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FLOPS
The New G.I. Joe
Introduced: 1977 & 2009
Hasbro pioneered the concept of the “action figure” in 1969 with its 11 ½-inch G.I. Joe, which sold very well in the early post-Vietnam years. But in an attempt to update his image, Hasbro made a few fateful changes in 1977: after shrinking Joe down to match competing toys, Hasbro stripped him of his military title and added an ill-conceived leotard. Sales lagged, and Joe was soon returned to G.I. duty. Thirty years later, toy-watchers anticipated a Transformers-level hit with tie-in toys for the G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra live-action film. But even with arm-mounted rocket launchers, Joe couldn’t touch the success of robots in disguise, says Annicelli.
David H. Freedman on smartphone apps and the perfected self, Mark Bowden on being in the dumb kids' class, James Parker on Glenn Beck, Isaac Chotiner on P. G. Wodehouse, and more
Browse back issues of The Atlantic that have appeared on the Web. From September 1995 to the present, the archive is essentially complete, with the exception of a few articles, the online rights to which are held exclusively by the authors.
See All Back Issues: September 1995
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Obama Makes Nice with Poland
How 'The Wire' Found Its Omar: 'The Omars of the World are Warriors'
Why You Should Say 'Hello' to Strangers on the Street
Rethinking the Economics of Traffic Congestion
How to Handle a City of Tourists
New York City Ballet: A Crystal Palace 
The Speed of Light 
Synthetic Biology 
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