*Previously on G.I. Joe: Resurgence:
https://www.comicbookmovie.com/fan_fic/flixmentallo21-presents-gi-joe-resurgence-a-netflix-original-series-a149054
https://www.comicbookmovie.com/fan_fic/flixmentallo21-presents-gi-joe-resurgence-redemption-a-netflix-original-miniseries-a153474
The fine folks of Phoenix Customs did it again this summer, and have debuted a fantastic new series of custom G.I. Joe figures, based around a fan-favorite incarnation of the first action figure ever created.
http://oreobuildersblog.blogspot.com/2018/06/resurgence-adventure-team-behind-scenes.html
Which incarnation? The "Adventure Team" era fondly remembered by children of the 1970's. A bit of historical context: as public sentiment turned more and more against American involvement in the Vietnam War, Hasbro sought to rebrand G.I. Joe and take the line in a less military-themed direction. Starting in 1969 under the banner "Adventures of G.I. Joe", Hasbro debuted the Adventure Team series, which saw Joe explore exotic locales, recovering ancient artifacts, or tackling dangerous, environmentally-sensitive missions.
The toys also had new innovations introduced into their playability, such as life-like flocked hair and beards, moving 'eagle eyes', and probably the most iconic feature of 70's-era G.I. Joe:
As the line wore on, to compete with both Mego's 8-inch offerings and figures based on the TV show The Six Million Dollar Man, quirky additions were made such as Mike Power the Atomic Man; Bulletman; and foes in the form of the alien Intruders. Eventually, the line ended in 1976, leaving Joe dormant until the 1982 A Real American Hero relaunch. The Adventure Team theme has proven popular enough that it would be revived for different special releases throughout the 2000's, through both the G.I. Joe Collectors Club and at retailers such as Meijer, Wal-Mart, Hot Topic, and Urban Outfitters. Hasbro revived the name for its own 8-inch offerings that continued from G.I. Joe: Sigma Six, while the Collectors Club, from 2010 to 2011, even produced a series of Adventure Team figures using the 4" mold styles introduced with the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero 25th Anniversary line.
Phoenix Customs has done a fantastic take on this iconic era of G.I. Joe, and gave me their blessing to give it the fancast treatment.
So now I present to you the latest entry in the G.I. Joe: Resurgence saga:
*"Live the Adventure" comes from a tagline for one of the mail-order inserts from the 1980's series.*
#The Plot
"After Cobra Commander's defeat at Cobra Mountain, the ruthless terrorist organization has fractured. While Major Bludd and his Skull Squad are searching for hidden Cobra arsenals to build an army, the Crimson Twins have teamed up with Crystal Ball to form a new splinter group - CHAOS. These Cobra Hunters of Artifacts, Occult and Supernatural are scouring the globe to search out ancient mystical relics in the hopes of harnessing their powers.
To stop CHAOS, Duke calls on the original GI Joe to assemble a new team of daring adventurers. These men and women, led by Joe Colton Jr, are the best of the best from a wide range of fields: physics, archeology, extreme sports, exploration, search and rescue and more. They must race across the globe, facing the elements and natural perils to find the mystical relics before their adversaries can use them for their nefarious purposes."
*Further italicized details come from the members of Phoenix Customs. I'm not one of them, just saying.*
#The Voice Cast
+G.I. Joe Adventure Team
-Paul Eiding as the voice of G.I. Joe/Joseph Colton, Sr.
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Paul-Eiding/
I've said it before way back in my G.I. Joe: Special Missions fancast, but Eiding, combining his portrayal of Col. Roy Campbell in the Metal Gear Solid series with his Grandpa Max from Ben 10 would give us the best Joe Colton for an animated endeavor.
-Chris Wood (Supergirl) as the voice of Joseph Colton, Jr.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5534096/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Seeing Wood portray a more mature and level-headed Mon-El is what convinced me he'd be a decent pick for the son of the original G.I. Joe leading the next generation of daring, highly-trained adventurers.
Joe Colton, Sr. and Jr. are from the same area as Hasbro. For Joe Jr., I liked the idea that he had a parallel career path like Duke or Flint, but fate steered him to the Adventure Team instead of G.I. Joe.
-Nick Blood (Agents of SHIELD) as the voice of Seawatch/Steven Patrick
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3435454/?ref_=nv_sr_1
This particular S.H.I.E.L.D. alum I knew would be a perfect fit for a British sailor who's never truly lost his sea legs, and doesn't plan on it any time soon.
Seawatch’s name is really Morrissey’s first name and he comes from the same hometown of Manchester, England.
-Zeno Robinson as the voice of Control/Nathan Alexander
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Zeno-Robinson/
-Mick Wingert as the voice of Finback/Rusty Brooks
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Mick-Wingert/
For Finback, Duke is the top marine biology school in the country.
-Ray Chase as the voice of Night Wolf/Roy Bent
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Ray-Chase/
Partly why I cast Chase was that among the characters in his filmography is another Roy, the hero of Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade.
Night Wolf’s name [like that of Underbrush from the first Resurgence] comes from the Monty Python sketch “How Not to Be Seen.” Roy Bent is the man who wrote the book on it and he is listed as coming from Norfolk. I wanted Night Wolf to be as if an Anonymous member suddenly decided to use their skills in the real world.
-J.R. Ramirez (Arrow, Jessica Jones) as the voice of Ocelot/Juan Gonzalez
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2824707/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Ocelot’s home country’s racing history is true, as are the military groups referenced.
-Kirk Acevedo (Arrow) as the voice of Quick Draw/Manuel Rivera
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0009716/?ref_=nv_sr_1
After a full season of playing a brooding crime boss like Ricardo Diaz, one would think Acevido would opt for a role that goes in the opposite direction, and it doesn't get more 'opposite direction' than a heroic mountain climber.
-Imari Williams as the voice of Icepick/Robert Moranis
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Imari-Williams/
-Max Mittelman as the voice of Uplink/Douglas Thomas
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Max-Mittelman/
Icepick and Uplink’s names are combinations of Bob and Doug McKenzie from SCTV’s "Great White North" and Strange Brew, along with the actors who played them, Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas.
But I bet you hosers out there knew that already, eh?
-Connor Kelly-Eiding as the voice of Overdrive/Emily Dutrou
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Connor-Kelly-Eiding/
I only recently learned that she was Paul Eiding's daughter, and felt it'd be fun to have the two in the same cast, as seen prior in Fire Emblem Fates.
For Overdrive, I wanted to show that she came from a racing country--Monaco has one of the most famous races in the world--but she also turned her back on an easy life of luxury to be part of the Adventure Team.
-Yuji Okumoto as the voice of Trailbreaker/Makio Kodama
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Yuji-Okumoto/
Trailbreaker is named for one of my best friends in the world who lives in Nagoya, Japan.
-Joe J. Thomas as the voice of Airlift/Clayton Lawbruster
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Joe-J-Thomas/
Airlift was my take on how many Joes come from families with rich military traditions. I also wanted to contrast the main helicopter military teams in American and Australia, so I made Searchlight part of the 171st Aviation Squadron.
-Rick Cosnett (The Flash) as the voice of Searchlight/Denaye Jones
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1936048/?ref_=nv_sr_2
An Aussie actor was definitely needed (in my view) for the newest Joe from Down Under.
Searchlight was my attempt at following everyone's direction on making the team more worldly. I loved how some of the Adventure Team and Big Jim sets were sports based and then learned that in Australia, there is a competition that is a combination of lifeguarding and surfing.
+Cobra/CHAOS
-Julian Sands as the voices of Tomax and Xamot
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001696/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Filling in for original Sunbow series voice actors Corey Burton (Tomax) and Michael Bell (Xamot), I'm confident Sands could figure out a way to distinguish each twin effectively (much as Stephen Stanton did in G.I. Joe: Renegades).
I lifted the bit of Xamot being the wilder twin from the recent IDW G.I. Joe comics.
-Brian George as the voice of Crystal Ball
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0313364/?ref_=nv_sr_1
As mentioned before in the first Resurgence fancast, George would do well to take Crystal Ball in an eerie, almost Vincent Price-like direction.
-Ron Perlman as the voice of Krypt/Carter Kryptos
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000579/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
Perlman I know would nail the anti-Indiana Jones characterization present in this surly tomb raider.
Krypt is my take on an Indiana Jones villain. All of the occult relics mentioned in his bio are real.
-Erica Lindbeck as the voice of Glamour/Jerrica Gabor
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Erica-Lindbeck/
Glamour’s last name re-imagines Jem from Jem and the Holograms if she was raised by Pizzazz from The Misfits’ family.
-Richard Epcar as the voice of Dagon/Atticus McCullen
https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Richard-Epcar/
Epcar, another of my favorites in the business, is a great fit for this Scottish druid based on his portrayal of Jedah in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
For Dagon, I took the episode of the [Sunbow] cartoon "Skeletons in the Closet" and created a Destro family member that handled all the magical grunt work for the rest of the family. The mask looked so much like that episode! Also, Boleskine is Aleister Crowley's old castle on Loch Ness that was owned by Jimmy Page at one time.