FAQ for
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) More at IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra can be found here.

Yes it is. There isn't anything blatant, like General Hawk talking to Optimus or Megatron and the Decepticons aiding Cobra, but the novelization reveals that the nanomites used to destroy the Eifel Tower, create the Nano Warriors/Vipers, and give Zartan his morphing abilities, were actually developed by Sector Seven during their study of Megatron and the AllSpark (thus explaining why their heads resemble his), M.A.R.S. merely put them into mass production and marketed them worldwide. Cobra Commander also uses these nanomites to build Destro's mask.

Originally, Brig. General Clayton "Hawk" Abernathy (still played by Dennis Quaid) was going to be in charge of NEST in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), which would evolve into G.I. Joe once the Decepticon threat was eliminated, but this was changed in later drafts. A second idea (which was inexplicably dropped right before principal photography began for Revenge of the Fallen) involved Major William "Wild Bill" Lennox talking to Gen. Hawk on the phone after the battle in Shanghai and Duke saying something along the lines of "At least they're not robots that turn into cars," when Heavy Duty shows him and Ripcord the very Iron Man-esque accelerator suits.

The fact that this film shares its universe with the Transformers films creates what would at first glance appear to be a rather large problem: In the climax of Revenge of the Fallen, Devastator smashes the top of the Great Pyramid at Giza, so the Sun Harvester can convert Earth's sun into Energon to help further the Decpticons' conquest of the universe. In this film, all three pyramids are noticably intact. However, Revenge of the Fallen takes place in 2009, while this film takes place in 2019. It is entirely possibly that the Great Pyramid was repaired during the ten years between the two, especially if the Autobots helped out.

As an aside, there are a suspiciously familiar black GMC Topkick (Ironhide's alt-mode), a Hummer H2 with a Search and Rescue paint job and equipment (Ratchet), and a silver Chevy Corvette Stingray (Sideswipe) in the background when Duke and Ripcord are first brought to the Pit, and the Joes have a fleet of the attack buggies Sector Seven used in Transformers (2007) sitting in one of their hangers. These are only visible for a few seconds, but the camera lingers on them long enough to get the point across.

In the original Real American Hero series, Tommy "Storm Shadow" Arashikage started out as a member of Cobra's inner circle, but he was really there to avenge the death of his uncle, the Hard Master. When the killer turned out to be Zartan, Storm Shadow (along with his other uncle, the Soft Master, who initially thought Storm Shadow himself was the murderer) failed in his attempt to kill him, and had to flee. He eventually met up with Scarlett and Snake Eyes, who convinced him to join G.I. Joe.

In the film, we learn that Storm Shadow actually did kill the Hard Master because he was jealous of the attention he gave Snake Eyes, and Snake Eyes swore an oath of silence until the Hard Master's death was avenged. It is implied that he eventually sought refuge with Laird McCullen, but this is not certain. In a further departure from the RAH/G1 (Generation 1, the designation Hasbro uses for the original Transformers franchise and its related media) continuities, Snake Eyes kills Storm Shadow instead of helping him redeem himself.

However we can't rule out any surprises for the eventual sequels, though even a ninja would have slim chances of surviving being stabbed and falling into the Arctic Ocean like that.

In the RAH comic and cartoon continuities, Snake Eyes's vocal cords were damaged in a firey accident, leaving him mute for well over a decade. In the comics, he eventually regained his ability to speak, but he never spoke in either the Sunbow or Dic cartoon. In the film, it is stated that he swore an oath of silence until he avenged the Hard Master's death, which he does. Whether this means he will speak in the sequels is unknown.

Think "movie effects". In the real world, ice will not sink regardless of the pressure. According to every water phase diagram ever created, the solid phase of water is never more dense then the liquid phase. Most liquids must go through the liquid phase in order to reach melting/freezing point; water however does not. Even if it was somehow more dense due to compression, it wouldn't sink in the manner displayed. More likely it would remain at the same general depth it was originally at due to water also getting denser as it gets deeper.

Not until after the Arctic Base is destroyed towards the end of the film. It is also not a mask, but his actual face.

Following the critical evisceration of sister film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, this movie was not generally screened for critics before the general release. Expectations were low. The critical response has been generally negative, with 61% of critics giving a negative review on Rotten Tomatoes and a metascore of 32. Criticisms focused on the movie's poor plot, although several of the movie's action sequences were well-received. As with ROTF, the general public disagreed with the critics, the film grossing over $500 million worldwide in its first run alone.