G.I. Joe #27
“Night Force” Part 3
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Tom Reilly
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Publisher: Image Comics
The battle between G.I. Joe and Night Force continues, while Zartan manipulates all…
The Puppetmaster
Night Force’s G.I. B.A.T. has gone rogue, attempting to kill Duke. Flint is able to shut it down, but the Joes have to surrender in order to get their leader the medical attention he needs.
Meanwhile, Baroness is on the run and trying to get help from old contacts—but no one on either side of the law trusts her now. She’s at least able to call in a marker for information on Colonel Hawk.
Speaking of “Hawk,” Zartan manipulates General Flagg into revealing the location of a secret Energon stockpile—then tasks the Dreadnoks with keeping the Joes busy while he steals it for himself…
Scrambled Circuits
This issue is a bit of a breather after all the action so far in this arc. It’s definitely not uneventful, though.
I have to start out by saying I’m really disappointed by the New York Comic Con reveal that Baroness is going to join Cobra after this arc. It takes so much of the suspense out of these new few issues knowing that is coming afterwards. I do have a theory that she’ll be doing so under the orders of the real Hawk, now that she’s found him, but we’ll have to see on that.
Speaking of Hawk, it’s obvious Zartan’s game is coming to an end. Baroness knows his real name now, and he’s getting desperate so he’s making more obviously questionable moves. Even Flint is starting to wonder if there’s something going on with him now. I think adding Scarlett to Night Force is going to be his ultimate misstep—she’s got some serious trust issues already, so she’ll be hard to keep fooled. When Zartan finally goes down, where will he go? I have a hard time seeing this version going to Cobra—he’s too much of a spymaster himself to start being subservient to Cobra Commander.
The Joes themselves don’t get to do much this issue. Stalker keeps trying to get through to Beach Head, since the two have history. But Beach isn’t the type to question orders, which is why he’s on Night Force and not the Joe team. I like that these characters all have history with each other that predates their time with the organization overall. It gives the world a history outside of just the Energon and Cobra threats.
It’s funny to me that Duke is considered a weak leader because he leads with his heart, but his team is the one that is both more willing to question orders and more loyal. When Night Force’s B.A.T. tries to kill him, the rest of the team wastes no time surrendering so that he can get medical care. Speaking of the B.A.T., I wonder—did the reprogramming not take overall, or does it remember Duke is the one who took it down in the first place and targeted him specifically? I guess we’ll find out, since Zartan made Flint take it back in the field. Nothing like a possibly homicidal robot in your covert unit to keep things interesting, right?
Brothers in Arms
Joshua Williamson dials back the action this month, but keeps the pace fairly breakneck. The Night Force team are starting to get some more character moments, particularly Flint and Beach Head, which was definitely needed. Scarlett and Snow Job being added to the team was pretty random, but I guess it’s supposed to be since Zartan is scrambling. This issue easily has the most Joe characters at once so far in the series, and Williamson handles it pretty well.
Tom Reilly turns in another strong issue. His art style is the base “look” for this title, with his mix of cartoon and realism, and it continues to work perfectly for the stories being told. This title bounces back and forth between the harshness of war and the fantastic nature of the Energon Universe, so his mixed style is the perfect blend. The B.A.T.’s attack on Duke is brutal, and the medical bay scenes later in the issue really sell the extent of the damage he’s taken.
I’m a big fan of Lee Loughridge’s colors on this title. I wasn’t as big on Jordie Bellaire’s colors in the early issues of the series—she’s a great colorist, but she was being too “experimental” with a retro style and Ben-Day dots, and it just didn’t work for me—so Loughridge’s more traditional style fits better in my eyes. He keeps things from getting too bright, always using darker tones and shadows to remind you that this is serious business. That doesn’t mean you don’t get cool uses of color like the neon undertones to the arcade Baroness finds herself ducking into, but such things are used sparingly.
Desperate Times
G.I. Joe #27 is another strong issue in the “Night Force” storyline, as the Joes get captured, Zartan gets more desperate, and Night Force starts to ask more questions. Meanwhile, Baroness makes steps toward proving her innocence. Even though it’s a slower issue, it’s not by any means slow, and all of our players are moving towards an explosive collision in the final issues of this story arc.