"Quartered in top-secret armored underground bunkers-- deep beneath the Army Chaplain's Assistants School at Fort Wadsworth--is America's elite counter-terrorist strike force! Code named: G.I. JOE-- the most fearsome rapid deployment team of all stands ready to fight--anywhere-- any time-- any way!"

Wih that opening stanza, Marvel Comics launched their 12 year, 155 issue run of "G.I. Joe: a Real American Hero". Dubbed as "The Ultimate Weaopn of Democracy" and "America's sensational new special missions force for the 80's!", G.I. Joe proved to be the most successful licensed toy tie-in of Marvel's history.

G.I. Joe was unique in that it originally entered the mass market on three fronts-- the comics, the toys and animation. I remember watching "Blinky the Clown" one monring in February 1982, when a energetic animated commercial flashed on the TV, blaring about "The Legend of GI Joe" who would "fight for freedom, wherever there is trouble". The commercial ended by shilling a new comic book. I wasn't really into comic books at that time, but was intrigued, since I remembered the name "G.I. Joe" from my big brother's 1970's toys. Plus, it was impossible to find comics in my town, at the time. I hadn't seen any G.I.Joe toys in forever, but they sure were neat, back in the day! So here it was, about a month before my 8th birthday, and I was already feeling nostalgic.

A few days later, I was again watching "Blinky" and that nifty commercial came on again. Only this time, it ended by cutting to a live-action spot of some kids playing with ...whoa... NEW G.I. Joe toys! Holy spit, they're the same size as my Star Wars guys!! That's it, there may be a comic, but I HAVE to get me some of them toys! This'll be like merging the old favorite "outdoor plastic army guys" with my "inside Star Wars toys"! About a week later, I was at Woolco and persuaded my mom to buy me two of these new figures-- Short-Fuze the Mortar Soldier and Breaker the Communications Officer (I got Short-Fuze because he had a cool visor and Breaker because he had a cool headset). After that, it was ON for me. By the end of the year, G.I. Joe had surpassed Star Wars, LEGOs and Hot Wheels to become my favorite toy franchise. I would buy almost every item they produced, every year. All the way up through high school, when it became a collecting hobby instead of a "play with toys" thing. Oddly enough, I now currently live about one mile from where that old Woolco used to be (it's now a Ross Dress for Less) and I pass it on the way to work, everyday. And everyday, part of my brain remembers that that's where it all started.

I didn't find the G.I.Joe comics until the fall. G.I.Joe #8 was the first one I ever purchased-- at a Waldenbooks in the old Southglenn Mall. It soon became another favorite of mine and got me to jump into the entire world of comics. So G.I. Joe was a big part of my growing up (assuming I ever grew up).

Similar to the way I did my "Rasslin' Tapes" from 2000-2004, I've decided that it's now time to go back through these old comics, re-read and recap them. One final time for me to catalog and remember this stuff. After all, 2007 is the 25th Anniversary of the re-launched G.I.Joe line. Which means it's probably roughly September or October of 2007 for MY 25th Anniversary of discovering the comics (I believe issue 8 came out around that time in 1982).

I've always felt that if anybody was entitled to recap the ENTIRE G.I.Joe comic library, it'd be me. After all, I still have roughly 871 Flag Points in a giant plastic bag in my dresser. I should've been able to buy stock in Hasbro with them. I followed the comic, monthly, from 1982 until 1994. Just as I vividly remember picking up that first comic in the fall of 1982, I vividly remember buying the last issue in the fall of 1994-- at a small comic kiosk at the Tabor Center in downtown Denver, about an hour after my first official "graphic design show".

With this series of articles, I'll be recapping the Marvel series in 10 isuse installments. I won't mess with the modern "Declassified" retcons and updates. Mainly because I've survived this long without 'em, they don't add much, and the comics themselves are quite over-priced. Like my Rasslin' Tapes, I won't have a set schedule, but will eventually finish the entire run. I'll also be rating the comics on a scale of 1 to 5 "Flag Points". 5 Flag Points were usually found on the really cool, big vehicles. Further explanation of the scale:

1 Flag Point- Avoid at all costs. Wretched story. Good for hardcore fans only. The equivalent of a Crystal Ball or Psyche-Out figure!

2 Flag Points- Just another story. Nothing special. You'll forget about it after an hour.

3 Flag Points- Typical story. Maybe a small plot advancement or two. Good, satisfying read.

4 Flag Points- Highlight issue with something really cool. Definitely worth tracking down. Very satisfying.

5 Flag Points- An essential issue and one of the best. The equivalent of a 1987 Storm Shadow figure!

So, now that the debriefing's over, let's strap up our combat boots and get to the front line!

#1- "Lady Doomsday"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Herb Trimpe

Summary: Dr. Adele Burkhart, a top nuclear physicist who claims to have been duped into working on the US mlitary's "Doomsday Project" is kidnapped by Cobra Command. Deep in the Pentagon, Generals Austin and Flagg call "Special Counter-Terrorist Group Delta, Code-Named: G.I.JOE" into action. All of the orginal 13 members perform an assualt on Cobra's carribean island stronghold. In what would be a trademark, Cobra Commander doesn't have obvious motives. He doesn't care about killing Burkhart, he simply wants to defeat the top-notch force that would be sent to retrieve her. Basically a way to call out his top opposition and defeat them in one blow. It almost works, but of course the Joes save the day after a big battle and lots of action.

Notes:
-This appears to be the team's first official mission against Cobra, but Hawk mentions that they've been called together in the past.

-Cobra, as they often were in the comics, re presented as more of a Neo-Nazi group. Like Hydra.

-Clutch mentions that the squad has an "A team", consisting of Grunt, Stalker, Short-Fuze, Scarlett, Snake-Eyes and Flash. I don't think the team definitions were ever brought up again.

-Snake-Eyes has his first signs of being a bad-ass as he signs to Scarlett: "why not just bomb the entire island?" Note that his first scene is with Scarlett, as they would be a HUGE subplot and the main romantic couple of the entire franchise.

-The team has alot of ambiguity over Dr. Burkhart, some consider her a traitor to the US, but they'll rescue her because they're the good guys and, more importantly, those are their orders.

-The Baroness is disguised as a reporter at Brukhart's press conference.S he operates with a guy named "Gregor". I don't believe he was ever mentioned again (presumably he was captured or wasted by the Secret Service), but there's some fan triviata and something Devil's Due could swoop in and include in their next ret-con special.

-Baroness has a beauty mark on her left cheek. Something that would come and go for the first year of the comics.

-It's a little wacky that Baroness escapes with Dr. Burkhart into the air in a balloon contraption, then is picked up by a helicopter. Figure that one out.

-There's also a bald Cobra general, standing with Cobra Commander and the Baroness in one panel. Looks sort of like Baron Strucker. Again, he's probably not important and is more "Devil's Due fodder".

-Move Devil's Due fodder: the mysterious "Shooter" is seen as a Joe agent on an initial computer screenshot. Although we don't see his/her face. It was thrown in to balance out the role call of 13 to an even 14 and was a deliberate joke towards then Marvel Editor-In-Chief, Jim Shooter. Obviously, Devil's Due decided to expand on it, 24 years later.

-Zap flies a helicopter to escape the island at the end. This starts an early recurring joke about people telling Zap that flying a helicopter is something you never forget-- just like riding yur bike. To which Zap responds: "yeah, but I fell off my bike alot!"

-Cobra Commander and the Baroness escape the island and fly to their "true headquarters". Oooo! Nice.

-The Joes' heavy equipment arrives on the island in the Hydrofil LCT (Landing Craft Tank). A large boat that was never meant to be a toy and was never seen again. On occassion, I would make my own LCT with a big ol' shoe box.

-Stalker is shown as the "driver" of the JUMP jetpack, while Rock n' Roll is clearly tied as the "driver" of the RAM motorcycle.

-Blueprint/profile pages of the HAL, Mobatnd VAMP are on the back and interior covers. Flash is incorrectly cited as the "driver" of the HAL.

-Center-fold has a cut-away diagram of the five levels of the underground Pit headquarters.

-Full profile pages of Scarlett, Breaker, Flash and Stalker are at the back of the book. With original art. These wouldn't return for another six years or so.

-This was one of the few issues were the ENTIRE team was in action, together. I don't think this would happen again until issue 8.

-Also one of the few issues were ALL of their vehicles were used. With the only exceptions being the MMS Missile Launcher and the FLAK cannon. I don't believe the FLAK was EVER shown.

#1B- "Hot Potato"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Don Perlin
Summary: Snake-Eyes, Scarlett and Rock n' Roll are running across the desert with a high-priority tape. They're being pursued by Colonel Sharif and his "Guardians of Paradise". Clutch, Hawk and Stalker are waiting for them, in disguise, at a border town. Scarlett decides to make a final stand against the Guardians, but orders Rock n' Roll to run the tape to the border, with Snake-Eyes enforcing him. Halfway to the border, Snake-Eyes suddenly disappears and runs back to help Scarlett. Scarlett tears up when he arrives to save her, saying she has "sand in (her) eyes". They're about to be over-run and Scarlett suggests taking their own lives, instead of falling captive. Rock n' Roll arrives on his RAM motrocycle to save the day. Sharif calls in an air-strike, but it's thwarted by Round Two of the Cavalry: Hawk and Clutch in the VAMP (one of those "Sgt. Rock" rules of comics-- a well-placed machine gun can alway blow-up a plane). Stalker flies the tape out the country.

Notes:
-Hawk mentions that Colonel Sharif is being backed by Cobra.

-Rock n' Roll says to Snake-Eyes: "I used to think you had some feelings for her (Scarlett)". Again, it's only the first issue, but the subplot's already being laid.

Appearances and Firsties (all are "firsties" in this issue):
Characters (with action figures): Hawk, Steeler, Zap, Clutch, Grand Slam, Stalker, Snake-Eyes, Scarlett, Flash, Grunt, Breaker, Short-Fuze, Rock n' Roll

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Cobra Commander, Baroness, "Gregor", Dr. Burkhart, General Flagg, General Austin, Colonel Sharif, Guardians of Paradise.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, MOBAT, HAL, RAM, JUMP (pack only, landing pad was never seen)

Vehicles and stuff (not toys): LCT, Cobra's bulbous tanks, standard helicopters, jeeps, halftracks.

Rating: 5 Flag Points.

#2- "Panic at the North Pole"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Don Perlin

Summary: All the members of an American observation station at the North Pole have been found dead. Scarlett, Stalker, Snake-Eyes and Breaker are sent in to investigate. The Russians are suspected and indeed they were the culprits. However, it was due to the influence of a "fear wave" experiment that the Russians were working on. Kwinn the Eskimo has been hired by the Russians to clean up the loose ends. He gets the better of the Joes, and while he soon grows to respect them, he still must fulfill his contract with the Russians. He delivers the "Fear Wave Inducer" to two lone Russians who are waiting for an extraction sub. Kwinn tosses them the fear thingie and leaves, his contract fulfilled. But, Kwinn made sure to give the Joes a chance to catch the Russians. As the story ends, it's implied that the Joes will in fact catch the Russians.

Notes:
-All four members are called in from leave. Stalker is "stalking" a 10 point buck for a photo opportunity. Scarlett is at a martial arts competition in San Deigo. Breaker is at MIT, messing with computers. Snake-Eyes is in a "Total Sensory Deprivation" tank in Columbia University.

-Snake-Eyes emerges from the tank without his mask. It's hidden in shadows, but this is the first time we're told that Snake-Eyes has a hideous face.

-Stalker trounces around the North Pole in a WHITE parka. Interesting, considering that his 1989 figure revamp depicted him in a white parka. I never knew that there was a possible connection.

-Cobra is never mentoned or seen in this story. Just the "Russians", the great Cold War villains they were. They even talk about the "Amerikanskis"

-Kwinn, as he was known to do, narrates and explain stuff WAY too much.

-Hawk is also never mentioned or seen. The four Joes report directly to General Flagg.

-Stalker uses his early catchphrase exclamation of "Dag!"

-Horrible cover with no real focus and too many explosion-blurbs.

-The Joes construct a makeshift windsurfer to catch up to Kwinn.

-Only real redeeming aspect of this story is that it introduced Kwinn.

-I had a coloring book version of this story as a kid. For that reason, I never bothered to pick up this issue, since I knew what it was about. I finally bought the real thing, years later, for about 20 bucks. This book was supposedly under-ordered and became a rarity.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Scarlett, Snake-Eyes, Stalker, Breaker
Characters (no figures or "comic-only"): General Flagg. Unnamed military personnel.

Firsties:
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Kwinn, two unnamed "Russians"

Rating: 2 Flag Points

#3- "The Trojan Gambit"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Herb Trimpe

Summary: After raiding a Cobra stronghold, a deactivated Cobra robot is hauled away to the Pit for examination. Breaker, Clutch and Steeler examine it on the fifth (lowest) floor, while Snake-Eyes, Stalker and Flash pack up weapons on the 4th floor. Meanwhile, Hawk and Scarlett schmooze the crew of Fort Wardworth at a tea social, on the ground level in the Chaplain's Assistants Motor Pool. Surprise, surprise, the robot is remotely activated through chemicals and begins rummaging through the Pit. Due to all the shielding in the Pit, the robot has to make it to the surface where it can give out a homing signal to draw in Cobra Commander's assault force. Pretty whimsical time, as the story serves as a "guide to the Pit". The robot bursts into tiny bugs and the final one makes it to the floor grate of the Motor Pool. Scarlett conveinently squashes the bug to save the day. Running low on fuel and with no expcted signal, the Cobra force is forced to return home.

Notes:
-The cobra Trojan robot looks like an old Mad Sceintist robot from 1950's comics. Never seen or used again.

-Snake-Eyes has another Bad Ass Moment: he volunteers to personally clean everyone else's guns. Reason being, he doesn't want someone else's gun to jam while they're covering him.

-A Ft. Wadsworth officer asks Hawk how the Motor Pool can afford such a nicely catered tea social. Hawk replies: "Well, when we're not transporting the chaplain to chapel, we're out fighting international terrorists".

-Another early theme: the opposition trying to locate their enemy's base.

-The Cobra "snake" helicopters make their first appearance. These seemed to pop up every so often in the first year or two of the comics.

-One of the few stories where the Joes have to protect their "secret identity".

-The robot was scheduled to be examined by the "tech boys from Aberdeen". Several references to Aberdeen throughout the early comics. One of the touches that made the comic seemed more "reality-based".

-When leaving the Cobra stronghold at the beginning of the story, the Joes and their booty are transported away in disguised US Mail trucks.

-Zap mans the hyrdaulic lift again and seems to be the de facto operator of it. He also seems to have a reputation for being a jokester.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Scarlett, Hawk, Snake-Eyes, Flash, Stalker, Steeler, Breaker, Clutch. Rest of the team in background cameos.

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters):Cobra Commander. Cobra flunkies.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, MOBAT, HAL, (cameos)
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): Cobra "snake" helicopters. Cobra Trojan robot (all Firsties).

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#4- "Operation: Wingfield"
Script: Larry Hama
Plot and Pencils: Herb Trimpe

Summary: Survivalist nut, Vance Wingfield has his own private volunteer militia in Montana, all preparing for an imminent nuclear disaster. To break in his new recruits, he uses them for target practive with live ammo. US Military intelligence has informed the Joes that Wingfield is being funded by "international terrorists, possibly Cobra". Hawk and Grunt infiltrate the camp as new recruits, while Snake-Eyes plays observer from outside the fences. After two days, Wingfield discovers Hawk and Grunt and decides to step up his master plan-- he plans to bomb Vladivostok, which would trigger a nuclear war between the US and Russia. Then, Wingfield's crew would rise up and take over the world. Wingfield's right-hand man, Carruthers is dispatched in a bomber to attack Russia. Hawk manages to sneak into one of Wingfield's planes and shoots down Carruthers. He just shoots out the fuel tanks, giving Carruthers a chance to bail. He doesn't and the plane crashes over the North Pacific. Wingfield also has a last-ditch contingency plan-- he has another nuke buried beneath his camp, which he'll glady detonate. Wingfield and his army will all die, but it'll make the world stronger. A mother and child of a trainee demand to leave the camp, and Wingfield threatens to shoot them. Wingfield's wife, Shary, realizes how crazy he is and shoots him in the back. The rest of the Joe team arrives and safely manages to defuse Wingfield's second nuke. As "Camp Victory" is being closed down, two local rednecks drive by the place and note that "there's some real military boys moving into the Wingfield place. Better keep an eye on your women-folk".

Notes:
-Stalker is called "Ranger" throughout this issue, as if it were his code-name.

-Weird cover. It's a generic pin-up, with Hawk wearing a beret and Scarlett without her trademark ponytail. It's a possibility that this was a leftover and re-worked from the original "Fury Force" concept.

-Wingfield was never declared dead, so I guess his wife was a lousy shot. Or, more likely, she shot to wound her husband, not kill him. I'd buy that.

-Wingfield was never mentioned or seen again, until 2005's "America's Elite" relaunch. Although his son had a prominent role in a four-issue arc in "G.I. Joe: Frontline", circa 2003. Fans just assumed he was dead.

-The Cobra connection is confirmed when Grunt and Hawk sneak into a hangar and see all sorts of imported weaponry.

-Despite the mention of Cobra, this story could have worked for any military-themed comic. Probably Trimpe's doing.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Snake-Eyes, Grunt. Rest of the team in background roles.
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Vance Wingfield, Shary Wingfield, Carruthers

Vehicles and stuff (toys): nothing
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): A generic army helicopter

Rating: 2 Flag Points

#5- "Tanks for the Memories"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Don Perlin

Summary: To prove a point to the Joint Chiefs, General Flagg has arranged for Steeler, Clutch and Breaker to drive the MOBAT in New York City's Armed Forces Day Parade. At the Pit, the three are cleaning up their tank and give the readers a tour of all its special features....while trying to impress Scarlett. Cobra finds out about the MOBAT's presence through a tap in airport security (hmmm) and decides to schedule a visit. Disguised as the "Springfield Drum and Bugle Corps" (who Breaker admits is the "worst marching band he's ever heard"), Cobra tries to capture the MOBAT in the midst of the parade. The Joes lead the Cobras on a chase through midtown Manhattan, managing to hide their large tank and evade pursuers. Depsite having no live ammo, they capture the Cobras by making creative use of the tank's external soundsystem and Breaker's bubble gum (they broadcast a loud "POP" and tell the Cobras that it was a warning shot. They immediately surrender). Clutch even locates Cobra's local base-- directly beneath the grandstand of the Joint Chiefs! Clutch crashes the MOBAT into the grandstand, and out pop a gaggle of Cobras, plus Cobra Commander and the Baroness. General Flagg has a face-to-face showdown with the head snake, but hesitates since the Commander is standing amidst a Girl Scout troop. Cobra Commander grazes Flagg in the temple with a bullet and makes his escape. When Flagg, a former marksman, is asked by Clutch why he didn't take the shot, Flagg simply whispers: "that's because we're the good guys".

Notes:
-This may have been the only time General Flagg and Cobra Commander were face-to-face with each other.

-Both Steeler and Clutch enjoy flirting with Scarlett.

-When Steeler is showing off the MOBAT's computers, Scarlett asks him: "Can I plug in a PAC-MAN cartridge"? Definitely 1982.

-The Baroness has her beauty mark--which disappeared for the second half of issue #1

-The way Cobra delivers information from the airport to Cobra Central is interesting. Shows that they have undercover contacts all over the country. Somewhat disturbing.

-The Cobra courier, at one point, delivers the information to a "Mrs. Hood"

-The password to get into Cobra Commanders' main bunker is "the mongoose, too, must die".

-Cobra Commander is seen shooting target practice dummies of Stalker, Snake-Eyes and Scarlett.

-Most importantly, this was the first mention of "Springfield", Cobra's true base of operations. A member of the grand stand jokes: "which one? There must be a Springfield in every state". I still say the Simpsons ripped off G.I. Joe with that town name.

-While the first few pages are a tour of the MOBAT, they're not a toy advertisement. The MOBAT toy only fit one guy, waist-deep, in its turret. In the comics, the MOBAT seats three men fully and has room to spare.

-Funny moment where Steeler is using the MOBAT's telescope functions to "keep abreast of the rear guard situation"-- which means he's checking out a majorette's ass.

-Once again, Cobra is using subterfuge in their tactics. More proof that they weren't just an "evil army that attacks ya'"

-Second spotlight on the "MOBAT team" of Steeler, Clutch and Breaker. These three always seemed to appear together.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Scarlett, Clutch, Breaker, Steeler
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters):Cobra Commander. Baroness. General Flagg. General Austin. Several unnamed Joint Chiefs.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): MOBAT

Rating: 2 Flag Points

#6- "To Fail is to Conquer.. to Succeed is to Die (Ancient Afghan Proverb)"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Herb Trimpe

Summary: when an experimental US plane is shot down over Afghanistan, both the US and Russia race to recover it. Steeler, Clutch, Breaker, Stalker, Scarlett and Flash are air-dropped into Afgahinstan along with their easy-to-assemble Rough Terrain Vehicle (RTV). Meanwhile, back in the lower levels of the Pit, none other than HAWK appears to be radio'ing the mission details to Cobra! The Afghan team meet their CIA contact and an Afghani tribesman named Ahmed. After loading the cargo onto the RTV, they head for the coast of Pakistan, but soon run into the Russian contingent: the October Guard! After a small firefight (apparently both sides are lousy shots), they resort to hand-to-hand combat. Before either side can get an advantage, Cobra Commander and his troops show up and surround them.

Notes:
-For the first time, a story is "..to be continued!"

-Funny scene where the team is lounging around the Pit and Stalker says "Uh-oh, Hawk looks like he's got another mission for us". Hawk answers affirmative and Stalker replies: "Dag! I must be getting psychotic". Hawk corrects him: "you mean psychic". Stalker responds: "yeah, that too!"

-This is the first mention of the Joe's usual airfield: McGuire AFB in New Jersey.

-Steeler and Clutch both continue their flirting with Scarlett. Clutch asks her: "hey Scarlett, if you get sick of staring at Steeler's ugly mug, you can hop in the VAMP with me and we can, uh, run out of gas somewhere". Clutch was a fun, sleazy comic relief for the fist 3 years of the book.

-Scarlett's dialogue indicates that she might have a Georgia accent. "Ya'll" and stuff like that. She was never (or rarely) written like that, again.

-While "Grand Slam" is shown as a mission particpant on the de-briefing screen, it's actually FLASH who is on the mission. The second early mix-up of the two characters (see issue #1). Somewhat understandable, since their action figures were nearly identical.

-Stalker is definitely in charge of the operation. Affirming his early role as second-in-command of the team. Something that was carried over into the first 5-part cartoon series.

-"Schrage" is also labelled as "Scrage" on one page.

-"Daina" is also labelled as "Daini" on one page.

-Once again, it's a Cold War era plot.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Scarlett, Clutch, Breaker, Steeler, Stalker, Breaker, Flash, Hawk, rest of team in cameos. Cobra Commander (I'm moving him to the "figures" classification, since his figure was released around this time as a mail-in premium).

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Ahmed the Afgahni. Unnamed CIA guy.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): RTV

Firsties:
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): October Guard: Col. Brekhov, Schrage, Stormavik, Daina, Horrorshow

Vehicles and stuff (not toys): RTV, October Guard's "Kremlin Kiddie Kar".

Rating: 4 Flag Points

#7- "The Walls of Death"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller; Herb Trimpe

Summary: Cobra Commander takes the RTV and its cargo and leaves behind two officers named "Rattler" and "Copperhead" to slowly execute the Joes and October Guard. Clutch uses the remote control machine guns on the VAMP to waste the two Cobras. The teams decide to team up until they track down the plane. Breaker placed a homing beacon in the RTV, enabling them to track it to Cobra's fortress in Iran. After blowing away an Iranian border patrol, the teams sneak into the stronghold. Stalker, Flash and Scarlett encounter several death traps on their way in, similar to Indian Jones stuff. Crumbling walls, rushing water, snake pits, etc. The October Guard arrives at the RTV first, but Cobra Commander again takes control as both teams are surrounded at gunpoint. Suddenly, Clutch, disguised as a Cobra slugs Cobra Commander and sets the teams free. Taking a page from Dr. Doom's book, the "Commander" was simply a decoy with a loudspeaker. The real Commander is babbling on a giant screen. The Joes quickly hop into the RTV, shoves the Rooskies aside and haul out of the complex. They arrive in Pakistan, where Hawk informs Stalker that the team was simply a decoy-- the REAL plane had already been transported out of Afghanistan days ago. They were just transporting a crate of junk. Oooo... another switcheroo plot.

Notes:
-Yes, Hawk himself was radio-ing Cobra, last issue. It was not a doppleganger or spy. It was all part of Hawk's plan to send a decoy through Afghanistan. Depsite this, for years some fans believed that it was a doppleganger Hawk and a forgotten plotline. Every now and then, someone would say "whattabout that duplicate HAWK from issue 6?!!" It wasn't a duplicate Hawk. The quick tie-up to this storyline left many fans in the dark, since Hawk didn't address his little radio stunt.

-This was the first multi-part story for the comics.

-The October Guard was a big hit with fans. Yet, they wouldn't return for a few more years. It took them over 20 years to get "official" action figures, too. As a kid, I would pick up some of the crappy GI Joe knock-off figures, like "American Defense" or "General Patch" and make them my "October Guard".

-Steeler had a big part in these last four issues (#'s 3-7). He was rarely used after this. When he was, it was usually as a background character, driving his tank.

-Clutch also had a big part in the same issues, but he remains a prominent Joe for the next two years or so. It wasn't until the fourth wave of Joes (late 1985) that he was pushed to the back. He has a lot of personality and was an early favorite among fans. Mostly due to his comic relief, sleazy pick-up lines and flirtations with Scarlett.

-Herb Trimpe's pencils were never fantastic, but they absolutely go into the shitter during the last few pages.

-In the Cobra stronghold, the Commander has another of his Nazi-style rallies. He uses a live cobra, coiled aorund a globe. When he hears the Joes have arrived, he tosses it to a flunky. The cobra quickly snakes around the flunky. Funny, because Cobra had apparently found a rare species of snake that not only acts like a king cobra, but also a boa constrictor.

-The Cobra uniforms become a bit more standardized in this arc. They're no longer the "Blue HYDRAs", as they begin to resemble their official toy counterparts. But they stil have primarily yellow suspenders and belts, not black.

-"Rattler" and "Copperhead" were just one-shot names for two non-descript flunkies. But I supppose that would make the driver of the Cobra Water Moccasin "Copperhead II".

-The quick wrap-up (half a page) kinda' ruins the pace and short-changes the entire story.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Scarlett, Clutch, Breaker, Steeler, Stalker, Breaker, Flash, Hawk, Cobra Commander. Cobra flunkies.
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): October Guard.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, JUMP jet-pack
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): RTV, October Guard's "Kremlin Kiddie Kar"

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#8 "Operation: Sea Strike!"
Story and Pencils: Herb Trimpe

Summary: Cobra Commander and the Baroness are scouting the coast of Cape Canaveral in their SRV boat (Submersible Recon Vessel). It's a boat! It's a sub! It also has a sea plane! They float back to their giant underwater seabase-- the first of many bases that Cobra plans to build to "rule the cosmos!" The US government has found out about the base and plans to launch a satellite into orbit that will not only locate any sea bases, but also destroy them. Cobra is planning an attack on the space shuttle at dawn and the Joes are called in for support. They split into two teams, with all 13 members and all vehicles accounted for (except the FLAK again). Flash and Breaker draw shuttle duty and are launched into space. Cobra attacks the shuttle launch in their SEA (Surprise Engage Attack) Legs-- tall mechanical two-legged walker that are similar to either the Star Wars Scout Walker, or the giant tripods from War of the World (minus one leg, obviously). The Joes make quick work of them, along with Cobra's amphibious assault guns (amphibious tanks. Or an early, early version of the BUGG). A lone missile fired at the shuttle itself is blown up by Hawk (another Sgt. Rock-ism, where a well-placed machine gun can trump anything). The Joes all hop in their Aqua Chopper and chase the Cobras back to their seabase. Cobra Commander fires another missile. This time, into orbit and the shuttle itself. Flash uses his jetpack to give the missile a hug and send it off course. The Cobra seabase self-destructs, while Cobra Commander and the Baroness escape. The Joes float away in rafts, until Cobra Commander tries to ram them with his SRV. Zap gets one shot and blasts the SRV with his bazooka. But Cobra Commander flies away in the SRV's detachable seaplane.

Notes:
-The plot is basically "here comes something! Shoot it! Now let's go here. There's something else--shoot it!" Aside from Flash's jetpack trick, the Joes use no creativity in fighting the Cobras.

-Cobra was definitely mis-cast in this story. They're more like HYRDA-- out to take over the world. An ambitious goal and one that wasn't repeated (at least in the comics). They're also not the sneaky guys we've come to know, they're a straight-up "Evil Army that Attacks ya'"

-The Baroness's beauty mark is gone, again.

-The MMS Missile Launcher finally makes its appearance. Although only part of it is shown. In the very next panel, it gets blown to pieces by Cobra.

-Rock n' Roll makes his first big appearance since #1. Once again, he's the "driver" of the RAM.

-Once again, Stalker is mentioned as being the top guy on the battlefield. It's been pretty well established that he's the "top sergeant". I think I can quit citing it, now.

-The "MOBAT team" is broken up! Breaker is sent into space, Clutch drives his VAMP and Steeler has Grunt in the MOBAT.

-When shooting down the missile, Hawk mentions that he's been in the army for 30 years! Wow...that'd make him about 48 at this point.

-The SEA legs and the SRV continue the early examples of whipping up goofy comic-only machinery with acronyms. Fits into the toys' standard, with stuff like HAL and MMS.

-No name is cited for this specific space shuttle.

-Before being assigned to Cape Canaveral, the team is training in simulated Arctic conditions.

-Short-Fuze has his first speaking role since issue #1

-The Aqua Chopper looks pretty cool-- it's a big transport helicopter-- but it gets blown up after one page.

-While briefing the team, Hawk concludes his instructions with "let's be careful out there"-- a famous catchphrase that was used by Sgt. Phil Esterhaus in daily briefings on NBC's "Hill Street Blues". This reference would be lost on anyone under the age of 30.

-I'm sure I was like a lot of other kids, when I converted my Star Wars Scout Walker toy to become my own version of the Cobra SEA legs.

-While I absolutely loved this issue when it came out, it hasn't aged well. It's cool to see the entire team acting like a military force, but GI Joe wasn't an ordinary military force.

-I give it a boost of one Flag Point in the ratings, since this was the first Joe comic I ever read.

-Funny how the book that hooked me on GI Joe comics was one of the few not written by Larry Hama.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): The entire Joe team. Cobra Commander, Cobra flunkies
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, HAL, MMS, MOBAT, RAM
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): SRV, Cobra's amphibian tanks, SEA legs. GI Joe Aqua Chopper.

Firsties:
Vehicles (toys): MMS
Vehicles (not toys): SRV, Cobra's amphibian tanks, SEA legs. GI Joe Aqua Chopper.

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#9 "The Diplomat"
Writer: Steven Grant
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: After Stalker, Breaker and some un-detailed Joes raid a Cobra safehouse in Nebraska, they discover a tape threatening an assassiantion on a diplomat Brian Hassell. Hassell is a key figure in negotiations with an emisarry from the Middle Eastern country of Al-Alawi. Hawk assigns Stalker and Snake-Eyes to find more info on the assasination plot, while Scarlett and CLUTCH are assigned to protect Hassell. They save Hassell from several half-hearted attacks from Cobra. Scuba divers, car chases, plane crashes plane crashes and other vehicular hi-jinks. Following leads to London, Stalker walks into a trap and hears from a Cobra Commander hologram that Hassell is really a Cobra agent. Once again, Cobra isn't going the obvious route. Hassell reveals himself to Scarlett and Clutch right as the trio arrives at the Al-Alwai meeting in the French Alps. Cobra flunkies tie up the Joes and toss them in a shed while Hassell prepares for his meeting and assasination attempt. Of course, the Joes escape and Scarlett manages to make a dramatic last minute entry, via skiis, into the negotiations.Hassell still manages to pop a cap into the Al-Alawi emissary's gut... but the emissary was prepared and sporting a bullet-proof vest. Hassell is taken away as the rest of the Joes arrive. Meanwhile, back at Cobra Central, the Commander is flippant about the failure. He's simply amused that this "game" did not go his way.

Notes:
-Definitely more of a James Bond story than anything else. This type of story would've been featured in "Special Missions" if it was released after 1986.

-Scarlett first shadows Hassell on a beach in the French Riviera, wearing a bikini. It's a small panel and there's nothing cheescake-ish about it. But if this story were published today, it'd be a full-page spread.

-Fun scene where Clutch is buried in the sand, up to his neck. He saves Scarlett and Hassell from the Cobra scuba divers by popping out of the sand with a machine gun.

-Cobra Scuba Divers?! I suppose this could be the first appearance of the Eel division... but that's really stretching.

-Scarlett is strongly opposed to teaming up with Clutch-- the disgusting meatball who's been hitting on her. But Clutch is fairly straight-forward in his mission and doesn't flirt much.

-Regardless of the bikini, this story was probably when Scarlett began replacing Daphne from Scooby-Doo as my Most Favoritest Cartoon or Comic Chick. She really kicks ass in this story. Usually I'd shy away from female characters, since they were "icky girls", but I was okay with Scarlett as the lead, here.

-The Cobra soldiers all have the Cobra emblem on the side of their helmets. The emblem's not drawn correctly, either, as it looks more like a horseshoe.

-During their investigation to London, Stalker and Snake-Eyes encounter Derek Sutherland, head of Sutherland Munitions, a weapons supplier to Cobra. After reporting to Cobra Commander, Sutherland is shocked through a computer screen and dies. You could No-Prize this and say that Sutherland's death led Cobra to seek a NEW weapons supplier... presumably some guy with a silver mask and an appreciation for open shirts with medallions.

-Cobra Commander is again presented like Dr. Doom. He appears as a hologram and seems to have all sorts of deathtraps rigged through computers. He's a ruthless, scheming, calculating and competent villain. Makes you wonder why he began out-sourcing and bringing in clowns like Zartan or Dr. Mindbender.

-Not sure why Larry Hama was absent from the last two issues. He was doing alot of stuff for Marvel at the time, so deadlines are a strong possibility. But he returns next issue with some VERY interesting stuff, then uncorks a pretty big storyline for the next year or so. So I say the break definitely helped.

-The letters page has some interesting tidbits. First, the editor drops the fact that they're currently working on five 30-second animated commercials for the comic. If memory serves right, these would be issues 11, 14, 16, 18 and 19.

-Also in the letters page, a fan praises the book's futuristic and non-traditional approach to military comics, saying: "this is what war will be like in the future. The enemy will be terrorists".

-A final letter asks the editor which character is named "G.I.Joe". Grrrr! That's an easy way to piss off fans of the 80's line: ask them "which one is Joe?!"

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Stalker, Snake-Eyes, Breaker, Scarlett, Clutch, Cobra Commander
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Brian Hassell, the Al-Alwai emmissary.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): Surprisingly, none
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): A "Joe Plane"-- looks like a McDonnell Douglas X-36 experimental plane, with two sets of squared-off wings. They were actually first seen in Stalker's pin-up page in Issue #1. They wouldn't last long, since the SkyStriker would debut a few months later.

Firsties:
Vehicles (toys): None
Vehicles (not toys): The "Joe Plane"

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#10 "A Nice Little Town.."
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: The Joes have located another Cobra safehouse, this time it's an apartment building in midtown Manhattan. Zap, Scarlett and Snake-Eyes have the roof covered, while Stalker, Breaker and "Grunt" (wearing the Flash/Grand Slam get-up) are covering the sewers. Hawk, Clutch, Short-Fuze (also in Flash/Grand Slam get-up), Flash and Rock n' Roll are the main assault team in a concealed van. The Baroness learns of the attack, converts the top of the building into a giant aircraft and escapes with Zap, Scarlett and Snake-Eyes as her prisoners. All 3 are knocked out by gas and are taken...to Springfield! Zap and Scarlett awake in a cell and overcome their drug-enduced hallucinations with the help of their young cellmate, a kid named Billy. Meanwhile, Dr. Venom has taken Snake-Eyes in his lab to interrogate him about the location of G.I. Joe Headquarters. Using his Brainwave Scanner-- a device that projects images into and out of someone's brain-- he tries to break Snake-Eyes. Snake-Eyes resists by re-living past memories of his life, such as the helicopter accident that scarred him, his high school prom, his family being killed in a car crash, a veterans' funeral and the last chopper out of Saigon.

Back in the cell, Billy has helped Zap and Scarlett escape and gives them the nickel tour of Springfield. It was an ordinary town until the "soap people" arrived and began their pyramid scheme of selling cleaning products. Sales meetings soon became "indoctrination seminars" and soon the whole town was taken over. All of the buildings conceal Cobra hardware of some sort. Billy leads the Joes to a video arcade, in the basement of which is Dr. Venom's lab. While Zap and Scarlett fight junior CObra officers in the arcade, Venom presses harder on Snake-Eyes. Snake-Eyes "fakes" his own death by using the ancient ninja tactic of "the Way of the Anvil", where one can simulate death. As Venom's flunkies un-strap the "dead" Snake-Eyes, he springs to life, escapes the lab and rescues Zap, Billy and Scarlett.

The Joes and Billy quickly drive to Spiringfield Municipal Airport and comandeer the aircraft they arrived in. Billy remains behind, but Zap promises they'll be back to help. The Joes make it off the ground, but their captive Cobra pilot tries to plug bulletholes in them. Snake-Eyes uncorks a clip into the Cobra, but accidentally knocks out the ship's gauges. With no way of knowing where they are, the Joes fly around until they see New Jersey. They parachute onto the grand opening of the Bayonne Mall (sponsored by Marvel Comics, with a guy in a Hulk suit). The nice guys at Marvel spring for the Joes' busfare back to Staten Island.

Notes:
-Wow. This is THE issue that really established Cobra. Some dark humor (like the pyramid scheme), but it's frightening how Cobra is hiding in plain sight.

-Another wow, as this is the first time Snake-Eyes' history is mentioned. The glimpses are fascinating and show us that there's more to this mute bad-ass than just being a plain ol' bad-ass.

-This is also the first time the word "ninja" is used in the comics. For the first time, we're shown that Snake-Eyes trained as a ninja and isn't your typical enlistee.

-Very important comic, as all these elements would become the backbone of the entire series (even the Brainwave Scanner). It ends rather light-heartedly with the Hulk gag, but this is an intense issue. Absolutely essential.

-Billy appears to be about 12, but he talks like a 35-year old Rhodes Scholar. As we find out more about him, it makes sense that he'd be so smart, resourceful, determined and observant.

-The Brainwave Scanner actually bombards the subject's brain with countless images, then after a library is built up, it plays them out on a screen as it "reads" someone's mind. Later, the Brainwave Scanner would be altered and used for complete mind-control (but I think that was Dr. Mindbender's upgrade).

-The Brainwave Scanner display an image of a an apple, signifying that it's a product of Apple. See...talk about how evil microsoft is, but they were never used by Cobra. More proof to my theory that Apple is a bunch of evil douchebags. Of course, like all Apples, the Brainwave Scanner does a half-ass job. I'm surprised the thing didn't freeze up, causing Dr. Venom to stick a paperclip in a tiny hole in the side and re-start the piece of crap.

-The "laser trooper" mix-up is getting out of control. First they had the Grand Slam/Flash mix-up in issue 6, now they're drawing Short-Fuze and Grunt as laser troopers, too.

-When the Joes crash the Marvel grand opening, "Hulk" wonders aloud if Marsha Rosenburg booked them for the gig. I'm assuming she was some sort of Marvel publicist, but that same name was used about a year later as the identity of Volcana (from Secret Wars). Whoever Marsha was, she must've been an inside joke at the Marvel offices.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Stalker, Snake-Eyes, Breaker, Scarlett, Clutch, Rock n' Roll, Short Fuze, Zap, Flash, Cobra Commander
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Billy, Baroness, Dr. Venom

Vehicles and stuff (toys): Again, none
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): The Cobra aircraft, but you wouldn't expect that to ever be a toy.

Firsties:
Characters: Billy, Dr. Venom

Rating: 5 Flag Points

#11 "The Pipeline Ploy"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: The entire Joe team has been tracking Cobra activity along the Alaskan pipeline. Pinned down by Cobra forces, they receive reinforcements by helicopter, carrying new Joes Doc, Gung-Ho, Snow-Job and the Battle bear snowmobile. Rock n' Roll, Hawk and Snake-Eyes join up with the three new Joes to pursue the Cobras. Meanwhile, back in Springfield, Cobra Commander sends in his new top field commander-- a shadowy guy in black leather. Cobra is believed to be releasing a nerve toxin in the Alskan pipeline. The Joes break-in to a Cobra occupied pumphouse and are infected by the toxin. Snake-Eyes, Snow Job and Rock n' Roll take off on the Battle Bear to track down the antidote. Rock n' Roll is taken aback at Gung-Ho's grandstanding ways. Snow Job offers to set up Rock n' Roll with Gung-Ho's sister, a high-fashion model. Along the way, the Joes are attacked by Cobra Viper hang-gliders, but new Joe Airborne arrives in his own Flacon hang-glider to make the save. They encounter a nuclear power plant and learn that Cobra has stolen a supply of plutonium. Zap and another new Joe, Wild Bill, fly down to another pumphouse to maintain quarantine on the working crew. The other joes catch up to the pumphouse and notice that the tracks of a Cobra HISS tank end at the pumphouse's garage. The "crew" are revealed as Cobras and the nerve toxin, while real and lethal, was a ruse. The real objective was to steal the plutonium and send it out through the closed-off pipeline. The shadowy Cobra field commander is on hand to explain all this, but suddenly Doc attacks him with a snowball and manages to grab the antidote. While Cobra's plutonium heist is thwarted, the field commander escaped. The infected Joes all receive the antidote, while Snow Job reveals that he was conning Rock n' Roll. Gung-Ho's sister reall is a fashion model, but she's 9 years old. Snow Job was going to ask Rock n' Roll for 20 bucks to make the "date". Which is why he's called "Snow Job".

Notes:
-This issue essentially launched the second year of GI Joe. It also started a tradition, as every year there seemed to one issue that I called a "toy jam". An issue where they debut a whole buncha' new vehicles and figures. These were usually promoted with an animated TV commercial. The next "toy jam" probably occurs in issues 24 and 25.

-The commercial for this issue can be found in ZIP format HERE; http://joeguide.com/comics/issue11.shtml

-The shadowy field commander is only seen from the elbows down. Obviously, it was Destro, who always looked cool from
the elbows down and like an idiot from the elbows up.

-Baroness metions that she's already met Destro, much to the surprise of the Commander.

-Cobra Commander equates himself to General Flagg, and Destro to Hawk. So I guess Destro wasn't really brought in as the "Enemy Weapons Supplier". My bad. But since the HISS tanks arrive this issue, it's easy to fill in the blanks, behind the scenes, and assume Destro did indeed have a weaponry contract with Cobra.

-The first half of this story reads like a battlefield issue of "G.I. Combat". Hawk orders Doc, Gung-Ho and Snow Job to relieve the men on the firing line. Alot of battlefield strategy, with base camps, troop movement and other stuff. Probably the closest G.I.Joe got to being a traditional war comic.

-Doc is sent to the front line, but later he mentions that the Geneva Convention prohibits him from using a weapon. But...we didn't actually SEE Doc fire a weapon.

-All five of the new Joes are having their first encounter with the team. However, about 10 years later, Doc and Wild Bill were retconned into being on the mission that scarred Snake-Eyes' face. A big error, since in this issue, Doc tries to lift up Snake-Eyes' mask and has no idea why he's wearing one. You'd think if Doc really had been on that early mission, he would've remembered that Snake-Eyes was blasted in the mug and disfigured.

-Gung-Ho runs around, bare-chested, in the Alaskan snow. He also appears to have superhuman strength as he takes out a Cobra RPG squad with his fists. One of the first real "cartoony" elements of the book. The Joes started to become like the Smurfs in their second year: Gung-Ho was Hefty Smurf, Tripwire was Clumsy Smurf and I suppose Doc could even be Brainy Smurf.

-Wild Bill looks nothing like his distinctive apearance. He has a cowboy hat, that's it. When I first read this book, I thought he was just a "comic-only" character, used to fly a helicopter. I was surprised when I saw he was listed as an actual figure with the Dragonfly helicopter.

-Wild Bill's Dragonfly is nowhere to be found. The Joes fly around in regular Huey-ish helicopters.

-Funny fact about this issue: for years, Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide has listed this issue as "intro:Airborne". Yet all the other listings of the book have no mention of any new Joes or Cobras. Funny how, out of all the hundreds of new crap that debutted, Overstreet felt that Airborne's appearance was the only noteworthy citation of all 155 issues! Airborne was never a big character and had maybe ten lines after this.

-When Airborne meets the other Joes, he introduces himself as "William Talltree". Rock n' Roll asks if that's "Indian" and Airborne replies: "no, Native American".

-The HISS tanks make their first appearances. Immediately they're depicted as being larger than their toy counterparts. Six guys can fit on one and the cockpit looks to fit two. The HISS was a big, big item for the comics, cartoons and toys. They'll make countless appearances from now on.

-Another Snake-Eyes Bad Ass Moment: Hawk mentions that he sent him to get the antidote because "Snake-Eyes ALWAYS comes back".

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): The orginal 13 (most in background cameos). Snow Job, Gung-Ho, Wild Bill, Airborne, Doc, Cobra Commander, Destro (in shadows only).
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): None. A few nameless techs at the pumping stations.

Vehicles and stuff (toys): MOBAT, HAL (cameos only, all blown up), Polar Battle Bear, HISS tanks, Falcon Glider, Viper Glider
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): The generic helicopters.

Firsties:
Characters: Snow Job, Gung-Ho, Wild Bill, Airborne, Doc, Destro
Vehicles: Polar Battle Bear, HISS tanks, Falcon Glider, Viper Glider

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#12 " Three Strikes for Snake-Eyes"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: The Joes are once again pursuing a Cobra contingent. This time, it's in midtown San Francisco and the Cobras are escaping with a crate of missile guidance chips. Clutch, Scarlett and Breaker and pursuing a Cobra van with markings for the Naja Hanna video company.The van crashes and a scar-faced Cobra officer makes a break for it with a briefcase. The Joes chase him on foot, but Breaker runs into some bikers who start beating the crap out of him. The Cobra, Scar-Face, grazes Clutch in the knee and gets away. But Scar-Face let it slip that this whole caper wasn't just about guidance chips. The Joes survey the van wreckage and salvage part of a crate: adressed to "Senor K. Winn" of the Naja hanna Computer Corporation in Rio Lindo, Sierra Gordo. Later, Hawk and General Flagg meet beneath the Pentagon and decide to send in an undercover unit to Rio Lindo. Breaker and Stalker go in, disguised as business men in banana shorts, while Gung Ho and Snake Eyes wait in the treeline as support. Breaker and Stalker knock on the door of the Naja Hanna building and meet Dr. Venom. Their sham doesn't work, as Venom quickly exposes them as Joes and the shit hits the fan. Snake-Eyes had been watching from the trees and immediately stormed in when he saw Dr. Venom. Gung-Ho and Sanke-Eyes arrive to save the other two, but that's when "Senor K.Winn", otherwise known as Kwinn the Eskimo, appears with his Browning .50 Cal machine gun. Kwinn's currently working for Cobra and easily disarms the Joes. Stalker, Gung-Ho and Breaker and tied up and loaded onto a Cobra boat, while Dr. Venom pistol-whips Snake-Eyes. Believing he's killed Snake-Eyes, Venom tosses him into the Naja Hanna building and lights it on fire. The Cobra boat then motors up the river to a fortified island bunker. Halfway there, Venom realizes that Snake-Eyes has tricked him, once again, with that "fake death" thing. After some antagonistic words with Kwinn, Venom arrives at the Cobra bunker, to conduct a toxin exchange between Scar-Face and the Baroness. Cobra has a bio-terror plot to ferret out the location of the Joe HQ. The Joes in the boat break their bonds and prepare to storm the bunker, when Snake-Eyes suddenly appears and orders them to finish the mission and get the chips back to HQ. The Baroness flies away in a sea plane, leaving Kwinn, Venom and Snake-Eyes on the island. Venon is about to shoot Kwinn in the back, but Snake-Eyes jumps Venom and starts beating the living shit of the doctor. The Baroness fires a missile at the escaping Joes (who jump overboard and avoid it), then doubles back and bombs the bunker. Kwinn appeared to be pushing both Venom and Snake-Eyes into the bunker.. but it appears to the three Joes that Snake-Eyes is really gone, this time.

Notes:
-Once again, Kwinn likes to narrate everything.

-This was a big cliifhanger ending and it kicked off the 7 issue "toxin" storyline. That helps the rating a bit.

-It's not a person or thing, but this is the first appearance and mention of Sierra Gordo, the consummate Cental American country that was under constant revolution. Stories would often take place there in the future, as it became a fairly significant part of the "Joe Universe".

-Stalker appears to be crying when they realize that Snake-Eyes is dead. While they partnered up before, this is the first sign that they might be good buddies in addition to teammates (they served together in Vietnam).

-Stalker still uses his "Dag!" catchphrase. He's kinda' like Ron Simmons.

-Snake-Eyes orders the Joes to complete the mission, or "Charlie Mike" if you remember the later issues from 1993.

-Once again, Snake-Eyes is unmasked, but we only see his face in silhouette form. He appears to make his way upriver unmasked, but at the end of the issue he's wearing his trademark mask again.

-During the chase in San Francisco, the Joes and Cobras crash through a punk rocker's car. He was listening to a radio program that was airing "live coverage of Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics trashing a car". Hilarious. So he's overjoyed when HIS car is smashed apart.

-Kwinn has his weasel skull necklace. Guess he has a bunch of them, since a big part of issue #2 was the fact that he left the necklace on the ice as an offering to the gods.

-Baroness refers to Dr. Venom as a traitor. Okay..but I'm trying to figure out how he betrayed Cobra. He will, later, but right now they wouldn't have a beef with him.

-When the Baroness strafes the Joes in her seaplane, the Joes try to shoot it down with machine guns. Breaker complains: "that only works for Sgt. Granite of Difficult Company"-- referring to the Sgt. Rock concept of blowing up anything with a machine gun.

-Stalker and Breaker were undercover trying to buy video games from the Naja Hanna Computer Corporation. Since it was 1983, everyone thought the only thing computers were good for was playing video games.

-Kwinn calls Snake-Eyes "Shadow Man", his pet name for him. He also refers to Venom's "weasel" qualities.

-Kwinn's contract seemed to be providing security for the Cobra transaction. Nothing more. Once that happened and the Baroness is airborne, he was off the clock and on his own.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Clutch, Breaker, Stalker, Gung-Ho, Snake-Eyes, Cobra Commander (cameo)
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Dr. Venom, Kwinn, Baroness, General Flagg

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): None.

Firsties:
Characters: Scar-Face (comic only)
Vehicles: None

Rating: 4 Flag Points

#13- "Last Plane from Rio Lindo"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: Stalker, Breaker and Gung Ho dig in and try to find their way back home. Stalker is attacked by a Croc, but kills it after some humorous narration. The Joes set up camp in an abandoned CObra installation, while Gung Ho sneaks into town and radioes the Pit. Hawk sends in an extraction team of Grunt, Rock n' Roll, Scarlett, Doc and Torpedo. Torpedo swims down to the bunker and sees that it's still intact. Meanwhile, Stalker and Breaker are being observed by a group of merenaries, in town for the revolution festivities. The mercs meet another team of vagabonds, but this group is actually made up of disguised Cobras. The Cobras slowly take out the "regular" mercs, then move into the old installation. The Joes outsmart them with trenches and traps, then meet up with the exraction team. They all fight their way to the Rio Lindo airport, where Hawk and the C-130 scoop them up in dramatic fashion.

Back in Springfield, Destro reveals all kinds of plot swerves-- Scar-Face was under hynpotic suggestion and the toxin was another red herring. Cobra wanted the Joes to find a briefcase in the abandoned installation. But unbeknowst to Cobra Commander, Destro had Scar-Face switch the planted information, to something that will lead to Destro's own goals. As the issue ends, we "hear" a tapping coming from inside the sunken bunker.

Notes:
-This is the first time Destro is shown, fully. It's a scene with the Baroness, where he reveals he's doing all of this for her.

-Destro also requests that she call him by is "new name" of Destro. Kinda' weird, since he found out years later that his full name was "James MacCullen Destro". Maybe just going by "Destro" was new, but going by a last name is hardly unusual.

-Fun scene where the Joes all pile into a taxi cab for their escape and joke around a little bit.

-Scarlett is upset that they're in Rio Lindo to rescue "three Joes". She is visibly shaken that Snake-Eyes is "dead".

-Everyone accepts the fact that Snake-Eyes is "dead" and moves on. One of the solider aspects that Hama would play up.

You respect your fallen comrades, but not at the expense of your job as a soldier. Being a solider and following orders always comes first.

-The mercs mention that they were kicked out of the French foreign legion. Their names are "Emil" and "Richter". More Devil's Due fodder.

-Gung-Ho sneaks into town in the back of a pig truck, then recruits a taxi driver on the way back. Before they leave, they make sure to give him a generous tip, all in American $100 bills.

-This issue has one of my favorite covers. The Joes driving into the C-130, while blasting at their pursuers through the rear windows.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Breaker, Stalker, Gung-Ho, Rock n' Roll, Grunt, Doc, Torpedo, Cobra Commander , Destro,
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face

Vehicles and stuff (toys): none
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): C-130 transport

Firsties:
Characters: Torpedo
Vehicles: None

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#14- "Destro Attacks"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary:
In the sunken bunker, Snake-Eyes, Kwinn and Dr. Venom are shown to be alive and well! They work together to escape the bunker, but Dr. Venom cracks Kwinn's head with a wrench. The left-over Cobra "mercenaries" from last issue hold Snake-Eyes and Venom at gunpoint.

Back at the Pit, the Joes have dissected the planted information they found last issue. Specifically a micro-dot on a document that contained a map to Springfield, Vermont. The Joes mobilize to Springfield to check it out. Meanwhile, Cobra Commander and the Baroness have departed for Vermont to perform an experiment with Dr. Venom's toxin.

In Cobra Central, Destro reveals his switcheroo: he ordered the micro-dot map switched with legitimate information, so the Joes would go to Vermont and capture the Commander. Destro freaks when he realizes that the Baroness is piloting the Commander there. Destro quickly assembles a team of Cobra para-troopers and races to Vermont. CC and the Baroness inject a Cobra volunteer with Venom's toxin, but he quickly drops dead-- Dr. Venom didn't give Cobra the full serum!

Destro's troops arrive and engage the Joes in a quick firefight outside the Arbco Furniture Company. Cobra Commander and the Baroness fly away, Destro escapes and Ace (in the Skystriker) bombs the Furniture Company. Scar-Face mistakenly believes that Destro trekked all that way to save the Commander.

Notes:
-In escaping the bunker, Kwinn channels the "Spirit of the otter" (to swim), the "Spirit of the bear" (for strength) and the "spirit of the weasel" (to outwit or out-weasel Dr. Venom).

-Destro reveals that he has leverage over Scar-Face because he knows all the "secrets of his (Scar-Face's) past". We were never told of Scar-Face's past, so there's probably a shitty "Scar-Face; Declassified" on the horizon. *fart*

-Stalker sure recovered quickly from that croc attack, as he and Gung Ho scout the town of Springfield on foot. (The croc had bitten Stalker in the leg).

-First time we've seen "Arbco", an anagram of Cobra. It would be re-used countless times throughout the series. Strange that the Joes would conveniently forget this fact after this issue.

-Important to note that this "Springfield" was NOT the main "Springfield". Alot of fans were confused and just assumed that this was. Wouldn't make sense that the Cobras would FLY there, if it was.

-The Cobra paratroopers all have special logos on their helmets: the Cobra insignia with little wings on it.

-The original micro-dot map (the Commander's version) placed the location of "Cobra Central" as being under the Chaplain's Assistant School in Ft. Wadsworth--the Joes' home base. One of those funny coincidences that Hama liked to use.

-Once again, we're shown the Commander's favorite hobby: target shooting with a machine gun.

-The Joes actually take a transport chopper to Vermont. Piloted by Wild Bill, it picks them up on a baseball diamond. The Joes drive the APC onto the field and interrupt a game between the Chaplain's Assistants and the Permanent Latrine Orderlies. Funny.

-Clutch continues his little adversarial/flirtatious riff with Scarlett.

-Ace appears to be leading a squadron of 4 Skystrikers.

-This issue was promoted with a TV commercial. The footage of which would be re-used for toy commercials for Destro, the Skystriker and the APC. The toy commercial started another tradition: whatever new Cobra character or thingie was introduced, it was always worked into the song as "a dangerous new foe..... (dum-dum)..of G.I. Joeeeee!".

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Breaker, Stalker, Gung-Ho, Doc, Rock n' Roll, Grunt, Zap, Clutch, Wild Bill, Ace, Cobra Commander , Destro,
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face

Vehicles and stuff (toys): APC, Skystriker
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): Cobra "pogo plane"

Firsties:
Characters: Ace
Vehicles: Skystriker, APC

Rating: 3 Flag Points

I kinda' got #14 and 15 mixed up... but here we go.

#15- Red Eye to Miami
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: Kwinn emerges from the water in "Apocalypse Now" fashion and saves Snake-Eyes and Dr. Venom from the Cobra "mercs". All three continue their uneasy alliance. Snake-Eyes starts beating the crap out of Dr. Venom after the mercs are disposed of. But Kwinn halts the attack, saying they need Venom's piloting skills to get out of Sierra Gordo. They sneak into the Rio Lindo airfield and comandeer an old WW2 bomber. Venom flies them to Miami and they encounter a few obstacles along the way. Most prominently, Venom tries to eject Kwinn and Snake-Eyes through the bomb doors.

In Springfield/Cobra Central, Cobra Commander is aware of Destro's double-cross from last issue. So he brings in a new mercenary to kill Destro-- one Major Bludd. In a darkened corner, Destro reveals his wonderful plans to kill Cobra Commander, take over Cobra and shtoink the Baroness. She's torn between his romantic commitment and her loyalty to the Commander.

In the bomber, Venom discreetly radioes Cobra Central to inform them that he'll be in Miami, and that he has the missing ingredient to the toxin. The three crash their bomber on Miami Beach and are immediately surrounded by a horde of cops. Kwinn and Snake-Eyes are taken into custody, but Cobra Legal Troopers have already arrived and arranged for Dr. Venom's safe release.

Notes:
-The cover incorrectly depicts Dr. Venom and Kwinn as being in cahoots.

-Only one scene with the other Joes this month. In the Pit, Hawk, Stalker and Breaker and examining some of the wreckage they salvaged from the Arbco Furniture Company. Nothing too substantial, except alot of printing ink. Hmmm...

-The Cobra "mercs" are led by a black guy. Strange, because I don't think a black officer was EVER seen in Cobra again. Obviously, it would've been somewhat controversial to have a black man be part of the "evil, terrorist organization".

-Funny how Dr. Venom is still wearing his tie and lab-coat through everything. His tie never comes undone or loose in all the action.

-This issue feels VERY "Marvel-y". The stuff with the bomber and the three guys' plight to Miami feels like any non-superhero Marvel story of the time.

-The bomber buzzes a smuggler ship off the coast of Florida. The smugglers freak and break out a machine gun. They blast parts of the bomber, but the plane's fuel starts leaking and a muzzle flash ignites a massive explosion. Of course, the smugglers made sure to narrate all of this for us. One of Hama's techniques, as he would use dialogue to a very informative extent.

-Baroness mentions that she owes Cobra Commander too much. It was never revealed how or why she felt this way. So yup, a shitty "Baroness; Declassified" is probably in the queue.

-After Kwinn and Snake-Eyes survive Dr. Venom's bomb door trap, Kwinn wants to toss Venom out. Snake-Eyes stops him and Kwinn gets off one of the best lines of the entire series: "A man who whips his dogs will pull his own sled, one day".

-The bomber crashes into Miami Beach is fun. A geriatric couple is sunbathing and watching the whole thing. Everyone on the beach runs as the bomber approaches, but they never flinch. Finally, the wife gets pissed when the bomber stops in front of them and sand is tossed into her drink.

-The next issue blurbs promises: "someone will DIE in the Night Attack!".

-This was the last GI Joe comic I bought for awhile. I still wanted to read 'em, but around this time comics became very hard to find in my town. Waldenbooks and Safeway both stopped selling them. Sure, there were comic stores on the other end of town, but I wouldn't find out about those for another 6 months or so (and when I did... uh-oh, there went my life).

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Snake-Eyes, Scarlett, Breaker, Stalker, Cobra Commander , Destro, Major Bludd

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face, Kwinn, Dr. Venom

Vehicles and stuff (toys): none
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): old WW2 planes

Firsties:
Characters: Major Bludd
Vehicles: none

Rating: 2 Flag Points

#16- "Night Attack"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: The VAMP, RAM, MOBAT and (new) Dragonfly are running through Hawk's robotic training course/target range, when the new Wolverine tank makes its debut. Along with its driver, Cover Girl and new explosives expert/mine detector, Tripwire.

Cobra has plans to poison US currency with Dr. Venom's toxin, but they've already sent in a threat to attack the US Capitol. General Flagg calls up several divisions of the Army to guard the Capitol, but Hawk insists they're wrong. The Joes, on their own, are left to guard the US Treasury Building. Cobra sends a fake fleet of remote-controlled toys to the Capitol, while they break into the Treasury. The Joes are there to meet them and fun ensues. The Wolverine saves the Joes' bacon, but things quickly hit the fan. Scar-Face runs off on foot, while two HISS tanks attack the Wolverine.

Destro and Cobra Commander are in one HISS, with Major Bludd and the Baroness in another. As planned, Major Bludd aims his turret at Destro. The Baroness realizes this and crashes her HISS to save Destro. Her HISS bursts into flames, but Major Bludd escapes. Hawk, Clutch and Scarlett arrive in the VAMP to chase the last HISS. Hawk jumps onboard the HISS and starts pummeling Cobra Commander. Destro, in a daze since seeing the Baroness barbequed, suddenly comes to and dukes it out with Hawk. Cobra Commander debates on who to shoot.... but plugs three shots into Hawk. Hawk drops to the ground as the HISS gets away.

Notes:
-Remember: "Someone will DIE". But nobody did. Baroness was thought to be dead (since she had no action figure, yet), but she survives. As we find out next issue, Hawk had the foresight to wear a bulletproof vest, on advice from General Flagg.

-Actually, it seemed like Hawk might croak. Around this time (late summer 1983), a few GI Joe vehicles had a special mail-in coupon in their boxes for the new "GI Joe Top Sergeant, Duke". I had sent mine in, already. It was part of a tie-in for the soon-to-debut GI Joe cartoon, in which Duke was prominently featured (in place of Hawk, no less). Since I missed this issue (and several after it), I was going by the "someone will DIE" teaser, put two and two together and figured Hawk had bought it.

-This issue does a good job of mixing plot with toy tie-ins. The Wolverine and Dragon-Fly debut, but they're worked in well. This issue was also promoted with another TV commercial (which was, in turn, modified to sell HISS and Wolverine toys).

-Scarlett seems a little abrasive towards Cover Girl. Saying "let's see how she holds up in a real fight". Scarlett had been the "alpha female" of the team (or Smurfette), but for the first time she's not the only broad around. This rivalry was never continued, though.

-Hilarious scene inside the treasury building. Gung-Ho and Tripwire are there...but so is TORPEDO, in full scuba gear! Flippers and all. "We're going to Washington DC...quick, get your flippers!!"

-Cobra moves into Washington under the disguise of "Arbco Moving Company" trucks.

-The Army forces at the Capitol are all cited as being from real establishments. Fort Dix, etc.

-Again, it seems like the poisoning scheme wasn't the real motive. Cobra Commander just wanted to get Destro in a combat situation so Bludd could kill him.

-The Wolverine gets slammed into by a HISS tank. Remember this for next issue, when the Wolverine pops up in perfect working condition.

-Cover Girl was supposed to be a fashion model and all, but Mike Vosburg draws her like a 40 year old school teacher. Come to think of it, he did this with all of his women, as Scarlett looks to be pushing 40 as well.

-Poisoning the US currency is a very realistic terrorist plot. In fact, on 9/11, I thought of this story. At the time, I worked three blocks away from the US Mint in Denver and was afraid that it might be targeted. After all, they were attacking symbols of US commerce and government. I was at home, but called everyone at the office and told them to go home, due to our proximity to the Mint. Of course, around 2pm I calmed down and actually went into the office.

-Tripwire's a klutz (akin to Clumsy Smurf) and drops his backpack of landmines into Rock n' Roll's hands. Tripwire says: "Them's mines!" Rock n' Roll says: "I know they're yours, but what is this? A carrying case for over-sized hockey pucks?!".

-This issue marked new cover decoration for all Marvel titles. The long "Marvel Comics Group" banner that stretched across the top was dropped and transformed into a bold face "MARVEL" typeface that sat in the corner box. Small modifications to the issue and cover price boxes, too.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Breaker, Gung-Ho, Rock n' Roll, Zap, Clutch, Torpedo, Wild Bill, Airborne, Steeler, Cobra Commander, Destro, Major Bludd
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face, Dr. Venom, General Flagg

Vehicles and stuff (toys):VAMP, RAM, MOBAT, Dragonfly, Wolverine, HISS
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): none

Firsties:
Characters: Tripwire, Cover Girl
Vehicles: Wolverine, Dragon-fly

Rating: 4 Flag Points

#17 "Loose Ends"
Writer: Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary: Picking up immediately frm last last issue, the Joes attend to Hawk. Hawk had the foresight to wear a bulletproof vest, but is still taken to Bethesda Hospital. Gung-Ho beats the crap out a frustrated commuter's car as Hawk is arlifted away in the Dragonfly. Somewhere on the Jersey turnpike, Major Bludd hi-jacks a bus and runs a toll booth. Stalker and Grand Slam give chase on the RAM. Grand Slam, in his only notable action of the ENTIRE SERIES, jumps into the bus and beats the shit out of Bludd. Meanwhile, Destro, Cobra Commander and Dr. Venom are driving their HISS along another highway. They radio for a Cobra transport plane, eluding a group of Joes who had been pursuing them in the APC (and towing the new Whirlwind cannon). Kwinn and Snake-Eyes escape from their Miami jailcell and take a pink cadillac in search of Scar-Face. Kwinn reasons that Scar-Face will know where Dr. Venom is. In Cobra Central, Destro enlists a Cobra pilot to fly him to Coney Island-- where Scar-Face used to hang out. Kwinn and Snake-Eyes are also on their way to Coney Island. Scar-Face buys a bus ticket to Coney Island. Next issue: Coney Island!

Notes:
-Transitional issue, as they're just filling in the gaps from last issue.

-After getting his ass handed to him by Grand Slam, Major Bludd is taken to Bethesda, where he's put in the same room as Hawk. In another of those fun Hama coincedences, the crispy crittered Baroness is also brought to Bethesda. We don't see it, but both become prisoners of the Joes.

-Cobra Commander convinces Destro that Major Bludd wasn't acting under the Commander's orders while trying to kill Destro... Bludd was simply infatuated with the Baroness and wanted to eliminate his rival. Destro, like a complete meatball, buys this.

-Gung-Ho agains uses his SuperHuman Cajun Powers by completely demolishing the commuter's car with his bare hands. Also, he was torqued off that it was a "Cobra" (the model, not the terrorists)

-The rest of the Joes from the Treasury fight show up at Hawk's shooting on the Wolverine--- completely intact despite the fact that it was run-over and totalled by a HISS tank last issue (or roughly 15 minutes ago in "comic time").

-Cool page where Mike Vosburg draws a collage of Destro and the Baroness.

-Wow, I've been to DC a few times and even though this was early morning, the characters were extremely fortunate to have almost no gridlock on the roads! Especially Cobra, they just drive their HISS tank down the interstate like it's no big deal.

-Scar-Face was also on the bus that Bludd hi-jacked. Bludd recognized him, but Stakler and Grand Slam apparently didn't. Scar-Face was staying low-key by covering himself in a trenchcoat.

-Stalker and Grand-Slam were hiding beyond the tollbooth like a pair of state troopers. Seems ridiculous. A No-Prize might reason that they just happened to be stationed there, providing back-up for last issue's operations. Since coindecences were a big part of this issue, I'll buy that.

-A doctor at Bethesda was another Cobra agent. He calls in the status of the Baroness and Major Bludd to Cobra Commander.

-Kwinn and Snake-Eyes escape their jailcell with a hidden saw blade in Kwinn's boot.

-Snake-Eyes had a $100 bill stashed in his costume and they used it to enter a low stakes back alley gambling game. The dice game is "snake-eyes" and a few pages later, we see the duo walking away with the gamblers' pink cadillac. Snake-Eyes was apparently a good gambler, always a trait of a bad ass. Perhaps the only real explanation we ever had for his code name.

-One of the gamblers remarks that Snake-Eyes is laughing. Fans complained that this was impossible since Snakes was mute. But, it's possible to laugh without using your vocal chords. Just expelling air through your nose rapidly can be interpretted as laughing.

-Just to be a dick, Snake-Eyes also took the gambler's cowboy hat.

-Kwinn has his weasel skull necklace back, despite being stripped of it by the cops in issue 15.

-Grand Slam should've been on the cover, but it looks more like Short-Fuse. No "laser trooper" gear. Poor Grand Slam, his only time to shine with a cover appearance and he gets shafted.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Breaker, Ace, Clutch, Stalker, Gung-Ho, Grunt, Doc, Torpedo, Cobra, Tripwire, Wild Bill, Airborne, Short-FUse, Zap, Flash, Cover Girl, Rock n' Roll, Grunt, Cobra Commander , Destro,
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face, Dr. Venom

Vehicles and stuff (toys): RAM, APC, VAMP, Wolverine, Dragonfly, HISS, FANG, Whirlwind, Skystriker
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): Cobra transport copter

Firsties:
Characters: none
Vehicles: FANG, Whirlwind

Rating: 2 Flag Points

You don't suppose they're gonna run into the Warriors at Coney, do you?

"Co-braaa, come out and play-ay......."

But, in all seriousness, good work on this, E.

Then they'd have to bop their way back to Staten Island, while dodging the Lizzies, Orphans, Turnbull ACs, Baseball Furies and the RIFF!

Yeah, I always think of The Warriors whenever I hear or see Coney Island.

"Can you dig it?!"

The cartoon voice for Destro DOES sound similar to Cyrus....


#18- "Destro Returns"
Writer; Larry Hama
Penciller: Mike Vosburg

Summary:
Hawk and the Joes are floating the APC (remember kids, it's AMPHIBIOUS) to Coney Island. Seems that none other than Snake-Eyes has sent them a postcard about where to find Scar-Face (wow, postcards move QUICK in the Joe Universe!) For no good reason, Rock n' Roll and Torpedo break out the new MANTA windsurfer on the way to Coney. Scar-Face arrives at the old utility shed he used to live in, just as Destro is dropped off on the top of the rollercoaster. Snake-Eyes and Kwinn break into the shed first and question Scar-Face, while Destro and the Joes have a firefight. Kwinn and Snake-Eyes disappear, but Scar-Face tries to escapes in their pink Cadillac. Destro takes off after Scar-Face and comandeers an ICE CREAM TRUCK!! After a chase through Coney, Destro and Scar-Face hijack a plane from JFK to Libya. Cobra Commander and Dr. Venom board a supersonic transport and meet Destro and Scar-Face in Libya. Scar-Face is instantly injected with Venom's plague toxin, much to his regret.

Cobra heads off on a convoy to Mizda, but the Joes arrive and inflitrate the convoy under cover of dust. Hawk captures Scar-Face and the Joes are chopper-lifted out. The Cobras rejoice as their plan has worked-- a captured, plague-infected Scar-Face will ferret out the location of G.I. Joe HQ.

Notes:
-Titled "Destro Returns", but was he gone?! This issue had a TV commercial that emphasized Destro and it was used to "push" him.

-The Cobra convoy is made of HISS tanks, Cobra motorcycles with sidecars and "utility jeeps"-- the Cobra answer to the VAMP. I figure these were the prototypes of the "Stinger" jeeps and were coincidentally drawn into the comic. The only differences are that they don't have the folding doors and have a machine gun mount instead of a missile launcher.

-This issue was released right as the cartoon was debutting. In fact, I'm pretty sure I remember seeing the commercial the first time I ever saw the cartoon.

-The MANTA makes its only appearance in the series. It was an exclusive mail-in premium. Yup, I already had mine at the time.

-The car chase on Coney makes an homage to "The French Connection".

-Snake-Eyes' postcard includes a hidden postscript, "for Scarlett's eyes only". Awww.....really, I always thought that was sweet. We don't see what it says, though.

-Seeing Scar-Face's old home is very depressing. A single bed, in a shed, with a table full of junk. You start to feel bad for the guy. BUt it's next door to a roller-coaster, so that'd be kinda' cool, right?!

-Torpedo, who was never met Snake-Eyes asks Rock n' Roll about him. Rock n' Roll says that he's "really sweet. Ask him to show you his collection of spike-knuckled trench-knives sometime".

-Torpedo misses the flight to Libya because he has to run back and colect the MANTA from some beach bunnies. Rock n' Roll mentions that he's "probably getting down to some heavy manuevers in the sand".

-Pretty cool that Rock n' Roll, the guitar-playing surfer from SoCal got to pilot the MANTA.

-With the appearance of the C-130 transport plane, I had assumed that a toy version of it was not far off. They never released one, but it makes perfect sense. Such a toy would've been huge and massively out-of-scale.

-Airborne continues his role as the gunner of the Dragonfly. He had the same role in issue 16. Whenever we see the Dragonfly from now on, it can be assumed Airborne's in the gunner's seat.

-Kinda' weird how Libya is suddenly sandwiched in. The Libyan government welcomes Cobra with open-arms as "fellow freedom fighters". Libya was giving the US some real-world heat at this time, so that'd fit with the theme.

-No mention is made of what happened to the hostages aboard Destro's hi-jacked flight. You'd think the Joes would be going to Libya to save the hostages, but they're just going to get Scar-Face.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): Hawk, Scarlett, Stalker, Clutch, Rock n' Roll, Torpedo, Airborne, Wild Bill, Ace, Grunt, Flash, Snake-Eyes, Cobra Commander, Destro

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Dr. Venom, Kwinn, Scar-Face
Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, APC, RAM, DragonFly, Skystriker, MANTA, HISS, Stinger (as "utility jeep")
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): Cobra sidecar cycles. GI Joe C-140 transport plane. G.I. Joe sub.

Firsties:
Characters: none
Vehicles: MANTA, Stinger

Rating: 3 Flag Points

Point of interest: Hasbro and MonkeyBarTV currently have the first three issues of the series avalable for viewing.

Find 'em HERE

They also have a "videos" section which features a few of the old 1985 cartoons. I recommend "Cold Slither" (the Dreadnoks SING) and "The Great Alaskan Land Rush" (October Guard!!)


#19 "Joe Triumphs!"
Writer: Larry Hama
Layouts: Mike Vosburg
Finishes: Jon D'Agostino

Summary: Hawk surmises that the infected Scar-Face wasn't supposed to kill the Joes, rather expose G.I. Joe HQ by generating a high-profile quarantine order. The Joes fake a "quarantine" at Ft. Wadsworth by sending all the Chaplain's Assistants on a retreat to the Presidio. Expecting an attack, the Joes begin building their "pre-fab fortress" on the Pit's garage level. Later, they'll push it up to the ground level and make Cobra believe that G.I. Joe HQ is on the surface. Hawk orders Major Bludd and the Baroness to be transferred to Ft. Wadsworth, as well.Cobra does in fact pick up the "quarantine" via radar and begins their attack.

Meanwhile, Kwinn and Snake-Eyes have tracked Dr. Venom to his Brooklyn wharf lab. They grab Venom, but the cobra assault force (with Destro and Cobra Commander) arrives to save him. Kwinn and Snake-Eyes are placed into Venom's new SNAKE battlesuits, which also mind control their subject. Cobra stages a full frontal attack on Ft. Wadsworth. The Joes fend them off and Snake-Eyes overcomes the SNAKE's mind control. Dr. Venom shoots a freed Kwinn in the back, but a grenade rolls out of Kwinn's hand and kills Dr. Venom. A Cobra sabotuer lands on the roof of the pre-fab fortress and plants a bomb. Major Bludd escapes, kills General Flagg and takes the heavily-bandaged Baroness with him on the sabotuer's FANG copter. The pre-fab fortress explodes and Cobra retreats, thinking they've won. Scar-Face dies in the explosion. Snake-Eyes is reuinited with the team, but the deaths of Flagg and Kwinn have put a damper on things.

Notes:
-Big, big blow-out issue. This came out in the fall of 1983, right in time for the Christmas season. Amazingly, almost ALL of the Joe and Cobra vehicles are included. Hmmmm...

-I mark this as the unofficial end of the second year of G.I. Joe. Although, the start of the third year doesn't occur until issue #21

-This issue was the final of the five promised TV commercials from #9. It was re-worked to sell the GI Joe HQ toy (which absolutely sucked, by the way)

-With this issue, Marvel has completed their task of working EVERY GI Joe/Hasbro toy of the first two years into the comic (with the exception of the FLAK). They even managed to work in the GI Joe's HQ jail cell. From this point on, Marvel would do their best to work in as much as they could, but several new toys and figures were often skipped over. (most notably: Scrap-Iron, whose debut ocurred almost two years after his figure hit the shelves).

-For once, the Joes are the ones doing the subterfuge, with their ruses of the "quarantine" and the ground-level fortress.

-Kwinn was going to make Dr Venom swallow a grenade, but felt that his insane lust for vengeance meant that the "weasel spirit" was within him (Kwinn). One of the recurring themes of the series: that the lust for vengeance can ruin your life.

-Scar-Face comes clean on the toxin plan to the Joes: he figures he's a dead duck anyways

-Hardest thing to justify in this issue is the battle itself. It takes place on what looks to be a completely deserted Staten Island (although the skyline of Manhattan is drawn in the distance). The other elements of Ft. Wadsworth, like the water towers and barracks are not seen. Unless the entire battle took place on exactly 100 yards, it's tought to believe that no civilians on the heavily populated Staten Island noticed anything. Especially tough when, about a year later, we're shown the entrance to Ft. Wadsworth and see that it's located RIGHT NEXT DOOR to suburban homes!

-The pre-fab fortress has a roof on it, something its toy counterpart did not.

- I don't think any fans were upset that Gen. Flagg was killed. He hadn't really played into any plots since issue 5 and with Duke on the way, he was redundant. Also didn't help that no action figure was planned or expected. Hawk had been calling the shots for well over a year and Flagg had become more of an obstacle than a "leader" (see issue 16).

-I've always considered the SNAKE armor as the prototype for the BATs. Again, you could guess that Dr. Mindbender expanded on Venom's original designs.

-The Joes plant claymore mines under a string of ambulances. Short-Fuse mutters that it must be against the Geneva convention to do so. Trip-Wire tells him "most weapons carried by the average police officer are against the Geneva convention."

-I don't believe that the PAC/RATS and the SNAKE armor were ever seen again.

-Cobra Commander almost lets it slip to Destro that the Baroness isn't dead.

-It had been almost a year (issue 8) since the entire team was involved in a full-scale battle with all their gear and vehicles.

-Trip-wire is mistakenly called "Torpedo" in one panel.

-Hilarious opening scene with Snow-Job complaining to Doc about the way Gung-Ho switches his Cajun accent on and off. Doc replies with a combo of eubonics and medical terminology.

-Here's another realization on the "GI Joe is Smurfs" connection: for the first two years of the comics, Cobra has been trying to find G.I Joe HQ... the same way Gargamel's sole motive was to find the Smurf Village (well, until years later when he discovered Smurfs could be cooked into gold).

-This issue has a profile page of Snake-Eyes! I had forgotten all about that...so my earlier comments about the profiles not returning "for about six years" was false.

-The next issue box promises an "unusual tale by Larry Hama"-- obviously the famous "Silent issue". But, as we'll see, issue 20 was not written by Hama and has dialogue. The "Silent Issue" is #21.

-This was released in Marvel's infamous "assitant editors' month". Alot of Marvel titles had cheeky shenanigans that month, like running "Aunt May & Franklin Richards vs. Galactus" in Marvel Team-up or having the Avengers appear on Late Night with David Letterman. No chicanery present in this title, except for the cover's corner box: instead of the usual shot of Grunt, it's a shot of assitant editor Linda Grant in a helmet, with explosions about. I didn't know it was Grant until recently--I had always assumed it was Scarlett.

Appearances:
Characters (with figures): The entire Joe Team: Hawk, Scarlett, Breaker, Stalker, Gung-Ho, Grunt, Rock n' Roll, Grunt, Doc, Torpedo, Snake-Eyes, Flash, Grand Slam, Zap, Short-Fuse, Torpedo, Wild Bill, Airborne, Ace, Steeler, Snow Job, Clutch. Cobra Commander, Major Bludd, Destro

Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Baroness, Scar-Face, General Flagg

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, MOBAT, RAM, APC, Wolverine, PAC/Rats (3), DragonFly, Skystriker, GI Joe HQ ("Pre-Fab Fortress"), SNAKE, HISS, FANG
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): maybe some Cobra transport copters.

Firsties:
Characters: none
Vehicles: PAC/Rats, SNAKE, GI Joe HQ ("Pre-Fab Fortress")

Rating: 4 Flag Points

#20- "Home is Where the WAR Is!"
Writer: Steven Grant
Penciller: Geof Isherwood

Summary:
Clutch, excited at his upcoming furlough, enthusiastically leads a squad through a training course. Clutch arrives back home in "Jersey"(presumably Asbury Park) and meets his old buddy, Billy Kline. Billy now works for Watash Automotive as an industrial big-wig. Clutch is invited to stay at the plant and soon finds out that its run by Cobra, who have taken Kline's wife and kid hostage. A group of Cobras capture Clutch, then sends him into the sky with what Kline was designing for them; a slim fanny pack-sized jetpack. Clutch survives then calls in a few favors. First, he visits his old shop teacher, Mr. Vilsky and rigs up a B.A. Barracus worthy armored car. He saves Mrs. Kline and the junior Kline, then calls in the Joes to raid the factory. After a goofy scuffle and a mid-air jetpak duel, Clutch decides that he'd rather return to active duty.

Notes:
-Complete filler garbage. I hated this issue as a kid and I hate it now. Big disappointment, since Clutch was fairly popular. I'd speculate that this story was originally slated to run in "Assitant Editor's Month", but due to scheduling and the big "toxin" storyline, it was pushed back a month.

-The plot reads like something that would've run in the second season of the cartoon series (1986). In other words, it's awful. A Cobra officer even says: "Ha, you fools!"

-When the Joes storm the factory, they all begin fist-fighting with the Cobras. Umm...yeah.

-It looks like Short-Fuse, but everyone calls him "Doc". Big mix-up as a WHITE guy is supposed to be the African-American Doc. Thus, I rank his appearance as "Doc-Fuse"

-Mr. Vlitsky says : "Lance Steinburg?! They still call you Clutch?!" Sort of a validation that some members' code-names were just their nicknames. Snake-Eyes, Scarlett, Wild Bill or Short-Fuse were all names that they could've had before enlisting. But makes ya' wonder about "Stalker", doesn't it?

-Aw crap... Billy Kline is perfect "Devil's Due Fodder". Hope I'm wrong.

-In the letters page, a fan asks about "Duke, the new GI Joe Team Leader" and the editor mentions that Duke will debut in issue 22. Ugh.

-The letters page also answers an "FAQ" by announcing that there will be no action figures of Scar-Face or Kwinn. Kwinn eventually got his figure, about 23 years later.

-The cover was done by John Byrne. During the mid-80's, when GI Joe and Byrne were hot, some dealers would try to push this issue as significant for that reason alone.

-In the training course, Scarlett fires a cable-arrow out of her crossbow. One of the effects of the cartoon, where Scarlett suddenly became Green Arrow (or Hawkeye) with an arsenal of trick arrows.

-Wild Bill is also on the training course. One of the few times in the series where we'd see him scuffling along on the ground with the rest of the "infantry".

-When the Joes come off the training course, Hawk is shown next to a General-type man. He's not named, but he has dark hair and a distinguishing general's hat. Probably a slip-up as the artist drew General Flagg. Another clue that this story might have been lying around the offices as a "filler" or "dreaded deadline doom" helper.

Appearances:

Characters: Clutch, Flash, Scarlett, Wild Bill, Gung-Ho, Hawk, Grunt, "Doc-Fuse", Rock n' Roll, Airborne
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Billy Kline, Lori Kline, Klines' kid, Mr. Vlitsky

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, Falcon Glider
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): Clutch's armored car, Billy's hot rod, the Cobra jetpak.

Firsties:
Characters: The Klines, Mr. Vilsky
Vehicles: none

Rating: 1 Flag Point

#21- "Silent Interlude"
Writer: Larry Hama
Breakdowns: Larry Hama(!)
Finishes: Steve Leialoha

Summary:
In an issue without dialogue, Scarlett is kidnapped by Storm Shadow and taken to a Cobra castle that looks verrrrry similar to one used in the cartoon. Snake-Eyes parachutes from the C-130, single-handedly infiltrates the castle, fights off ninjas and saves Scarlett. Actually Scarlett saves him as well, since she manages to steals Storm Shadow's CLAW jetpack. As the couple escapes, we're shown that Snake-Eyes and Storm Shadow have indentical I-Ching tatoos on their forearms.


Notes:
-Wow. The long-awaited "Snake-Eyes Solo Story"! Very simple plot: hero rescues damsel in distress, but this is an amazing issue. THE ultimate G.I. Joe story as it showcases alot of stuff that would become the backbone of the entire series. The first full-on ninja action we've seen. Great story and it's beautifully drawn. On top of it all, there's a huge bombshell that's dropped at the conclusion (the tatoos). I remember thinking: "wait... does this mean Snake-Eyes is a bad guy? Or is that his brother?!" The Snake-Eyes and Storm Shadow connection would dominate the series until...well, even today. It's not just a great GI Joe comic, it's a great comic, period.

-Larry Hama's masterpiece and he should have a copy of this stuffed into his casket when he croaks. If you can "read" only one GI Joe comic in your lifetime, make it this one.

-When I first bought this issue, I felt ripped off. "There's no words!" But the more I thought about it, the more I loved it. Worked well, since it was a spotlight on Snake-Eyes, the mute bad-ass.

-Cobra Commander and Destro are in the castle, too. It was later revealed that this was Destro's personal castle. Okay, then why did it have all kinds of elaborate Cobra imagery all over it? Over the years, this would be referred to as "The Silent Castle" in the European country of Trans-Carpathia. But..it was blatantly copied from the design of the animated series!

-Scarlett was also captured, chained up and taken to the Cobra castle in the cartoon.

-Destro detects Snake-Eyes' drop on his radar. But he ignores it since the computer determines that there's a .00018 chance of a landing.

-Destro's busy playing with his chess set, which is made up of Joe and Cobra figures. His Baroness figure depicts her in her black leather outfit (mrrrow!). An outfit she had yet to wear and wouldn't appear in until issue 23. He also had pieces of General Flagg, Kwinn and Scar-Face.

-Snake-Eyes has a humorous "Indiana Jones moment" when facing the second red ninja. The ninja pops out from behind a door and begins spinning his sais and looking all impressive. Snake-Eyes simply chucks a grenade that vaporizes him.

-Storm Shadow takes Scarlett to a dungeon and chains her wrists. It appears that Stormie then attempts to kiss Scarlett, but she bites down on his fingers. Kinda' weird, because GI Joe had been removed from the usual cartoon antics of "bad guy wants to bag the female hero". Out-of-character for the straight arrow Storm Shadow. We learn more about him as the years go on, and it seems strange that he'd want to force a kiss on a captive. Or at the very least, Scarlett could've been somewhat of bitch to him once he did his "face turn". "You're the jerk who chained me up and tried to kiss me!" *cock punch*

-Scarlett isn't helpless, as she escapes from her chains by using a hairpin. She gets by Storm Shadow. Later, she brains two Cobra flunkies with her shackles and captures the CLAW jetpack/glider. Scarlett's a frickin' bad assette. No wonder Snake-Eyes risked his life for her so often.

-The letters page mentions that "Storm Shadow" is the white ninja's name.

-Yup, this is the official kick-off of the third year of G.I.Joe. Things really begin to speed up for the next two years or so.

-I bought this issue, along with #'s 16-20 shortly after New Years, 1984. I hand't found any GI Joe comics since #15. But we were at a mall across town and while my mom was in Walgreens, I looked across the aisle and saw....gasp... a store that only sells COMICS?!! Holy shit!! I went in there and immediately found the issues I had missed. I believed that they were only cover price...and about shit my pants when I took them to the register and the guy wanted to charge me a dollar a piece! The guy explained it to me and I remember worrying about it to my mom. She said: "well, it's up to you". I thought about it, then slowly pushed my five dollar bill (plus change) across the table to the guy. I remember riding home and thinking to myself "Holy shit! I just paid a dollar a piece for some comics. Nooooo!" But I justified it as "hey, it's G.I. frickin' Joe!!" Looking back, that was a big turning point for me and probably when I began getting serious about comic collecting, not just comic reading.

-Of course, there still wasn't a comic shop on my side of town. It wasn't until issue 25 that I finally began to pick 'em up monthly.

-Devil's Due published a (shitty) prologue to this issue in the TPB of "Snake-Eyes: Declassified". It shows Storm Shadow grabbing Scarlett in mid-air. Snake-Eyes then jumps out of the plane and has some freefall combat with Stormie. They even crash through a truck driven by the White Clown (a guy who'll appear sometime arond issue 65). The story ends with Snake-Eyes on the GROUND and signalling to Wild Bill in the C-140.

So are we to believe that Wild Bill found a landing strip in the middle of nowhere? Destro's computer screen this issue says there's a "lack of landing zones". Or did Snake-Eyes use his Magic Powers to jump back up into the air and get into the plane? Then they flew back over the spot where Scarlett was abducted, didn't radio for back-up, and let Snake-Eyes jump again, only for him to arrive maybe 10 minutes after Scarlett had been captured?! Larry Hama actually wrote this prequel, so it's best to forget it. It was a shitty money-making stunt by Devil's Due, since it was only included in the TPB version.

Appearances:
Characters: Scarlett, Snake-Eyes, Destro, Cobra Commander, Storm Shadow
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): 3 Red Ninjas

Vehicles and stuff (toys): CLAW
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): G.I. Joe C-130

Firsties:
Characters: Storm Shadow, red ninjas
Vehicles: CLAW

Rating: 5 Flag Points

#22- "Like Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust..."
Writer: Larry Hama
Breakdowns: Larry Hama
Finishes: Mike Vosburg

Summary: The Joes are repairing a big hole in the ground where the Motor Pool used to be, as the Chaplains Assistants return (the rest of Ft. Wadsworth looks untouched, though). Gung Ho uses his Superhuman Cajun Powers and pounds a beam into place with his bare fists. Wild Bill flies Snake-Eyes to the tip of Long Island, where they give Kwinn's body a proper eskimo funeral. The next day, the Joes all don their dress fatigues and travel to Arlington for General Flagg's ceremony. The new Cobra Rattler/Tanksmasher plane makes it first appearance and begins a bombing run on the procession. Suddenly, new Joes Duke and Roadblock appear and blast the Rattler out of the sky (the "Sgt. Granite of Difficult Company" trick). Over in Switzerland, Major Bludd takes the heavily bandaged Baroness to renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Hundtkindler. In New York's Potter's Field, Dr. Venom's wooden casket is tossed into the ground with a bunch of John Does and bums.

Notes:
-To counteract one of the Rules of Comics, "if you don't see the body, he ain't dead", we're shown the lifeless corpses of Kwinn, Gen. Flagg and Dr. Venom to let us know that they're DEAD dead. Good housecleaning issue.

-Snow Job appears with white hair and beard, not his usual red.

-The repair scenes in the Pit are played for laughs, with Short-Fuse telling an awful joke, Tripwire prat-falling and Snow Job trying to hit on Cover Girl. Funny stuff and part of the "frat-house" banter of the team that would slowly be going away.

-Possibly left over from his duties as default hyrdaulic lift operator, Zap is in control of the cargo cables going down into the Pit.

-Hawk shows off a schematic of the new and improved Pit. It would take a year's worth of issues until it was officially re-opened and operational.

-The old Pit was supposed to survive a direct hit from a nuke. At least the bottom three levels. Makes you wonder how powerful that Cobra sabotuer's bomb was, huh?

-Cobra Commander is seen with his favorite hobby again: target shooting G.I. Joe placards. But he's using a more conventional pistol in this issue. He also mentions that last issue's castle was Destro's private retreat.

-The Joes all appear in Army dress greens, except for Torpedo who's decked out in Navy sailor fatiques.

-Gung-Ho appears to be wearing Marine dress blues but, in an apparent coloring error, he's green.

-Three Joes (Hawk and two others) are wearing "General hats". Steeler might be one of them. I'd have to check my file cards for ranks to see who the other could be (maybe Ace?). Wild Bill was apparently allowed to wear his cowboy hat.

Stalker and Snake-Eyes are wearing berets, while everyone else is wearing those little "fast food clerk" hats.

-Roadblock and Duke would pretty much operate as a tag-team for the next year or so. Possibly the only role for Duke that I could stomach.

-The Rattler pilot is a generic Cobra guy, but he's wearing the "Cobra Airborne" logo from issue 14.

-Hama did the breakdowns on the last two issues and they're night and day. Last issue looked great, but this issue looks like Vosburg's usual 1970-ish crap.

-In the letters page, it's announced that Mutt and Junkyard will be debuting in issue 25. Strangely enough, a fan wrote in asking for a Joe with a dog.

-Since the Baroness figure would debut in 1984, she officially moves out of the "comic-only" character list with this issue. For a few years, she would have the dinstinction of being the only comic character to make the jump to the toys.

Appearances:

Characters: Entire Joe team up to 1983. Duke, Roadblock, Destro, Cobra Commander, Baroness, Major Bludd
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): Kwinn, Dr. Venom, General Flagg (all in boxes or bundled up)

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP, APC, Dragonfly, Cobra Rattler
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): none

Firsties:
Characters: Duke, Roadblock
Vehicles: Cobra Rattler

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#23- "Cobra Commander Captured at Last!"
Writer: Larry Hama
Breakdowns: Larry Hama
Finishes; Mike Vosburg

Summary: Snow Job is on a cliff in the Swiss Alps, spying on the Baroness in the Bern Institute of Reconstructive Sugery. Meanwhile, Duke, Roadblock, Cover Girl and Clutch are undercover in a nearby town, tailing Major Bludd. Bludd calls Cobra Commander in Springfield and blackmails him: meet him with 2 million bucks or Bludd will tell Destro that the Baroness is still alive. Cobra Commander and his new bodyguard Storm Shadow fly to Lucca, Italy to make an exchange with Bludd, during a local costume festival. The Joes crash the party and a wild mountain car chase ensues, involving a limo, a parade float, the VAMP and a scooter. Clutch tumbles the VAMP down the mountain, cutting off the Commander's limo. Roadblock blows away the front of the car. Major Bludd, Storm Shadow and Major Bludd escape in the float, but Cobra Commander surrenders to the Joes.

Notes:
-The mountain chase is a little silly, but intentionally so. It's like a James Bond chase.

-While undercover at a restaurant, Roadbock the gourmet chef, complains about the entrees.

-The Baroness emerges from her bandages after successful plastic surgery and gets her new black leather outfit.

-Major Bludd clearly shows airline tickets to Lucca, France. But they end up driving there in a 1919 saloon car, complete with thugs dressed up as Al Capone.

-Bludd demands 2 mil in cash in a briefcase. When the Commander asks him why, Bludd simply replies: "all my life, I've wanted to walk down the street with 2 million dollars in a briefcase".

-Bludd appears to be getting sweet on the Baroness, but she dumps him the first chance she gets.

-Storm Shadow speaks for the first time in this issue. Important because, since his debut, I had believed he was also mute like Snake-Eyes.

-Clutch drops another sleazy pick-up line on Cover Girl while they're tailing Bludd: "Say! We could pull into a dark alley and pretend to make out!" This may have been one of Clutch's final prominent roles. As new Joes are squeezed in, he gets pushed to the back and is rarely heard from again.

-In Springfield, we're shown that Cobra Commander's main control room is located directly below a fast food burger joint.

-Storm Shadow doubles as the limo driver, wearing a nifty black suit, trenchcoat and driver's hat.

-For the first time, Snow Job appears with his ski-backpack, just like his action figure.

Appearances:

Characters: Hawk, Gung-Ho, Breaker, Clutch, Duke, Roadblock, Cover Girl, Snow Job, Cobra Commander, Major Bludd, Baroness, Storm Shadow, Destro
Characters (no action figures, or "comic-only" characters): none to speak of

Vehicles and stuff (toys): VAMP
Vehicles and stuff (not toys): none

Firsties:
Characters: none
Vehicles: none

Rating: 3 Flag Points

#24- "The Commander Escapes"
Writer; Larry Hama
Penciller: Russ Heath (!)

Summary:
The Joes set-up a remote prison for the Commander, in the Colorado Rocky Moutains (I pissed myself as a kid), using the "pre-fab fortress". Meanwhile, Storm Shadow is flying around in a converted bomber, searching for the Commander. In Springfield, Major Bludd reunites Destro with the Baroness and the three scheme to take over Cobra. Bludd planted a homing device in Storm Shadow's sword hilt, so they dispatch new operatives Firefly and Wild Weasel (un-named) to track it down. Back in the Rockies, Storm Shadow uses the CLAW and the help of the Commander's helmet radio to rescue him. Roadblock manges to clip one of the CLAW's fuel tanks. With only enough fuel for one man to make it back to the Cobra bomber, Storm Shadow stays behind. Duke pursues the CLAW in the new Skyhawk, but two FANG copters arrive to distract him. The Commander makes it safely to the bomber and escapes. But Roadblock's beaten the crap out of Storm Shadow, so they have another prisoner. They find that Storm Shadow had a packing slip addressed to Choholoskee, Florida. Back in Springfield, Firefly and Wild Weasel report in; they've traced the homing device to a swamp shack near Choholoskee. The Commander suddenly arrives in Springfield and annonces that he knows all about the guy in the shack--- Zartan! Zartan appears and holds-up Firefly and Wild Weasel at gunpoint.

Notes:
-The Pre-fab fortress has some slight modifications from last time. Namely, anti-aircraft guns.

-This issue was expertly drawn by Russ Heath, a longtime comic artist who worked on stuff like G.I. Combat, All-American Men of War and even that "132 pc. Roman Soldier" ad. He also did the designs for the G.I. Joe cartoon. So his Destro looks exactly like the TV version. Most memorably, he does a knock-out portrayal of the Baroness. Before, she had always been depicted like a creepy schoolteacher, but now she looks slut-tastically hot.

-He's only been in three stories, but already Storm Shadow's been taken out by Scarlett and Roadblock.

-Cobra has a spy outside the Joe's McGuire AFB. He looks like a Hell's Angel, but I suppose you could twist this and say that it was really an un-named Dreadnok. If you want it to be a Dreadnok, it probably is. Otherwise, it's just another Cobra spy.

-Cobra Commander talks about his helmet's defenses. It's lined with plastic explosives to prevent tampering and also has little openings that allow him to sip through a straw.

-The FANG pilots holler "All Hail Mighty Cobra" before they launch. I dont think I've mentioned it, but this was sort of Cobra's battle cry since the comic began. They also greet their superiors in a Nazi-like salute. Some of the Marvel Cobra's neo-Nazi tendencies. Kinda' like HYDRA.