G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #326
Writer: Larry Hama
Pencils: Andrew Krahnke
Summary:
In Benzheen, Duke, Roadblock, Scarlett, Snake-Eyes and Mongoose are in the process of finishing an extraction mission. Their target/captive is “Fares Bakr, chief political officer of the Black Scimitar terrorist front”. However, their armored vehicle is soon attacked by Black Scimitar soldiers. The Joes escape the vehicle wreckage and, with their prisoner in tow, take cover in a nearby building. The Joes are successful in holding off their captors. Snake-Eyes goes on one of his trademark “commando” jaunts and single-handedly takes out a group with grail rocket launchers.
The Tomahawk medevac arrives, but Fares Bakr dies from shrapnel wounds. It appears the mission is a wash, but Duke says: “any mission where I don’t have to write the next of kind is not a failure in my book. We lost an intel asset, but a bad player is off the board.”
Notes:
- You could surmise that this takes place on the tail of last issue, as the Joes are still in Benzheen and Trucial Abysmia. Sure, issues and their plots should be consecutive, but sometimes we get random standalone issues with no carryover.
- Snake-Eyes doesn’t use his signature Uzi. Rather, he uses a shotgun, flare gun, and a machine gun.
- The Joes travel in an armored 8-wheel personnel carrier, but it appears to be a “regular” military vehicle.
- It appears that the personnel carrier has a driver and a turret gunner, but they are not named, have no dialogue, and are apparently killed the by first Black Scimitar attack.
- The Joes all have some sort of injury from the initial attack, but are able to treat each other with field dressings.
- This issue is non-stop action at an almost frenetic pace. Andrew Krahnke does am excellent job at depicting this. Almost as if he constantly had the pedal all the way to the floor while drawing!
- Always interesting when a new faction is named. We’ll see if “Black Scimitar” is mentioned in the future.
- Cover is by Lee Weeks. He worked on the Marvel comic, circa issue 111.
- Welp…so much for story titles. That appeared to be a one-off, last issue.
Appearances:
Characters (figures): Duke, Roadblock, Scarlett, Snake-Eyes, Lift-Ticket, Spirit (cameo)
Characters (comic-only): Mongoose, Fares Bakr (croaks)
Vehicles and stuff (toys): none
Vehicles and stuff (comic-only): personnel carrier
Firsties: Fares Bakr
