Comic Book Review – G.I. Joe #4

“Doc has only precious minutes to save a teammate’s life as the forces of Cobra close in and her injuries prevent her from performing the operation herself. Is another G.I. Joe member ready for a crash course in battlefield surgery? Plus: Can Roadblock & Co. convince the people of Warrenton to turn against Cobra? All this and the return of Scrap Iron! Who Doesn’t Love Scrap Iron?!!?“

I hadn’t realised how much I was looking forward to G.I. Joe #4. Perhaps it was due to the fact that issue #3 took a breather from the main ‘Homefront’ story arc to focus squarely on Duke (a character I’ve never been overly fond of), resulting in a two month wait to catch up with the rest of the team as they struggle for survival in the Cobra-sympathetic town of Warrenton. Or maybe it’s because I hadn’t appreciated how much I was enjoying this new G.I. Joe series from Fred Van Lente and Steve Kurth, and was really missing Hashtag. Either way, it was certainly worth the wait…

The penultimate instalment of ‘Homefront’ picks up with the two seperated Joe teams – Roadblock, Quick Kick, Tunnel Rat and a critically injured Shipwreck; and Cover Girl, Doc and Hashtag – reuniting and hiding out in a barn as they attempt to concoct a plan to get themselves out of the trap they’ve walked in to on the now-public G.I. Joe team’s first high profile mission. With Doc’s arm broken, Quick Kick is forced to stay behind to operate on Shipwreck (he’s good with a blade, you see), while the remaining Joes head to the mall to take out a transmitter that’s blocking their communications. Of course, this brings them head-to-head with Cobra and soon Hashtag, Roadblock and Tunnel Rat finds themselves gearing up to go one-on-one with the Baroness, Croc Master and Scrap Iron…

Fast-paced and packed with action, G.I. Joe #4 does a great job of progressing the story and setting things up for an explosive finale (or doubly explosive, should Cobra’s end game pay off). I wasn’t entirely sold on the art style for the first couple of issues, but it’s starting to grow on me and there is some really good stuff here, particularly the colouring from Joana Lafuente. Still, if I had one minor complaint, it’s that Cover Girl and the Baroness strike some peculiar poses at times, but I guess that’s going to happen when you’re determined to force both their front and rear assets into the very same panel at almost every opportunity. Cover Girl especially must be a master contortionist – maybe it’s a throwback to her modelling days, but if she twists any further she’ll end up looking like President Skroob in Spaceballs.

Overall, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed G.I. Joe #4 and it is without a doubt the standout issue of this run so far. Let’s hope it keeps up for the final instalment in this first story arc.

Gary Collinson is a writer and lecturer from the North East of England. He is the editor-in-chief of FlickeringMyth.com and the author of Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen.