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G.I. Joe #2

The excitement continues! A full two weeks before it was originally planned to, Issue #2 of G.I. Joe hits the stands. This is only a good sign in my book, as it definitely shows some interest in the title, specifically, and in the G.I. Joe world as a whole. Of course, Issue #1 being the #12 best seller of the month can’t hurt either!

So, I’m sure you want to know where this issue stands in relation to the first. Better? Worse? Helps move a story, or does it make things more convoluted?

Well, if ya wanna find out, read on!

The cover to G.I. Joe #2!

WARNING!!! SPOILERS ABOUND! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

The "Splash Page" of G.I. Joe #2. A great shot of an imposing Destro, briefing fellow cohorts with some cool shots of a very cool looking Astro-Viper type Cobranaut. Quite simply, this book has grown on me really fast really quickly. I enjoyed the first issue, but it was as I knew it would be. A place-setter to get folks oriented without really moving the story along much. For that specific purpose, it did it’s job very well. It introduced some new characters and plotlines, and brought us back up to speed with what was going on in the last 10 years.

But the comic definitely needs more than that. Issue #2 picked up that spot nicely. Josh, Steve, John, and Scott threw a whole lot of action at us this time around, drawing us right into Cobra’s new plot and introducing Cobra’s new Commander, Destro. The story moved at a brisk, but followable pace, with a great balance of character and conflict, with a nice glimpse of some forgotten folks and a dash of new recruits. All in all, I thought it was pulled off rather well.

First of all, lets start from the beginning. The Cover. I’m sorry, but this cover has got to be among one of the coolest covers I’ve seen grace a Joe comic yet. Does it beat Michael Golden? Not quite. Does it quite match Mike Zeck’s masterpieces? Nope. But it does hold it’s own style and this style is used fantastically! I know a lot of folks who have some issues with J. Scott Campbell’s art (myself included) but MAN…his Destro is lean and mean!! That cover is beyond dramatic and just grabbed my attention immediately! It is at this very moment gracing my computer desktop.

However, a cover is only good as what’s inside. If the story doesn’t hold up, the cover really doesn’t serve it’s purpose…sure it may have sold that one comic, but it doesn’t convince the reader to keep buying. Josh Blaylock’s interesting writing and Steve Kurth’s dramatic art style hopefully will.

Now, for a plot synopsis…

The story starts off with a well suited Cobra astronaut fiddling with a satellite high above the Earth’s surface. The suit he is outfitted in is quite cool, in my book! If they made an Astro Viper stylized like THIS, I would buy it! The “camera” shifts to Destro who is calmly displaying this interstellar feat to the wonder of the collected group of Cobra hierarchy, Baroness, Major Bludd, the Twins, Zartan, and Dr. Mindbender. They appear irate and gruff when Destro tells them that he is the new Cobra Commander!

The Joe Team of the past collects to train tomorrows’ troopers.

A familiar face…they call him William, but we all know him as Billy, Cobra Commander’s son!

Destro assuades their trepidation pretty quickly, however, when he informs them that they are all infected with Cobra’s insidious new invention, the tiny “nanomachines” referred to by Destro as the “mites”. He has sneakily “poisoned” them all with them and they will be forced to work with him. In an interesting twist, he tells Zartan that he is the only one NOT infected, but doing so would cure him of his skin condition. Needless to say, all Cobras agree to work with him after seeing a presentation of a crazed Cobra Commander, possessed by this tiny mechanical “mites”.

The scene shifts to Wright-Patterson Airbase, apparently the new HQ of the G.I. Joe team. The “old Joes” are introduced to the next generation and some interesting interaction ensues.

I will interrupt the synopsis here to say that I am still uncertain about this direction that the comic is taking. I am not crazy about these “new recruits”. With the exception of Kamakura and newcomer Paige Adams, I find most of these newbies somewhat lacking in character. Still, I will give them time…

While this is all happening, a meeting is taking place with Duke and some regulars. They have finally decided to launch an attack on the Drednok compound in the Everglades.

Now, another interesting thing happens. We see a press conference with the Secretary of Defense (identified as Mr. Rumsfeld, a strange way to orient G.I. Joe into the “real world”) and General Clayton “Tomahawk” Abernathy. There, they discuss the G.I. Joe Team, Cobra and G.I. Joe’s purpose in the world. They are, and I quote “an anti-terrorist task force. Not just an anti-COBRA force.” I like that little phrase, I must say. Swiftly, the scene changes again to a young man in Scotland who is watching the TV. The man turns and would appear to be young Billy, Cobra Commander’s son from the original run of G.I. Joe. Let the plot twists begin…

Soon, we are at the Drednok Compound, where Zanya makes her dramatic debut as co-leader of the Drednoks. She is swiftly put in her place by Destro who takes over and assigns his new General, Mistress Armada to the task of forming up his Iron Grenadiers. Mistress Armada seems like a cool character, and I’m always glad to see another strong female. I’m looking forward to seeing what she does and what Josh does with her.

We flash back to more interaction between the old and new members of the G.I. Joe team, who are for the most part, being shown up by their commanders. Jinx makes short work of one of them as Spirit chastases another for his choice of weaponry. Still, Gung Ho is tossing around yet another new recruit like he's dirty laundry. All of this is somewhat entertaining, but presenting these new troops as cocky youngsters is a little unsettling...they should be much more capable.

Zartan’s daughter Zanya is introduced for the first time.

Enter Paige Adams, new recruit and apparent firearms expert!

The only new recruit that really seems to be up to snuff is a young girl by the name of Paige Adams. She quickly shows Dusty her marksmanship skills and has the great potential to be a cool member of the Joe team, as long as they treat it right.

The scene changes yet again, back to the Drednok compound. The Baroness and Destro are having an apparent spat, while all the while, the Joe team is preparing their offensive. Gung Ho is leading the main team in through an airborne insertion and jungle raid. Things on the Joe side are going relatively smoothly while Destro and Baroness chat. However, things are not what they seem…it would almost appear that Destro and The Baroness are not who they claim to be…but who are they and where are the real Destro and Anastasia DeCobray? A question for another time, apparently…

The insertion moves along at a brisk pace now, with Scarlett and Snake Eyes making their stealthy moves. Not quite stealthy enough, though when they are quickly spotted. Nothing to do now, but open up!

I think the jungle raid is handled fairly well. Something I’m not sure about right now is the relative lack of different Cobra troopers. This would have been the perfect time to showcase some Night Vipers or something…Vipers can only go so far. Still, the combat is written fairly well, and progresses at a nice pace.

Back to the story, as the Joes move in, Zanya and Major Bludd take command in the field, scattering their troops and trying to halt the Joes at every move. Zanya is forced to withdraw with her father and Bludd is left in charge.

Back inside, Destro appears frustrated at the turn of events, but orders Armada to take control, an order which she happily accepts.

Here’s some great Joe action we’ve been waiting for!

ZANDAR! Yeeeeah…

The Joe team continues their move through the forest, when Scarlett and Snake Eyes get a most unwelcome visitor! Darts drop down on them from the trees and Zartan’s forgettable brother Zandar is close behind!

I gotta say I LOVE Zandar…he is a very underrated character and one I was hoping I could showcase soon. I’m glad Devil’s Due beat me to it! I hope they use him more throughout this series.

With some help from Road Pig’s cinder block club, the two Joes are felled. Despite some graceful moves by Kamakura, and a sacrifice by one of the newcomers (I have no clue who…) the Joes seem overpowered, even though they are nearing the complex. As they finally break through towards their goal, the air is littered with aircraft, and they would appear to be at Cobra’s mercy! And of course, it is here that we find the inevitable “To Be Continued…”

The final panel of issue #2 leaves the Joes practically defenseless as AGP’s soar into the air for an assault!

All right, here we go…opinion time! Did I like it or not? You ought to know by now…I really, really liked it!

I will admit, I had apprehensions the first time I read it through. Granted, I was distracted at the time, but I was immediately rubbed the wrong way by these new recruits. A few of them were given names and a panel or two of action, but none of them (except Paige) really mattered. I sincerely hope they are not only being used as cannon fodder, as would appear in this issue, where it would seem that three of them perished right off the bat. Two of them in an alligator pit and one of them at the mercy of a HISS Tank, while saving Stalker.

If they are going to groom some of these new people into future Joes, they need some more character development. If they are only there as cannon fodder, well, to be honest, I’d rather they not be there at all. And I sincerely hope they are not meant to REPLACE the Joes that I know and love.

So, sounds pretty negative, huh? Nah, not really. All in all, I really did love this issue. There was some more interesting plot development with the nanomachines…Destro was at his best (or was he??). I like the group of Joes they have pulled together here, it’s a nice mix of the common ones and the somewhat obscure. Spirit is shaping up fairly well already, as is Jinx. Snake Eyes and Scarlett maintain their “badassness” without going overboard Super-Ninja. They’re leaving that for Kamakura. ;^)

There seem to be some odd identity thefts going on here as well…it would be inferred by Destro’s and The Baroness’ speech that they are not who they claim. I really cannot figure out who they might be. Could this be the introduction of Chameleon somewhere in here? If so, who is under Destro’s helmet? Are they Joes or Cobras? Destro did somehow come up with one of those wrist communicators that the Joes were using…how did he get it?

All in all, a nice group of curious questions, enough to keep me wanting to read. The action was sprinkled well throughout the issue, and most interactions worked for me.

I sincerely hope that Mr. Kurth does put a tad more effort into accurately depicting Vipers and HISS Tanks…I am not crazy about his “artistic license” with these items as it makes them look quite unlike what they should look like.

All in all, I am quite happy with this issue. As with #1, my complaints are minor compared to by compliments…not only that, but we’ve got a pretty cool showing by Zandar, and the return of Road Pig and Billy. Things are shaping up…

Keep up the good work, Devil’s Due.

Back to Profiles

Wanna Go Home?

The "Splash Page" of G.I. Joe #2. A great shot of an imposing Destro, briefing fellow cohorts with some cool shots of a very cool looking Astro-Viper type Cobranaut.	Quite simply, this book has grown on me really fast really quickly. I enjoyed the first issue, but it was as I knew it would be. A place-setter to get folks oriented without really moving the story along much. For that specific purpose, it did it’s job very well. It introduced some new characters and plotlines, and brought us back up to speed with what was going on in the last 10 years. But the comic definitely needs more than that. Issue #2 picked up that spot nicely. Josh, Steve, John, and Scott threw a whole lot of action at us this time around, drawing us right into Cobra’s new plot and introducing Cobra’s new Commander, Destro. The story moved at a brisk, but followable pace, with a great balance of character and conflict, with a nice glimpse of some forgotten folks and a dash of new recruits. All in all, I thought it was pulled off rather well. First of all, lets start from the beginning. The Cover. I’m sorry, but this cover has got to be among one of the coolest covers I’ve seen grace a Joe comic yet. Does it beat Michael Golden? Not quite. Does it quite match Mike Zeck’s masterpieces? Nope. But it does hold it’s own style and this style is used fantastically! I know a lot of folks who have some issues with J. Scott Campbell’s art (myself included) but MAN…his Destro is lean and mean!! That cover is beyond dramatic and just grabbed my attention immediately! It is at this very moment gracing my computer desktop.
However, a cover is only good as what’s inside. If the story doesn’t hold up, the cover really doesn’t serve it’s purpose…sure it may have sold that one comic, but it doesn’t convince the reader to keep buying. Josh Blaylock’s interesting writing and Steve Kurth’s dramatic art style hopefully will. Now, for a plot synopsis… The story starts off with a well suited Cobra astronaut fiddling with a satellite high above the Earth’s surface. The suit he is outfitted in is quite cool, in my book! If they made an Astro Viper stylized like THIS, I would buy it! The “camera” shifts to Destro who is calmly displaying this interstellar feat to the wonder of the collected group of Cobra hierarchy, Baroness, Major Bludd, the Twins, Zartan, and Dr. Mindbender. They appear irate and gruff when Destro tells them that he is the new Cobra Commander!	The Joe Team of the past collects to train tomorrows’ troopers.
A familiar face…they call him William, but we all know him as Billy, Cobra Commander’s son!	Destro assuades their trepidation pretty quickly, however, when he informs them that they are all infected with Cobra’s insidious new invention, the tiny “nanomachines” referred to by Destro as the “mites”. He has sneakily “poisoned” them all with them and they will be forced to work with him. In an interesting twist, he tells Zartan that he is the only one NOT infected, but doing so would cure him of his skin condition. Needless to say, all Cobras agree to work with him after seeing a presentation of a crazed Cobra Commander, possessed by this tiny mechanical “mites”. The scene shifts to Wright-Patterson Airbase, apparently the new HQ of the G.I. Joe team. The “old Joes” are introduced to the next generation and some interesting interaction ensues. I will interrupt the synopsis here to say that I am still uncertain about this direction that the comic is taking. I am not crazy about these “new recruits”. With the exception of Kamakura and newcomer Paige Adams, I find most of these newbies somewhat lacking in character. Still, I will give them time… While this is all happening, a meeting is taking place with Duke and some regulars. They have finally decided to launch an attack on the Drednok compound in the Everglades.
Now, another interesting thing happens. We see a press conference with the Secretary of Defense (identified as Mr. Rumsfeld, a strange way to orient G.I. Joe into the “real world”) and General Clayton “Tomahawk” Abernathy. There, they discuss the G.I. Joe Team, Cobra and G.I. Joe’s purpose in the world. They are, and I quote “an anti-terrorist task force. Not just an anti-COBRA force.” I like that little phrase, I must say. Swiftly, the scene changes again to a young man in Scotland who is watching the TV. The man turns and would appear to be young Billy, Cobra Commander’s son from the original run of G.I. Joe. Let the plot twists begin… Soon, we are at the Drednok Compound, where Zanya makes her dramatic debut as co-leader of the Drednoks. She is swiftly put in her place by Destro who takes over and assigns his new General, Mistress Armada to the task of forming up his Iron Grenadiers. Mistress Armada seems like a cool character, and I’m always glad to see another strong female. I’m looking forward to seeing what she does and what Josh does with her. We flash back to more interaction between the old and new members of the G.I. Joe team, who are for the most part, being shown up by their commanders. Jinx makes short work of one of them as Spirit chastases another for his choice of weaponry. Still, Gung Ho is tossing around yet another new recruit like he's dirty laundry. All of this is somewhat entertaining, but presenting these new troops as cocky youngsters is a little unsettling...they should be much more capable.	Zartan’s daughter Zanya is introduced for the first time.
Enter Paige Adams, new recruit and apparent firearms expert!	The only new recruit that really seems to be up to snuff is a young girl by the name of Paige Adams. She quickly shows Dusty her marksmanship skills and has the great potential to be a cool member of the Joe team, as long as they treat it right. The scene changes yet again, back to the Drednok compound. The Baroness and Destro are having an apparent spat, while all the while, the Joe team is preparing their offensive. Gung Ho is leading the main team in through an airborne insertion and jungle raid. Things on the Joe side are going relatively smoothly while Destro and Baroness chat. However, things are not what they seem…it would almost appear that Destro and The Baroness are not who they claim to be…but who are they and where are the real Destro and Anastasia DeCobray? A question for another time, apparently…
The insertion moves along at a brisk pace now, with Scarlett and Snake Eyes making their stealthy moves. Not quite stealthy enough, though when they are quickly spotted. Nothing to do now, but open up! I think the jungle raid is handled fairly well. Something I’m not sure about right now is the relative lack of different Cobra troopers. This would have been the perfect time to showcase some Night Vipers or something…Vipers can only go so far. Still, the combat is written fairly well, and progresses at a nice pace. Back to the story, as the Joes move in, Zanya and Major Bludd take command in the field, scattering their troops and trying to halt the Joes at every move. Zanya is forced to withdraw with her father and Bludd is left in charge. Back inside, Destro appears frustrated at the turn of events, but orders Armada to take control, an order which she happily accepts.	Here’s some great Joe action we’ve been waiting for!
ZANDAR! Yeeeeah…	The Joe team continues their move through the forest, when Scarlett and Snake Eyes get a most unwelcome visitor! Darts drop down on them from the trees and Zartan’s forgettable brother Zandar is close behind! I gotta say I LOVE Zandar…he is a very underrated character and one I was hoping I could showcase soon. I’m glad Devil’s Due beat me to it! I hope they use him more throughout this series. With some help from Road Pig’s cinder block club, the two Joes are felled. Despite some graceful moves by Kamakura, and a sacrifice by one of the newcomers (I have no clue who…) the Joes seem overpowered, even though they are nearing the complex. As they finally break through towards their goal, the air is littered with aircraft, and they would appear to be at Cobra’s mercy! And of course, it is here that we find the inevitable “To Be Continued…”