IDW Publishing Forums

[jackharkness]

[Leneer1]

[Torpedo]

[CrazyK]

GI Joe #5 was the first Joe comic I read, and the first comic I ever bought off the rack myself (I used to read some of my brother's Star Wars comics, but this was the first one I picked up, bought and read myself).

I read this issue at least ten times within the first few weeks I had it. I could not get enough. Even as a kid, I found it odd that I got this comic about a military action team... and they didn't fire a shot! But I still loved it! I was so proud of myself the first time I read it and picked up immediately that there was no muzzle flash when the MOBAT "fired" and I knew it had to be a ruse.

And, even then, I thought Flagg should have been able to pick off CC at that range with how CC positioned himself behind the little girl! That type of thing used to drive my father crazy when he would see it in movies or on tv (he and I used to shoot pistols all the time... he got to be a pretty wicked shot... let's just say the household "Duck Hunt" high score was never in contention!): "Oh, come on, he can totally make that shot!"
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"I... I don't believe it..."
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[Leneer1]

[Mamu_Nestor]

[ER]

[ER]

Read Declassified #1-3 yesterday and again loved them.

When these came out I had been done with DDP for a couple of years already, but I kept a watch out for any further contributions that LH might make. So I bought these up as they came out - love the 3-part connecting cover with our original 13

I had never even thought about the issues that Torpedo raised when I had read these in the past. But now that you point it out, I guess I do find the interaction between Sparks and General Flagg to be a little annoying because yeah, Sparks does seem to come off smarter than Flagg, the way he's explaining everything to him.

Shooter being kept secret from the other Joes? Though I can't think of a good reason why she would have to be unknown to the other Joes I still really like this angle. Shooter gave her life to save them and the Joes never even knew who she really was - I don't know - I just really like it - it hits home.

Flagg blackmailing the corrupt general to save Hawk? Yeah, I guess that does seem dirty to not expose this traitorous general at any cost - I had never thought about that before. I guess it would have been better if Flagg had found a way to both save Hawk and expose the general.

But still, this mini is a gem, coming out in a time when I had given up hope of ever getting another decent Joe tale again. The background stories for everyone are great fun to read!

We still don't have a background story for Scarlett, though. Perhaps we'll get one in the current issues sometime ???
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30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[Mamu_Nestor]

Scarletts background was done in Scarlett Declassified.
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Author: Karate is Self-Defense Available at Amazon.com. Kindle Version Coming Soon.

[shanecdavis]

While it is true Scarlett's origin was covered in Scarlett: Declassified, that was written by Mike O'Sullivan and wasn't very memorable. I can't remember if there is any conflict between IDW ARAH and DDP ARAH, but I would much rather Mr. Hama provide an origin for her, and for Snake Eyes too, if he so inclines.

I did get caught up with this week's reading, burning through 3-5 over the weekend. I put off reading #3 because it was the first time we got a silly sci-fi element from Mr. Hama and it bothered me since this was before Hasbro started mandating it. This was all his idea. I actually never read this issue until Marvel put out the small digest volumes, which made it an even harder pill to swallow. Reading it again though, it wasn't too bad. The robot being able to find the console to activate the blast doors was ridiculous to me, not to mention it re-assembling itself, but I have to say that the characterization and the action more than made up for it. Most of the good points have been covered so I won't go into it, but I couldn't get enough of how Mr. Hama brought out how the Joes work together. The tactics and their ingenuity made it an enjoyable read. Not quite on par as the previous 2 though.

Like #3, I first read #4 in digest form. As ER said, this was some pretty dark stuff for a "kid's" comic. Mr. Hama once again balances a solid story with superb characterization, many learning moments, and sprinkles of both good humor and humor that makes you roll your eyes. The high point for me were the entries of Snake Eyes, especially when he is observing Hawk and Grunt. Reading this again was interesting because there were two DDP spin-offs from this issue, one good and one not. Brandon Jerwa's Frontline #11-14 storyline centered around Wingfield's son Tyler, which I think is the best Frontline story DDP produced and really made Chuckle's a much more intriguing character. Joe Casey, on the other hand, started off America's Elite by bringing back Wingfield himself. It was plagued with bad characterization, flying IG robots, Storm Shadow jumping from an exploding Sky Hawk and landing to the ground without a scratch, among other things.

There were a couple things though that made me scratch my head. Throughout the issue Stalker is referred to by many Joes as Ranger. The second is Hawk jumping in the Sabre and piloting it. Maybe it's different in the Army, but in the Marine Corps there just isn't that type of cross training. Artillery officers and especially enlisted soldiers (Zap) don't have any possible way to attend MATSG-21 (Marine Aviation Training). I would have rather Hawk got a message back to Breaker to scramble a certain pilot, but, as with most of Mr. Hama's work, the rest of the story is so good that you can accept a few of those inconsistencies.

Then there was #5. It is interesting to note that to this point the Joes have only battled with COBRA once, in the first issue. That streak continues here as this issue further shows the Joe's ingenuity and their ability to adapt and overcome. If they were any better they would be Marines. Once again Mr. Hama teaches us, this time with detailed information on the inner workings of a tank. Gotta love those moments. Mr Hama did a fine job of balancing action and comedy. Joes always seem to ease the tension of a situation with levity, and this issue certainly was no exception. Like Torpedo, I too thought the using of Breaker's gum to simulate firing was brilliant. I also agree that I think it was the fault of the artist to properly depict the situation with CC using a girl scout as a human shield. Regardless, this is the second time in three issues the Joes have thwarted CC's plans without firing a single shot (squashing/stomping/shooting tiny COBRA robots notwithstanding).

So that makes 8 issues read in 5 days. Well, 11 if you consider Declassified were double issues. Not bad. Here is how I would rank the stories:

Declassified #1-3
Marvel #2
Marvel #1
Marvel #4
Marvel #5
Marvel #3

Thankfully Mr. Hama's plots would only get better and better over the next few years, until Hasbro started introducing some pretty suspect figures/vehicles into the toy line and then mandating their appearance into the comic.

[Torpedo]

I would rank these first five installments, plus Declassified thusly:

1. G.I. Joe #1
2. G.I. Joe #2
3. G.I. Joe: Declassified #1-3
4. G.I. Joe #5
5. G.I. Joe #4
6. G.I. Joe #3

Issues #1 and #2 are close, very close, but the debut takes it for utilizing the whole cast, balancing the exposition of introducing the core concept and sixteen significant characters with a great action adventure story.
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Author of Mr. Smartass, available for Amazon's Kindle, iPad/iPhone, and other e-reader devices and apps.

[ER]

I was aware that DDP had done a Scarlett: Declassified, though I've never read it. Sorry for not clarifying in my original post - I meant that I'd like to see a Scarlett background story written by Larry.

As for a Larry-written SE:Declassified, I'm good with what we were already given in #26 and #27, but hey, if Larry wants to add more details to his past in the future I'd be all for it.
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30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[ER]

Here's my rankings for the first week:

Excellent
1) #4
2) #2
3) #1
4) Declassified #1-3
5) #5

Good, but not amazing
6) #3
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30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[Mamu_Nestor]

IMO
1. #2
2. #4
3. #1
4. Declassified (1-3)
5. #5
6. #3
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Author: Karate is Self-Defense Available at Amazon.com. Kindle Version Coming Soon.

[ER]

Poor #3 - ranked last by all of us - the one thing our lists all had in common
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30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012