Longbox Junk - Transformers/ G.I. Joe

Welcome back to Longbox Junk, the home of comic reviews that nobody ever asked for!

A couple of weeks ago, I was involved in a short discussion on one of the Marvel Transformers/ G.I. Joe crossover comics that had been spotlighted in one of my favorite comic blogs. . .

SHAMELESS PROMOTION TIME!

Cool Comics In My Collection, found at https://edgosney.com/ .  If you're looking for a blog that keeps comics fun and informative about titles old AND new, then Cool Comics In My Collection is the place to go!  And while you're at it, join their great Facebook page of the same name!  It's a nice little collection of blogs (including this one), commentary, art, and other things comic (and pop culture comic-adjacent) related, but without the sour attitude of a lot of other comic-focused Facebook groups!  Check it out, you'll be glad you did!

END OF SHAMELESS PROMOTION TIME!

ANYWAY. . .

The short discussion about the Marvel Transformers/ G.I. Joe comics reminded me that there was ANOTHER G.I. Joe/ Transformers project I had really enjoyed. . .one put out by Dreamwave.  My mention of it didn't really ring anyone's memory bells, but people seemed interested, and so here we are!

Before we begin. . .I have to confess that I'm not really a fan of either G.I. Joe OR Transformers.  As an inhabitant of planet Earth, I can't help but have knowledge of both hugely-popular properties, but I've never gone out of my way to dive into the consuming fandom that both of these names have built for themselves.

THAT SAID. . .

I'm going to spoil this review early on in case someone like me who isn't a fan of either Transformers or G.I. Joe is reading this and decides to skip this review because of that.  Please don't.

Don't let your preconceptions of these two properties or memories of the cartoons they are based on fool you. Dreamwave did something truly out of the box with this series by placing these well-known (and frankly overused) characters in an "Elseworlds" alternate history World War II, and painting the usually bright characters in grim and dark hues for a gritty, violent tale that is like nothing else from these properties that I know of.

Interested?  Read on!

TRANSFORMERS / G.I. JOE

DREAMWAVE (2003)

TYRANTS RISE, HEROES ARE BORN

SCRIPTS: John Ney Reiber

ART: Jae Lee

COVERS: Jae Lee 

ISSUE ONE

THE LINE

This extremely SWEET wraparound variant for #1 by Pat Lee

It's not often that you can find something unique in comics.

Just about everything that CAN be done HAS been done at some point.

Dreamwave's Transformers/G.I. Joe is unique.

When I think of Transformers, I think of bright colors, sharp lines, and an overall picture of entry-level giant robot anime for young teens. Likewise, when I think of G.I. Joe, I think of brightly-colored heroes who shoot and get shot at, but nobody ever gets hurt. Once again, entry-level military action for young teens.

I expected as much from this mini, but had those expectations completely blown out of the water! Instead of brightly-colored sci-fi shootouts, what I got was a dark, gritty, violent tale set in an alternate timeline World War II. Completely unexpected.

This first issue sets up the conflict very well, with WWII raging, Cobra discovers and activates ancient war machines (Decepticons) that lay waste to Europe. America, seeing the writing on the wall, forms a special unit (G.I. Joe) to attack Cobra headquarters in an effort to find out if these devastating game changers can be stopped.

All in all, it's a pretty simple story with a simple setup. What sets this apart is the alternate timeline setting and the extremely dark and gritty artwork. The writer and artist nail the atmosphere of desperation perfectly. This is not the Gung-Ho nobody dies feel of your average G.I. Joe story. This is not the bright, shiny average Transformers story. This is a tale of suicide missions and hopelessness in the face of a superior enemy.

Jae Lee is a unique artist in that nobody else draws like him at all. He's one that you can tell just by looking who the artist is. Like a Truman, a Sale, a Kubert, a Mignola, and so on. His take on the Transformers is dark and dirty. The Joes are rumpled and ready for action. His art, above all else, makes this crossover stand out from the MANY other Transformer and G.I. Joe stories out there. 

All in all, a fantastic first issue with a unique take on some very overused characters. If I have one complaint, it's that Lee's art is sometimes TOO dark and a bit hard to follow. But other than that, this was one of the most surprising things (in a good way) I've read in a long time.

ISSUE TWO

TRANSFORMED

Another great, dark, gritty issue!

The story this time splits 3 ways between one team of Joes discovering and activating the Autobots (who reveal that they have been on earth for about 3 million years), a power struggle between Starscream, Megatron, and Cobra Commander, and a running battle between Snake Eyes and Stormshadow. All very well done, except the Snake Eyes/Stormshadow battle seemed to run a bit longer than it should. But that's just one small complaint for an otherwise fantastic issue!

ISSUE THREE

TRIAL BY FIRE

This series just keeps getting better as the story continues to follow 3 threads. . .the Joes and Autobots desperately trying to establish a beach head for a naval invasion of Cobra headquarters, the power struggle between Cobra Commander and Megatron, and the continuing duel between Stormshadow and Snake Eyes. Once again, I felt that a bit too much attention was paid to the Stormshadow/Snake Eyes conflict, but other than that. Very well done.

One thing that stood out to me on this issue as the action heats up is that the book is rendered in very grim tones of black, brown, green, and grey, with only an occasional splash of color. This REALLY makes explosions, when they happen, stand out front and center with a burst of orange and red. A superb and subtle effect.

Overall, where most mini-series start to slump about now, Transformers/ G.I. Joe is getting better!  The perfect combination of great writing and gritty art carries this series forward with the kind of momentum that makes me want to pick up the next issue as soon as I close the cover on the one I just finished.

ISSUE FOUR

WOLVES

The already huge cast of characters expands and the story splits into another couple of threads, making this issue seem a bit crowded and cluttered compared to previous ones. I get that they wanted to try and throw EVERY popular G.I. Joe and Transformer character into the mix in their alternate WWII form, but it's starting to get a bit cumbersome. Not that it's bad. . .the writing is still great and the artwork is still grim, gritty and dark (if anything, maybe a little TOO dark at times).

Cobra takes one of the Joe team commanders (Flint) captive, and the operation turns into a rescue mission. It's also revealed that Destro and Starscream are working together against Megatron and Cobra Commander, building a giant Transformer/Earth Tech robot called Bruticus. Also, the battle between Stormshadow and Snake Eyes is STILL going on!

There were a few weak moments to be found here. . .how can Destro and Starscream keep a GIGANTIC robot that absolutely dwarfs the already huge decepticons hidden? And then there's the giant great white shark that becomes the deadly end of Snake Eyes and Stormshadow's drawn out battle. It seems to be a bit of a cop-out to finish an epic battle that's been going on for FOUR issues by the sudden appearance of an outside force. . .

So the mid-point slump that usually hits six issue minis waited an extra issue this time out.  Even so, despite the weak points starting to show in the story, this is still a great read that makes me want to immediately get into the next issue. . .

ISSUE FIVE

TRENCHES

As things build up to the final issue, it gets more crowded. Fortunately, the writer keeps his hand firmly on the wheel and things stay on track as the Joes move in to rescue Flint before the invasion force arrives to pound Cobra's base to dust with naval bombardment prior to a landing of ground forces.

Cobra Commander (who establishes his superiority over Megatron with the Matrix) fills the beaches with slaves as human shields to put off a mass landing of troops.  All in all, it's still a pretty simple story. . .it's just getting overcrowded with characters.

A standout moment in this issue is when Shockwave fires the first shot in the impending final battle, nailing Superion with a MASSIVE explosion. Superbly illustrated by Lee!

Overall, even though the story at this point is absolutely stuffed with "Elseworlds" WWII versions of almost every Joe and Transformer a fan of either property could want, the slightly-slumping story from last issue is replaced by an explosive run toward the finish line that promises a great ending!

AND FINALLY. . .

ISSUE 6

THE IRON FIST

And it's the big finish!

Holy crap. There are a LOT of characters in this issue! But the difference between this story and most G.I. Joe or Transformer stories is that about half of those characters die during this final battle.

There's a lot of balls in the air in this final issue, but the writer juggles them well and brings this unique series to a very nice close. I won't spoil the ending, but once again, Optimus Prime realizes that sometimes to protect the weak, the strong must make sacrifices. My only problem with an otherwise fantastic, action-packed and emotional issue is that the ending is very abrupt.

Overall, despite the somewhat abrupt ending, the creative team brought this one home in a big way, with a finish that combined some very emotional moments with all out action scenes that (due to the "Elseworlds" nature of the story) felt like they had some actual life or death stakes as heroes and villains both fall during the battle.  Very nicely done!

CONCLUSION

I really enjoyed this whole series. It was a unique look at characters I'm not really a fan of and that I didn't think had any mileage left in them. Done with a completely unexpected dark and gritty presentation of what is normally bright and pretty juvenile.  This series is very well done from first page to last!

Overall, I found this to be a unique and unexpected take on these two well-known properties, with good writing and fantastic art throughout. There were a few clunky moments in the story, it got a bit crowded with characters toward the end, and sometimes the art was TOO dark, but I have yet to find a perfect comic book, so those small flaws in no way take away from highly suggesting this series to anyone who enjoys military comics, whether or not they are fans of Transformers or G.I. Joe. 

This is simply a great series and truly a hidden gem among Longbox Junk!

Up next. . .

It's a video game tie in mini-series that's really 4 one-shots. Mass Effect: Homeworlds.

Be there or be square!