G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #300 is a comic that should be a celebration. It’s the final issue of the long running series being published by IDW Publishing with a future that’s still unknown. It’s also an amazing accomplishment for writer Larry Hama who has been the architect from the early days. The finale to a long running storyline, the issue should be fireworks and excitement to wrap things up. Unfortunately, like the C-130 within the pages, the result is a crash.
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #300 is an oddity of an issue. Pure action and over the top moments, it encapsulates so much of what makes G.I. Joe fun. The concepts are out there mixing military action and sci-fi weirdness, mixing in a dash of laughs and humor. It’s classic Joe. But, the comic ends on a cliffhanger, an unfinished story that feels both fitting and frustrating. Like a good “to be continued”, the issue leaves you hanging right at a big moment of action waiting for the next episode (issue in this case). But, that may never come leaving it all a bit of a letdown. It’s not so much a celebration as an oddity of a “finale” that doesn’t quite satisy.
Featuring the art of S.L. Gallant with ink by Aria Keane, and color of J. Brown, the art is good. I’m not the biggest fan of Gallant’s style but there’s something for how much is packed into the issue. The action scenes are entertaining and there’s a lot to keep track of and change up. The team handles that well with all of the characters looking solid and each scene hitting its beat visually.
The comic features a PSA from writer Erik Burnham, art by Billy Penn, and color by Luis Antonio Delgado. Like the rest of the comic, it captures the feel of classic G.I. Joe PSAs but like the overall issue, something is slightly off. It’s a nice fun send off but again, doesn’t really feel like that special finale.
And that’s probably what bothers me most about G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #300. It doesn’t feel like a send off. It feels like an unfinished piece by a maestro who deserved a better ending. Still, there’s something interesting and gutsy about leaving things the way it is. This is an issue that’ll be debated for quite a while by Joe fans.
Story: Larry Hama, Erik Burnham Art: S.L. Gallant, Billy Penn
Ink: Aria Keane Color: J. Brown, Luis Antonio Delgado Letterer: Neil Uyetake
Story: 6.5 Art: 6.5 Overall: 6.5 Recommendation: Pass
IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle
Source: Graphic Policy
