Kickstarter #1 Project Content
Content is copy & pasted from original Kickstarter for posterity, much of the information is out of date as of 2022, especially the pictures of pages of Volume #1.
Comic Book Collecting Guide Book & Checklist Volume #1
By Roger Taft and Josh Eggebeen
This Kickstarter has reach the first stretch goal of $7,777, which gets every pledge the Black and White Ashcan.
STRETCH GOALS!
- After Action Report is now fully funded! If we reach $7777 (which is SOOOO close) every backer that is already receiving a reward, will also get the Black and White Ashcan promo from JoeFest.
- If we reach $8500, every backer already receiving a reward will also get an 8.5 x 11 mini print of the full color Rod Whigham final art. This is the Rod Whigham art that will grace the cover of After Action Report volume 1, and is the same art that will be used for the larger 11 x 17 art print.
- If we reach $9000, every backer already receiving a reward will also get an 8.5 x 11 mini print of the uncolored Rod Whigham drawing of the final art. AND anyone that is already ordering an 11 x 17 print of the front cover, can add a full sized 11x17 print of the unfinished art to their order for an additional $15.
- And finally, IF we get all the way to $10,000, we will add a 2nd commissioned piece of art to act as the back cover of the book. AND anyone that is already ordering an 11 x 17 print of the front cover, can add a print of the back cover to their order for an additional $15.
Quick Summary:
The first volume of After Action Report will cover all English language G.I. Joe (and directly related titles) comic books officially licensed by Hasbro, published by Marvel, Marvel U.K., Blackthorne, Cyclone and Dark Horse, from the years 1982 to 1996. The After Action Report book will be an in-hand guide book that is both a checklist and photo guide to all the versions of the comics that were produced. In short, After Action Report: G.I. Joe Comic Guide, volume #1 will include every official English language publication in the comic book format known to exist from the first issue of G.I. Joe A Real American hero, to the final issue of G.I. Joe: Extreme.
Book Specs:
After Action Report will be a fully colored book printed on 100# paper in a Soft Cover Perfect Binding format with a visible spine very much like a traditional comic book Trade Paperback.
Size: 8.5x11
Binding: Perfect Binding (Softcover)
Paper Quality: 100# paper (Subject to change)
Pages: Approximately 144
How did the idea of this book get started?
Roger Taft has been collecting G.I. Joe comics, toys and all kinds of crazy accessories since he was kid, and now as an adult kid he buys and sells toys for living at his shop, Atomic Age Artifacts: Antique & Collectible Mall. His passion has always been G.I.Joe: A Real American Hero and he has always used guide books to find and collect all parts of the toys. Over the decades many great G.I. Joe collector books have been produced for the toys only - covering all of the different eras, sizes and types helping thousands of Joe collectors complete their collections.
No one has ever made a book just for collecting G.I. Joe comic books. So it's always been a dream of Roger's had to have an in hand guide book to use as a resource when hunting for comics in long boxes at conventions.
And along comes Josh Eggebeen, fitting right into the mix of Roger’s dream.
Josh as a kid collector of anything G.I. Joe, got all the toys and sold most of them but never sold his beloved G.I. Joe comics or figures. He was a G.I. Joe comic Completist before he even knew what that word meant. And like most collectors, took a break from collecting in the mid-1990s. With the return of G.I. Joe comics by Devil’s Due in 2001, Josh returned to collecting comics full speed ahead and remains determined to get them all. By the mid-2000s both Roger and Josh were helping YoJoe.com with the comic section, which is how they met.
Fast forward to 2020 during the COVID shutdown, Roger pitched the idea of his G.I. Joe comic guide book to Josh and now here we are with a Kickstarter.
Now You Know and Knowing is Half the Battle.
Why make this book?
The G.I. Joe community is very different then most other toy collecting communities in that we have lots of people who spend hours, years of their life dedicated to preserving all aspects of G.I. Joe, especially the behind the scenes history of the brand. Roger and Josh are willing to do just that, spend the next couple years creating several books that cover all of the different versions of Marvel, Devil’s Due and IDW eras of G.I. Joe comics, the amazing variant covers, history of their creation, the creators' stories, the international versions and basically preserving the comics part of G.I. Joe history.
The first book up to be completed and funded is the After Action Report: G.I. Joe Comic Guide: Marvel Era Volume #1. These are the comics that started it all. The Larry Hama stories that have become legends and multi billion dollar selling characters.
After Action Report Volume #1 includes these comic series:
From Marvel Publishing:
G.I. Joe A Real American Hero (ARAH) #1 to 155 + Special
ARAH Special Missions
ARAH Yearbook
ARAH Order of Battle
ARAH G.I. Joe and the Transformers
Transformers Generation 2
European Missions
Tales of G.I. Joe
Marvel Digest G.I. Joe
The Trojan Gambit
The Treasury Edition
From Blackthorne Publishing
How to Draw G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe in 3-D
From Marvel UK & Australia
Action Force
Action Force Specials
Action Force Annual
Action Force Monthly
Transformers and Action Force/G.I. Joe
Incredible Hulk Presents
G.I. Joe Australia
From Dark Horse Publishing
G.I. Joe Extreme Series 1
G.I. Joe Extreme Series 2
During the Marvel era there were typically 2 to 5 versions of every issue published. These versions include Direct Market, Newsstand, Canadian Priced, Australian Priced, 2nd, and 3rd Prints, plus insert and other random versions. And only YoJoe.com has come close to documenting all of these editions to help collectors know what to look for. After Action Report will be an in-hand guide book that is a checklist and photo guide to ALL the versions that were produced. It will help collectors fill their gaps they didn't even know they had.
Enter After Action Report Multiple Volumes:
The After Action Report intends to be series of volumes that covers every known Hasbro related G.I. Joe comic book ever produced. Each volume will have it's own Kickstarter as we move through the series. The first volume starting with the Marvel era will be a catalog of every known version of any Hasbro authorized comic produced between 1982 and 1996. Included within the book will be highlights for issues that have significant histories like #21 Silent Interlude, special issues like Dark Horse Preview Ashcan, unique issues with inserts like Mark Jewelers advertisements, trading cards or posters, lots of history and short interviews with the famous G.I. Joe creators and artists.
Every cover will be scanned and restored to be presented for each Volume which will be approximately 144 pages in Trade Paperback format. The possibility of creating several volumes per Era has been discussed but the plan as of now is one volume per Era except IDW, which will require multiple volumes.
Certain key issues will have a splash/highlight page that will give the history of the issue in much more detailed way. Additional, splash pages will have interviews of the creators of the Marvel comics helping explain the history of G.I. Joe comics.
Every good guide book has a legend and After Action Report has created logos to help the collector quickly understand all the different versions of the covers.
The last few pages of After Action Report will have a condensed removable checklist that includes all versions of all of the covers listed in the book. The exact look is still TBD but likely in Excel spreadsheet style.
Each Volume of After Action Report will have exclusive original cover art by one or more of the prominent G.I. Joe artists that have worked on G.I. Joe comics over the decades. Several artists have already been contacted but at this time have not confirmed a timeline for completion of these custom covers. This area will have constant new updates as the book gets closer to completion.
The Time Frame:
As of the debut of this Kickstarter, at the beginning of September, over 800 covers of the Marvel era have already been scanned. The books format and design have been created and solidified. What is left to do is the input of information and covers into the design of the anticipated 144 pages of the book. Both Roger and Josh will be working on the pages inputting the wording, cover scans, book formatting, etc. starting in Mid-September until it's complete. The fall of 2020 will be focused on the page creation process, editing and more editing. The goal is to have the book finished for publication by the end of November. And in backers' hands for Christmas of 2020.
As 2020 has proven to the world the best laid plans can be changed very easily by events. So let's hope the second half of 2020 is much more normal then the first half.
YOJOE!!!
Early AAR Volume #1 Page Examples
These are examples of pages used in the ARR Volume #1 Kickstarter #1.
In Sept 2020, these were the early concept pages with most being built just for
the Kickstarter and would be heavily modified by the finished book.
They are here for viewing purposes to see the evolution of Volume #1.
Risks and challenges
As with any printed project the actual printing is a risk. Because this is our first published book we have consulted with several other GI Joe collector toy book authors on the printing process and chosen a proven printer based on their recommendation. Roger and Josh will be working hard to get the book completed on time but life and daily work may cause delays in the goals of this project. World events and printers may also cause unforeseen delays.
EXCLUSIVE ASHCAN PROMO
Below is glimpse at our stretch goals and additional pledge options that include the Ashcan* an exclusive for JoeFest
(Given out on Sept 4th, 5th and 6th in person only).
The only way to get this exclusive Ashcan is to pledge to the $110 reward. Both the Color and Black and White are exclusive variants
(The "Everything you wanted to know" cover is actually the back of each Ashcan)
* An Ashcan is 4 page digest size promo booklet color or black and white used to promote a comic book.
ASHCAN PREVIEWS BELOW
