When I first heard about this particular crossover, I wondered by Dreamwave was releasing its version of the meeting of Hasbro licences while the Image Comics/Devil's Due Publishing version was still in the process of being published. But then I read of the premise for this series, and I didn't care anymore. The notion of placing these simple and extreme concepts in the context of the Second World War was an intriguing one. Unfortunately, that context plays a minor role at best here, but the artwork -- rich in its use of darkness -- makes for a solid storytelling experience all the same.
It's 1938, and a new power is rising in the world. It's not the Third Reich; it's a mysterious organization called Cobra, and it's discovered a key to power hidden in a mountain monastery. The U.S. government decides a special strikeforce is needed to stave Cobra's inexplicably rapid advancement through Europe, and G.I.Joe is born. On the team's first mission, they quickly learn the secret to Cobra's success: an alliance with a race of powerful robots.
Jae Lee's artwork stands out as the greatest strength of this book. It's certainly an unconventional choice given the characters involved here, but it brings an edge and maturity to the properties that's rather rare. The darkness and accompanying tension suits the period in which the story is set as well. Lee's work here reminds me of the meticulously detailed collaborations of J.H. Williams III & Mick Gray, the art team on Alan Moore's Promethea. The colors are in keeping with the darker tone of the line art as well.
I honestly was expecting and hoping for a greater emphasis on the historical fiction aspect of the premise, but Rieber has downplayed those elements significantly. Perhaps it's out of respect for the ugliness of the war and the pivotal natural of that period of history, and that makes sense. Still, some real-world elements might make these characters -- especially the larger-than-life but hard-to-swallow notion of the Transformers -- more interesting.
Rieber's take on the Joes is refreshing, as it's not at all one-dimensional. These soldiers are scared, and many of them embark on this mission burdened with more than a little pessmism. Snake Eyes has never seemed as cool and intense before, and the confidence and savvy of the better known female Joes takes on a greater importance given the historical setting (Rieber would do well to explore that gender element).
