That sound you hear?
That's the sound of the you-know-what hitting the fan.
G.I. Joe #24 took what had been a horror-tinged side story focused primarily on Risk and Mercer, and turned it into the catalyst for some big things to come.
Fear is a Liar
The uneasy alliance between the G.I. Joe squad led by Stalker and the Cobra squad led by Destro continues. While Destro and the Baroness work together to rescue their captured comrades, Risk finds himself in a one-on-one showdown with Crystal Ball.
Using his D.I.R.E. tech, which forces a person to literally face their fears, Crystal Ball tries to break Risk. However, he underestimates Joe's resolve and desire to make sure that no one else gets hurt because of him ever again. Soon, the fight looks to be a stalemate.
In the meantime, Destro and the Baroness work together to destroy the Energon reserves that are powering the D.I.R.E. tech. With its power source removed, the tech shuts down, which allows Risk to defeat its creator.
Both teams agree to a ceasefire until everyone has left the area. Each team doesn't leave empty-handed, either. Cobra manages to make off with some Energon and D.I.R.E. tech, while the Joes get to return home with Mercer and Crystal Ball himself in tow.
Once the Joes are back at base, that's when things get a little out of hand, and someone finds out General Hawk's secret...
Pyrrhic Victories
One of the things that G.I. Joe has done very well throughout its run is a version of something called "rubber band A.I." This is a concept seen in video games, primarily sports and racing games. The way it works is that if you get too far ahead of the computer opponent, it speeds up to catch up to you. If you fall behind, it slows down to let you catch up. In essence, it pulls back and forth like a rubber band. G.I. Joe does something similar with its storytelling—every time the pace slows down, and it feels like the series is hitting a lull, Joshua Williamson and company pull off some crazy moment or shocking twist and pull you right back in.
The ending of this issue definitely counts as one of those moments.
We’ve known for a few months that issue #25 is going to be the main Joe team versus the Night Force black ops squad. Now we know why. Zartan’s secret has been exposed to the Baroness, but I’m guessing he’ll be pinning his actions this issue on her so that no one believes her. It’s going to be bad for the team, but fun to watch.
But that’s for later. This issue gave us insight into Risk, and at the end of it all, he’s… kind of likable? That’s impressive work in three issues, given what an utter one-note jerk he seemed to be early on. Through his arc, we get some more insight into Mercer, too. This was welcome, as he’s one of the less-developed members of Cobra so far, mostly being shown as Destro’s go-to guy.
Speaking of Destro, I loved seeing him and Baroness working together. It was a nice nod to their relationship in most other versions of G.I. Joe, without losing the character development she’s had here. I’m a little unclear on how Destro’s team was able to recover both Energon and D.I.R.E. tech between blowing up the Energon supply and running like hell. It just doesn’t make sense with what we were shown on the page. So that came across as lazy “lol Cobra wins again” storytelling that definitely bugged me.
The Joes need a big win. Everything always seems like “we stopped the bad guys, but…” and it gets old after a while. I get this version of Cobra Commander is cunning and scary, not like the old cartoon version at all, but does literally every plan have to be a variation of the Xanatos Gambit? (For those unfamiliar, that’s a concept associated with the amazing Disney cartoon Gargoyles, where the main baddie, David Xanatos, was such a brilliant planner that even when he lost, he won. Every. Single. Time.) I get keeping the stakes high, but good grief. Let Cobra just plain lose for once.
But hey, on the plus side, if the next story arc is essentially G.I. Joe versus itself, then they have to win no matter what, right?
Right?
Red Right Hand
Every time the series seems to slow down or drag, I get worried that Joshua Williamson is writing too many books at once. Then he pulls out something like the end of this issue, and I realize he was just toying with us. No wonder Cobra wins so much—the dude’s a legit evil genius in his own right. He's getting better at juggling the large cast of characters, giving the spotlight to someone like Risk but not ignoring everyone else. I was a little disappointed that he dropped the more horror atmosphere of the last two issues in favor of a big fight and a villain monologue, but that ultimately fits the property.
The art by Andrea Milana, combined with Lee Loughridge's colors, remains a high point for me. Not that I dislike the regular team of Tom Reilly and Jordie Bellaire, but the colors in particular here are a little bit more "traditional" than the series norm. Milana maintains the cartoonish style that is the series's trademark, while mixing in some great horror elements (I love Crystal Ball's Cthulhu-esque helmet). The action is well-staged and easy to follow, which is strangely more of a lost art than you'd expect. And there's a shockingly bloody moment at the end that hits just perfectly.
The colors by Loughridge work well with the story being told here. The pink glow of the Energon and the ghostly green effects of the D.I.R.E. tech stand out as eerie and wrong. There's plenty of shadows throughout, but they never make it so you can't see what's going on. And the aforementioned bloody moment at the end actually hits harder because of how the colors silhouette and shade the moment, instead of just splattering red everywhere. The work here may not be as experimental as the regular colorist's, but that doesn't mean it isn't effective.
A Quarter-Mile at a Time
G.I. Joe #24 wraps up our Risk-focused horror arc with more action and fewer scares, and there's a late-issue moment that doesn't make sense, but it gives some important background to a couple of underdeveloped characters. And that ending... we're going back into high gear now, and I don't see how Williamson and company can ease off the gas pedal anytime soon.