G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #325
“Drone War”
Writer: Larry Hama
Pencils: Chris Mooneyham
Summary:
In Borovia, Duke, Roadblock and new team members R.C. and Down Range are supporting the local forces opposing the Darklonian invasion. The Borovians are: Kapitan Osenenko, Serzhant Kovalchuck and Junior Lt. Molodshyys. After fighting off some drones, they’re pinned down by a Darklonian armor battalion and a well-hidden sniper. Kovalchuck isn’t too cautious using his binoculars and is killed by the sniper. R.C. proves instrumental in taking out the armor with his drones, while Down Range is able to take out the sniper, with some quick thinking and experienced savvy.
Notes:
- The Borovia/Darklonia conflict seems to be mirroring the current (2023 and on) Ukraine/Russia conflict. The intro cpation even mentions: “it is the 437th day of the Darklonian invasion to annex the industrial Chervonyy Dolyna region of Borovia”
- The sniper proves competent by sitting on a table, back from the window. Down Range gets to Duke to flash his spotter scope as “bait”, so the sniper’s flash will expose his position. It’s effective.
- While the two new Joes are specialists, they don’t just use their weapons; they’re experts with them and use their skill and brains to get the job done. Not just “some people with special guns and outfits.” I’ve mentioned this before, but I kinda’ like when the Joes come off as experts or the “best of the best”.
- FWIW, Down Range is female.
- “Down Range” not to be confused with “Long Range”… who was originally the Thunderclap driver and expert in artillery, but somehow became a sniper.
- R.C. is kinda’ how I used Lightfoot as a kid. Obviously, I didn’t know about drones, so I used all of Lightfoot’s accessories as “robots”.
- R.C. has a FILE CARD in the back of this issue! The card is very much in-line with the classic G.I. Joe file cards, including this awesome line: “On a side note, he is one of the few who completed the ‘eat Special 10 lb burrito in one sitting challenge’ at a popular restaurant in Boyle Heights (California)”.
- I’m assuming R.C. and Down Range are “comic only”…but with all the crowd funding G.I. Joe stuff nowadays, I wouldn’t be totally surprised if they’re eventually made into figures.
- Duke and Roadblock resume their little tag-team. I appreciate when they buddy-up on missions, as it reflects their shared history, pre-dating the G.I. Joe team.
- Good thing they call him “Duke”, because he doesn’t appear in any of his distinctive garb and would’ve been unrecognizable to me.
- Slightly surprised that there wasn’t a reference to Borovia’s Katya/Werewolf.
- This is the first story since the 155.5 relaunch to have…gasp…a TITLE (“Drone War”)!
- Took me a minute to notice that the cover has the Joes sitting in the wreckage of a destroyed HISS tank.
- I think it was announced in the letters page, last issue, but this issue has a full-page ad for five new Silent Issue One-Shots, all focusing on Cobra. That’s nice and all…but last year’s silent one-shots disrupted my schedule and were a big reason I fell so far behind with these recaps. Hey… if you would like me to quit my day job and spend all my time writing this stuff, there are ways you can help 🙂
- Oh, and I finally saw “James Gunn’s Superman”, last week… and chuckled at the use of the fictional country “Boravia“.
Appearances:
Characters (figures): Duke, Roadblock
Characters (comic-only): R.C., Down Range, Kapitan Osenenko, Serzhant Kovalchuck (croaks), Junior Lt. Molodshyys
Vehicles and stuff (toys): none
Vehicles and stuff (not toys, comic-only): Borovian BTR, Darklonian tanks
Firsties: R.C., Down Range, Kapitan Osenenko, Serzhant Kovalchuck, Junior Lt. Molodshyys
