Cheerful heroics

A few years ago I coined the term "Cheerful heroics" to describe the kind of approach to saving the day movie and cartoon heroes of the 80s and 90s had. At the time I was inspired by the movie ID:4, contrasting its brand of "Rah! Rah!" heroics with the navel gazing and moral relativism of contemporary action films, but in truth the term is an even better fit for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.

Yesterday I watched the episode "Cobra Stops The World". Solid episode all around, but what struck me, and what always strikes me when I revisit G.I. Joe, is the attitude of the Joes. They have an unbridled enthusiasm for whatever task is at hand. There's no complaining. No debating. No doubt. Just "Yo, Joe!".

I get that in the real world we all have our off days. That things aren't always black and white and the good guys sadly don't always win. But every time I watch this show I come away inspired by the zest for dogoodery that our heroes display.

----
A journey into the realm of the obscure: http://saturdayshowcase.blogspot.com/