Mouse has the least characterization of all the Patrol. Though he gains a bit more when you realize that Scarlett's "ugly little runt" line from G.I. Joe #7 was originally directed at him.


Mouse

Sapper

Filename: Belozertsev, Ilya

Birthplace: Raychikhinsk, Russia

At first glance there's little beyond his smaller stature that would seem to tie Mouse to his namesake. He's generally loud and boisterous when off-mission, often getting into fights. He has earned his name however, in the field he's able to exploit the smallest gaps in enemy defenses and has shown an aptitude for navigating and exploiting the caves and tunnels used by the Mujahideen.

"The man, he loves to explore. I hate going in those tunnels, but you can see in his face that if there weren't 20 angry Mujas around the next bend he'd be having the time of his life. Even after we've cleared them, he'll go back in, just looking around, admiring the work or something. No harm in it as long as he's still willing to blow them up I suppose . . ." -Striker

In the late 70s/early 80s there was a magazine sized black and white anthology comic published by Marvel called Bizarre Adventures. In issue #31, sandwiched between a Larry Hama story about a rabbit with Vietnam induced PTSD and tale of pre-teen murder (no, really) was a 5 page story called "Let There Be Life". In it we're introduced to the Pravda Patrol, a Soviet Special Forces unit. Created by Tom DeFalco and Herb Trimpe, and due to the nature of the mag, actually owned by them, the Pravda Patrol only appeared this one time. But they almost became more. The Soviet counterpart to the Joe team wasn't going to be the Oktober Guard, it was to be the Pravda Patrol. Art exists for issue 6 (originally intended to be issue 3) of the Patrol in place of the Guard, but their use was rejected by Hasbro. This is likely because the characters wouldn't have been owned by Hasbro, and it is probably for the best, as the Guard has more visual distinctiveness, but it's one of those weird quirks of comic/toy history that I love. The Pravda Patrol had been on my mental to-do list since I learned about them and while they don't jibe with the "no existing characters" guideline, they fit the Year One theme too well to pass up. Also, with Mr. Trimpe having recently passed away, I like to consider these my small tribute to all the amazing work he did and all the enjoyment he brought me.


Mouse was a challenge because he was just so plain. He barely has any lines and is probably the most generic in appearance. Weirdly, I think I like him the best of the three "soldier" types in the Patrol.