G.I. Joe A Real American Hero volume 2 #1: "Reinstated! 1 of 4"

Story (and Layouts): Josh Blaylock

Pencils: Steve Kurth

Inks: John Larter

Colors: Hi-Fi Colour Design

PLOT SYNOPSIS:

Eager to secure the favor of skeptical, defensive longtime G.I. Joe readers, Blaylock wisely opts to start us off with a six-panel love letter of an opening page, which manages to maintain an aura of mystery even while giving us everything from an Arashikage tattoo to the endearing accents of that scummy thug tribe, the Dreadnoks.

Blaylock's pacing is inviting yet efficient, establishing in a mere half-dozen panels that the COBRA terrorist organization is attempting to return to power, that it has begun tentative negotiations with the Dreadnok syndicate, and that G.I. Joe is spying on both teams (while we read the Dreadnoks' heated, nervous debate in a series of captions, we watch as an unfamiliar ninja lurks in the surrounding swamp; he soon reports to a shadowy monk figure who proves to be Snake Eyes.)

In the pages that follow, we learn that Zartan's daughter Zanya is the acting leader of the Dreadnoks owing to an ill-defined "skin condition" of Zartan's; that the Dreadnok ranks have increased considerably throughout the United States, and that Snake Eyes, having abandoned Scarlett mere weeks before their planned wedding, has been leading a quiet, isolated existence in the High Sierras. Also, Shipwreck once threw up on Flint's Aunt Betty. Sorry, I felt that that warranted mentioning.

Soon, Duke is showing an off-panel group of retired Joes the grainy satellite photographs the mystery ninja procured, photos of black tanks bearing that most distinctive of logos, the COBRA symbol. He then prepares the still-unseen Joe veterans for an even more unsettling image, "taken on domestic soil," and the turn of a page provides us with one of the great "entrances" in recent commercial comics history, as Cobra Commander saunters towards the reader with menacing white eyes, an enraged scowl, and his trademark hood and cloak billowing with all the exaggerated but charismatic force and reach of an agitated cape in an early-90s Spawn comic. It's no great secret that, like Freddy Krueger and too many other villains to name, Cobra Commander was quickly neutered, if not by Larry Hama's comics than certainly by the undeniably more toothless G.I. Joe cartoon. Robbed of all his creepy, vicious potential, he became a stumbling buffoon. Here, Steve Kurth and John Larter return him to all his regal, sadistic glory; where the cartoon led us to laugh at Cobra Commander, Kurth and Larter present an image of a man from whom I would run screaming. The effect is further aided by Blaylock's capable writing, as superimposed over this startlingly cool image of Cobra Commander is Duke's continuing narration to a group of Joes we have still yet to even see:

"Our fears have come back to haunt us, troops. The Cobra Commander is coming home, and won't be leaving without a fight… the decision has been made… G.I. Joe is back in action!"

It's one of those cliché action lines that shouldn't work, but in this case, it does, and of course the Joes listening to Duke's speech along with us are no less stirred, and they each agree to return to active duty (and I assume it would not surprise you at this point to discover that they turn out to be the same characters who appear on the cover.) There are a few nice continuity nods and character development bits to close this scene, as the tentative recruits note that it's been nearly a decade since last they were together, and Shipwreck marvels at the change in Duke ("He shows up looking like a CIA spook?"), and Scarlett regards Snake Eyes silently for no fewer than six panels before rearing back and slapping him across his facemask.

Even more fun is our first proper COBRA scene, wherein Cobra Commander gathers about him the Crimson Twins, Major Bludd, Zartan and his Dreadnoks, the Baroness, Dr. Mindbender and Destro, and explains that he now has nano-tech at his disposal. The dialogue in this scene is riveting, and I was particularly impressed that Blaylock was able to include clever, knowing political commentary that, while delightfully subversive, is in no way intrusive.

That ninja who snuck around the Dreadnok compound to provide Duke with photos turns out to be Kamakura (comically dismissed by General Hawk as a "Green Power Ranger" before Duke gently points out that it was Kamakura who provided the Joe team with all their intel), and to close this opening issue, Duke and Hawk engage in a brief debate concerning a mysterious group of powerful men known as "The Jugglers."

And oh yeah, I nearly forgot: Destro leads a revolt, as he and the Crimson Guards turn on Cobra Commander at issue's end.

Whoa.

REVIEWER'S VERDICT:

Whether the Devil's Due G.I. Joe relaunch serves as your introduction to the comic book Joeverse or as a long-awaited return to a familiar and beloved fantasy from well over twenty years ago, your first impression will be based on the wildly stylized cover illustration by J. Scott Campbell, featuring stalwart G.I. Joe legends Duke, Scarlett, Snake Eyes, Roadblock, Flint and Shipwreck in battle-ready poses which, while perfectly plausible, nonetheless feel almost like caricatures. For good or ill, this is clearly not the Marvel Comics series you may have followed in the 80s. Indeed, for all their histrionic drama and hyperbolic promotional slogans, the covers from the 80s heyday of G.I. Joe comics seem downright subdued in contrast with our first RELOADED cover; there is a nearly fetishistic quality to J. Scott Campbell's artwork, particularly in the case of each character's facial contortions, and in all the straps, sheaths and other assorted details of each character's costume. You will ultimately see Campbell's illustration as either a crass, perhaps even blasphemous attempt to reduce one of the most resonant myths of your childhood to little more than an absurd pinup, else you'll embrace it as a delightfully dynamic yet fiercely loyal reinterpretation that infuses characters of decades past with an intriguing new vitality.

Either way, that's just the cover!

For my part, while J. Scott Campbell has never been one of my favorite illustrators, I find that his approach lends itself well to this property, and I'd have preferred for Campbell to have tackled the interior artwork as well, for while Steve Kurth is clearly a capable illustrator in his own right (and no doubt some readers prefer his artwork to Campbell's), I find his illustrations perhaps too stylized; the first image we see when we open the comic is of a fittingly stern Duke busting a classic Uncle Sam "I Want You!" pose, his finger pointing right at the reader beneath that iconic "A Real American Hero" banner, and while the overall effect succeeds at its goal (inviting the reader to join the adventure, and rather overtly), Duke's scowl is made up of so many harsh creases and furrowed nooks and crannies that he appears in a sense to be… well… melting.

Curiously, while Kurth's faces continue in this subtly deformed and distracting vein throughout the issue (and, presumably, the entire series), his backgrounds, buildings, wildlife and weaponry and the like are all quite convincing. Perhaps Kurth's approach was influenced by the now-ubiquitous Anime aesthetic, wherein photorealistic and impossibly labyrinthine spaceships and such are typically piloted by decidedly cartoony-looking humans. It's a combination I have never developed much affection for, but I am willing to concede that this might have more to do with my age than anything, for I am a bitter old man and am quite stubbornly stuck in my ways.

Happily, Blaylock accounts for some of the inherent silliness of the G.I. Joe mythos without losing respect for it, most admirably in this exchange between Cobra Commander and Destro:

DESTRO: You intend to take your ragtag militia of an army, merge with a glorified bike gang… and give them control over the most powerful weapon since the atom bomb? You buffoon!

CC: This is the way COBRA was always run!

DESTRO: Which would explain your 'spectacular' success record.

Blaylock finds a perfect balance, gently critiquing the more absurd elements without being condescending. If anything, by acknowledging the eccentric trappings of the Joeverse, Blaylock helps the reader to suspend disbelief, which makes it easier to be swept up in the fun.

While Kurth's disproportionate and impossibly angular chins and cheekbones can be maddeningly distracting, and while these characters often appear more constipated than furious, more deformed than determined, I still find myself inexplicably excited by the overall atmosphere the work conveys. Whether it's the amazing progress in coloring technology since the 80s and the fact that these modern adventures are printed on slick paper that makes the old comics look every bit like the frail, unattractive newsprint they always were, or rather because Blaylock knows how to tease the big reveals and cameos so that they pack the requisite punch, I got a genuine kick out of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, vol 2 #1. From the proud "Appearing in Comics for the First Time Since 1994!" bubble that adorns the title page to Duke's reserved yet stirring recruitment speech to Cobra Commander's unforgettable first appearance, this comic is bursting with giddy geek goodness.

Of course, this is still, at its core, a comic book based on a children's action figure series, and as such, it is not high art by any means. But I will assume from this point forward that you, as someone passionate enough about G.I. Joe to seek out a review on an all-Joe website, already know this. I will further assume that I have adequately prepared you for what will no doubt be a very divisive art style. Having established these two important facts in this, our introductory RELOADED review, I feel no obligation to acknowledge them in future reviews. In other words, we all know now where we stand, so starting with our next review, let the fun begin!