Rhino Home Video, which has scored a big hit with its DVD box sets of vintage Transformers cartoons, has announced the February release of the first box set from the other major Sunbow Entertainment hit of the 1980s, G.I. Joe.  The four-disk G.I. Joe Season One Part One DVD box will include half the episodes from the first full season of the G.I. Joe cartoon series.  Extras include an exclusive collectible animation cel, plus interviews with writer Christy Marx and voice director Wally Burr.  Rhino has already released the first two G.I. Joe mini-series, which appeared in 1983 (A Real American Hero) and 1984 (The Revenge of Cobra).  The first full season of G.I. Joe cartoons started in 1985 and it included 50 episodes (or 55 if you count the Pyramid of Darkness mini-series), so it is easy to understand why Rhino is releasing Season One in two box sets. The first G.I. Joe DVD Box Set hits retail on Feb. 3, 2004 with a suggested retail price of $59.95.

The G.I. Joe property has undergone a major revival in the past few years with new toys from Hasbro (which owns the property) as well as a popular comic book series from Devils Due and resin figures from Palisades Marketing.  A recent rumor reported on the IGN Filmforce Web site claims that Paramount is close to announcing a deal with Hasbro for a live action G.I. Joe movie.