The Geek’s Grimoire is a blog run by a buddy of the show. Check it out by clicking on the banner above. And here is a sample of some of the geekery you should come to expect below:

It all started in a department store.

Pittsburgh, some time in the early 1980s

My brother and I have arrived at (probably) K-Mart. Both of us have fresh allowance money in our pocket, so we head directly to our favorite part of the store: the toy department.

Within moments, we’re in the action figures aisle, searching for the Star Wars figures. Unfortunately, Star Wars is already falling out of favor, and the only action figures that we can find already exist in our collection at home. As awesome as Darth Vader is, we really don’t need a third one.

Immediately adjacent to the Star Wars figures, something new and interesting has appeared. These newcomers are military action figures. They’re a bit different from our usual sci-fi toys, but they are about the same size, so they’ll fit in with our existing armies. After a little deliberation, we each select a toy and head for the checkout.

Little did we know, our young lives had just changed.

Present day

So, what was that pivotal purchase?

Over the next decade, my brother and I would invest a large quantity of our allowance in GI Joe action figures, vehicles, and even the occasional comic book. When the TV show surfaced, we immediately became devoted fans, and our backyard was filled with cries of “Yo Joe!”

My love for GI Joe faded into the fog of memory for quite a while, just as Star Wars had, until the Cartoon Network produced GI Joe Resolute. The cartoon that I had grown up with had grown up as well, and it was good.

Today, I’ve returned to the GI Joe universe. I’m a regular reader of several ongoing GI Joe comic books, I’ve got a handful of GI Joe action figures on my desk, and I’m re-reading the original Marvel Comics series. All because K-Mart was out of new Star Wars figures way back when.

I wonder how different life might have been if they’d had Zuckuss in stock…