Creators: Joshua Williamson (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Jordie Bellaire (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer)
Story: Clutch is trying to gather his bearings in the Cobra base and contact the Joe team when he ends up in line and hearing the next part of Cobra Commander's plan - to kidnap Dr. Venom/Dr. Archibald Monev who is slated to testify before Congress on his Brainwave Scanner. Cobra Commander claims there is a mole and he is attacked but he fends off the assailant and drops him into a (literal) snake pit (and he knows it's an agent from Cobra-La, unknown to the rest) and Cobra Commander claims he already has allies picking up the doctor. At the Pit, Duke and Risk are still fighting till Stalker stops them and reminds them they are a team (and putting out the classic Stalker leadership). They receive a message from Clutch informing the Joes of what Cobra is doing. In D.C., it ends up the Doctor is already in the hands of Cobra but the Joes are able to stop them and realize they have encountered some Crimson Guard as they are attacked by Tomax and Xamot.
Writing: Williamson continues to keep the pace going while tossing in a few twists and turns, like the Cobra-La agent and the Crimson Guard. We have three out of four of the big Cobra players on the board as well now (Cobra, Destro/M.A.R.S., and the Crimson Guard/Tomax/Xamot). It still seems like the Joes are playing "catch-up" in terms of manpower but hopefully we'll get a few more added. Williamson does a good job with his history of the franchise by not only including the brainwave scanner but its creator "Doctor Venom" (as the papers call him).
Art: Still going strong. We also get the inclusions of RAM Rapid Fire Motorcycle (minus the gun) and the 4-WD Stinger so it's cool that they're including more of the classic vehicles now too (without being too overboard). And, in true Joe fashion, we do have someone riding on the back of the Stinger as well! Once, again, though, the theme tends to be blues and reds as background colors which I feel can take away from some of the art and regular coloring. It's found in small spurts but to have full pages like that is rough at times.
Overall: Our story continues, the plot moves forward at a good pace, and while a lot of familiar elements are here, Williamson is making it different enough. I'm hoping by the end of this arc we do get some more characters introduced. Williamson is also reminding us he hasn't forgotten about the foundation work he did with the Cobra-La infiltrator and that this is a smart Cobra Commander, willing to get his hands dirty.
