Eagle Force and G.I. Joe in the 1982 Lakeland Ledger
The February 26, 1982 issue of Lakeland, Florida’s Lakeland Ledger is here today to share Richard Reeves’ look at the military playthings of the 1982. The article is primarily about Mego’s then-new Eagle Force line — which is set for a relaunch this year — but Hasbro’s G.I. Joe toys also get mentioned.
The focus of the article is on public response to war toys, the Reagan administration’s expected affect on sales of military toys, and how Eagle Force is presented “not as a war toy, but as protectors of freedom and justice.” Why do I feel like I need an American flag or something right now? I know, this will certainly help the mood: America F*#K YEAH!
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I know there is a long history of war toys that goes back to ancient times and I grew up a huge fan of GI Joe myself, but whenever I read hard-sell advertising posing as journalism like the article reproduced in this post, I can’t shake the image in my head of toy execs (or I guess these days, it would be the makers of video games like Call of Duty and Battlefield) gleefully high-fiving each other when they hear that there’s a new terrorist threat or incident, and soldiers will be called on again to risk (and sometimes lose) their lives to keep the free world safe. That’s some real-world, viral cross-marketing that you just can’t buy, right?
Richard Reeves’ article states that making and selling war toys is “performing a national service”? Really?
Again, I have nothing against war toys—I love military action figures and scale models—and I do buy military-themed fiction, non-fiction, video games, and entertainment, but let’s not go crazy here.
Anyway, I love the site and I don’t want this to be a negative post, so let me just sign off with the link to volunteer or donate to the Department of Veteran Affairs:
http://www.volunteer.va.gov/apps/VolunteerNow/