Okay, I have not read this issue yet(my comic shop didnt get it in, long story) but I am really mad at Rip It and Sky Creeper being killed. I thought the whole point of the Plague was to have the best of the best being leaders over the individual Viper units.
For example, Sky Creeper was supposedly the best of the Night Vultures and Rip it was supposedly the best over the HISS Drivers. Now, they are dead. Now, I must admit that I never liked the name "Rip It"(It sounded like what my fellow Boy Scouts liked to do in the tents when they had too much chili) I also didnt like the name "Sky Creeper"(For the longest time, I thought he was a Night Creeper that could fly)
C'mon, DDP, stop killing characters before they get developed! How many issues has Rip It or Sky Creeper been in? None that I know of! Oh wait...they were in Special Missions The Enemy...and now they are dead! DDP reminds me of my step-brother Daniel when we were growing up...he loved to kill Cobras and Joes(At least DDP doesnt do it with fireworks and bottle rockets! haha)

I'm guessing you didn't read the review over at "Comic Book Resources"

http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11821

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"You know, I'm a voter. Aren't you supposed to lie to me and kiss my butt?" -Peter Venkman, Ghostbusters 2

Read the summary of Special Missions The Enemy

http://www.yojoe.com/comics/specialmissions/theenemy.shtml

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GI Joe comic fan since 1982

The YO Joe Comic Book Section
&
The YO Joe International Comic Book Section

Finally got hold of my copy last night. I have to agree with the trend here, the first story was definately average. Dullsville, really.

The thing I had the most problem with was the drunk with the lousy up-bringing was the cobra and the successful guy with the traditional family background was the Joe. That may be the average story for Cobra and Joe recruits, but it there was nothing of note about it and therefore comes across as dull and cliche.

Also, I actually thought when I started reading the story, both characters were going to be cobras. This is Special Missions "The Enemy" (I'll get back to the title later) after all. A few pages in I figured out who Grunt was, but I think that would have worked much better. 2 different people from 2 different yet fairly typical backgrounds, both becoming cobras. That's where I thought this split story was headed and frankly it would have been more interesting. Instead, the Grunt side felt like a nice recap of his life with some fun flashback moments from the original marvel run, but nothing earth shattering and the Cobra side was a big cliche.

As for the title, there was question about this before the book came out, and sorry but the main story was not a "Special Missions" issue in my mind. It clearly would have fit under the declassified title much better. The second story definately fit as a SM. Anyways, no big deal, just a bit of a goofy choice for this release.

Speaking of the second story, I thought it was decent. It was a simple mission which served a couple purposes in the overall AE story, which is cool. I love it when the SM books compliment AE story-wise, so that was nice. Killing off a couple lame cobras was fine by me. It served the story and those characters certainly won't be missed (well maybe by some folks ).

So overall, the grunt story was nice with some fun moments taken on its own, the Cobra story kind of cliche, and the secondary story was pretty good.

I'm going to say that the phrase "non-stop" meaning not to stop could only mean that once the action started, it would not stop, through the conclusion of the book. On that note, it did not deliver.

I don't know, I think it's implicit that the action WILL stop at some point (at least when the 48 pages are over), thus I take "Non Stop Action" to mean more precisely "Uninterrupted Action"...

I'm just pulling your leg here Snake Shadow, I agree that it did not deliver on the promised action (nor did it on the number of pages: 44, not 48 ).

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䷾ scryptic
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"The only way to bear the snakes is to become one." - Cobra Commander, Cobra Reborn

Well, there was action ...

I mean ... Tony the Cobra pushed that other Cobra Recruit!

Not to mention when the Dreadnoks tossed Tony the Cobra out!

Or when Grunt RACED to the scene ... of his daughter's birth ... (good scene)

Or all those action-packed battles that we'd already seen before! See Grunt help take out an airfield! (250 issues ago ...) See Grunt take on Cobra Troopers in a fierce battle on Cobra Island! (50 issues ago).

Not to mention the back-up story ...

See Blackout and a Cobra team in a fierce gunfight! (AKA just shooting unarmed civilians for three pages then no action at all, unless you count Blackout and Guillotine slitting some throats action).

I liked the issue, especially seeing some "other-goings-on" during some of the major events ... but the action barely started, let alone stopped.

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2013, NEW SPRITES!

I'm gonna go along with most of the comments here regarding the first story. Nice to see Grunt get fleshed out, but I can't help but think that maybe it'd be better if both characters had some moral dilemma before ultimately embarking on their respective paths. Or perhaps have both start out similarly, before taking wildly divergent roads. I think that would've made Grunt's speech about his dad's advice on taking responsibility for one's actions more resonant. As it is, it just drives home the implication that we're slaves to our parents' values. I liked the Phil Jimenez-esque artwork, though perhaps having an inker would've been an improvement.

Nice art on the second story too, reminds me of a less-manic Steve Skroce. Good set-up for the main series. And the close-up of Interrogator's visor lends some nifty ambiguity: was it purely for artistic effect (in depicting Rip It and Sky Creeper's demise) or is there more than meets the eye with that guY?

Well, I finally got it and Loved it! I loved seeing Grunt and the Cobra "grunt" take divergent paths. Yes, I see what some of you are saying about it being too predictable but keep in mind that this is a story about only two people and does not necessarily cover how all of the Cobras are recruited.(Look at the Crimson Guard, it is possible that some of them were lawyers before they joined Cobra)
As for Skycreeper and Rip It, I still dont like that they died BUT...they can easily be replaced by a Night Vulture and a HISS Driver so I wont give DDP too much a hard time! haha I can see this was used to show how ruthless the Plague is(Kinda like when they were showing the Phoenix Guard training) Let's hope we see someone take their place...(Munitia would be good as the HISS Driver leader as she was once a HISS Driver and Interrogator would be good to lead the Night Vultures)
I also would love to see Munitia and Cover Girl fight as they are both tank drivers. i can also see Munitia and Major Bludd working together as they are both mercenaries.

Anybody mention there was a variant released at the convention?

No, but rumor is I have one on the way.

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I'm jealous

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I came, I saw, I blew it up!

Didn't mention it, but I got mine at the convention.

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"Those with knowledge and information,not guns and ammo,have the true power over others."

The con cover is now available in the DD Store. Only 24 in stock (was 25 before I placed my order, so it's real-time stock).

I just bought one.

Missing this issue felt like a torn in the side of my collection.

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GI Joe comic fan since 1982

The YO Joe Comic Book Section
&
The YO Joe International Comic Book Section