GeneralsJoes reviews G.I. Joe: Cobra #13

by generalsjoes | Feb 17, 2011 | Comics and Cartoons, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Comic Reviews, G.I. Joe Comics, G.I. Joe Reviews, IDW

From the first minute I laid eyes on the original G.I. Joe: Cobra title way back I knew we were on to something good.  Over the years, G.I. Joe has been many things…in the cartoon, it was campy satire.  In the comic, it was a hybrid military realism with supernatural science fiction.
But never has it really been gritty film noir.  I mean, how could it be?  We’re talking about a property with genetic engineering, technologically impossible weapons and vehicles, and no laws of physics or scientific sense.  How can someone possible build a gritty, dark, and “real world” universe out of that?
Well, somebody could, and somebody did.  A couple of somebodies named Mike Costa and Christos Gage.  They showed the world that the bright, super-powered, laser firing world of G.I. Joe could hide a dark underbelly.  Initially written as a short four-issue limited series, G.I. Joe: Cobra redefined Cobra’s image in the IDW world and introduced many readers to the property to rave reviews.
As I think everyone expected, after the first series ended, a second series was sure to come, which was then extended to a continuing series, and it has continued until now.  Thirteen issues later we’ve seen backwoods Crocodile experts, a secret cult worshipping snake gods, and a mysterious gypsy who can read minds.  But through it all, that dark and dreary noir style brought a sense of realism and despair to the universe (but only in the best way possible, of course).
So now, as we stand on the precipice of another “re-invention” (so to speak) of the IDW universe, we can reflect back on G.I. Joe: Cobra and see how well it did what it did, and finally, how it ended.  Which of course, begs the question, where do we go from here?
To avoid spoilers, click the “Read the Rest of this Story” link below for the full review.
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