G.I Joe: Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra #5 Review

Well, it’s been a fun little mini series and G.I Joe: Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra #5 marks the end of it all. So, was this series good over all? Is the ending effective and does it actually promise anything for G.I Joe’s future? Especially with the current end of the main title’s current ‘season’.

First, the official description from IDW:

SNAKE EYES faces down against STORM SHADOW and must choose between G.I. JOE and COBRA… before they both turn against the ninja commando!

I’m in two minds with this issue. In its defense, Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra #5 is satisfying enough. There’s a tense atmospheric showdown and enough resolution to bring everything around near the end. As the series itself goes, that’s all good. The only problem I have, then, is that it doesn’t really lead into anything, or offer anything new.

Snake Eyes working for Cobra should be a big deal yet, by the end of it, that’s not made entirely clear. Mike Costa misses these opportunities to define the characters reasoning, instead focusing on various pages of action. The same goes for the other characters, even though Chameleon gets the most definition, everything more or less returns to the status quo, holding out for the main title. Even some of the dialogue, especially near the end, seems to do a decent amount of waffling. It teases things, but suggests Costa hasn’t got the authority to make the decisions he would of liked.

As for the art, it’s as good as it has been throughout this series. Paulo Villanelli is a talented artist and his fluid pencils work well here. I like how the script gets out of the way for the main battle between the two ninjas, but it does go on for a little too long. Still, with the moody blues from Joana Lafuente, it is certainly cinematic in its appearance.

So, all in all, everything expressed in this title is wrapped up nicely. Yet, this series started by bringing up older, forgotten threads and, well, what it ultimately does with them may split the readership.