IDW Publishing 2010
Written by Larry Hama
Penciled by SL Gallant
Inked by Derek Fridolfs
Coloured by J. Brown
Lettered by Neil Use take
G.I. Joe prepares for the Cobra World Order, calling in the top Special Ops brass to the Pit to discuss options… until Wendy Ling-Torres—the junior senator in charge of G.I. Joe’s overwatch committee—shows up with information on Cobra’s plan! Not a moment too soon, as Cobra activates its Crimson Guard members all over the United States!
There is nothing quite like seeing the entire GI Joe team being given its orders and sending them out to save the world. With such a large cast of characters it's nice to see that everyone gets a chance to be spotlighted even if it's just for a moment. Two of my favorite shows are shipwreck and Lady Jaye so that lady Jay gets a huge role in this is fantastic that I really wish we'd see more shipwreck. Regardless seeing everybody and their cartoon outfits really does bring back than the stars of actor and make for a more pleasant reading experience.
I find it kind of amusing that hot and all of those people from the government are having a hard enough time working together while the Joes have really gone and made a seamless transition into sending their troops out. Larry does a really good job of showcasing how much ego goes into being a military man who thinks he's better than everybody else and it just makes sense and it has an edge of realism to it.
There is an awful lot happening in this issue that just kind of goes one thing after another and keep everything moving at such a breakneck pace but it never feels rushed or hurried. As we see the friends being mobilized or activated in each of these various scenarios is kind of fun.There really are a lot of places to Fred's have been placed and it's weird but nice and kind of scary that people can infiltrate so easily.That they've all had surgery to look alike and are part of the Crimson Guard elite force that are kind of like suicide bomber makes it even better. As far as homegrown terrorist plot goes this really does kind of mimic what we would think of as happening in real in the real world and that alone kind of makes this a terrifying prospect.
I've said it before I'll say it again SL Galland at has done a magnificent job on the interior here and every issue keep impressing me more and more. I also love the combination of the subtle humor here for instance at the nuclear power plant there is a couple of Easter eggs which make it funny and humorous while being serious at the same time. The artistic team here really has taken each location each character and even this Cobra Commander and made them look so freaking great that you just want to get lost in the entire story and go back and reread each issue and keep going until it's over.With a great page and panel usage layouts and attention to detail in the foreground backgrounds and characters themselves this is a real treat for any G.I. Joe fan.
As we see teams reach their targets and the friends and the Joes face off a lot of unexpected things happen and I love that Larry keep those guessing and isn't making the straightforward as a Joe win.This is the Cobra world order right so it makes sense that at some point Cobra Commander and his forces are going to do something unexpected amazing and huge that will shock and keep the Joes on the defensive. I look forward to that moment and in the meantime it's interesting to see how the pawns on the chessboard are being used.
There's nothing like a huge epic story arc and the fact that this team can keep this coming out every two weeks really showcases the amazing amount of talent ability and determination they have and I for one am incredibly thankful for it.