Outback (G.I. Joe)

Outback
G.I. Joe character
Illustration of Outback from G.I. Joe: Order of Battle. Art by Herb Trimpe.
First appearance	1987
Affiliation	G.I. Joe
Specialty	Survivalist
File name	Selkirk, Stuart R.
Birth place	Big Piney, Wyoming
SN	098-54-9270
Rank	Sergeant E-5
Primary MOS	Infantry
Secondary MOS	Survival Training Instructor
Subgroups	Night Force

Outback is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline and comic book series. He is the G.I. Joe Team's survivalist and debuted in 1987.

His real name is Stuart R. Selkirk, and his rank is that of sergeant E-5. Outback was born in Big Piney, Wyoming.

Outback's primary military specialty is infantry, and his secondary military specialty is survival training instructor. Outback was an instructor at both the Survival School and the Jungle Warfare Training Center. He has had extensive experience in Central America and other undisclosed locations. Outback is not intimidated by wilderness, and believes in being part of his environment rather than its adversary.

His reputation in extreme climates and environments earned him a spot on the G.I. Joe Team, and access to the latest gear and military technology, but Outback prefers to prove his ability to do without it. He views the gadgets and gizmos of today's modern world as distractions, which come at the expense of essential skills like finding food, crafting shelter, and navigating the world without the use of GPS. Outback's ability to improvise solutions with the bare minimum of resources, has saved his life and the lives of his teammates time and again.

The word "Survival" printed on his shirt is an acronym, taken from the U.S. Army Ranger Handbook:

Outback was first released as an action figure in 1987.

The figure was repainted and released as part of the Night Force line in 1988, packaged with Crazylegs.

A new version of Outback was released in 1993 as part of the 'Battle Corps' line. A year later the figure was re-released in different colors.

Outback was due to be released as part of the Direct-To-Consumer line but the wave featuring him was cancelled. Outback and the other figures in the wave were later released by the G.I. Joe Collectors Club.

Outback was released in 25th anniversary form as part of the "Assault on Cobra Island" set.

Outback was also released as part of the "Tiger Force" set.

In the Marvel Comics G.I. Joe series, he first appeared in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #59 (May 1987). He has been testing government issued survival equipment and is picked up by a group of Joes returning from weapons testing. The entire group then has to battle an attack by Cobra Commander and Raptor. In issue #61, he is ordered to leave three of his fellow Joes (Stalker, Quick Kick, and Snow Job) behind in order that someone might know they had been captured. Despite the orders, he has trouble dealing with this. His escape from Borovia is detailed in the sixth issue of the 'Special Missions' spin-off series. Outback returns alone to G.I. Joe's Utah headquarters. Leatherneck and Mutt voice how they dislike he has returned alone. The former persists on this topic, leaning into Outback, who pulls a knife on him. The situation is resolved without further violence. Later, the Joes are rescued by another team. They track down Outback and reassure him he did the right thing. His escape had given them enough hope to make it through the ordeal.