At Toy Fair, Hasbro unveiled their initiatives planned for the 50^th anniversary celebration of its iconic G.I. Joe brand. The toys which defined the “action figure” category is making Toys “R” Us the official headquarters for the brand in 2014.

Launched at the American International Toy Fair in 1964, the “original action figure” debuted as a 12-inch pose-able soldier toy, G.I. Joe has been a pop-culture phenomenon ever since. The property evolved over the years, from the original 12-inch action figure in the 1960s, the Adventure Team in the 1970s and the G.I. JOE vs. COBRA saga which was introduced in the 1980s with a 3.75-inch action figure line, comic book series and legendary animated series G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. Recently the brand has introduced two blockbuster movies.

Beginning in March, exciting new Kre-O building sets will let kids and collectors alike build vehicles and environments to play out the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra fantasy. Collectible blind-bagged Kreons of popular G.I. Joe characters will also hit shelves, including characters from both the heroic G.I. Joe team like Lady Jaye and Footloose, as well as the villainous Cobra organization like Tomax and Scrap Iron. As part of the 50^th anniversary celebration, Hasbro and Toys“R”Us are bringing one of the most popular G.I. Joe vs. Cobra playsets from the 1980s back in Kre-O form with the Kre-O G.I. Joe Terror Drome Building Set. This iconic set features over 850 pieces and will be available in the fall.

Additionally, a collectible 50^th anniversary-branded, 3.75-inch scale action figure and vehicle line will debut at Toys“R”Us this fall. The special edition line will be offered in unique 50^th anniversary branded packaging and reintroduce classic G.I. Joe vs. Cobra characters and iconic vehicles, including some that have not been available since the 1980s. Fans will be able to purchase classic characters like Destro, Snake Eyes and Hawk, as well as vehicles like the G.I. Joe Vamp MKII and Cobra Wolf Vehicle with an updated sculpting style and unique deco.

The 50^th anniversary year will also continue the G.I. Joe brand’s long tradition of publishing and rich storytelling with exciting new programs from Hasbro’s partners. IDW Publishing’s G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero will release its landmark 200th issue in March 2014, continuing the story of the original 1980s G.I. Joe comic by original writer Larry Hama. IDW will also launch Transformers/G.I. Joe, a series uniting Hasbro’s iconic brands, by acclaimed creators Tom Scioli and John Barber this summer. Additionally, as part of its publishing program, Hasbro is opening the fantasy to fan participation. Amazon Publishing recently announced that Kindle Worlds has reached a licensing agreement with Hasbro to open up a new Kindle World based on the G.I. Joe brand. With the launch of the G.I. Joe Kindle World, writers will be able to publish their own original fiction starring iconic G.I. Joecharacters like Duke, Snake Eyes, and Cobra Commander and sell their work on Amazon.com. The G.I. Joe Kindle World will open for writers to start publishing stories in the next few months.

This spring, the official G.I. Joe Collector’s Club will host the 21^st annual G.I. Joe fan convention, known as “GIJoeCon,” in Dallas from Thursday, April 10 to Sunday, April 13. Convention organizers plan on celebrating the 50^th anniversary with exclusive action figure sets, special G.I. Joe guests from throughout the brand’s history and the opportunity to meet and interact with other fans of the brand.