GI Joe #5: Hell’s Angels

Another issue, another month that author Paul Allor continues to take everything we love and hold dear about GI Joe, crumple it up, throw it in the trash and then burn it. And I absolutely love it. If you’ve been reading since the beginning, you knew very early on that this bears little resemblance to the GI Joe of the past, much in the same vein that when the ’80s Joe debuted the fans of the ’60s GI Joe had to have felt the same way.

In this issue, Allor continues to explore the world that he’s created where the US Government has surrendered to Cobra and now a band of soldiers and “regular joes” fight for survival and to help those who can’t help themselves. This issue the Joe team meats a very different team Dreadnoks. Even though this is a totally different world, the heart of the IP remains the same. The Joe team fights for freedom, wherever there’s trouble. At times the story can be a bit somber but never comes across as unenjoyable for the reader. I think what I’m enjoying most about this new title is the surprises. From the first pages of the first issue, the audience knew that this wasn’t going to follow the path that GI Joe was supposed to go on. Each issue continues that, and there’s a great deal of enjoyment in the fact that you don’t know if you’re favorite character is going to make it out alive, or maybe they’re going to turn and switch sides. Keeping the reader guessing is something that Allor brings to the table and it’s a very welcome element.

This issue’s art is by Chris Evanhuis, who continues to do a fantastic job on the series. He’s got a simple style that gets the job done and is very congruent with Allor writing and the tone in general. He gets the chance to stretch a little this issue with some different kinds of elements than we’ve seen before in this title, and also some really emotional reactions from some of the characters. Another job well done.