G.I Joe: A Real American Hero #213 Review

Despite the stupidity and sillyness of G.I Joe: A Real American Hero #213 and its current plot, it’s hard not to feel impressed in some way. As far as all out action, suspense and drama goes, this issue definately pays off and – for that – it’s hard not to like it.

The official description from IDW:

G.I. JOE’s original Ninja Commando confronts old enemies and new threats that may just put an end to Snake Eyes once and for all!

There are some elements that don’t work here all that well. Serpentor, for instance, has never been the most impressive villain. Still, giant robots aside, the rest of the issue more or less keeps things down to earth and grounded. This may make some of the more extreme action seem juxaposed, but it really pays off in the final pages.

What makes this issue worthwhile, then, is definately the writing. Larry Hama sticks to the silly concepts of giant robots and ‘alien eyes’ and, for what its worth, he makes it work. This action really serves as a backdrop to the smaller, but more impactful, events near the end and Hama’s understanding of the main cast sells this across.

Similarly, Hama also lets the artwork do the talking when it can, although there’s no new talent here. Still, S L Gallant has always been a talented artist and he demonstrates some perfectly fluid poses and pencils here. As for color, the tone is gloomy, over all, in typical G.I Joe fashion, but J. Brown does work in some more vibrant and varied colors here and there.

Over all, I’d say this is one of the more impactful issues of G.I Joe in a long time, and demonstrates what can be done when the action shrinks in scope but grows in other scales.