BotTalk Reviews

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Lee Loughridge (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer) Story : Cover Girl, Snow Job and Frostbite are set to retrieve Scarlett from her undercover mission at the Arashikage (from her own limited series).  While there, Cobra attacks and Scarlett, Jinx, and Storm Shadow do their best to fight off the Cobra troops but heavy causalities are taken and Cobra leaves the place destroyed.  Scarlett gets extracted.   Writing :  In homage to the original issue #21 of G.I. Joe, this is mostly a silent issue.  There is just a bit of mission journal at the beginning and end of it, but the rest is free of words.  This is a good follow-up from the Scarlett miniseries though it does give enough background so those who missed it won't be too lost.  We get to see just how ruthless Cobra can be as well.   Art : This issue, being a silent issue, hinges a lot on its art.  The art is really good.  We get a ...

Creators : Patrick Olliffe, Tom DeFalco, John Kalisz Story :  Zartan is spying on the Joes,  who are watching a new weapon, while he is being spied upon by Major Bludd.  Zartan infiltrates the Joes and is able to steal the weapon. However, he is then captured by Bludd and some Cobra forces.  Heading to ship, Zartan uses his guile and skills to escape before Cobra Commander shows up, followed by a contingent of Joes. Writing :  The third Cobra "Sssilent" issue this month, this one follows fan-favorite Zartan.  This story can easily fit into most Joe continuities.  We get to see a lot of Zartan's skills - his disguises, his fighting skills and, most importantly, his intelligence as he outmaneuvers everyone.   Art :  The art is pretty good in this one.  There are focuses on things you might not think are important but they come back to later.  And I enjoyed seeing a few late-series toys pop up - like the Shark 9000 (which the Joe team ...

Creators : Larry Hama (writer), Andrew Krahnke (artist), Francesco Segala (colorist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatterer), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story :  A Joe team comprised of Snake Eyes (Dawn Moreno), Cover Girl, Jinx, Down Range and Sherlock is on a mission in Sierra Gordo to check out a joint Cobra/Revanche operation.  While almost captured, they escape and infiltrate the pyramid, where control (Duke, Mainframe and Stalker are monitoring them) lose them due to inference.  They discover a Terror Drome built into an ancient pyramid and debate blowing it up as troops close in around them.  Writing :  We've circled back to teams of Joe's tracking down Terror Dromes in various environments.  This one is more of an infiltration issue.  The past couple of issues took a little break from this overarching story.  One thing that was done here was include an all-female cast for the main story.  Art :  Art is pretty good here though not quite up t...

Creators : Gabriel Hardman, Matt Hollingsworth Story : Cobra Commander is inducting two new troops into the Crimson Guard when the Joes attack with a massive force.  The Crimson Guardsmen fight through the Joes and out of the base into the swamp, continuously being chased by the Joes and the hazards of the swamp.  They finally are able to make it another base and attempt to escape.   Writing : Another issue in the Cobra "Sssilent Missions" series this month, paying homage to Larry Hama's famous "Silent Issue" way back in Marvel's original run.  Though without dialog, there is a lot going on in this issue, with the troopers trying to get away and them being relentlessly pursued by the Joe team.  It's also hard to tell if this is supposed to set in the standard Joe-verse or its own thing; some individuals are hinted at either being seriously injured or possibly killed. But the story is fun and it's just non-stop action, along with a few "oh yeah, ...

Creators : Joëlle Jones, Declan Shalvey, Mike Spicer Story : As Cobra Commander watches, the Baroness infiltrates an opera house and heads to the catwalk with a rifle.  She spots her target and Destro in the audience.  She fires a shot that bounces off Destro's armored head and races to a box to find her target gone.  She looks down and sees him running away but her target encounters Destro.  The Baroness catches up and she fights Destro.  The Baroness is able to get away and intercepts her target's date who is hiding a G.I. Joe document on her person.  Destro receives a picture of the target dead and a note with coordinates.  He meets back up with the Baroness in Paris at the Hôtel Plaza Athénée and they share a kiss.   Writing : A new series of "sssilent" issues, this time focusing on Cobra operatives.  Like all other silent issues, this one has no dialogue.  That makes it a bit tricky to place when/where this takes place.  Is it ...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Andrea Milana (artist), Lee Loughridge (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer) Story :  Picking up from last issue, Trakker and Scrap-Iron go at it, with Trakker driving away.  He is soon rescued by the Joes and Autobot Hound and Clutch has him fix Hound's transponder so he can contact the Autobots.  Duke, Clutch and Hound meet Optimus Prime (from Transformers (2023) #30) and he and Duke have a good talk and come to an understanding.  Meanwhile, Snow Job and Cover Girl meet up to talk about Scarlett.   Writing :  While this issue starts with some good action, that's where most of it is.  The rest is a good set up issue with getting more of Duke's motivation and more insight into Cobra.  After 2 years' worth of stories, Duke is starting to see a bigger picture and realizes what his goals are now. The end of the issue also starts to bring in more elements from the various miniseries and sets up some more stories. ...

Creators :  Larry Hama (writer), Andrew Krahnke (artist), Francesco Segala (colorlist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatter), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story :  A Joe team - Snake Eyes, Scarlett, Duke, Roadblock and Mongoose - are extracting a terrorist from Benzheen, near Trucial Abysmia.  They are ambushed by his terrorist cell and must fight them off while awaiting their evac.   Writing :  This story seems really basic and has some cliches.  In the beginning they talk about how easy it was before getting attacked.  Grenades are easily kicked back to the throwers; injuries that had a someone down a moment ago are overlooked and the bad guys seem to have not only unlimited numbers but really bad aim. This is a self-contained story, wrapping up in the issue.  Art :  Krahnke provides the art for the issue and does a really good job. He's not afraid to show a bit of blood on the injuries and does a really good job with the action sequences. One downside...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Andrea Milana (penciler), Lee Loughridge (colorist) Story : Zartan now believes he has all the information he needs to start finding more energon for his own purposes.  Recovering from the events of the Dreadnok War, the Joes take Autobot Hound captive as Duke is quite upset and wants answers.  Meanwhile, Matt Trakker gets a notice to meet someone.  Back at the Pitt, the Joes, thinking they'd get a little bit of time off, are quickly reassigned more missions by Hawk, including meeting up with Snow Job.  Duke gets filled in by Hound on some of the basics and that it was Decepticon Starscream who killed his friend.  Matt Trakker meets with an agent at a race track but they are interrupted by Scrap Iron. Writing : I really like how Williamson is taking Duke down this emotional path we're seeing.  As Clutch says, that's not normally him.  But Duke is in a changing world, saw his buddy die, lost Cobra Commander, almost...

Creators : Larry Hama (writer), Chris Mooneyham (artist), Francesco Segala (colorist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatter), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story : A Joe team of Duke, Roadblock, Down Range and R.C. (Salazar, Hector M.) are observing a Borovian unit fighting against the Darklonian invasion and how drones, especially smaller ones, are being utilized on the modern battlefield.  At their destination they split into a sniper and drone team and work on taking out their targets (other snipers and armored vehicles).   Writing : I really appreciate Hama's not-so-subtle take on on-going world events in this issue.  The Darklonian forces are using older Russian vehicles and it takes pages right out of the current conflict in the Ukraine with the use of smaller, cheaper drones dropping explosives onto and into armored vehicles.  Hama also gives us a couple good moments with the snipers and telling us how'd they operate in a situation like the one set up in the issue.  On ...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Marco Fodera (artist), Lee Loughridge (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer) Story : The Crimson Twins, Tomax and Xamot, pay a visit to Marvin F. Hinton, aka Roadblock, who is running a successful food truck, as they want him to be the "face" of their fast-food brand, Red Rocket. The Joes also wish to recruit Roadblock due to his abilities as a heavy gunner when he was in the army.  Roadblock rebuffs the twins and instead of taking it graciously, they have their Crimson Guards attack.  Roadblock takes the Siegies down and chases after the twins, driving them off as well.  Meanwhile, in Springfield, Cobra Commander and Destro confer on the status of Cobra and the need to get more Energon.  However, Cobra Commander does have eyes and ears everywhere.   Writing : A nice, solid (mostly) stand-alone issue.  We get to see what makes Roadblock such an awesome character - his abilities as a soldier, yes, but also his love of food a...

Creators : Larry Hama (writer), Paul Pelletier (pencils), Tony Kordos (inker), Francesco Segala (colorist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatter), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story : Ace does a high altitude recon in the Sky Raven and discovers a satellite that might be a space station.  Duke and Stalker send up Payload, Sci-Fi, Lady Jaye and Countdown in the Joe's Defiant shuttle to investigate it.  Once in space, the station, controlled by Revanche, begins shooting at the Joes.  Lady Jaye and Sci-Fi are able to get inside the station and, by fighting the blue ninja, are able to take the station out.  However, Revanche does have other plans. Writing : This is a tight issue, focusing just on the space station.  I do enjoy it when Hama incorporates lesser-used Joes, like in this issue we get Law & Order, Countdown, Sci-Fi, Hardtop and Payload.  Three of those Joes are a very specific subset, dealing with outer space.  We don't get any other Joes on other mission...

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 thinki...

Creators : Joshua Williams (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Jordie Bellaire (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer) Story : Duke is given a chance to fight for Cobra Commander's freedom against Dreadnok Buzzer.  Meanwhile, Hawk and Destro continue their meeting.  As things begin to look bleak for Duke and the Commander, the rest of the Joes and Autobot Hound arrive.  Duke is able to get away with the Joes while Cobra Commander commences his combat with the Dreadnoks.   Writing :  Williamson keeps the story and action going in this issue.  Between some one-on-one brawls, chases and all out battles, this is a fast-paced issue. We get a couple of surprises from Colonel Hawk, which was nice to see. One thing that's a bit much was just how much the Dreadnoks are praising grape soda.  While it's only in the beginning of the issue, it does seem a bit much.  Art :  Reilly's art is able to do a good job keeping up with Williamson's story here, especially the ...

Creators : Larry Hama (writer), Paul Pelletier (penciler), Tony Kordos (inker), Francesco Segala (colorist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatter), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story : Four different organizations - Cobra, the Dreadnoks, Destro's Iron Grenadiers and Revanche, all evaluate their current position and what they plan to do in the future.  Cobra has some key players back - Tomax and Xamot, Scrap-Iron, Overkill, Crystal Ball, Firefly, Copperhead and Major Bludd, who agree to help again.  Zartan asserts his authority over the Dreadnoks, while the Iron Grenadiers parade through Destro's town and Alpha-001 prepares itself for the next phase of its plans.  Writing :  This is an interesting story because it's mainly getting us up to date on what is going on in each organization currently and what they are planning on doing in the near future.  Cobra Commander's plans are the most established.   Art : Art is really something, a lot of opportunities to show off diffe...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Jordie Bellaire (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterers) Story : Duke and Road Pig fight only for Duke to end up captured like Cobra Commander and strung up in an attic.  They talk a bit and Duke gets a bit more information about the Commander.  Dreadnoks Ripper and Buzzer arrive and after a brief confrontation, befriend Road Pig, who drags out Duke and Cobra Commander.  By this point, the rest of the Dreadnoks have arrived. General Hawk has a meeting on his way to Langley that could change the tide of the Joe/Cobra conflict and Clutch and Cover Girl decide to go rescue Duke.  Writing : I've been enjoying the Duke/Cobra Commander moments in this series, with Duke slowly getting more information about Cobra and what's been going on with The Transformers. Destro making plans to secure more profit versus having more power is a nice move as well.  I felt the Road Pig/Dreadnok friendliness happened a bit quicker ...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Tom Reilly (artist), Jodie Bellaire (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer) Story : Cobra Command and Duke continue to run from the horde of Dreadnoks chasing them in a high-speed desert chase.  Duke releases Cobra Commander so that he can help him fight back.  Meanwhile, back at Cobra HQ, Destro begins his takeover and offers Cobra as open for business with many of his former clients while at the Joe base General Hawk reveals he his off to talk with General Flagg about what's going on and wants to be told when Duke checks in.  Through some clever fighting and driving, Duke and Cobra Commander make it to an almost-abandoned town with one tough resident.  Writing :  Williamson keeps the action going on this issue.  A few pages are devoted to other things but the bulk of the issue is the running chase/battle between Duke with Cobra Commander vs. the Dreadnoks.  Cobra Commander also nicely points out how similar he and Duk...

Creators : Larry Hama (writer), Paul Pelletier (penciller), Tony Kordos (inker), Francesco Segala (colorist), Sabrina Del Grosso (flatter), Pat Brosseau (letterer) Story : Two Joe teams, on in a desert another in frozen arctic lands, are sent to investigate the construction of two Cobra Terror Dromes. Due to circumstances, both end up engaging with the Cobra forces there.  Writing : There is a few interesting things going on with this issue.  First is the contrast going on with the extreme environments the Joe teams find themselves in.  On top of that, each gets two pages so reading the book we keep going back and forth between these environments.  This isn't too jarring because the stories play out very similar.  Hama also takes this opportunity to use some less-used characters - Iceberg, Frostbite, Snow Job, Sub-Zero, Dusty, Mongoose, and Lightfoot.  I've always enjoyed when some of the lesser-known Joes get some time.  This issue is also pretty much...

Story : Cobra Commander is running low on energon and tasks his subordinates to search out various locations for more of it.  Meanwhile, he takes Ripper to investigate a strange energon signal.  While on leave, Duke gets a call about the same strange energon signal and discovers Cobra Commander is there but can't get a signal out to tell the Joes.  Cobra discovers it's a trap as their vehicles blow up and Dreadnok Ripper reveals he's been watching and learning and staged this betrayal.  As it seems he has the upper hand, Duke saves Cobra Commander and when he tries to get away, they discover that the rest of the Dreadnoks are fast approaching and quickly drive away while at Cobra Command, Destro makes his moves. Writing : After a few low-key, character-building issues, Williamson's next arc is a 5-parter "Dreadnok War," bringing back the rest of the Dreadnoks last seen in the Cobra Commander mini-series.  Williamson was able to use Ripper pretty effectively he...

Creators : Joshua Williamson (writer), Marco Foderà (artist), Lee Loughridge (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer). Story : Duke is talking to General Hawk about making sure that the team is focused on the giant robots and not just Cobra.  Beachhead, Flint and Lady Jaye are breaking out Jodie "Shooter" Craig from a Darklonian prison which she has her own reasons for being there.  And at Cobra HQ, Major Bludd joins Cobra while Destro and Mercer figure out ways Cobra Commander could be brought down.  Writing : An interesting story, as we get a couple of "bookends" with Duke and then Destro, with the main story being breaking Jodie out of jail.  We're a year into the comic and we've been slowly building up the Joe team and, in the process have really been getting to know our G.I. Joe characters.  Williamson is carefully concocting this world for us but doesn't want to cram everything in it at once.  He's able to craft good exposition into the story to move ...