After last month’s disappointing one shot, G.I Joe: Special Missions #10 introduces the start of a new arc. After being a little lackluster lately, can the title return to its original form?

The official description from IDW:

DESTRO MUST DIE—PART ONE! The Special Missions team recruits Copperback from a Supermax prison to lead them to her former employer: Laird DESTRO. COBRA’s favorite weapons maker is in G.I. JOE’s crosshairs. But only if they can survive their alliance with the deadly and duplicitous Copperback.

On paper this issue has all the right elements, but somehow loses its potential somewhere in transition. Its still an enjoyable read with a decent enough concept that suits the smaller-scale operations of Special Missions, but it feels rather shallow.

Plot wise, there’s no mocking the plot. Chuck Dixon does a great job providing an interesting enough narrative, with an opening that follows up on previous developments and keeps the G.I Joe world engaging. Once again, it manages to cover various areas of the franchise without ignoring new readers. The set-up of the plot itself is also well used and Dixon manages to use action sparingly, but effectively.

Visually, however, something about Special Missions #10 bugs me. This is largely because, as an issue with plenty of close ups and conversations, Paul Gulacy’s faces seem a little odd. They’re often narrow and devoid of emotion, which ever so slightly discourages reading the issue. The other major issue, to me at least, is the portrayal of Scarlett – the character isn’t about tank tops and flashing skin. Combined with the lack of emotional range visually, the main character comes off as being empty eye candy, which may be an attempt to contrast against this weeks ‘villain’ but is nonetheless a terrible idea.

That said, the use of color and outdoor scenes is a good choice for the title, which normally prefers darker environments. Gulacy also has plenty of talent in busy backdrops and landscapes, which shows through in areas, while Aburtov and Graphikslava provide plenty of bright, refreshing colors.

All in all, it’s not a bad read and, for what it’s worth, the end result suggests a good direction for the series. If these few hiccups are ironed out Special Missions could become a lot, lot better.

3/5