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R & R 's Comic Review # 5

 


THE GOOD:

ROGER: G.I. Joe number 5 wasn't too bad. The story and pace gave it a James Bond feel. A feel I'm sure Josh Blaylock was aiming for.  The art work had it's ups and downs, but overall, I thought it was fairly good.
      

RON:  Duke is the universal action hero of the Joe team.  It was nice to see DD pick someone that is well liked and the most logical choice to be on this type of "Special Mission".

 

    ROGER: The cover art, and the title are perfect. I have to wonder just how long Josh sat on the title before he finally got the chance to use it. I am a bit disappointed though that in just 5 short issues we've already had 2 covers that don't accurately portray events in the stories.

RON:  The cover depth is done tremendously well.  It brings me back to the vintage Marvel cover where "Clutch Goes Home...The Hard Way" in issue # 20.

 

RON: Probably one of my favorite set of action panels yet.  The "short computer cord" was a very logical thing that could have been overlooked.  l got the feel that the writer had the "atmosphere of the room" in mind when scripting this scene.   The fight tension was created without really using a bullet as the main source.

 


 ROGER: Though not technically part of the actual issue, the sneak peek at this years convention exclusive Crimson Strike Team was a nice little bonus.

RON: I was struck by the cool artwork.  I am glad I will be getting my two figure sets :-)

 


THE BAD:

ROGER:  Unfortunately for this review, this is where we really get the ball rolling. This story did not have to be told. The only real surprise in it was that it took Thomas Wheeler 5 whole issues to get a letter published.

RON: I have to agree with you, Roger.  This is the first review I had to stretch to keep it in a well balanced and positive format.  I know it was a "filler issue", so I can't hit it too hard.  Some Joe is better than no Joe at all.  I guess I was hoping for a larger character base, instead of a "Special Missions" type issue.  I almost felt cheated by only getting two characters profiled when most issues have dozens character cameos.  It was nice to see the comments from several well-known Joe fans.  Thomas, Ed, Darin, Justin, and Ryan (one of our contest winners)


  
ROGER:  As I've already said, it felt like a oo7 movie, but it only felt like the opening sequence. I don't mind the nod to G.I. Joe Special Missions as much as Ron did, but it didn't offer us to much story for the cover price.

 

      

ROGER: I have to wonder about that tuxedo? One, how did it so easily conceal all of that equipment, and two, how does Duke rip it off fast enough to get the drop on two guards? Just how slow were those guys?

RON: I must have been caught up in the action as I did not really notice it.  But you are right.  I guess in comic world anything can happen.  I will have to chalk your last question to hopes that the guards were a little drunk from the party.  

    

 

 

RON: Major Bludd was so bad, this comment almost landed in The Ugly category.  I knew Bludd was ruthless, but he went to a new low for me.   This is true character development when Bludd takes out his own boys.  I guess you don't need friends in the mercenary business.

 


THE UGLY:

    

ROGER: We already knew that G.I. Joe had been tipped off to Cobra's reorganization. Duke was the most likely character to have found the evidence, so this issue was kind of a waist.


RON:  It looks like one of those # 0 or # -1 issues that comics have been famous for doing over the past decade.   I actually would have felt a lot better if the issue was numbered as such. 

 

ROGER: The format made all of the secondary characters into nameless window dressing. Part of G.I. Joe's strength has always been its diversity of character, here that's completely lost.
 


OVERALL:

    ROGER: This issue was a rush job meant to bridge the gap between a bi-monthly mini-series, and a monthly regular series. Unfortunately, it's obvious, and the story does suffer for it. It really didn't progress the plot anywhere, and didn't tell us anything we couldn't figure out for ourselves. If it had to be told it should have been told as a backup story to a larger issue. So far this issue is really the only one that feels like it was published by Image.

  RON: There is not much more that can be said about this one.  If anything, I have learned to appreciate the twisted web of story arcs a lot more.  I look forward to next months new arc involving Cobra Commander and Storm Shadow!

 

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