GI Joe: Cobra

GI Joe: Cobra 1-4

GI Joe: Cobra Special 1-2

GI Joe: Cobra II 1-9

I’m always amazed when a creative team successfully reimagines a well-known IP into something completely new but still familiar.  (Battlestar Galactica is the one that immediately comes to mind.)  Then there are the less comprehensive reboots, like the Marvel Ultimate universe, Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, and JJ Abrams’ Star Trek - places where creators put spins that are just different enough to subvert the audience’s expectations.

GI Joe: Cobra, as written by Mike Costa and Christos Gage, is closer to the former than the latter.  Gone is the overt military organization comprised of people pulled from every conceivable martial specialty.  Gone are Cobra’s outlandish plans to conquer the world through might of arms and implausible science. And, perhaps most noticeably, gone is the certainty that GI Joe will prevail at the end.

Here now is a Cobra that seeks global dominance through much less flashy, but much more effective, means.

It’s scary because Costa and Gage have tapped into something that’s rooted in the truth that I see around me.  Large corporations safely snuggled behind the law have rendered themselves immune to both public opinion and legal recourse while placing themselves in positions of enormous influence.  The people General Hawk send in to infiltrate these branches are woefully unprepared with little to no support. They might as well be one of the many ordinary people screaming at a society that ignores them without a second thought.  

The arcs with both Chuckles and Scoop read entirely like the noir works from Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, following the stories of men tasked with piecing together puzzles with no idea of what the pictures looks like.  But instead of ground-level mysteries, these Joes are embroiled in conspiracies that they’ll most likely never unravel - Scoop dies at the end of his tale, disavowed by his country and comprehensively brainwashed by the cult he was sent to investigate.  Chuckles isn’t doing much better either. (Total props to the comic team for making a compelling character out of this guy:)

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? Yes

Would read again? Yes

Rating: Pretty good

GI Joe: Hearts and Minds, Naomi, Ironheart, Batman: Universe

New comics!

Batman Universe 1

DC follows up their collection of the Walmart Superman stories with this compilation of the first two Batman Walmart offerings.  Written by Brian Michael Bendis, drawn by Nick Derington.  Bendis nails the dry humor that Batman and Alfred do so well, and I’ll leave it at that:

Also, this is the first appearance of Jinny Hex.  I quit reading the new Young Justice too early to really get a sense of her, but I like what I see so far.  

Ironheart 8

I’m sad that Nadia doesn’t stick around to help Riri, especially with the upcoming cancellation of her title.  Why not give her a permanent home here? I’d love to read that team-up on a monthly basis.  

It’s so hard to do Dr Strange well, and while Eve L Ewing doesn’t botch it here, she doesn’t exactly make him stand out, either.  At least next month will have Shuri. That should be fun. (There really needs to be a Marvel Young Women of Science comic.)

Naomi 6

Artistically pretty but uninteresting from a story point of view - Naomi fights her parents’ killer and decides to explore her new powers.  Thaaaat’s it. I suppose it’s just as deconstructed as the first Ultimate Spider-Man arc, but there’s something ultimately lacking this time around.  Maybe it’ll read better as a whole. I’m still interested in seeing what comes next for Naomi - I continue to enjoy how Bendis writes teenagers.  

GI Joe: Hearts and Minds 1-5

Max Brooks writes ten character studies and hits on an impressively high percentage of them.  Highlights:

He dispenses with the racist notion that Spirit’s an exceptional tracker because he’s Native American. Instead, Brooks attributes it to sensory integration dysfunction, essentially making him Daredevil.  It’s a neat little update.  

The Firefly story is a neat exploration into how he conducts his sabotage missions.  (Apparently he was responsible for the Challenger explosion.) It also delves into his mindset, which I enjoyed.  

This is a fun little miniseries, a nice job from the writer of World War Z.

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? Yes

Rating: Pretty good

GI Joe: America's Elite

GI Joe: America’s Elite 25-36

This is the second volume of Devil’s Due’s main GI Joe title.  I enjoyed it a great deal more than the issues that I read from the first volume.  Writer Mark Powers does an amazing job on several fronts.

As the final story arc before the publisher’s license with Hasbro ran out, Powers pulled out all the stops for this one, calling it “World War III.”  Cobra Commander truly unleashes global conflict upon the world, pushing nations past their breaking points and GI Joe to the very limits of theirs. It’s epic in scope, and requires Powers to juggle a mind-boggling number of storyline.

It’s a testament to his skill as a writer that he manages to do so while keeping everything both engaging and clear.  I’d skipped over 60 issues of material, but had little problem acclimating myself to all the changes, including Hawk’s new disability, Lady Jaye’s death, Shipwreck and Cover Girl’s relationship.

Related to that, Powers puts more focus on the personal lives of the Joes than anyone before him.  Hama paid lip service to it previously, but Powers makes these characters feel more like people than toy soldiers defined by their outfits and specialties.  These Joes refer to each other by their real names, which makes sense for teammates who’ve become friends over the years. Duke’s childhood and relationship with his father’s explored in surprising detail.  

The pacing’s well done.  There’s a palpable feeling of a gathering storm over the first four issues as Cobra Commander moves his pieces in to position and GI Joe does their best to neutralize the threats.  Cobra’s masterstroke comes down like a thunderbolt, overwhelming everything in its path, and it’s a welcome change to see them succeed after so many years of abject failure.  

GI Joe’s counterattack and eventual victory is the result of teamwork and effort, and Powers pulls it off as successfully as their earlier defeat.  I like how he shows snippets of the less prominent Joes doing their part around the world, reinforcing the scale and true team effort involved.

Mike Bear, Mike Shoyket, and Pat Quinn split pencilling duties, and they all do a fine job.  I particularly like Bear’s work. Combined with Jean-Francois Beaulieu’s colors, the art really packs a punch.

There's a Phil Noto quality to the work.

This was a welcome jolt of fun after the unremarkable Joe comics of the past three weeks.

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? Yes

Would read again? Yes

Rating: Pretty good

GI Joe, GI Joe: Order of Battle, GI Joe: Battle Files, Hawking

Hawking

I keep buying Jim Ottaviani’s science graphic novels whenever I see them on the store shelves.  But whenever I finish reading them, I wonder if it was worth it. Hawking is no exception.  I think that I appreciate what Ottaviani’s trying to do more than the result; These stories about famous scientists, the struggles they went through, and their huge contributions to society and knowledge need to be shared with as large of an audience as possible.  And I liked reading about the life of Stephen Hawking, even though there wasn’t anything particularly exciting in it. (Not that I expected fisticuffs or anything.)  

I think the fault lies with me, not the creators.  My impatience to finish the book meant that I glossed over most of the science portions of the story, thus robbing myself of the opportunity to truly understand the insights that Hawking and his colleagues brought to the world.  I think that my enjoyment of the work would have been enhanced if I had taken the time. Perhaps during the reread!

GI Joe: Order of Battle 1-4

GI Joe: Battle Files 1

The Marvel and Devil’s Due editions of a GI Joe encyclopedia.  I loved these as a kid, they gave me hours of entertainment and allowed me to deep dive into the backgrounds of everyone in this vast (toy-driven) empire.  Back when the internet wasn’t around to provide all the information in the world at a moment’s notice, these were gold. I didn’t read through these today, but I flipped through them and took a moment to remember how awesome they are.

A neat little story about Rocky Balboa’s appearance in the second Order of Battle issue.     

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? No

Rating: Fine

GI Joe 1-8

Devil’s Due, in collaboration with Image, brought back GI Joe seven years after the last Marvel issue, continuing the continuity from the previous run.  It’s about as interesting as the Marvel issues, which is to say not that much, plus it doesn’t hold the same nostalgia factor for me.  The plots are convoluted and bombastic in the style of bad 90s action movies, and Steve Kurth’s art is just a little bit off to be pleasing to the eye.  

Can’t tell if Kurth’s cover is meant to be a tribute to John Byrne’s, but I was reminded of it:

As long as writers need it for plot purposes...

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? No

Rating: Didn’t suck (Cutting)

GI Joe, Superman: Up in the Sky, Lois Lane, Space Bandits

Okay, another crazy long stretch of not writing.  Reason: I started a new job at the beginning of the week, and in an effort to not go to bed at 3 in the morning all the time, I’ve been calling it a night when my wife does, which is significantly earlier.  Also, it’s way healthier in all ways. So new rule: If I go to bed early, it’s okay to not write that day. Back to it.

New comics!

Space Bandits 1

The latest stab at a new Netflix IP from Mark Millar, this time with Matteo Scalera on art.  (I’m not familiar with Scalera’s work.) This one’s underwhelming. The first half shows us how a female criminal mastermind is betrayed by her four male crew members.  The second depicts the screwing over of a different female con artist at the hands of her male partner. Both women end up on a prison colony located inside a giant space lobster.  So it’s Bitch Planet with Millar’s voice.  

There’s no unique hook here to keep me interested.  I don’t have much sympathy for these protagonists, who are both criminals and stupid enough to trust their partners in crime.  No more for me.  

Lois Lane 1

A twelve-part series by Greg Rucka and Mike Perkins.  Lois Lane rouses rabbles as a reporter, investigating stories and giving a hard time to the Sarah Huckabee analog in the DC White House.  Lots of fun, and it’s made even better by what appears to be the Renee Montoya Question. (I really hope it’s her behind the mask.) 

Superman: Up in the Sky 1

DC finally starts collecting the new stories from their giant sized Walmart comics.  (I think the Bendis Batman follows next week.)  I’ve been looking forward to this one because of the Tom King writing.  (Andy Kubert on art doesn’t hurt.) Superman goes off into space in search of a little girl who’s been abducted by aliens.  So far so good, that’s the kind of thing Superman does.  

But then King puts him into some kind of dream sequence where his brain’s processing data so vast that it destroyed a Rannian supercomputer.  Makes no sense. I suppose Superman can have a Superbrain, but it’s a little too far removed from what I’m used to, and the execution’s too sloppy for me to buy it.  

This scene’s still terrifying, though.

GI Joe 71, 74-80, 84, 85, 87, 104, 109, 110, 112, 115, 120, 136, 137

The remaining issues of my Marvel GI Joe collection.  At the end of the day, any nostalgia I have for the IP isn’t enough to overcome the not-so-good writing.  Like the cartoon, the comic was far better in my childhood memory than in reality. I’d probably cut these if quality was the only factor.  But my future kids might like reading these as much as I did, so keeping them around. On to some comments.  

Issue 74 starts the invasion of Cobra Island.  Hama really enjoys his massive battles between GI Joe and Cobra, where he can create complex strategies and utilize all the characters on the roster.  I’m a fan of them too, they’re generally more fun than the other stories.

So many toys to play with!

Like with Cobra Commander, Larry Hama casually dispatches Serpentor, and devotes almost no time to any kind of emotional aftermath.  He dies and everything goes on without him.

Why is Cross Country wearing Sgt Slaughter’s shirt?

At least it’s being honest:

Zartan’s as good at pool as Cyclops.

Haggis.  Sometimes I really don’t get the tone Hama’s going for.

Issue 109 is the start of the storyline where Hama massacres seven Joes over three issues.  It’s odd that after all this time, with the amount of ammunition that’s been expended with these two sides trying to kill each other, that Cobra has such a problem killing Joes.  But here are Tomax, Xamot, Cobra Commander, and a bunch of Vipers all expressing qualms about shooting Doc, Quick Kick, and the others. Only the SAW Viper doesn’t have a problem with it.  The ethical struggle baffles me with everything that’s been established so far with these characters.

And then, after all that, the deaths are handled almost dismissively.  Maybe it’s the poor art, but there’s something very offputting about it.  

And then after three issues of Joes vowing revenge on the SAW Viper who killed everyone, their vengeance is handled off screen with no emotional release.

Literally the last time he's seen or mentioned.

I don’t know wtf Hama was thinking with Cool Breeze, the cocky, urban slang slinging recon Joe with..cybernetic arms and a sword?  And a backwards baseball cap? His death could not have come quickly enough.

John Statema did him no favors on the art, either.

It’s around this time that Snake Eyes went through a couple of horrible costume changes...  

...Ending with his membership on Ninja Force, wearing the most garish outfits imaginable.  These people are supposed to blend in?

The toymakers had totally jumped the shark by now, and Hama had to follow suit.  I mean, this is Cobra Commander:

I have no need to fill in any more of the gaps in this run.

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? No

Rating: Didn’t suck

GI Joe

GI Joe 53-59, 61-66, 68-70

I’m getting though about six issues a day.  

Cobra’s attack on the Pit in issue 53 is a lot more satisfying than GI Joe’s attack on Springfield three issues earlier.  The stakes feels bigger as the high ranking generals and admirals sacrifice themselves one by one so that the others can get away.  (In a usefully marked escape tunnel.)

Coupled with the actual destruction of their home base, it really feels like the Joes took a major hit here.  

Another cover that I like.  I think this is the last one for a while:

There’s a convention for everyone.  I like to think that this inspired Neil Gaiman three years later.

So so good.

Seriously, how could he tell?

This hasn’t aged well:

So many things on one page!  Cobra Commander somehow quits his ruthless ways because he feels guilty about being a deadbeat dad?  He’s unceremoniously killed?? That’s how Larry Hama dispatches the big bad for the last five years???  I’m simultaneously impressed and nonplussed.

No idea what Joe Rosen, the letterer, was thinking here.  Did he not even process the words he was putting down?

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? No

Rating: Fine

GI Joe

GI Joe 29-52

More thoughts as I plow through these issues.

Well, now we know where all of Cobra’s money is coming from:

More of Larry Hama’s sight gags:

Hama also has a disturbing tendency to kill animals in this title:

Hama completely devotes issue 34 to a dogfight between Ace and Wild Weasel.  It’s surprisingly engaging, and one of the standouts from this title. I especially like the show of respect between the duellists at the end of the engagement.  Old school class.    

This is around where Rod Whigham becomes the regular artist, and where the art starts hitting a consistent level of quality.  He’s the guy I think of when I remember the look and style of this comic. This is the GI Joe of my childhood.  

There’s a similarly exciting chase scene in issue 51:

There are a bunch of issues that have really nice covers.  Not sure if I like them at face value, or if it’s due to nostalgia.  Either way, here they are:

Visored Snake Eyes is the best looking Snake Eyes.

Ohhh, the covers are mostly done by Mike Zeck!  No wonder they look so nice.  

In issue 41, Cobra literally raises an island from the ocean floor to create a new sovereign nation.  Props for creativity there.

Can’t really fault Mindbender for not seeing this one coming…

No one expects scorpions.

Overdoing a little there with the lightning: 

Hama might as well have had him say, "Mwahaha!"

A rare funny from Cobra Commander:

The invasion of Springfield give Hama the opportunity to use every Joe at his disposal.  Pretty neat to see them all on two pages:

Regret buying? No

Would buy again? No

Would read again? No

Rating: Fine