The Dreadnok War comes to an end in GI Joe #17. Everything wrapped up basically as expected, no real surprises, until that ending. The implications of that reveal are huge for not just this book, but Transformers as well.
Alliances, Both Old and New
And that is a wrap on the biggest story arc that this title has had to date. Pieces have been moved around on the board, and more of the "classic" feel is creeping into the book.
This version of Cobra Commander is so much more calculating and so much more dangerous than older incarnations. He and Duke have been through the ringer these last five issues, and he still manages to keep the "name" Dreadnoks at a standstill until he offers them a job. So that is another piece of the old-school G.I. Joe puzzle that is now in place — the Dreadnoks are independent contractors of Cobra. Destro has betrayed Cobra Commander and gotten away with it, then come to his rescue so that their relationship is maintained.
As for the Joes, things are decidedly not hunky-dory on their side. The transforming cat is now out of the bag; the secret identity of the ride of Clutch as the Autobot Hound has now been made known to all. And Duke is not happy. It looks like there is going to be a conversation at gunpoint coming up in a couple of issues — after our next Night Force interlude — but at least we have Roadblock!
With Friends Like These
The "Dreadnok War" has been the shot in the arm that this book needed. The stakes have been raised, characters have been given more depth, and a final twist turns the whole thing on its side going forward. I am not saying that every issue needs to have a breakneck pace, but more of this type of storytelling would be just fine going forward. Cobra Commander has been given so much depth; he is easily the most interesting character in the book. Duke, on the other hand, is really quite one-note when you get down to it. He hates the robots, wants revenge for his friend, and wants to take down Cobra at any cost — that is about all he has to him.
It is disappointing that this arc did not put more meat on the bone when it came to his character, as it did for the Commander. But, perhaps at the end of the day, that is all Duke is — Captain Whitebread. The rest of the cast took a backseat throughout this arc, with the focus being on the unlikely duo of Duke and Cobra Commander. Hopefully, the rest of the Joes will start getting their turn at being fleshed out some more. There may also be an expansion of the team, given the abundance of new members that Cobra just picked up. Although now, any and all recruits will be somewhat called into question right from the jump.
Team Building
Joshua Williamson, Tom Reilly, and Jordie Bellaire are once again the creative team on this issue. In what is an increasingly rare feat in comics these days, the entire five-issue arc featured the same creative team and every issue was released on time — even while double-shipping. That is seriously impressive. The whole team is quite set in their roles and their relationship at this point, so there are no surprises as far as the creative direction.
The writing remains solid, the art is still expressive but almost cartoony, and the coloring remains an interesting experiment; whether it works or not is up to you. The combination of the art and the colors in some spots — such as the image above — almost reminds me of the style of Tom Scioli, which is almost Kirby-esque in a way. It is clear that the style of the book is quite set in stone, so you either dig it or you do not.
Spoiler Alert
We can’t talk about the big end-of-book reveal without spoilers, so here is a giant (and very cool) image to break some space, then we’ll get into the spoilery stuff:
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Spoilers Start Here
It appears that one of the men of Destro must have clipped General Hawk in the side when he made a break for it last issue. He is in his office working to patch himself up when he receives a call. It is his sister? Does Hawk have a sister? Wait, she is saying she is on a Cobra transport? It is Zarana?
General Hawk is Zartan!
It had been noticeable that, all throughout this story arc featuring basically every Dreadnok ever, one was missing. The big one, Zartan himself. Personally, I half expected them to save him until we get back to the Arashikage story, where he was going to be involved. But instead, he is the head of G.I. Joe itself — and based on his dialogue in this scene, he has been from the start. Which means that the General Hawk running around in Transformers, helping out the Autobots and possibly about to form M.A.S.K., is also Zartan. Things in the Energon Universe just got a lot more interesting.
End Spoilers
The stage has been set for all sorts of interesting things to come in not only this book, but the rest of the Energon Universe as well. The future of G.I. Joe looks very bright, indeed.
Well, the book, at least. The team, I think they’re about to experience a rough patch…