How G.I. Joe and the Transformers Became Connected: A Brief History

By Marc Deschamps

Hasbro's G.I. Joe and Transformers franchises will be connecting closer together over the next few years, both on the big screen and in a new line of comics spearheaded by Robert Kirkman. For some fans, the move to connect the two toylines together might seem a bit surprising, but there's a history between the Joe team and the Cybertronians that goes all the way back to the 1980s. While things began in the comics published by Marvel, Transformers and G.I. Joe crossovers have since expanded into the worlds of television and toys.

Comic Crossovers

In 1986, Marvel Comics published G.I. Joe and the Transformers, a four-issue limited series that saw the G.I. Joe team ally with the Autobots (and eventually Cobra) to defeat the Decepticons. The limited series is a bit of a tough read for newcomers, as it takes place during a heavy transitional period for these characters, with Optimus Prime and Megatron showing up for the first issue before disappearing later in the mini, as both had been killed off in the main Transformers comic. A few years later, Marvel would follow-up with a sequel crossover, this time taking place within the G.I. Joe ongoing series. That one is notable as it kicked off Transformers: Generation 2, and saw Cobra Commander creating a new body for Megatron.

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(Photo: Hasbro)

Since those days, comic crossovers between G.I. Joe and the Transformers have become somewhat of a tradition. In the '80s, Marvel U.K.'s Transformers comic featured a crossover with Action Force (the name for G.I. Joe in that region), and companies like Dreamwave and Devil's Due united the brands in the early 2000s. In addition to a major self-contained Transformers vs. G.I. Joe series, publisher IDW also created a unified Hasbro universe that not only featured the Joe characters, but also characters like Rom, Micronauts, and Action Man. In that continuity, the Decepticon Skywarp even served as a member of the G.I. Joe team!

TV Crossovers

In the third season of the original Transformers animated series, fans were treated to a few character crossovers. Airing in 1986, the season was set in the then-far off future of 2006. By that point, Cobra was long gone, but Cobra Commander was still around, then going by the name "Old Snake." The villain helped a group of terrorists turn Autobot heroes into humans, but the process was reversed by the end of the episode. That season also saw the introduction of human character Marissa Fairborn, who is the daughter of the G.I. Joe team member Flint. Fairborn would later appear in IDW's Transformers comics, where her relationship with Flint played a big role in the Optimus Prime ongoing series.

Toy Crossovers

Despite a long history together, G.I. Joe and the Transformers haven't had a lot of toy crossovers until more recently. Early on, crossovers between the toy lines were mostly left to Transformer designs inspired by Joe vehicles. The first of these came in 2004, with a Transformers: Energon figure named Snowcat, who shared his name and design with a G.I. Joe toy from the '80s. Since then, Hasbro has started to offer much better crossover toys, including a 2022 line of figures that included a Cobra H.I.S.S. tank that transforms into Megatron, and an A.W.E. Striker that transforms into Bumblebee. Both figures could not only be piloted by traditional G.I. Joe figures, they even came packaged with Baroness and Stalker!

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(Photo: Hasbro)

It would be difficult to list every G.I. Joe and Transformers crossover ever, but hopefully this article gives readers an idea of the many connections between the two brands. The franchises have a deep connection that has lasted decades, and it will be interesting to see how that expands and changes over the next few years! For longtime fans, the opportunity to see the Transformers and G.I. Joe share the big screen together will represent the culmination of more than three decades of crossovers.

Are you a fan of the crossovers between G.I. Joe and Transformers? Are you looking forward to these franchises meeting on the big screen? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter and on Hive at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!

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