As someone who devoured every thing G.I. Joe in the world as a child, I was excited to review a Larry Hama written book about some face-stomping special forces. The fact that this is a prequel to the very highly anticipated Call of Duty: Black Ops III game that drops in a week is icing on the cake, but is this tie-in any good?
Call of Duty: Black Ops III (Dark Horse Comics)
Duke and Roadblock look more intense…
Let’s be honest. I’m a red blooded American male, so deep down, books about Special Forces bros killing scumbags and talking about how they live for wearing furry Russian hats strike a deep chord in me. See also, Jean Claude Van-Damme movies, kung-fu marathons, and Tom Brady’s perfect spiral for that same chord.
Blood stained furry hats. Must have this season.
This issue opens with a very G.I. Joe-esque mission: obtaining weapons in hostile territory. The deal goes a bit awry (because of course it does).
So that’s what that sounds like…
If you’ve played the games at all, you know that characters often don’t make it to the sequel, and this issue keeps that tradition alive, with bullets and grenades actually doing real damage. From a plot standpoint, this is refreshing, as death in comics never feels real.
Artwork wise, I find that Marcelo Ferreira’s work here is solid, with excellent battle scenes, fully realized landscapes showing war torn Uzbekistan, and any time the character Patel shows up? It’s going to get bloody quick.
Still? If you’re not a fan of the game, this isn’t going to be the thing that entices you to purchase either. It’s a good story with good art, but without any backstory or that rich pantheon that Hama built with the Joes, you take death, wins, and losses with a grain of salt.
Aww, she’s gonna shoot us with rainbows and glitter!
I’ll give it a 6 out of 10. Solid and interesting, but nothing special. I am curious as to how this plays out, so kudos to Larry for still pushing out good and compelling military fiction.
If you’re a COD freak, and counting down the days until you teabag me after shooting me in the face online, this will probably be a 8 out of 10 for you.
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