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G.I. Joe #17 (2024) review



Creators: Joshua Williamson (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Jordie Bellaire (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer)

Story: As the Dreadnoks corner Cobra Commander, he instead offers a proposal to them to be hired henchmen, which they accept.  As the Joe team enters the area, they now have to fight off Cobra Commander leading the Dreadnoks.  Autobot Hound joins in the fight, much to the shock of everyone.  Destro finally arrives and Cobra Commander and the Dreadnoks escape with him while Duke wants answers.  Hawk, meanwhile, recovers from his injuries while taking a call.

Writing: Williamson throws a lot of action into this issue and helps set up our "standard" status quo going forward - with the Dreadnoks working with Cobra.  He continues to show us how much of a professional soldier Duke can be.  Even with changing battlefield situations, Duke is able to quickly adjust his strategies.  We also get some classic Cobra Commander as well - he's always thinking, always scheming and recognizing what he has that he can offer others.  At the same time, both Duke and Cobra Commander still don't fully understand The Transformers. And the cliffhanger at the end was great!

Art: Reilly can keep up with what's going on.  Cobra Commander looks like he's been through a lot because he has.  Duke is beat up.  Fighting is messy.  And Reilly can show that.  At the same time, we also get a lot of peaks of what Cobra Commander might really look like.  Like in a lot of issues, we do get a lot of reds and oranges in the backgrounds which gets a bit old after a bit.  When it is used sparingly, it works well (like the first couple of pages when Cobra Commander is fighting Buzzer).  

Overall:  A strong finish to the Dreadnok War with players in their places and dropping quite the bombshell at the end.  Duke is upset with Clutch and wants answers, Cobra Commander has increased his forces and who knows what is next for the team. 

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