Following the recent build-up, we were due for an all-out action issue with G.I Joe: A Real American Hero #196. So, do guns and explosions make for a good read?

The official description from IDW:

THE ROAD TO #200 CONTINUES! As the COBRA connection in the turmoil in Sierra Gordo deepens, G.I. JOE begins to unravel the true nature of the situation… but what do the Blue Ninjas have to do with the insurgent rebels? The plot thickens and the action kicks off in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #196!

I’m in two halves with this issue. On one hand, it is a very entertaining piece of work. The action is split on several fronts and the issue flows fairly well. Yet, on the other, it feels almost like its too much. There’s this group captured and that group captured…  there seem to be too many similar plots. Yet it makes it much larger in scale, which this issue plays to its strengths, but it means the more unique parts get diluted.

Larry Hama writes it well, with a typical sense for the G.I Joe charm – never play it too serious when you’re dealing with ninjas, brightly colored uniforms and who-knows-what-else. The dialogue is nice and short where it needs to be so that, even though this issue feels like a long read, individual scenes don’t strictly bore you and waste time.

Visually, A Real American Hero #196 is as pretty as its ever been. S L Gallant offers plenty of depth, but its the colors of J. Brown that add the vibrancy – I much prefer this to over-saturated blues, greys and browns. It makes the issue pop and adds to the larger than life feel the title has going for it.

All in all, not a bad issue. It’s action heavy but still serves as plenty of build up. Yet, with the larger scale, it does manage to break away from recent smaller arcs.

3.5/5