#Cobra Civil War

[gijoe-forever]

[miyagi-hokarate]

Cobra Kai truly has some of the most Wiggles ass color scheming in its costuming design sometimes, but when it hits OH MAN DOES IT HIT..

[floralcrematorium]

2010s Nostalgia || Hetalia Edition

Hetalia Youtube Nostalgia Playlist | 117 songs | 7hr 5min

• Hey Na Na - Katie Herzig • Viva La Vida - Coldplay • Rasputin - Boney M. • Glad You Came - The Wanted • Hot Mess - Cobra Starship • Counting Stars - OneRepublic • Fireflies - Owl City • Bombshell Blonde - The Jagged Edges • Do Better - Say Anything • Welcome To The Show - Britt Nicole • Dance With The Devil - Breaking Benjamin • Survive - Sick Puppies • Life is Beautiful - Sixx:A.M. • Fairytale - Alexander Rybak • Everybody Loves Me - One Republic • Don't Mess With Me - temposhark • Mimimi - SEREBRO • I Like It Loud - Cash Cash • I Just Wanna Run - The Downtown Fiction • I'm ALIVE! - Becca • Lovestruck - Breathe Electric • I Like To Dance - Hot Chelle Rae • Haven't Had Enough - Marianas Trench • Kiss Me Thru The Phone - Soulja Boy, Sammie • Hard out Here - Lily Allen • Runaway Baby - Bruno Mars • I Don't Care - Fall Out Boy • Airplanes - B.o.B., Hayley Williams • Rock Star - Prima J • This Is War - Thirty Seconds To Mars • Hey Brother - Avicii • Cinderella - Tata Young • Centuries - Fall Out Boy • Déjà Vu - 3OH!3 • Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy Me - Lene Alexandra • Miss Jackson - Panic! At The Disco, LOLO • The Ballad of Mona Lisa - Panic! At The Disco • Europe's Skies - Alexander Rybak • Bad Apple!! - RichaadEB, Cristina Vee • Lying Is The Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off - Panic! At The Disco • Let's Kill Tonight - Panic! At The Disco • Hurricane - Panic! At The Disco • Casual Affair - Panic! At The Disco • Never Close Our Eyes - Adam Lambert • Playing With Fire - Ovi, Paula Seling • Angel With A Shotgun - The Cab • Nicotine - Panic! At The Disco • Killer - The Ready Set • How to Be a Heartbreaker - MARINA • This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race - Fall Out Boy • Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na) - My Chemical Romance • Troublemaker - Olly Murs, Flo Rida • Good Girls Go Bad - Cobra Starship, Leighton Meester • I Can't Decide - Scissor Sisters • One Woman Army - Porcelain Black • How To Start A War - Simon Curtis • Maps - Maroon 5 • Do Better - Say Anything • STARSTRUKK - 3OH!3 • Remember Everything - Five Finger Death Punch • The Diary of Jane - Breaking Benjamin • Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes • When You're Evil - Aurelio Voltaire • Canadian, Please - Julia Bentley, Gunnarolla • Sarah Smiles - Panic! At The Disco • Take Me to Church - Hozier • Viking Death March - Billy Talent • Headstrong - Trapt • Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind • Don't Believe A Word - Third Eye Blind • Warriors - Imagine Dragons • iNSaNiTY - CircusP • Paralyzer - Finger Eleven • I'm Awesome - Spose • 24 - Jem • Clarity - Zedd, Foxes • Hall of Fame - The Script, will.i.am • The Is Gospel - Panic! At The Disco • Immortals - Fall Out Boy • Rather Be - Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne • Wake Me Up - Avicii • a thousand years - Christina Perri • Just Like Fire - P!nk • Safe & Sound - Taylor Swift, The Civil Wars • Safe And Sound - Capital Cities • Everybody Wants To Rule The World - Lorde • Demons - Imagine Dragons • DNA - Little Mix • Remember The Name - Fort Minor, Styles of Beyond • Victorious - Panic! At The Disco • 右肩の蝶 (Butterfly On Your Right Shoulder) - Kagamine Rin/Len • We Are One (Ole Ole) - Pitbull, Jennifer Lopez, Claudia Leitte • Hero - Skillet • Maraca - Mohombi • The Phoenix - Fall Out Boy • DONTTRUSTME - 3OH!3 • Teenage Dream - Katy Perry • SING - My Chemical Romance • Good Time - Owl City, Carly Rae Jepsen • White Rabbit - Egypt Central • Not Gonna Die - Skillet • The Kill - Thirty Seconds To Mars • We No Speak Americano - Yolanda Be Cool, DCup • Nobody's Listening - Linkin Park • Disco Pogo - Die Atzen • German Sparkle Party - The Something Experience • Dirty Little Secret - The All-American Rejects • I Could Be The One - Avicii, Nicky Romero • Can't Hold Us - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis • Still Into You - Paramore • Primadonna - MARINA • Pompeii - Bastille • 恋愛サーキュレーション (Renai Circulation) - 物語シリーズ • Awake And Alive - Skillet • Monster - Skillet • Poker Face - Lady Gaga • Falling Inside The Black - Skillet

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Maria Montez (Cobra Woman, Arabian Nights)—maria montez was a dominican actress who rose to fame starring in a series of technicolor adventure movies in the 1940s hollywood, becoming popularly known as "the queen of technicolor”. her dramatic persona and elaborate bejeweled attire in these films subsequently lead to her becoming an early camp icon to underground queer filmmakers like jack smith and andy warhol. maria was fiercely determined to become a Movie Star from early on and tirelessly promoted herself (she would be killing it as an influencer today probably) - she deliberately cultivated an outré star persona in the tradition of old school screen vamps like theda bara and alla nazimova and she was always serving no matter where she was or what she was doing.

Judy Garland (Meet Me In St. Louis, A Star is Born, Summer Stock)— Judy is the GOAT when it comes to classic movie musicals. The voice of an angel who deserved so much better than she got. She can sing she can dance she can act she's a triple threat. Though she had a turbulent personal life (her treatment as a child star by the studio system makes me mad as hell like Louis b Mayer fight me ((she was made to believe that she was physically unattractive by the constant criticism of film executives who made her feel ugly and who manipulated her onscreen appearance by capping her teeth and using discs in her nose to change its shape and Mayer called her "my little hunchback" like imagine hearing that as a child and not having damage)) she always goddamn delivered on screen and in any performance she gave. She began in vaudeville performing with her sisters and was signed to MGM at 13. Starting out in supporting parts especially paired with mickey Rooney in a bunch of films (she's the best part tbh) she eventually transferred to the lead role. She is best known for her starring role in movie musicals like the iconic Wizard of Oz (somewhere over the rainbow still hits hard and is ranked the top film song of all time), meet me in St. Louis (Judy singing have your self a merry little Christmas brings tears to the eyes she is that powerful), the Harvey girls (she looks like a technicolor dream and sings a catchy af song about trains), Easter parade ( dancing and singing with Fred Astaire), for me and my gal, the pirate, and summer stock ( with pal Gene Kelly who she helped when he was starting out and he helped her when she was struggling). But she also does non- singing just as well like the clock ( her first movie where she sings no songs and is an underrated ww2 era romance), her Oscar nominated a star is born ( like the man that got away she put her whole soul in that and I have beef with the fact she lost to grace kelly ((whom I love but like still not even her best work)), and judgement at Nuremberg (a courtroom drama about the nazi war criminal trials). Outside of film she made concert appearances to record-breaking audiences, released 8 studio albums, and had her own Emmy-nominated tv series. She was the youngest (39) and first female recipient of the Cecil B DeMille award for lifetime achievement in the film industry. Girl was a lifelong democrat and was a financial and moral supporter of many causes including the civil rights movement (she was at the March on Washington and held a press conference to protest the 16th street Baptist church bombings). She was a friend of the Kennedy family and would call jfk weekly often ending the calls by singing the first few lines of somewhere over the rainbow (she thought of them as Gemini twins).She was a member of the committee for the first amendment which was formed in response to the HUAC investigations. Though she died far too young and tragically she remains an icon for her work and her life. As a girl who didn't feel like i was as pretty as everyone else I have always felt a connection to Judy and I just really love her.

This is round 2 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Maria:

Dominican actress dubbed the Queen of Technicolor. Starred in colourful action adventure movies and was Universal Studios “glamour girl” of the 1940s. She starred in 26 movies before her untimely death in 1951. Shot to stardom with Arabian Nights in 1942. Fought with universal over roles she was cast in and managed to negotiate better pay for herself before going freelance and starring in European movies.

Judy:

Judy's voice alone qualifies her for at least top ten hottest HOT VINTAGE MOVIE WOMEN. She was a truly incredible swing singer, with a stunning voice on top of her technique. Her short dark hair looked incredible in just about any style. Have I mentioned her swagger? I can’t do it justice with words. She had swagger. She was funny as hell, and clever too. Incredibly charming and cool. I adore her.

Her eyes, her voice have bewitched me

I mean how can you beat the one and only Judy? She's beautiful, her smile is contagious, the way she sings with her whole body. You can't help but love her.

Beautiful woman, love her singing voice. And she can do everything between happy or silly and angry or heartbroken

[the-french-belphegor]

The year is 1884. John Kreese is the local sheriff and rules the San Fernando Valley with an iron hand (with the discreet help and financial backing of his old war buddy turned robber baron, Terrance Silver). He has a posse of promising young fellows working for him, the Cobras. First and foremost is his young right hand man, Johnny Lawrence, whom Kreese has trained in his methods and who is primed for his succession.

Except a stranger and his widowed mother from the rough side of New Jersey waltz into town one day, and they don’t act like the tenderfoots they’re supposed to be, East Coast and all. Daniel LaRusso (second-generation immigrant) refuses to back down when threatened and blunders straight into Kreese’s evil plans. Fortunately, he ends up making friends with Mr. Miyagi, a Japanese immigrant who fought for the Union in the Civil War. They bond over (amongst other things) being misfits and outsiders, and Mr. Miyagi teaches Daniel his family’s karate and how to shoot his opponent’s gun out of their hand lightning-quick.

At first, for young Mr. LaRusso, it’s a question of everyday survival, but it quickly becomes about exposing Kreese’s (and Silver’s) corruption, which Johnny doesn’t want to acknowledge (since Kreese practically raised him). But soon young Mr. Lawrence is going to have to make a choice: stand with his  teacher and protector, or listen to LaRusso’s warnings?

Doing an art trade and I got the lovely @jossujb to draw for 💜 I ended up doing a whole western AU. Now, of the two texts, which is the title and which is the subtitle? Yes. (couldn’t choose, they both felt corny but fun, so you get to decide!)

[deadite-central]

Last time when I rambled on Alabasta, I talked about how terrifying the situation in the country is, and that continues on when we properly meet Kohza

The rebels don’t want to fight, circumstance forced them to take this stand, and it’s even sadder to us as readers, since we know Cobra is on their side and is as much of a victim in this civil war as everyone

On a much, much lighter note, Alabasta still does have a lot strong comedic moments, and Rainbase has got a lot of highlights (the entire Smoker chase after Usopp and Luffy run into him always makes me lose it)

At Raindinners our characters finally get to meet Crocodile, and I do enjoy their interactions a lot. Also when you think about it, Smoker has got to be the person who has the most beef with the warlords man was probably cheering when they were disbanded

And then Robin’s power reveal!! It’s done in such a cool way. Up until this point it was shrouded in mystery. So when it seems she stabs Vivi with her arm, when I personally first watched it my jaw was on the floor, but knowing about her powers it’s a fun scene. Her fight with Pell (it’s not even a fight tbh) is a really really good moment as well

Vivi’s conversation with Crocodile is also a highlight to me. Not only does the man keep being a menace, the two of them see Alabasta through completely different lens, which allows for great contrast between the villain and one of our main characters, which builds characterisation for both of them

Another great moment has got to be Mr Prince, genuinely one of the coolest Sanji moments, and sometimes, in a dire situation, having a character do cool shit is the best way to go about things

To finish my thoughts off for today, we get to the beginning of the first fight between Luffy and Croc, which has such a hype feeling to it, even if I already know everything that will happen. It also brings up the fact that even to Crocodile, Robin is still a mystery, which just shows how he treats trust, and how that will come back to bite him later

[walkingthroughthisworld]

Larry Taylor was born in 1942 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He grew up in a family and community that emphasized the importance of military service. His great-great-grandfather fought in the Civil War, his great-uncle in World War I and his father and uncles in World War II. 

Larry Taylor joined the U.S. Army Reserve Officer Training Program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Upon graduation in June 1966, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve, then joined the regular Army in August, volunteering as an armor officer. 

He joined the U.S. Army Reserve Officer Training Program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Upon graduation in June 1966, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve, then joined the regular Army in August, volunteering as an armor officer. After graduating from the U.S. Army Armor School at Fort Knox, Kentucky, Taylor quickly realized he was better suited to be a pilot than an armor officer. He had already obtained a fixed-wing pilot's license before joining the Army and thought that experience would make it easier to learn rotary-wing flying. 

After receiving permission to train as a helicopter pilot, he attended the U.S. Army Primary Helicopter School at Fort Wolters, Texas, and then advanced helicopter training at Fort Rucker (renamed Fort Novosel in 2023), Alabama, where he qualified as an Army aviator in June 1967.

Taylor served in Vietnam from August 1967 to August 1968, flying some of the first Bell AH1-G Cobra attack helicopters in combat. Serving with D Troop (Air), 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry, 1st Infantry Division, Taylor flew over 2,000 combat missions in UH-1 and Cobra helicopters. He was engaged by enemy fire 340 times and was forced down five times. The U.S. Army awarded him at least 50 combat decorations, including the Silver Star, 43 Air Medals, a Bronze Star and two Distinguished Flying Crosses. He also received the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Bronze Star.

 Among his many harrowing operations, the most dangerous and frightening took place on June 18, 1968, when he rescued a four-man long range patrol team at significant risk to his own life. For his heroic actions that night, the Army awarded him the Silver Star, which President Joe Biden upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 2023. Taylor concluded his military service as a captain with the 2nd Armored Cavalry in West Germany. 

After his Army service, he operated a successful roofing and sheet metal company in Chattanooga and was involved with several veterans' organizations. He has also been a generous donor to charitable nonprofit organizations in the Chattanooga area. Taylor and his wife, Toni, reside in Signal Mountain, Tennessee.

(via Captain Larry L. Taylor | Medal of Honor Recipient | U.S. Army)

[docgold13]

Profiles in Villainy

Destro

James McCullen Destro XXIV, usually referred to simply as Destro, is an international illegal arms smuggler and manufacturer, operating with utmost secrecy, out of his ancestral castle in Scotland.

The silver mask Destro wears is his most distinctive feature. It is forged from Beryllium steel. For centuries, the Destro clan designed and sold weapons. In an incident dating back to the English Civil War, an ancestor of his was caught selling weapons to both sides. He was forced to wear a steel mask for his crimes (neither side were willing to execute him because they still wanted his weapons). Rather than taking it as a sign of shame, the Destro clan turned it into a symbol of pride. The patriarchs passed it down as tradition from father to son for over 20 generations.

As the central supplier of weapons to the terrorist organization, Cobra, Destro has battled against the forces of G.I.Joe on countless occasions.  Although a mercenary through and through, Destro has even aided the Joes when it aligned with his self-interests.

Actor Arthur Napier Burghardt provided the voice of Destro; first appearing int he debut episode of G.I.Joe: A Real American Hero, airing on September 12th, 1983.  

[dykeseesgod]

what well its just that you havent spoken to me in years except to call me a faggot or to dislocate my shoulder and you know what else is missing besides an attentive listener a segue i suppose forgive my bluntness please dont hit me but i could giv two shits about you or your vacant mind or your morbid curiosities or your dead fucking dog so why dont you just leave i never dislocated your shoulder according to my doctor you did in shop class last spring you twisted my arm behind my back and said you wouldnt let go until i said and i quote i like to get it up the ass i was just playing around with you oh that makes me feel so much better you know through my screams and the searing pain i can definely recall hearing laughter any way i can contribute to the fun of the group we were just messing around with you fuck you cb id rather you say we beat the shit out of you because we cant stand you rather than youre just messing with me that implies light teasing or slightly oproprious behavior i havent eaten in the cafeteria in 2 years for fear of going home with some part of it smeared across my shirt i havent been to the bathroom on campus since my head got slammed into a wall i believe you were there i didnt do that well you didnt stop it either and the faculty doesnt care you know what im tired of hearing they only pick on you because of your own insecurities aw jeez mrs blank now that you said that my head doesnt hurt so much and people wonder why kids bring guns to school to shoot you fuckers down maybe youre not the bully but you stand idly by and watch and to me thats even worse so please just go youre being hostile and im just trying to have a conversation with you like a civilized i dont want to talk to you i just want to be left alone i dont need social pointers i just want an apology for the five minutes youve stolen from my day see this is why you dont have friends i think we both know why i dont have any friends oh dont be so melodramatic youre in here crying about a dead dog and im being melodramatic shut the fuck up about my dog ok or what youll hit me go ahead ill show you how people get hurt and dont run away to cry like a big fucking baby whats so funny asshole im sorry nothing i dont see anything to laugh at its nothing its just that i was scared of you for like a second im sorry no its ok i deserved it promise me you wont bring a gun to school i dont even know where id get one you were one of my best friends you all were i just dont get it can i be honest if its any consolation none of us knew what to say to you after your dad got arrested it was pretty awkward it was more awkward for me im sorry we werent there for you that means a lot see now youre being sarcastic again no i wasnt its hard to tell with you truce i wasnt fighting a war but sure truce are you i dont know ive never had sex so kinda hard to tell at this point what about my dad im not sure thats considered sex you remember how my dog used to howl when you played the piano yeah i always found it pretty annoying he was singing along what do you think happens to animals when they die they go to heaven you believe in heaven sure there has to be some reward for living through all this and you think there are animals there in heaven the wolf will live with the lamb the lion will lie down with the goat and the calf the lion and the yearling together and a child will lead them the cow will feed with the bear their young will lie down together and the lion will eat straw like the ox the infant will play near the hole of the cobra and the child will put his hand into the vipers nest but my dog killed a living thing wouldnt god be mad he was sick cb he couldnt help it you know they say a dog sees god in his master and a cat looks in the mirror i hate cats me too

[frasier-crane-style]

So I watched this.

-The opening image is in space, with Anthony Hopkins narrating about the Mother World*, and a wormhole opens that cannot be described as anything other than a Space Pussy. Uhh, Cinema.

*(an unwieldy title for a group of bad guys, so eventually the script starts calling them "the Realm" instead, though no one bothered to go back and have them stop talking about "the domain of the Mother World" and such)

-They also try on referring to the villains as "The King's Gaze," the name of the ship they crew, and of course, it is great fun to see working actors talking very seriously about how much they fear the King's Gays.

-As in any Seven Samurai riff, the good guys are humble farmers, which in Zach Snyder Land means they are both pacifistic Luddite believers AND burly Vikings who love to fuck.

Ladies and gentlemen, a Quaker!

-They're also all white, making Sofia Boutella the only minority and also the violent outsider with a haunted past who keeps talking about how she doesn't belong and everything she touches dies and all that. It's a mite awkward. But she's also the only one who isn't DTF in the Fuck Farm, so who knows?

-The, uhh, Mother Worlders* show up and prove an eclectic blend of Peaky Binders haircuts, Soviet Russia fashion sense, working-class British accents, and, uhh, Día de Muertos parade?

Not since Cobra have so many random villain traits fallen under the same tent. You're left asking if it's political commentary or if Snyder just has something against the Angry Video Game Nerd.

-Snyder also tries to do a Good King/Evil Usurper bit with the Mother World, but makes it explicit that during the Good King's reign they were also an expansionist colonial empire just killing the shit out of things. As ever with da Snyd, it's unclear if this is meant to be subversive or just poorly thought out.

-I know there's no hiding that one is doing a Seven Samurai riff, but the MacGuffin is still... grain. The humble villagers aren't mining vibranium or anything, the evil Empire just really wants grain and these villagers are going to give it to them or else. You'd think a post-warp civilization wouldn't need to lean on subsistence farmers for snacks, but there you are.

-The appeal of this, if any, is to do R-rated Star Wars, but for some reason Netflix wanted a PG-13 version of the R-rated Star Wars, so we get something that's... maybe a little wilder than Andor? They redo the cantina confrontation between Obi-Wan and Cornelius Evazan, but here Evazan explicitly wants to rape 'Luke Skywalker' so, uhh, yay?

-Apparently the idea is to do a director's cut later on that'll be three or four hours; it's pretty obvious that stuff's been cut. The narrative spends a lot of time talking about how they're going to find a really cool guy fighting in gladiatorial combat at an arena. The heroes go to the arena, stand next to the arena, talk for a bit, and then leave. No gladiatorial combat is had.

Snyder, you're killing me, man. I thought the whole two-part business was so that we could have a whole movie to get to know these characters, but it basically goes Character Introduction > Standing Around In Crowd Scenes. Unless you're about to die, of course, in which case you get a sizable monologue to put in your acting reel before you leave.

-Oddly, they introduce quite a few characters who seem like they're going to be a part of the Magnificent Space Seven--guy trying to court Sofia Boutella, a turncoat Stormtrooper, a pacifistic robot--only to forget about them. I guess they'll show up in Part 2, but it seems unfulfilling to have this movie be a prolonged "Getting The Band Together" montage with some of the heroes not even getting to be in on the bonding. Which isn't much bonding to begin with, it's just Sofia Boutella sloooowly revealing her backstory and not even getting to the obvious punchline by the closing credits (you killed the princess, didn't ya? This universe might not have Force powers, but you don't need 'em to see that coming).

[theseventhoffrostfall]

With the Tribes, what are the relationships between the different Tribes like? Like, even on a broad level I'm assuming in both diplomacy and war the conduct expected and allowed would be substantially impacted by any mix of factors. Their bandit/mercenary culture, their extreme transhumanism, their being spacers that don't actually hold planetary territory save through suzerainty, etc. Also, how do any peculiarities in the general Tribal approach to foreign policy effect how they interact with their non-Tribe peer-states, if you have that figured out?

So, to start off, it's not like there are a fixed number of tribes dating back to some specific founding point of their culture. Over the fifteen-ish thousand years the tribes have existed, they've merged, seceded, founded new tribes, wiped out others, and generally been a seething political jumble. It's still perhaps unsurprising that most extant tribes' own versions of history try to emphasize their own connection (either as successors or still-extant original groups) to their common origin, however.

As for their relationships with each other, I'd say they're less outright quarrelsome as a rule but you can draw parallels with hellenistic city-states. They’re a political-cultural-technological-ethnic (insofar as their strain of transhumanism qualifies as an ethnicity in a sci-fi context) grouping rather than a nation, but fundamentally look at the world through a lens of "Us" "peers" and "barbarians". They'll jockey internally for suzerainty of planets or similar sources of wealth and prestige, but given the number of actual external threats that could take advantage of infighting (their way of life, as you can guess, leaves them with a number of friendly powers greater than zero but not by all that much) they avoid shooting wars. There isn't really a standing council or any other central governance, but it's not all too uncommon to convene a tribunal of peers to, say, mediate a dispute between two tribes.

That said, there are both rivalries and alliances forming vague political sub-blocs. Notably Eissenschtadt and Samarkand are close allies, you might recall.

For non-peer states--as a general rule, there are exceptions such as generally either working as mercenaries for or raiding and pirating against the Empire-- the early stages of contact and diplomacy initially seem civilized. Sometimes they stay that way, and various tribes settle each into trade agreements, mutual defense pacts, early talks for mercenary work and the occasional technology swap, etc. But, somewhat more commonly, those early stages' actual purpose--sizing up their new friend like a pet cobra suddenly getting cuddly--comes back with the answer of "we can take these guys" and a tribe or even a multi-tribal coalition raises a warhost to go kick some teeth in, plunder what they can, and force the invaded party into paying tribute to make it stop.

[gijoe-forever]

Issues 74 to 76 of the Marvel comic dealt with the Cobra Civil War. The comics included a map of the Cobra Island and details on civil war divisions among Serpentor, Cobra commander (Fred VII) and Destro’s Iron Grenadiers. This all occurred 35 years ago in the pages of Marvel Comics G.I. JOE: A REAL AMERICAN HERO

[askvectorprime]

Dear Vector Prime, besides the trio of Blood, Dauros and Gilmer was ancient Earth plagued by any other Decepticon Pretenders?

Dear Pretender Peeved,

Oh, certainly—the Autobots spent centuries trying to corral them. You may already be aware of Bludgeon and his fellow Pretenders’ rampage through ancient Japan; these Pretenders ranged across the entire world, so you may be interested to learn about their feats and fates.

Bludgeon likes to claim to have taught humanity the art of war, providing weapons and armor to various groups, relishing in the bloodshed and chaos he caused. The Autobots sealed him away on many occasions, but his final sealing took place in the 10th century. He had teamed up with a sorceress who sought revenge on the slayers of her father, and her magical manipulations multiplied the mystic Metallikato might of Bludgeon's Pretender shell. He was eventually sealed away under what would eventually become the city of Tokyo.

Iguanus rampaged across early Europe, seizing whatever he could from the tribes who lived there. He was finally sealed away under Stonehenge by Metalhawk and the other Autobot Pretenders, although they never discovered Iguanus' treasure hoard—not that they made any particular attempt to reclaim his collection of trinkets, busy as they were keeping humanity safe.

Stranglehold maintained a petty kingdom in Northern Africa, using his impressive physical might and near-invulnerability to maintain control over those nearby. He especially enjoyed wrestling with humans, viewing them as pitiful challengers. In the end, one such pitiful challenger managed to defeat Stranglehold by getting him in a Cobra clutch. In shame, Strangehold abandoned his kingdom, and wound up in the crosshairs of the Autobots, who sealed him beneath the Atlas Mountains.

Carnivac and Snarler terrorized the lands of Arcadia, causing havoc and famine as they destroyed whatever civilizations tried to intrude into their wilderness domain. Their teamwork kept them undefeated until the Autobot Pretenders teamed up as well, separating and binding them between a pair of mountains.

Octopunch was the least active of the Decepticon Pretenders, preferring to keep watch over the slumbering form of his master, Devil Z. To avoid the Autobots, he ventured out only when he was in dire need of resources, raiding ships while proclaiming the might of the Decepticon god he served. In the end, the Autobots managed to lure him into a trap off the Ryukyu Islands, sealed beneath a collection of sandstones.

[terrence-silver]

What would different era’s of Terry use as a cologne or a scent to make beloved be around him more?

---

― What would Twig do? Hard to tell. But, maybe, just maybe, he's heard old folk stories around Vietnam, during the war, among locals, about ancient concoctions and brews that increased attraction from the wearer to their intended target, bordering on magical properties; something that appealed to the mind and the body. Something that back home might be deemed a love potion by any other name and while he thought it is a load of mumbo jumbo and old wives tales back then, he sure as heck he wishes he had a vial of that to spray all over himself now. Should he rummage through beloved's things and do some well meaning digging when they aren't likely to see, though? Just in case? See what scents and perfumes they use and align himself to that, ensuring he matches with them and ensure a higher probability of their attraction through that? Do some stalking and use observational logic? Use his newfound money and wealth to buy the most expensive thing on the market and hope smelling like raw cash would do the trick for him? Maybe appealing to the soldier in him is the right course of action; maybe smelling fresh and clean and orderly is the best tactic --- honest, good and old fashioned? Or maybe, just maybe, he should get to scheming. To cooking. o a bit of would-be witchcraft, not that he ever figured himself the type. A pinch of his sweat, a droplet of his blood, a lock of his hair, the salt of his tears, various fragrances and herbs he brought home from Korea to make his dish complete. It is not unusual for a soldier to make frag grenades and Molotov cocktails on the field, from scratch, so why would making a scent that appeals to someone's desire be all that strange? He's in love, and he's a little like a girl eagerly making perfume out of roses petals from his mother's garden. He is doing this for a good cause. Is it so bad that he wants you to be around him more than ever? It is not wrong. Not if it actually works.

― See, for 80's Terry Silver, whatever boyish, albeit obsessive innocence Twig would have on this topic with his homegrown solutions dissipates into outright Machiavellianism. In the animal world, he knows, beasts in heat secrete a sort musk that makes the irresistible to any would-be mate that catches their scent, and people are a type of animal too. Jungle rules are valid in civilization. Jungle rules are valid in desire and the arena of courting and conquest. More than any place else, actually. And so, a team of scientists, experts, doctors and chemists are commissioned and carefully vetted by Mr. Silver himself, in a hush-hush operation, to literally design the perfect scent. Just for him. With beloved you in mind. No expenses too big. No excess too excessive. Terry Silver gets what Terry Silver wants. Always. Mind you, he doesn't feel he needs a bottle of anything to already be alluring as he is, without the aid of science, but he supposes there's an undeniable sort of fun to this, an unabashed eroticism, in you thinking he smells so good, that it is physically, on a molecular level, impossible to resist him, felling you entirely under his whim of control and rendering you helpless under his literal spell, with no bullshit or distractions serving as obstacles. Should his people at Dynatox frequently dealing with gasses and toxins get involved with this project? They just might. And after months of genuine research, tens of thousands of man hours invested, nearly a million dollars blown into the ether, anything intrusively perverse, from a sample of his cum in the mixture and the collected venom of a rare Burmese Cobra (A shameless suggestion by Mr. Silver himself), the perfect, addictive, nearly hallucinogenic and entirely unethical cologne is designed. Nobody who sees you can quite explain why your pupils wildly dilate and why you ignore everything else when Terry comes into your line of sight but they suppose it must be love.

― You know what would be a great shortcut when you're old, you find love infuriatingly late in life, feel the rage of not having control of time itself and when such things happen and you wish you could somehow jump through all the social rings of fire that involve the dance of pleasantries with the one you want and actually get down to have them, right away, not a minute more wasted? A love potion. In such times, yes, a literal tonic to induce desire, skip all the nonsense, awaken the senses and make the brain receptive would come in handy. The notion almost amuses old man Terry. It really does. Except, few notions amuse Terry for their own sake without actually formulating into outright plans and possibilities in his head after a while --- as was the case all his life. And sure, he knows his way around fine art. Fine dining. Fine wine. Fine suits. Fine cars. Fine mansions. Fine perfumes and colognes galore, because he's a natural purveyor of the rare, expensive and exotic. Still, he finds most options available for the buyer's purse, self-proclaimed to make you 'irresistible' as poultry marketing tricks --- instead opting for something wrought from his own machinations. You get invited to dinner. You get wined and dined by an ever so charming old man. You get seduced. You get drawn in. You have a wonderful evening. And for some reason, you immediately, against all reason, find yours in Terry Silver's bed, that very night. First date. How? Not unreasonable, seeing as how he is quite alluring on his own, when he wishes to be, but unbeknownst to you, he has sprayed himself and his own environment with every aphrodisiac, incense and fume in the book and ensured his mansion smells like desire. Smells like sex. Invading the mind. Disarming, almost like a drug, to the point that the dinner was cut short and continued in his bedroom before you could even reason why. You supposed...Terry smelled quite nice.

You never realized you stood no chance the minute you crossed the threshold of his estate.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Okay but, the Energon Universe might just be the strangest Hasbro Franchise in terms of mood whiplash:

Void Rivals: Two warring dictators exploit a forever war between their peoples to stay in power, each side dehumanizing "the enemy" so their followers don't realize they're the same species.

Transformers: Themes of family and post-war PTSD, wherein fear and paranoia wind up causing more harm than good.

Both currently-running GI Joe Comic Series (Duke and Cobra Commander): A SECRET SOCIETY OF LIZARD PEOPLE IS PLOTTING TO DESTROY CIVILIZATION!!! Someone's making conspiracy theorists disappear because they got too close to "The Truth" (tm).

Like, how do you go from actually intelligent social commentary to QAnon in the same universe?

Sometimes you just want something stupid.

[boundless11]

I feel the biggest caveats in a hypothetical version of the school fight where Tory chooses to attack Miguel instead of Sam would be "would the thing turn into a Cobra Kai civil war with Cobras fighting each other?" and "Would the Miyagi-Dos still get involved even though the fight is happening because one Cobra Kai is choosing to attack another member of her own dojo?"

It certainly would be interesting. I think Hawk would defend Miguel from other Cobras and maybe the rest might turn on Miguel or each other depending on whose side they take in the fight- Miguel’s or Tory’s.

Sam might also choose to defend Miguel from Tory, which may lead to Robby joining in at some point or he might just observe the whole thing and then take part. Who knows?

It would actually cause a dent in Cobra Kai, because they’ve seemed so together, because we’ve seen them defend each other fiercely. But now, there would be that lack of unity within the dojo, which could’ve made for an interesting storyline.

What do you think?