10 Best Fighters From The G.I. Joe Comics, Ranked

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The G.I. Joe franchise is largely associated with a military theme, with the brand mostly focusing on guns and gadgets. At the same time, several highly trained fighters in the series rely more on their martial arts skills than anything else. Given that a ninja is the face of the G.I. Joe brand, the number of expert fighters in the series makes sense.

Beyond Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, several other great fighters work with G.I. Joe and the villainous Cobra team. Some of these characters are obvious, whereas others possess surprising fighting skills. With these abilities, they can either aid their proverbial terrorist organization determined to rule the world or help save it.

Gung-Ho

Real Name

Function

Debut

Etienne R. LaFitte

Recondo

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #11

If the Transformers are crossing over with G.I. Joe for a movie, there are comic books from both franchises the film should pull story elements from.

Compared to characters such as Snake Eyes, Gung-Ho is rarely looked at for his fighting prowess. Despite this, he's a more than adequate fighter, with his skills being honed before he joined the team. Growing up in Louisiana, he was known for his bare-knuckle brawling bouts and boasting a knife. Combined with his incredible physical strength, it's made him into one of the strongest G.I. Joe fighters and one of the most fearless.

Gung-Ho is never afraid of anything and revels on the battlefield or in the ring. Embodying the G.I. Joe rhetoric of bravery and heroism, he's not someone that any Cobra agent would want to fight in a dark alley - or even a well-lit one. While he might mostly be seen with firearms and similar weapons, the best part of his arsenal is his two fists.

Beachhead

Real Name

Function

Debut

Wayne R. Sneeden

Infantry

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #47

Beachhead is mostly known as being the trainer for the new members of G.I. Joe, which reflects his own skill level. Beachhead is a patient, tactical, and mindful fighter who always sizes up his opponents to force them into making the first move. This allows him to perfectly counteract whatever they throw at him so he can throw down with recruits of all skill levels.

A tough taskmaster, Beachhead is no stranger to taking haymakers and dodging attacks. No matter how skilled his students think they are, he can always teach them a thing or three. Thus, any level of fighting skill they attain is ultimately due to the tutelage of Beachhead - even if this requires a brutal and taxing training regime.

Jinx

Real Name

Function

Debut

N/A (Known for using the nickname "Kimi Arashikage")

Intelligence

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #59

While the Energon Universe has introduced several fan-favorite Transformers, some characters from the franchise might not work in these comics.

Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow are the most well-known ninjas in the franchise, but they aren't the only ones. Jinx is a ninja with ties to the Arashikage clan, having received training by the Blind Master and been handpicked by Snake Eyes to join G.I. Joe. Her skill is so incredible that she even had her own freelance bounty hunter company before becoming the new training coordinator for the reinstated G.I. Joe.

Jinx was responsible for training Billy, the son of Cobra Commander. Her skills also made her one of the most valuable members of the Ninja Force team. In the IDW G.I. Joe comics, she even took out an entire team of blue ninjas, showing that she's just as versatile as any other clan member.

Roadblock

Real Name

Function

Debut

Marvin F. Hinto

Infantry Heavy Weapons

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #22

Roadblock is one of the most iconic parts of the franchise, especially the iteration from the G.I. Joe cartoon. Loud, brash and boisterous, he's usually known for his skill with machine guns or in the kitchen. Beyond these abilities, however, Roadblock is one mean Joe when using his fists, and he has the strength to back it up.

Roadblock is one of the strongest members of G.I. Joe, as shown by his transporting an M2 Browning machine gun as his personal weapon. In the Devil's Due comic books, he even took down several Dreadnoks singlehandedly on a stage, increasing sales of his line of personal grills. Whether it's a mean lamb chop or a Cobra stooge, Roadblock is always ready to cook up a hurtin'.

Road Pig

Real Name

Function

Debut

Donald DeLuca

Enforcer

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #83

The G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero line began in the 1980s, and there are several forgotten aspects that this relaunch added to the overall brand.

The Dreadnoks are known for their dangerous ways, but even they dislike Road Pig. Dressed like a reject from Mad Max, the character is one of the lesser-known members of the Dreadnoks. His gaudy sense of fashion and a worse sense of personal hygiene are matched only by his strength, however.

Wielding a massive sledgehammer, Road Pig is easily the strongest of the Dreadnoks. This allows him to effortlessly swing his hammer and simultaneously remove several enemies. Even without this weapon, he's a walking killer, lashing out at anyone who speaks poorly to him. This once saw him take down an entire bar, all because they made fun of his love of grape soda.

Big Boa

Real Name

Function

Debut

N/A

Drill Instructor

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #15 (Devil's Due)

Big Boa didn't really make much of a splash until later comics, but he quickly proved his value. The character functions as the trainer for Cobra recruits, testing them to reach his level of pain tolerance. Massive and musclebound, Big Boa certainly lives up to his name, with every punch from his packing more than a wallop.

Ironically, Big Boa was initially meant to be a rival for G.I. Joe's most unlikely recruit: Rocky Balboa! While this licensing idea fell through, it speaks to the Cobra member's fighting skills. After all, if he could knock out the Italian Stallion on the regular, other Joes were certain to have glass jaws.

Sgt. Slaughter

Real Name

Function

Debut

CLASSIFIED

Infantry/Drill Instructor

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #48

Besides just firepower, various Decepticons in Transformers are able to beat the Autobots through their physical strength or fighting ability.

Based on the real-life wrestler, Sgt. Slaughter is the elite drill sergeant of G.I. Joe. Never backing down from anyone and always ready to throw a punch for the US of A, Sgt. Slaughter is one of the most physically robust members of the team. The physical challenges he puts new recruits through are something that he can easily do himself.

Just like his real-life counterpart, Sgt. Slaughter is known for using wrestling moves, pinning down enemies far bigger than himself. He knocked out Zartan with a single punch and took on the mighty Nemesis Enforcer. The fear he inspires in Joes and Cobra alike is well-earned, with even Duke and Cobra Commander avoiding getting on his bad side.

Quick Kick

Real Name

Function

Debut

MacArthur S. Ito

Infantry

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #45

Long before joining G.I. Joe, Quick Kick was already a martial arts prodigy. The Marvel comic books even revealed that Shang-Chi, the Master of Kung Fu, trained Quick Kick. He earned a black belt in several styles and disciplines using his skills as a Hollywood stuntman.

Quick Kick is not a ninja but is just as skilled as Snake Eyes or Jinx. He's proficient with weapons such as nunchucks, but, as his name suggests, he's more prone to letting his legs do the talking. Even if he usually eschews shirts and shoes, Quick Kick's feet are none the worse for wear.

Storm Shadow

Real Name

Function

Debut

Thomas Arashikage

Covert operations

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #21

The Energon Universe has had multiple G.I. Joe-themed spinoff books, with various other G.I. Joe and Cobra members deserving this treatment.

The resident ninja of Cobra, Storm Shadow, is far different from the group's usual cohorts of arms dealers, terrorists, and bikers.Trained in several martial arts and able to go through all manner of torturous endeavors, Storm Shadow is one of the prize pupils of the Arashikage clan. This has made him a fierce ally and sworn enemy of Snake Eyes, who also trained under the clan's tutelage.

Though he's used firearms, bows and several blades, Storm Shadow can just as easily do away with enemies using only his martial arts training. Different continuities have contrasted whether Snake Eyes can best him in battle. In the end, the only real weakness is that Storm Shadow's rivalry can cloud his judgment, though his skill is almost second to none.

Snake Eyes

Real Name

Function

Debut

CLASSIFIED

Commando

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #1

While his toy was originally dubbed as a "commando," Snake Eyes is most well-known as a ninja who tends to mainly use swords in battle. Trained as an outsider in the Arashikage ways, Snake Eyes' martial arts skill is unmatched among the G.I. Joe team. Truly silent but deadly, he can take down enemies without them even seeing him, all without any weapons.

Other martial artists on the G.I. Joe team have trained under Snake Eyes, including Jinx and Kamakura. Likewise, his crossbow-wielding teammate Scarlett has been taken under this training wing, with the two becoming close. His proficiency includes Judo, Jujutsu, Kung-Fu, Taekwondo, Muay Thai, Ninjutsu and Kobudo, which means he has martial arts for just about any opponent or situation. When it comes to winning with the best attacks and fighting techniques, Snake Eyes proves that knowing is half the battle.

G.I. Joe is a beloved multimedia franchise that has captivated audiences for generations. Spanning action figures, comic books, animated series, and live-action films, G.I. Joe tells the story of a brave team of elite soldiers known as the Joes, who battle the forces of evil embodied by the villainous Cobra organization.

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Always remember Spirit going up against and sometimes besting Storm Shadow in the first season of the cartoon.

Sgt Slaughter is the GREATEST figher in GI Joe with Snake Eyes at a strong but distant 2nd.

Flint should of been on the list.

Scarlet, zartan and probably even Spirit should be on the list . I’ve not seen any real feats by hung ho or even beachhead to suggest they are great H2H fighters.

Scarlett should have made this list!

What about Firefly? Or the twins, they train the Crimson Guard. Think you could put Major Bludd on the list somewhere.

Paramount should produce a rated R, live action Snake Eyes movie; somewhat like "Jason Bourne".

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