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G.I. Joe: First Strike

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« G.I. Joe: First Strike
one-shot 		»
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👁 GIJoeFS cvrB.jpg
Publisher IDW Publishing
First published September 20, 2017
Cover date September 2017
Written by Aubrey Sitterson
Art by Ilias Kyriazis
Colors by Mark Roberts
Letters by Tom B. Long
Editor Carlos Guzman
Continuity 2005 IDW continuity
Chronology Current era

The Joes go on the defensive when the reborn Cobra joins forces with V.E.N.O.M.!

Contents

Synopsis

With Miles Mayhem on Cybertron as part of Joe Colton's invasion team, the forces of V.E.N.O.M. have fallen under the control of the new Cobra Commander, a.k.a. the Baroness. Vanessa Warfield, Sly Rax, and Bruno Sheppard are unsure how they will be of any use in Cobra's newest scheme, given that their vehicles were recently destroyed... only to discover that Cobra engineer Scrap-Iron has rebuilt them all, and even added "something extra." The sight of their restored vehicles is enough to convince the three villains that Cobra is the right fit for them, and Warfield and Rax are dispatched on their first mission: exfiltrating Firefly after he has bombed a museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, and stolen an ancient bowl with a serpent motif, the latest in a series of mysterious antediluvian artifacts Cobra has been procuring.

Aboard Lemuria, Rock 'n Roll awakes from a horrific nightmare, full of visions of innocent people being consumed by a tentacled monstrosity, and a shadowy army wearing the same symbol that Crystal Ball placed upon Rock's own forehead. He's not the only Joe on the base with problems, though: Shipwreck, left in charge after Scarlett, Roadblock, and Lady Jaye's departure for Cybertron, is having trouble is having adapting to his new position, and the last thing he was prepared for was the re-emergence of Cobra! Ordering a perturbed Dial Tone to take over while he's gone, Shipwreck quickly scrambles a team consisting of himself, Lifeline, Salvo, Gung-Ho, and Cover Girl, but eschews bringing Skywarp along since "he's a jerk." The team hits the ground in Russia and pursues the fleeing V.E.N.O.M. vehicles, but their armored hides shrug off the Joes' weaponsfire, and they are able to make a quick and easy getaway thanks to their transforming capabilites: Rax by sea in his submersible motorcycle Piranha, and Warfield by air in her flying Sedan Manta... two avenues of escape that Shipwreck has failed to bring any transport capable of following them through.

The Joes return to Lemuria and try to better co-ordinate their efforts. Teams are stationed at museums with antediluvian collections all around the world, while Shipwreck puts together a new fast-response team comprising Rock 'n Roll, Skywarp, new Joe member Spitfire, Doc, Salvo, and Gung-Ho. Grand Slam outfits Spitfire and Gung-Ho with new equipment, but is downcast to discover that he is not actually on the field team himself. Slam storms out in a fury, just as news comes in from Quick Kick: Cobra and V.E.N.O.M. are moving on the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City!

Shipwreck's team arrives in New York just as Sheppard uses his Rhino truck to blast a path through the NYPD officers trying to hold them off. Spitfire uses his new jetpack to engage Warfield's Manta in the air, while Skywarp and Rock 'n Roll cut off Rax and push him away from his objective with their combo "Blast Beat" maneuver. Salvo, meanwhile, empties the clips of her ridiculously large guns into Sheppard's Rhino, but finds her shots have no effect; Gung-Ho steps in, wielding his new strength-enhancing gauntlets, and actually pushes the truck back with a two-fisted punch. Much to Shipwreck's own surprise, things actually seem to be going well!

Shipwreck probably wouldn't be so jubilant, however, if he could see inside the museum, where Firefly is stealthily making for his objective: an ancient dagger with the same serpentine motif as the bowl. When he reaches it, Quick Kick is waiting for him, and invites him to surrender... but Firefly has an ace up his sleeve, and Quick Kick suddenly finds himself surrounded by a veritable legion of Red Shadows ninja!

Back outside, as the V.E.N.O.M. crew find themselves pushed back by the Joes, Warfield orders them to implement that "something extra" Scrap-Iron added to their vehicles. The trio activate a new transformation sequence... and all three vehicles combine together to form the giant snake-mecha, "King Cobra!"

To be continued in M.A.S.K.: First Strike!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Quick, quiet, or cheap, Cobra Commander. You got to choose two."

—Firefly has a simple answer when criticized for bombing the museum


"To the Barracudas!"
"And if they take to the sky?"
"I mean the S.H.A.R.C.s! To the S.H.A.R.C.s! We're taking the flying submarines!"

—Shipwreck gives the go order, but Salvo has a suggestion


"If you surrender now, I'll give you a shiner so your pals think you put up a fight."

—Quick Kick invites Firefly to give up

Notes

Continuity notes

  • This issue takes place four days after First Strike #3, in which Scarlett (along with Roadblock and Lady Jaye) departed for Cybertron.
  • The chanting Rock 'n Roll hears in his dream ("GGLLLB YUULLLAS") is a slurred utterance of the name "Golobulus", who in traditional G.I. Joe lore is the serpentine master of the secret kingdom of Cobra-La. In IDW continuity, Golobulus (or "Gola-Bulas") was reimagined as the figure worshiped by Cobra's religious arm, The Coil, and was "explained" by 2010's Cobra vol. 1 #6 to be an avatar of the serpent god that created the universe who once presided over a paradise known as Cobra-La, before humankind turned to worshiping gods of their own invention. It was never made particularly clear whether Serpentor and the rest of the Coil's leadership genuinely believed the legend, or if it was all invented for the sake of brainwashing civilians into servants of Cobra — but Rock's dream sure seems to indicate that something inspired the story, and that Crystal Ball and the subterranean threats the Joes have been facing in their regular title are connected to it.
  • The Symbol of Chaos seen on the armor and standards of the shadowy army in Rock's dream has previously been seen on his forehead, which was placed there by Crystal Ball in G.I. Joe vol. 5 #3, though it's been a recurring motif for Rock (appearing on his shirt) since G.I. Joe: Revolution.
  • Farooq Shah has formally joined G.I. Joe under the codename "Spitfire" in between this issue and last, following Scarlett informing him the team would "be in touch."

G.I. Joe references

  • The red and yellow "flare" effect seen behind the Joes' vehicles on page 7 is based on the unique "explosion" backdrops used on the cardbacks and packaging artwork for the original G.I. Joe toyline. Specifically, this is the squared-off "digital"-looking version used from 1986 to 1991, which replaced the more traditional explosion effect used for the first few years of the series.

Real-life references

  • The Metropolitan Museum of Art was previously mentioned in IDW continuity in G.I. Joe vol. 3 #10.
  • Gung-Ho yells "Semper Fi!" as he attacks Bruno and the Rhino, the motto of the United States Marine Corps. Gung-Ho's been characterized as a marine since his very first toy back in 1983, and his chest tattoo is the organization's Eagle, Globe, and Anchor insignia.

Other trivia

  • Unlike a lot of IDW's other titles, First Strike kept to its scheduled release dates. Unfortunately, the regular G.I. Joe and M.A.S.K. series... did not. Both G.I. Joe #9 and M.A.S.K. #10 were solicited for August and intended for release before this issue, but their delay meant that this one-shot spoiled several plot developments from both issues, including the Baroness ascending to the position of Cobra Commander, Farooq Shah joining G.I. Joe as "Spitfire", Rock 'n Roll and Skywarp surviving the blast that appeared to kill them in G.I. Joe vol. 5 #8 and the debut of their "Blast Beat" combo move, and V.E.N.O.M.'s vehicles being destroyed.
  • The Joes' "Silver Mirage" motorcycle is drawn to the specifications of its original toy packaging art, which placed the sidecar on the right-hand side of the bike, when the toy itself, and its various other fictional appearances, place it on the left.

Covers (3)

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