Footloose is a fictional character from the '' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' toyline, comic books and animated series. He is the

G.I. Joe Team G.I. Joe is the code name of a fictional elite covert special operations unit operating under the control of the United States Military in the G.I. Joe universe. In the 1960s and 1970s, a toy military adventure character based on General Jos ...

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

trooper, and debuted in 1985.

Profile

His real name is Andrew D. Meyers, and his rank is that of corporal E-4. Footloose was born in

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the ...

. Footloose wears a jungle camouflage pattern in his uniform and is equipped with a

PASGT helmet Personnel Armor System for Ground Troops (PASGT, pronounced ) is a combat helmet and ballistic vest that was used by the United States military from the early 1980s until the mid-2000s, when the helmet and vest were succeeded by the Lightweight ...

with additional camo over it. Footloose's primary military specialty is infantry, and his secondary military specialty is special services (basketball coach). He was his high school valedictorian, captain of the track team, and an

Eagle scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

. While going for his degree in Physical Education on a state scholarship, he suddenly dropped out and moved to the coast for about three years. He spent time there pondering the pointlessness of his existence, when he decided to join the Army. After basic training and

AIT An ait (, like ''eight'') or eyot () is a small island. It is especially used to refer to river islands found on the River Thames and its tributaries in England. Aits are typically formed by the deposit of sediment in the water, which accumu ...

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

, he graduated jump school and the desert training unit. Footloose is a qualified expert in all NATO and Warsaw Pact small arms. In the UK Action Force toy series, Footloose's real name is Andrew D. Mackay, and he is from

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, where he competed in the Highland Games and studied

Celtic mythology Celtic mythology is the body of myths belonging to the Celtic peoples.Cunliffe, Barry, (1997) ''The Ancient Celts''. Oxford, Oxford University Press , pp. 183 (religion), 202, 204–8. Like other Iron Age Europeans, Celtic peoples followed a ...

Toys

Footloose was first released as an action figure in 1985. Proposed code-names for the figure included "Action", "Bravo" and "Grunt". The figure was repainted and released as part of the "Slaughter's Marauders" line in 1989.

Comics

Marvel Comics

In the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

G.I. Joe series, he first appeared in '' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' #37 (July 1985). In that issue, despite his known inexperience, he is assigned to drive a small tank as backup to

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...

. They are backup for the group of Blowtorch, Ripcord, Gung-Ho and Ripcord's girlfriend, Candy Appel. Said group had been attacked at the circus by the

Crimson Twins Tomax and Xamot Paoli (also called the Crimson Twins or Crimson Guard Commanders) are fictional characters from the ''G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'' toyline, comic books and animated series. They are the co-leaders of Cobra (G.I. Joe), Cobra's e ...

. All the Joes become involved in a running battle throughout the grounds. He is then back-up for a raid on a suspected Cobra officer's house; coincidentally it is the home of Candy Appel's father. Footloose also takes part in the invasion of the Cobra-held town of Springfield.

Action Force

Footloose also appeared in the U.K. '' Action Force'' comic series, which had all original England based stories starring familiar Joe characters. In the first issue, Footloose is described as "one of our best field agents". Following, a Cobra underwater soldier Footloose had captured in the first issue is seen standing over his prone body with a knife. However, Footloose helps raid a Cobra outpost soon after. He then assists in stopping a

Crimson Guard The Crimson Guard is an elite organization within the fictional G.I. Joe universe. They are members of Cobra Command, the nemesis of the G.I. Joe team. They are often referred to by a phonetic spelling of their organization's initials, as "Sieg ...

plan to blow up the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed "'' ...

. Another Crimson Guard, at a later time, ends up holding a classroom of his own students hostage. Footloose is one of the many authorities on the scene; ready to drop the man with a sniper rifle. He is not needed as of the Guard's own students talks the man into surrendering.

Devil's Due

Footloose takes part in the three battle between the Joes, Cobra, and the Coil. During the ''World War III'' storyline in America's Elite, Footloose is among the Joes deployed to Bolivia.

Animated series

Sunbow

Footloose first appeared in the Sunbow/Marvel ''

G.I. Joe ''G.I. Joe'' is an American media franchise and a line of action figures owned and produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier ( U.S. Army), Ac ...

'' miniseries "The Pyramid of Darkness". In this series, his personality is portrayed as usually in a zen state of mind, and one which is frequently out of touch with reality. He is featured in the episode "Excalibur", in which he is one of the Joes setting up an anti-Cobra radar system in Britain. When Storm Shadow infiltrates the area, Footloose, Quick Kick and

Spirit Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

pursue him. Footloose is captured by Storm Shadow, but is later rescued by Quick Kick. Footloose's most notable role was in "Hearts and Cannons". The episode begins with him and

Dusty Dusty may refer to: Places in the United States * Dusty, New Mexico, an unincorporated community * Dusty, Washington, an unincorporated community * Dusty Glacier, Washington People * Dusty (given name) * Dusty (nickname) * Slim Dusty, Austra ...

jumping out of a damaged G.I. Joe cargo plane, along with their Mauler tank. They find themselves in a desert, where Cobra is testing their new Plasma Cannon weapon. They rescue Dr. Nancy Winters, a beautiful scientist who was tricked into designing the Plasma Cannon for Destro, and compete for her affection. Walking through a dust storm, Footloose escapes with Dr. Winters as he is ordered by Dusty, who fends off Cobra forces. Footloose and Dr. Winters are captured by King Ahmed Razouli Jabal, who initially mistakes them for Cobra members, but releases them when he recognizes the G.I. Joe logo on Footloose's uniform. The king gives Footloose the Mauler that was ejected earlier, and Footloose joins him in liberating his country from Cobra. Footloose eventually destroys Destro's plasma tank with the Mauler. Footloose is featured in one of the series' PSAs, in which he teaches a child how to stop a nosebleed.

''G.I. Joe: The Movie''

Footloose appeared briefly in the 1987 animated film '' G.I. Joe: The Movie'', with no speaking role.

DiC

He appeared again in the DiC-produced ''

'' animated series. He only appeared in the "Operation Dragonfire" miniseries, again with a silent role.

References

External links

Footloose
at JMM's G.I. Joe Comics Home Page {{G.I. Joe Comics characters introduced in 1985 Fictional characters from Indiana Fictional corporals Fictional military sergeants Fictional United States Army personnel G.I. Joe soldiers Male characters in animated series Male characters in comics