Crimson Guard
Encyclopedia
The Crimson Guard is an elite organization within the fictional G.I. Joe
universe. They are members of Cobra Command, the nemesis of the G.I. Joe
team. They are often referred to by a phonetic spelling of their organization's initials, "Siegies". Tomax and Xamot
are the commanders of the Crimson Guard.
After the relaunch of the G.I. Joe line in 2001, other incarnations of the Crimson Guard were produced. The first was part of Hasbro
's Direct to Consumer line, which featured a slightly redesigned look. Another is a new subset, featuring repaints of the 2005 Crimson Guard Force figures, redone in black and gold, with melee weapons, and named the Crimson Shadow Guard.
Another notable toy incarnation of the Crimson Guard is the 2004 Operation Crimson Sabotage K.B. Toys Exclusive. The set consisted of three Crimson Guard figures, and included two vehicles; a crimson H.I.S.S. tank (High Speed Sentry), and a crimson A.S.P. (Assault Systems Pod) mobile flak emplacement. Hasbro also released the Crimson Guard for the 25th anniversary toyline. This figure included a G3w/ bayonet, a revolver, a built in holster, and a specially designed backpack.
, but completely loyal to Cobra Commander
, serving as his personal guard. Building the Crimson Guard network was believed to be the first thing Cobra Commander did after founding Cobra. Crimson Guardsman are not wasted on the battlefield like the more common Vipers and Cobra Troopers. Rather, "Siegie" agents operate undercover all over the country, in the political arenas and business world. All Crimson Guardsmen must hold a degree in either law or accounting, and be in top physical condition. They strive to present a facade of exemplary normalcy and civic responsibility, and are provided with fully supported cover identities, and even pre-fabricated "families". However, these agents are accumulating financial and political influence for Cobra through every means possible, supporting each other in creating schemes of blackmail, fraud and espionage.
Each member is rigorously trained and inducted in a secret ceremony in the lowest levels of Cobra's headquarters. To be a Crimson Guard is to swear absolute loyalty to Cobra and Cobra Commander. Many members also become part of a "series", undergoing plastic surgery and behavior modification to look and act like one another within a series. This allows one series member to completely replace another should the need arise without arousing suspicion. The most commonly depicted is the "Fred" Series.
Fred VII
is one of the noted Guard members. He is an owner of an auto repair shop and a developer of advanced cybernetic and bionic devices. This Fred would gain infamy when, from 1987 to the early 1990s, he would pretend to be Cobra Commander, donning the silver "battle armor" that the action figures introduced in the late 1980s. Fred VII's coup is destroyed when the real Cobra Commander made his return.
Another Guardsman, Appel, is featured in multiple G.I. Joe comic books. He is revealed when Joe forces attack his suburban home. He later comes up with part of the plan that creatres Cobra Island
. Appel's daughter, Candy, also influences the plot at the same time as she is the romantic interest of Ripcord. At one point, Appel even saves Ripcord from certain death on account of his daughter.
Later, again on Cobra Island, Crimson Guardsmen (with Cobra Trooper backup) are deployed into three sniper teams. They planned to assassinate Serpentor
when he arrived with personnel picked up from the town of Springfield. This plan is deduced and the sniper teams are foiled when Serpentor literally hangs onto Cobra Commander, then whips the crowd up into a frenzy of good cheer. They are ordered off their shots for fear of starting a riot.
The Guard end up on the battlefield during the first Cobra civil war.
is a series of comics with the Joe characters based out of London. In issue #11, two Crimson Guards, one male and one female, attempt to destroy the Eiffel Tower
but are stopped by a Joe team. In the next issue, ten more Guards are captured in a raid on a Cobra base/fast food restaurant. A Guardsman makes a cameo as the co-pilot for Copperhead
.
Later, a CG undercover is revealed as working as a school teacher. His uniform is uncovered due to an unlocked door and a curious student named Gary. The CG takes the entire class hostage and shoots dead another teacher. While Footloose
does have the man under the sniper rifle crosshairs it is Gary who talks the man into surrendering.
.
A Crimson Guardsman named Agent X-99 is listed as a Cobra operative in the Threat List printed in America's Elite #25. Agent X-99 was first seen in the Sunbow Episode "The Germ"
A Crimson Guardsman named Colonel Calvin is featured in an early storyline in America's Elite. He was assigned to a research station in the Amazon, well before the Crimson Twins joined Cobra. Surrounded only by BATs, cut off from support for unknown reasons, he went mad. He decides to make Cobra Commander pay for abandoning him and rigs a ICBM to attack his current location. Somehow Calvin found out about Cobra Commander disguisng himself as a member of the US President's cabinet. Duke tracks down Calvin and is held captive by him. Duke breaks free and kills Calvin, but not before finding out about Cobra Commander.
Another Guardsman is featured in later stories. This particular Guardsman rises through the ranks to the elite Shadow Guard. He is picked from them to become part of 'The Plague', an elite squad created from Cobra ranks to become an answer to G. I. Joe and given the codename Infrared. Like the Shadow Guard, the Plague is answerable directly to Cobra Commander. All the Plague members receive biographies in issue 30 of America's Elite. The Joes suspect this Guardsman of being a movie actor.
to be a feasible agent. In the second season, they seemed to serve more as bodyguards than anything else.
The Crimson Guard is led by the mirror twins
characters Tomax and Xamot
, who handle all of Cobra's business affairs. They are in direct command of the Crimson Guard; however, Tomax and Xamot are loyal to Cobra Commander, in turn, putting the Crimson Guard at Cobra Commander's disposal. During the second season, Tomax and Xamot's became loyal to Serpentor, which in turn placed the Crimson Guard out of Cobra Commander's disposal and into Serpentor's disposal.
Different voice actors have voiced members of the Crimson Guard: Michael Bell, Chris Latta
, and Lee Weaver
. The Crimson Guard X-99 from "The Germ" was voiced by Neil Ross
.
cartoon, their new leader was Destro and some were part of a group of Cobra soldiers who became Python Patrol
and under the newly restored Cobra Commander overthrew Serpentor. In "The Greatest Evil" two-parter, a Crimson Guard Immortal's sister is hospitalized after overdosing on the drug Spark, created by the Headman. This Siegie teams meets Duke whose brother Falcon is also an addict. The two agree to join forces to stop the Headman. Despite his love for his sister, the Siegie gets caught up in Cobra's scheme to use the alliance to rob the Headman of his profits. His sister and Falcon team up to replace the money with worthless paper and then donate the real money to drug rehab programs.
episode "Brothers of Light," the Crimson Guard are homaged as the elite guards for Tomax and Xamot's cult. A brainwashed Duke, Scarlett, and Roadblock were shown as Crimson Guards until Tunnel Rat and Snake Eyes freed them from the mind-control.
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...
universe. They are members of Cobra Command, the nemesis of the 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...
team. They are often referred to by a phonetic spelling of their organization's initials, "Siegies". Tomax and Xamot
Tomax and Xamot
Tomax and Xamot, also called the Crimson Twins or Crimson Guard Commanders, are the code names of identical mirror twin brothers in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero universe...
are the commanders of the Crimson Guard.
Toys
The first Crimson Guard figure was released in 1985. The figure wore a red dress uniform with silver decorations and a red helmet with black mask that covered his entire face. The accessories included a rifle with bayonet and red backpack. In 1989, the figure was repainted yellow and gray as part of the special Python Patrol sub group. In 1991, an armored version of the Crimson Guard, known as the Crimson Guard Immortals was introduced, wielding tube rocket launchers and a squad automatic weapon. In 1993, near the end of the original 3 3/4 inch G.I. Joe line, lightly armored Crimson Guard Commanders were released.After the relaunch of the G.I. Joe line in 2001, other incarnations of the Crimson Guard were produced. The first was part of 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...
's Direct to Consumer line, which featured a slightly redesigned look. Another is a new subset, featuring repaints of the 2005 Crimson Guard Force figures, redone in black and gold, with melee weapons, and named the Crimson Shadow Guard.
Another notable toy incarnation of the Crimson Guard is the 2004 Operation Crimson Sabotage K.B. Toys Exclusive. The set consisted of three Crimson Guard figures, and included two vehicles; a crimson H.I.S.S. tank (High Speed Sentry), and a crimson A.S.P. (Assault Systems Pod) mobile flak emplacement. Hasbro also released the Crimson Guard for the 25th anniversary toyline. This figure included a G3w/ bayonet, a revolver, a built in holster, and a specially designed backpack.
Comic books
In the Marvel and Devil's Due comic series, the Crimson Guard are the most elite soldiers of Cobra's Viper legions, under the direct command of Tomax and XamotTomax and Xamot
Tomax and Xamot, also called the Crimson Twins or Crimson Guard Commanders, are the code names of identical mirror twin brothers in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero universe...
, but completely loyal to Cobra Commander
Cobra Commander
Cobra Commander is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe franchise. He appears in the toyline, animated series , comic books, video games, and movie as the usual principal antagonist. He is the supreme leader of the terrorist organization Cobra, and archnemesis of the Joes...
, serving as his personal guard. Building the Crimson Guard network was believed to be the first thing Cobra Commander did after founding Cobra. Crimson Guardsman are not wasted on the battlefield like the more common Vipers and Cobra Troopers. Rather, "Siegie" agents operate undercover all over the country, in the political arenas and business world. All Crimson Guardsmen must hold a degree in either law or accounting, and be in top physical condition. They strive to present a facade of exemplary normalcy and civic responsibility, and are provided with fully supported cover identities, and even pre-fabricated "families". However, these agents are accumulating financial and political influence for Cobra through every means possible, supporting each other in creating schemes of blackmail, fraud and espionage.
Each member is rigorously trained and inducted in a secret ceremony in the lowest levels of Cobra's headquarters. To be a Crimson Guard is to swear absolute loyalty to Cobra and Cobra Commander. Many members also become part of a "series", undergoing plastic surgery and behavior modification to look and act like one another within a series. This allows one series member to completely replace another should the need arise without arousing suspicion. The most commonly depicted is the "Fred" Series.
Marvel Comics
A Fred is assigned early on to spy on Fort Wadsworth, the suspected home of the G.I. Joe. He tends to miss important intelligence by coincidence.Fred VII
Fred VII
Fred VII is a fictional character in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero comic book, a member of the Crimson Guard, the elite Cobra combat and covert operations/infiltration force...
is one of the noted Guard members. He is an owner of an auto repair shop and a developer of advanced cybernetic and bionic devices. This Fred would gain infamy when, from 1987 to the early 1990s, he would pretend to be Cobra Commander, donning the silver "battle armor" that the action figures introduced in the late 1980s. Fred VII's coup is destroyed when the real Cobra Commander made his return.
Another Guardsman, Appel, is featured in multiple G.I. Joe comic books. He is revealed when Joe forces attack his suburban home. He later comes up with part of the plan that creatres Cobra Island
Cobra Island
Cobra Island is a fictional country located in the Gulf of Mexico. It is the main base of operations for the fictional Cobra Organization featured in the G.I. Joe toyline from the 1980s. It is featured in the G.I. Joe cartoon and the comic book series created by Marvel Comics and Devil's Due...
. Appel's daughter, Candy, also influences the plot at the same time as she is the romantic interest of Ripcord. At one point, Appel even saves Ripcord from certain death on account of his daughter.
Later, again on Cobra Island, Crimson Guardsmen (with Cobra Trooper backup) are deployed into three sniper teams. They planned to assassinate Serpentor
Serpentor
Serpentor is a fictional character from G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, a line of military-themed toys created by Hasbro. The character was introduced in 1986 as a toy with an air chariot and included in the animated series that same year.-Toys:...
when he arrived with personnel picked up from the town of Springfield. This plan is deduced and the sniper teams are foiled when Serpentor literally hangs onto Cobra Commander, then whips the crowd up into a frenzy of good cheer. They are ordered off their shots for fear of starting a riot.
The Guard end up on the battlefield during the first Cobra civil war.
Action Force
Action ForceAction Force
Action Force was a 1980s range of European action figures initially based on Action Man, and later used to introduce G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toys to European markets...
is a series of comics with the Joe characters based out of London. In issue #11, two Crimson Guards, one male and one female, attempt to destroy the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
but are stopped by a Joe team. In the next issue, ten more Guards are captured in a raid on a Cobra base/fast food restaurant. A Guardsman makes a cameo as the co-pilot for Copperhead
Copperhead (G.I. Joe)
Copperhead is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline, comic books and cartoon series of the 1980s. He is Cobra's Water Moccasin pilot and debuted in 1984.-Profile:...
.
Later, a CG undercover is revealed as working as a school teacher. His uniform is uncovered due to an unlocked door and a curious student named Gary. The CG takes the entire class hostage and shoots dead another teacher. While Footloose
Footloose (G.I. Joe)
Footloose is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline, comic books and cartoon series. He is the G.I. Joe Team's infantry trooper, and debuted in 1985.-Profile:...
does have the man under the sniper rifle crosshairs it is Gary who talks the man into surrendering.
Devil's Due comics
Not all 'Sieges' remain loyal. An older member, Fletcher, is murdered before he can talk to the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
A Crimson Guardsman named Agent X-99 is listed as a Cobra operative in the Threat List printed in America's Elite #25. Agent X-99 was first seen in the Sunbow Episode "The Germ"
A Crimson Guardsman named Colonel Calvin is featured in an early storyline in America's Elite. He was assigned to a research station in the Amazon, well before the Crimson Twins joined Cobra. Surrounded only by BATs, cut off from support for unknown reasons, he went mad. He decides to make Cobra Commander pay for abandoning him and rigs a ICBM to attack his current location. Somehow Calvin found out about Cobra Commander disguisng himself as a member of the US President's cabinet. Duke tracks down Calvin and is held captive by him. Duke breaks free and kills Calvin, but not before finding out about Cobra Commander.
Another Guardsman is featured in later stories. This particular Guardsman rises through the ranks to the elite Shadow Guard. He is picked from them to become part of 'The Plague', an elite squad created from Cobra ranks to become an answer to G. I. Joe and given the codename Infrared. Like the Shadow Guard, the Plague is answerable directly to Cobra Commander. All the Plague members receive biographies in issue 30 of America's Elite. The Joes suspect this Guardsman of being a movie actor.
Sunbow
These soldiers, which are featured in the cartoon G.I. Joe, are the elite of Cobra. As with all soldiers in the first season they fight on land, sea and air acting almost as officers as well as serving as Cobra Commander's bodyguards who he refers to as on at least once occasion his "Red Guard". In the first-season episodes after the "Pyramid of Darkness" mini-series, Crimson Guard members also act as deep-cover or sleeper agents, conducting operations in civilian guises that would require either too many operatives or too long an operation time for ZartanZartan
Zartan is a character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline, by Hasbro. He is a mercenary who often worked directly for Cobra Commander, and is one of the main villains in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero comic and animated series. His character was voiced by Zack Hoffman in the 1985 TV...
to be a feasible agent. In the second season, they seemed to serve more as bodyguards than anything else.
The Crimson Guard is led by the mirror twins
TWINS
Two Wide-Angle Imaging Neutral-Atom Spectrometers are a pair of NASA instruments aboard two United States National Reconnaissance Office satellites in Molniya orbits. TWINS was designed to provide stereo images of the Earth's ring current. The first instrument, TWINS-1, was launched aboard USA-184...
characters Tomax and Xamot
Tomax and Xamot
Tomax and Xamot, also called the Crimson Twins or Crimson Guard Commanders, are the code names of identical mirror twin brothers in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero universe...
, who handle all of Cobra's business affairs. They are in direct command of the Crimson Guard; however, Tomax and Xamot are loyal to Cobra Commander, in turn, putting the Crimson Guard at Cobra Commander's disposal. During the second season, Tomax and Xamot's became loyal to Serpentor, which in turn placed the Crimson Guard out of Cobra Commander's disposal and into Serpentor's disposal.
Different voice actors have voiced members of the Crimson Guard: Michael Bell, Chris Latta
Christopher Collins
Christopher Charles Collins , also known as Chris Latta, was an American actor, voice artist and comedian, perhaps best known as the voice of Cobra Commander on the G.I. Joe animated series and as the voice of Starscream in the first Transformers animated series...
, and Lee Weaver
Lee Weaver
Lee Weaver is an African-American film and television actor.-Career:Weaver's first screen appearance was in 1955 and according to the Internet Movie Database, he has appeared in more than 120 film and television productions, including 45 single-episode appearances on various television...
. The Crimson Guard X-99 from "The Germ" was voiced by Neil Ross
Neil Ross
Theodoric Neilson "Neil" Ross is an English voice actor and announcer, born in London, England and now resident and working in Los Angeles, in the United States. He has provided voices for in many American cartoons, particularly those based on Hasbro products and Marvel Comics, and numerous...
.
DiC
In the Dragon Fire mini-series of the 1989 G.I. JoeG.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1989 TV series)
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is a half-hour American animated television series based on the successful toyline from Hasbro and the comic book series from Marvel Comics. The series was produced by DIC Entertainment and ran from 1989 to 1991....
cartoon, their new leader was Destro and some were part of a group of Cobra soldiers who became Python Patrol
Python Patrol
The Python Patrol is an elite unit within the fictional Cobra Organization. They have special uniforms that masks their presence to electronic detection systems...
and under the newly restored Cobra Commander overthrew Serpentor. In "The Greatest Evil" two-parter, a Crimson Guard Immortal's sister is hospitalized after overdosing on the drug Spark, created by the Headman. This Siegie teams meets Duke whose brother Falcon is also an addict. The two agree to join forces to stop the Headman. Despite his love for his sister, the Siegie gets caught up in Cobra's scheme to use the alliance to rob the Headman of his profits. His sister and Falcon team up to replace the money with worthless paper and then donate the real money to drug rehab programs.
Renegades
In the G.I. Joe: RenegadesG.I. Joe: Renegades
G.I. Joe: Renegades is an American animated television series based on the G.I. Joe toy franchise. The series premiered on November 26, 2010 on The Hub. The series aired on Teletoon in Canada....
episode "Brothers of Light," the Crimson Guard are homaged as the elite guards for Tomax and Xamot's cult. A brainwashed Duke, Scarlett, and Roadblock were shown as Crimson Guards until Tunnel Rat and Snake Eyes freed them from the mind-control.
External links
- Crimson Guard at JMM's G.I. Joe Comics Home Page
- Crimson Guard at The Inner Sanctum fansite