IDW Publishing Forums

[shanecdavis]

In honor of 2012 being the 30th Anniversary of the Marvel G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero comic that we all know and love, we will be holding a reading marathon. Each week we will read 5 issues and then post our thoughts here. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to participate, even if you aren't able to actually read the issues. Please share any experiences you had when you first read these issues, whether it be as a kid, or picking these up later as a teen or adult. If you missed out on the previous weeks, you can find the URLs at the bottom of this post.

WEEK 17 - Marvel G.I. Joe: ARAH #81-85

Optional reading - Marvel Special Missions #16-20

COVERS

Marvel #81 - Plots and Tracts


Marvel #82 - Weeding Out


Marvel #83 - Road Pig


Marvel #84 - Converging Destinies


Marvel #85 - SFX



OPTIONAL COVERS

Marvel Special Missions #16 - Tight Circle


Marvel Special Missions #17 - All In a Night's Work!


Marvel Special Missions #18 - Extraction


Marvel Special Missions #19 - Getting There


Marvel Special Missions #20 - Snow Blind


HIGHLIGHTS:
* First appearance of Budo, Repeater, Billy's mother, Road Pig,
* Introduction of Broca Beach
* More details of Snake Eyes' time in Japan and the Hard Master's death is revealed, including the connection between Snake Eyes and COBRA Commander
* Issue #84 contains no dialogue, only sound effects


PREVIOUS WEEKS
WEEK 16 - Marvel #76-80, Marvel Special Missions #13-15
WEEK 15 - Marvel #71-75, Marvel Special Missions #11-12
WEEK 14 - Marvel #66-70, Marvel Special Missions #8-10, Marvel Yearbook #4
WEEK 13 - Marvel #61-65, Marvel Special Missions #6-7
WEEK 12 - Marvel #56-60, Marvel Special Missions #3-5, Marvel Yearbook #3
WEEK 11 - Marvel #51-55, Marvel Special Missions #1-2
WEEK 10 - Marvel #46-50
WEEK 9 - Marvel #41-45, Marvel Yearbook #2
WEEK 8 - Marvel #36-40, Hasbro #36 1/2
WEEK 7 - Marvel #31-35, Marvel Yearbook #1, Hasbro #32 1/2
WEEK 6 - Marvel #26-30, DDP Snake Eyes: Declassified 1-6
WEEK 5 - Marvel #21-25, DDP Snake Eyes: Declassified Trade, Hasbro #21B
WEEK 4 - Marvel #16-20
WEEK 3 - Marvel #11-15
WEEK 2 - Marvel #6-10
WEEK 1 - Marvel #1-5, DDP G.I. Joe: Declassified 1-3

Cover art courtesy of Antarctica's website - http://www.yojoe.com/comics/index.shtml#Marvel

[CrazyK]

Special Missions #16-20 was another great run in that series. All featured great story, great art, great characters and great covers (save for 16... kind of "meh" for such an awesome issue).

16 was classic "Dogfight Issue" Hama. But, since I LOVE those issues, I LOVED this one, too! Also features classic Hama misdirection and mystery as well! The COBRA heirachy actually WANTS the Joes to succeed as it will help hide their true motives. And, even on the first read, I was kinda disgusted at Cobra Commander's callous use of his pilots' lives to just let the Joes take some pics. But, of course, that's the point. Plus, the death of the Star Viper, who I hated!

(On a personal note, I once "built" a Joe HQ on my desk with some jury-rigged computer monitors... On the main screen was a detail of COBRA Island, which I traced from the bottom right panel of page two! I had that up forever, which is why this sticks in my head so vividly.)

17 featured a lot of the newer Joes I was really enjoying playing with: Muskrat, Shockwave, Hit & Run and Hardball. I was loving these figures at the time; they were on every "mission" running throughout my living room and the backyard! To see them all in action here was a real treat. (Part of the reason I loved GI Joe #80 in last week's reading "assignment.") Hardball lobbing frags into slit windows with perfect precision was a particular highlight. To end it all with Stalker blowing the lid off the shennagins going on in the story was sweetly satisfying, too. And, of course, he threatens an F.B.I agent, too!

18 continues the story of the Joes returning from the Himalayas (which, if this is all in continuity order, means Scarlett flew from the Himalayas to California to Southeast Asia... but somehow Snake Eyes, Iceberg and Chuckles could not make it out... Personally, I did not care... The CA adventure just happened sometime later.)... I think this issue has a lot of what made Special Missions so great. A more "realistic" situation featuring real world villains against our Joes. But then the classic bad guys show up; in this case, Destro's forces AND the Oktober Guard! I always enjoyed seeing the Joes come up against these "problems" and how they would react. An innocent villager is about to be killed, and Chuckles just wants to keep on truckin' to get home... Cue Snake Eyes being a bad ass... Aaaaand all hell is coming to town. A "message" of the true losses of war, as Dr. Krim gets caught in the middle of a war he has no part in and it destroys his hard work.

19 is one of my favorite issues of all time. I think I read this issue six or seven times in a row when it first came out. The Tomahawk was one of my favorite toys in the entire Joe line, so I was a sucker for any comic that featured it. Great Repeater action, too. "Special ammo..." with an awesome payoff! More dogfights... but with CHOPPERS!! Come on!! And the humor of this issue is really good, too:

"What high voltage wires?"
"If you wanna be a hero, you have to learn to keep your mouth shut..."

"Why are we running, Misha? Didn't he say 'Glasnost?'"
"There was something in his tone..."

20 has awesome arctic action, twists and turns aplenty... and the COBRA Snow Wolf... I loved that toy, for some reason. The only thing that bugged me about this issue? A single ski missile destroys an ENTIRE Terror Drome??!!?? Still bugs me...

What a great run of issues!!
_________________
"I... I don't believe it..."
"That. Is why you fail..."

[ER]

Marvel's Joe calendar for #81-85:

September 1988
#81
Special Missions #16
Tales of G.I. Joe #12
Digest #13 (reprinting #35-37) (Last Digest Issue)
European Missions #4

October 1988
#82
Special Missions #17
Tales of G.I. Joe #13
European Missions #5
"G.I. Joe Trade Paperback" (the Marvel checklist has this listed, but I don't know what this is. The Order of Battle trade came out in '87. I suppose this might be a reprint of that. Anybody know what Joe trade came out in Fall '88?)

November 1988
#83
Special Missions #18
Tales of G.I. Joe #14
European Missions #6

December 1988
#84
Special Missions #19
Tales of G.I. Joe #15 (Last Issue)
European Missions #7

January 1989
#85
Special Missions #20
European Missions #8

1988 had a ton of Joe issues released, more than any other previous year. But it also saw the cancellation of the two reprint series (Digest and Tales), indicating that sales for Joe took a dive towards the end of '88.

As 1989 opens Joe had three ongoings from two different continuities but by 1990 we would be back down to just one monthly title.
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[shanecdavis]

Marvel #81 - Plots and Tracks

Dreadnoks + Battleforce 200 = DON'T READ IT SHANE!!!!!

This issue really didn't have a chance. Two of the worst elements in the mythos (that aren't robots from space) battling each other. This issue won the IDGAS award. I did find the scenes of the ferry carrying the families at least midly interesting, and that will probably save this issue from being #1 on my Bottom 10 list. In another parallel with the IDW ARAH title, here we see coming to Broca Beach for the first while in #176 and 177 some are experiencing their last time in Broca Beach. Interesting to wonder if some of the citizens shown in #81 were among those that have been terminated so far by the Terminators. Crazy, eh?

Okay, one down. One more to go. Thankfully there is a pretty damn good issue in-between.

[ER]

Special Missions #16
I like it, not crazy about it, but I like it - a ton of fun to see all the different Joe and Cobra planes all going at it! I don't know how Larry got away with killing off the Star Viper so quickly - the toy was less than a year old at this point - but no arguements from me! I like the continuity from SM#5 of seeing how the Cobra pilots do't get along and aren't unified. I also like the set-up we get for the Springfield refugees to relocate to Broca Beach. What's up with Lady Jaye hanging all over Hawk in the beginning, though?

#81
Worst issue since #44. Even as a kid I was bored with the read. I enjoyed seeing Cobra's arrival at Broca Beach and the real estate scam moments but the BF2000/Dreadnok stuff is awful. And I'm a Dreadnok fan. But this one came too soon after other Dreadnok-heavy issues and was just a lame plot anyway. The scuffle with the police - ug - so lame.
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[shanecdavis]

Marvel #82 - Weeding Out

I don't know if Mr. Hama took a vacation this month or not, but it sure felt like it. This appeared to me that this was one of those standalone stories he had one hand for such an occasion. If that is case, I am VERY grateful he did, considering the slop before and after it.

I didn't relate to this issue when I first read it, but just over two years later I would almost live it as I went through Marine boot camp at MCRD in sunny San Diego, California. I always chuckle when I get to the point in the story where they have to sit through six hours of DMV training. I laugh because the Marines use a similar tactic. During the first phase of boot there is a lot of class instruction, which ALWAYS occurs right after we have eaten. We sit in a hot classroom that seats far more recruits than any sane fire marshal would allow. The drill instructors then watched their resspective platoons like a hawk for droopy-eyed recruits that they could thrash later.

The other funny part during the training is when Budo, Lightfoot, and Repeater made the cut and they were driven back to the barracks and fed like kings. Something very similar happens as you approach the end of boot camp. At the end of third phase there is a day called Liberty, which on that day recruits are able to roam the entire base, have visitors, do whatever they want, and then there is a big meal in the regular chow hall that is like 3x better than the recruit mess hall, where recruits are able to drink whatever they want (non-alcoholic of course). That is a big deal since throughout boot camp you are only allowed low fat milk, juice, or water. There was no curfew that night either. Just like in this story, we got jolted awake at about 2am (one of my lesser bright buddies didn't hit the rack until after 1am) to do a motivating run and pt. Their last ditch effort to mess with us before inspection and graduation.

I admit I was as skeptical as Repeater when Duke showed up with a mission. Seemed a bit too convenient. Couldn't help but cringe at the uniforms of Lightfoot and Budo though. The whole change from tactical uniforms to neon outfits never really sat very well with me. It's a damn military unit. In what environment would a soldier wearing yellow blend in???? The sun??? Anyways, it was cool that the mission didn't unfold the way you would expect and then just when you thought they had failed - BOOM! The IGs posing as COBRAs was interesting and in fact it's been so long since I've read these issues I genuinely don't remember why so I'll be interested to see how it plays out.

Rogers art was decent, but in this issue some of the action poses were just weird. Having Rogers take over Wagner was really the close of the best era of the Marvel run, in my opinion. Very much not looking forward to the next issue either. Just one issue. You can do this!

[ER]

Special Missions #17
Another great one! Like that we get to see more of Pit III in the beginning. Cool to see more of Musk Rat and Shock-Wave (liked both of those figures). Classic Stalker the way he sticks it to both the FBI and the bad-guys. I always laugh at Stalkers line about it being far fetched that one of them would have swallowed some unexposed film! And I believe this is the last appearance of Scrap-Iron - hopefully Larry will bring him back in the new issues.

#82
The boot-camp stuff is a very fun read! I've never been to boot-camp but I'm sure some of this was exaggerated, like when they were being told how to chew their food and when to swallow - lol

The mission they go on at the end of the issue never really did much for me though.
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[shanecdavis]

ER, I can tell you that during our first meal at MCRD we certainly did eat by the numbers. The second morning (we never slept the first night) we also got dressed by the numbers, and also brushed our teeth by the numbers. It's all about changing your mindset from being an individual to being part of a team. The more specialized the unit the more crazy stuff you have to do.

[ER]

[ER]

Special Missions #18
Outstanding issue! Love the plot with the LZ being in the middle of a battle between Iron Grenadiers and the Oktober Guard. Terrific action, drama, and this is another one of those stories that stays with me for a while after reading it, thanks to the terrible background we get on Dr. Krim. Pretty gripping when we see Dr. Krim walking off in the end with literally nothing left.

#83
This one falls way short of the Joe gold standard, but that said, reading it this time around I laughed quite a bit just about every time Road Pig opened his stupid mouth. The Donald split personality is very funny. It must have been a long time since I actually read this one instead of just looking thru it, because there were so many "Donald" lines I had forgotten about that caught me off guard and cracked me up! The good comedy, though, does little to make up for two lousy plots - Zarana's jail break and Cobra's failed Pit attack - zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[CrazyK]

[ER]

CrazyK, looks like you've got quite a bit of military history in your family line - very cool!

#84
First time I read #84, it totally knocked me on my backside! Love getting the Hard Master story from Zartan's point of view, making Zartan a more complex character than before - brilliant stuff!

Special Missions #19
I agree with CrazyK's SM#19 comments 100% This is G.I. Joe at its best. Fantastic action featuring the Tomahawk and plenty of suspense regarding the fuel situation, etc. And yes, the comedy is top notch as well.

1988 ended on a high note with these two "A+" issues.

Despite there being some issues I didn't enjoy as much (#71, #79, #81, #83, SM#12 ) over all I think 1988 was a very strong year for Joe comics with #70, #73-76, SM#13, 14, 15, 18 and 19 ranking among my all time favorites and many other issues being strong and very entertaining.
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[ER]

Special Missions #20
Great plot and awesome action sequences in a fun setting (during a blizzard on the Bering Strait) Excellent writing and pacing - Larry keeps you guessing one page to the next as the opponents attempt to outwith each other. Classic stuff!

But there are two things keeping me from putting this into the "Excellent" category:

1) a single missile blowing up an entire Terror Drome?!

2) Ice-Vipers taking orders from Techno-Vipers and Toxo-Vipers? What a bunch of CRAP. Ice-Vipers are the best of the best and need to be written with way more respect than this. According to the Ice-Viper filecard they have the qualifications of Snow Serpents, EELs, and Techno-Vipers. So why would they even need a lowly, common Techno-Viper along in the first place? But then seeing the Techno-Viper being written as if he was smarter and more qualified than an Ice-Viper? AARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!! Okay, I'm calm now.

#85
Love it! The third "silent" story and the first one that doesn't feature SE and Scarlett. Storm Shadow and the red ninjas, though, have been in all three. Anyway, Larry hits yet another home-run with the ninja action in this one, and that ending is a shocker with Zartan going off the Golden Gate Bridge!
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[ER]

Rankings:

Excellent
1) #84
2) Special Missions #19
3) Special Missions #18
4) Special Missions #17
5) #85

Good
6) Special Missions #20
7) #82
8 Special Missions #16

Take It Or Leave It
9) #83

Dislike
10) #81

Over all, another very enjoyable week in our marathon!
_________________
30 Years of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero! 1982 - 2012

[shanecdavis]

Marvel #83 - Roadpig

Another subpar story centered on the Dreads. I swear the creators at Hasbro were using some serious drugs around this time when they started coming out with some of this crap. I will admit that I did chuckle a few times at Donald's dialogue, but that wasn't nearly enough to be amazed that Hasbro would create a character more stupid than Zanzibar and Raptor. Was Mr. Hama even writing the filecards at this point?

Mr. Hama really missed the boat though on what could have been a great side story of COBRA attacking the PIT, as it seemed he went totally away from it and turned it in a complete joke as well. Mindbender was as worthless as he ever was by not confirming their coordinates before they began their attack, especially after realizing there was no underground base under the Quonset huts. Dumb, dumb, dumb.


Marvel #84 - Converging Destinies

Sadly, this would be the first time I missed picking up a Joe comic in years. I think the last one I missed was #27, but I'm not for certain. If that is correct, it is pretty ironic that this issue is full of the same backstory that #26-27 had. I don't know exactly why I missed out on these next few issues. I could have been fed up with the comic or it was the end of the year, with the NFL playoffs almost starting, and the Utah Jazz season in full swing. Thankfully, I was able to pick up this issue a few months later so it wasn't too long of a wait. Unfortunately I wasn't as lucky with #85.

Once again, shortly after writing a big fat stinker, Mr. Hama produces a masterpiece. This issue lacked a lot of action, but the story and characterization was incredible! The backstory from Zartan's perspective actually made me like him. No more was he the cheesy shape shifting biker. He became a conflicted character of sorts that you couldn't help but feel for. You could see he was someone who generally wasn't held accountable for his actions. He carried out his duty without any regard to how it would affect the professor and in turn himself. That's quite a burden of guilt to be carrying around and you can see how it would affect him in such a way.

There are a few continuity glitches that become apparent later, but I always chalked that up to personal interpretation of the narrator. Zartan embellished a bit during his narration, especially the snake with CC's head wrapping him up. I consider that a symbolic image rather than a literal one. Still, this was amazing to get some further information of probably the most interesting aspect of the mythos.

Rogers again did a good job with the art, but once again there were some action scenes of Tommy and Billy and his mom that were just weird. His style reminds me a lot of Vosburg. Some panels are good and some are not-so-good and some just aren't good. I was still holding out hope that Mr. Whigham or even Wagner would return to the title, but sadly it wouldn't be much longer before I would start holding out hope that Rogers would return.


Marvel #85 - SFX

Unlike #84, I wasn't able to find #85 until years later. With the Yearbooks no longer being done and the digest comics cancelled, I had to suffer with only the few references that were made in latter issues to piece this one together. I remember how happy I was to finally get it. I got it along with #94 and #96 off of eBay I think about 8 years or so ago.

The story didn't grab me like #21 did, but I thought it was done better than Yearbook #3. Jinx was at least utilized in a sensible manner. The action scenes were well-paced and Paul Ryan did a solid job at making it easy to follow. The only issue I had with his art was the at the museum the sword drawn was NOT a ninjato. A ninjato has a straight blade, not a curved one like a katana.