
- G.I. Joe - Action Force Website covering both G.I. Joe and Action Force
- Action Force Info Page Action Force Info Site With Pictures