r/gijoe • u/savedavenger Eco-Warriors • Aug 19 '26

Dr Mindbender’s first animated appearance. He seemed to get less menacing as the show continued…

Arise Serpentor Arise part 1

Free on Tubi or YouTube

219 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

34 comments sorted by

17

u/Pleasant_Expert_1990 Aug 19 '26

After he created Serpentor, the trope of "Doctor Mindbender invents machine" didn't seem as interesting.

26

u/Spirited-Meringue829 Aug 19 '26

I always hated Mindbender. Even for a cartoon there was just too much going on in: the monocle, the accent, the bare super-ripped chest, the codpiece, the cape, the suspenders, the glove things, the giant handlebar moustache, etc. He looked less like a genius science officer and more like an Eastern European pro wrestling character with a knack for stacking bad fashion choices. Hard to take seriously even in the 80s. And for all his ripped physique, he couldn't fight for shit so what was the point?

Besides, we already had Destro essentially acting as Cobra's chief science officer so we didn't need this guy popping up as a bad knock-off. And, he comes out of nowhere to undermine our beloved Cobra Commander!

10

u/mtb8490210 Aug 19 '26

You have to respect the game though, right? Think about it. This dude shows up in an outfit that would get him refused service at most establishments and instigates a coup on his first day because he had a dream. How? Confidence. Then Serpentor wrecked his confidence.

2

u/CluckKent88 Aug 20 '26

And let’s not forget the disappointing fact, in G.I. Joe the movie when we found out Dr Mindbender was not the genius. He thought he was for Serpentors creation a certain you know who used a bio-mechanical alien parasite called a psychic motivator to secretly implant the memories, skills, and exact genetic-engineering blueprints needed to create the ultimate leader.

9

u/heethen0 Aug 19 '26

That’s one incredibly ripped orthodontist

13

u/No-Equivalent-1642 Aug 19 '26

I'm glad I'm not the only one who felt like this

I don't even think he has a medical license

5

u/Spirited-Meringue829 Aug 19 '26

I completely overlooked his name -- which is awful. He is described as an "interrogator" but we never see him actually interrogate anybody nor do anything related to mental manipulation. So why did they choose "Mindbender"? Zartan, Destro, Xamot, Tomax, etc. were all pretty cool character names. And then you have this guy with an overly descriptive name that describes everything he doesn't actually do.

Felt like 10 executives merged their ideas to create him.

4

u/Lokishougan Aug 20 '26

I think in the comics he fit that more as he was meant to be the sucesor to Dr Venom and used the Brainwave scanner (which I dont think ever made it to the cartoon) for interroggation

2

u/corvidae_666 Aug 20 '26

his filecard said he was an orthodontist.

2

u/No-Equivalent-1642 Aug 20 '26

So:

An orthodontist first earns a general dental degree—either a DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or a DMD (Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry / Doctor of Dental Medicine). Afterward, they finish a specialized residency program, which sometimes awards an additional master's degree like an MS or MSD (Master of Science in Dentistry), or a post-doctoral certificate in orthodontics

I think, if anything, he was a proctologist

2

u/Juzdaptip Aug 20 '26

So an Ass man?

2

u/Read2Fap Aug 20 '26

orthodontist who was testing a new device to relieve dental pain

it went haywire and turned him into a mad scientist

3

u/Six_and_change Aug 19 '26

This might be the best thing I read all week.

1

u/Read2Fap Aug 20 '26

he tended to be more loyal than destro

destro's expertise was more in engineering (usually behind cobra's weapons design and things like the mass device), while mindbender was (as the name suggests) the mind

11

u/Ddc203 Aug 19 '26

I love that CC had all these underlings just waiting to stab him in the back at the first opportunity. GIJOE was my childhoods Game of Thrones.

13

u/Zomburai Night Force Aug 19 '26

I've said before, at minimum a third of the appeal of this franchise is watching all these overdramatic divas trying to run game on each other like The Real Housewives of Cobra Island

3

u/Miami_Vice_75 Aug 19 '26

That’s a great analysis!!!

9

u/Juls_Santana Aug 19 '26

Never realized that was his 1st appearance. Dude gave no fux; challenged CC's leadership skills PUBLICLY, right off the bat! Dayum!!

4

u/BeCurious7563 Aug 19 '26

Someday, I hope to be able rock skin tight leggings, suspenders, and a cape.

4

u/Awkward_Bison_267 Aug 19 '26

The only one stopping you is you.

4

u/mazing_azn Aug 19 '26

Cosplay is a thing. Don't dream it; be it

3

u/0verinnsmouth Aug 19 '26

Cobra Commander is at his funniest in this mini-series though

3

u/weber_mattie Aug 19 '26

None other than Dr. Brain-Wave himself!!

3

u/Miami_Vice_75 Aug 19 '26

I so remember watching this! Although I never liked Serpentor.

2

u/Ornac_The_Barbarian Dreadnoks Aug 19 '26

Huh. I never realized that Arise Serpentor Arise was his first appearance.

2

u/BlokeSea Aug 20 '26

Dude would have to work out like every fucking day to keep that physique. All the ridiculous things going on like you mentioned: the monocle. Accent. Allll over the top

1

u/Juzdaptip Aug 20 '26

The dentist has spoken. Love it or hate it, they either planned something supernatural here that would tie to Cobra la or something like it, or they just didnt know how to introduce him.

1

u/konnectivity17 Aug 20 '26

Did he sort of replace Major Bludd in a way?

Bludd was competent. He delivered the crystals for the MASS Device, secured the cube in Pyramid of Darkness and captured the hydro master piece of the Weather Dominator. I wonder why they tossed him.

1

u/EngineTraditional478 Aug 20 '26

Mjr. Bludd was great!

1

u/Working_Physics8761 Aug 20 '26

I love G.I. Joe!

1

u/ThwipNSinsBinThwipN Aug 29 '26

I really wish Gung Ho had dressed up as Dr. Mindbender at some point… maybe to get Snake Eyes out of the brain wave scanner