I loved Transformers. One of the things I liked most about the sci-fi actioner is the role of the soldiers, fighting alongside the giant mechs and actually contributing to the overall plot. Too much, it seems, the military is relegated to the role of unflinching, narrow-minded cannon fodder. Transformers didn’t have that, and that’s part of the reason I liked it so much.

But then I heard several international bloggers objecting to the movie because of the military role, citing the U.S. military’s role in the violent quandry in Iraq. This baffled me. Is Transformers an Air Force recruting commerical? Quite possibly, considering the wide array of Warthogs, Raptors and Predators which grace the film. But a promotion of US foreign policy? Considering two factors – one, that the government is seen racheting up pressure in the film on all its known enemies before it suspects the Decepticons, and secondly, that its a Michael Bay fim – I have to disagree.  

Perhaps coincidentally, I then thought about Lorenzo di Bonaventura’s possibly internationalizing G.I. Joe. At first I thought the producers was just an Action Man fan, but when I heard about the possible addition of several other overseas characters, I started to wonder – is this just a way of using the G.I. Joe logo while dodging controversy?

The troubling part of Lorenzo di Bonaventura’s plan is, potentially, every new character added to the G.I. Joe cast could mean less screen time for less actual G.I. Joe characters. You’re already dealing with a team of seven-ish characters – Duke, Action Man, Scarlett, Snake Eyes are all givens so far, in some role or another. That leaves three spots open - either Roadblock or Heavy Duty seems likely – leaving two characters who may or may not be actual G.I. Joes.

We live in a Post-9/11, heck, Post-Watergate mindset which demands scrutiny of our government. Yet objectivity seems to have blown out the window. In 28 Weeks Later, no one bats an eye at US-lead NATO forces exterminating a London populace, yet suddenly summer blockbuster Transformers is the stuff of propaganda for involving members of the US military? Granted, one is rooted more in reality – 28 Weeks loosely parallels the perils of nation-building, while Transformers, the perils of extraterrestial life learning our language via the Internet.

Still, it seems darkly blissful to believe 28 Weeks Later’s take on the American military is somehow more acceptable than Bay’s minature might in Transformers.

All of this leads to the real question – are these concerns somehow guiding the production of G.I. Joe? Though the same people who tore up Transformers for Army additions will doubtlessly jump on G.I. Joe, it needn’t be that way. Much of the comic book material deals with the darker side of the military experience. Cobra Commander himself is a scarred and disillusioned Vietnam veteran. Stirring action sequences and objectivity aren’t mutally exclusive – even in blockbuster movies – but it seems from the writing on the wall that producers may feel they are.

G.I. Joe should be an examination of what is and isn’t a Real American Hero instead of a giant loophole to avoid that very phrase.