I read issue number one of this new series yesterday, and thought it rivaled Master and Apprentice I for sheer storytelling and enjoyability. I thought the art was superior, and the colors were very, very nice. Overall I was very pleased with the book.

I've read much of the origin of Snake-Eyes before, so I was impressed with how well my interest was maintained by it's re-telling. Strong work Devil's Due! The "new" innovations of finally glimpsing Snake-Eyes's family, hearing him speak, and above all learning the origin of that legendary code-name all contributed to the excellence of the book. The writer can make or break a comic, and apparently this storyline has absolutely nothing to fear.

I thought the pencils were crisp, smooth, beautiful, believable, and that they captured the overall tone of the tale. That artist makes me want to comission him myself for pictures! I cannot wait to see the Japanese ninjas and the classic v1 uniform (with goggles) on Snake-Eyes.

The colors were great. Seeing many images straight from the classic Marvel issues but recolored for a darker, deeper intensity to the story was thoroughly enjoyable for me. I loved the dark sky colors best.

Finally, a word of caution. The Vietnam War is a testy subject in American history to this day, and I hope that certain political issues are avoided. The soldiers such as Snake-Eyes obviously believed in being there - they signed up for additional tours of duty willingly. Plus, I thought seeing Snake-Eyes's charity was laudable. Strong work!

I agree, I too think that it's an excellent comic book. I think the artwork is nice and old fashioned, in the nicest sense of the term. I like Storm Shadow's portrayal too. Seeing him as such a nice guy and friend to Snake Eyes makes their future relationship all the more tragic.

The scene with Snake-Eyes and his father at the beginning is good, the kind of thing that should be in a G.I. Joe movie, if one were to be made. I look forward to the next issue.

I like Storm Shadow's portrayal too. Seeing him as such a nice guy and friend to Snake Eyes makes their future relationship all the more tragic.

The scene with Snake-Eyes and his father at the beginning is good, the kind of thing that should be in a G.I. Joe movie, if one were to be made. I look forward to the next issue.

Two excellent points that I neglected to mention! The scenes between Storm Shadow and Snake-Eyes have set the tone for the depth of tragedy that is to follow.

I thought it was great. Great scenes with Tommy and Snake Eyes. I only have one question: Why didn't they mention the whole Scarlett/Helicopter accident which is the reason he dosn't talk? Plus, they could have made Wade Collins "death" more prominent since it has big reprecussions later. But I thought it was a great issue. Can't wait to see the Arashikage clan and his training. Hope they show Zartan when he offs the Hard Master. Can't wait for #2.

I only have one question: Why didn't they mention the whole Scarlett/Helicopter accident which is the reason he dosn't talk? Plus, they could have made Wade Collins "death" more prominent since it has big reprecussions later.

Good comments. Scarlett doesn't come into Snake-Eyes's life until after he joins the GI Joe team - which happens much later chronologically than the events portrayed in the first issue of the series. The disfigurement comes after meeting Scarlett. One important note here: we have been given to understand that Snake-Eyes gets burned in an "early" Joe mission - not necessarily the "first" Joe mission. So there is the potential to see Snake-Eyes in full anti-terror action prior to the black costume.

As for Wade Collins? I agree with you. But there are only so many pages in the comic, and I think the emphasis was kept in the proper areas.

actually i was under the impression that the accident happened before the formation of the G.I.Joe team,but still a team in which Snake eyes and Scarlett knew ea. other,hence why she knows him while other core Joe team members don't really know him. :confused:

actually i was under the impression that the accident happened before the formation of the G.I.Joe team,but still a team in which Snake eyes and Scarlett knew ea. other,hence why she knows him while other core Joe team members don't really know him. :confused:

A very understandable error. The GI Joe team was already formed, and one of its earliest missions was the rescue of an American agent named George Strawhacker (who we later learn was the fiance of Snake-Eyes's deceased twin sister) from the Middle East. It was this mission which cost Snake-Eyes his vocal cords and face.

Scarlett first met Snake-Eyes in a training exercise for the original GI Joes. Recall that Scarlett is an accomplished martial artist, and thus she was a natural choice for hand-to-hand combat instruction for the soldiers. Unfortunately the men of the team did not take her very seriously - much to Scarlett's chagrin.

So she pummeled Steeler as an example, but was still regarded as a fluke...

She selected Snake-Eyes as her next "example." He could have easily beaten her, but he allowed her to win so that she would earn the respect of her male teammates. She is no fool, and realizes midway through a throw that Snake-Eyes is a highly skilled martial artist who is allowing her to win - and this intrigues her. ;)

She catches up to him after the training exercise and convinces him to admit to her that he studied martial arts in Japan. They keep a conversation flowing and the rest is history...

I was pleasantly surprised with how good this comic is. At first i was thinking, "Oh not this whole story again!", but it was pretty damn decent.

By the way is this going to be a four-issue series or what?

Hey Bleak5170 -

Declassified is going to be six issues long.

- Sam

Am I the only one who was not impressed by this book. Granted, Jerwa is definitely the best Joe writer since Hama, and he hasn't done any damage (which is what I was really afraid of, a backstory where Snake Eyes is a runaway circus monkey trainer who is reunited with his parents only to get drafted or something), but I still think that the story was actually a pretty weak Marvel rip off. We got a few new pages but most of the rest we have already seen sans dialogue.
I guess a lot of that stuff needed to be rehashed for those who don't know the original comics, but I hope it gets better. Out of anyone, I do have faith in Jerwa.

On the whole tragic SS/SE relationship, I kind of see that as all being resolved. In the Marvel series the two of them were adversaries but never really enemies. That is what made it so cool. When SS went back to Cobra it was late in the series when the writing had kind of weakened some, and it was so short that you got the impression he would be back to himself soon enough. The DD run kind of mangled the whole thing. There are so many different timelines with M&A and SS keeps on switching sides. It's just gotten kind of lame IMO.

Oh well, just my two cents.

We got a few new pages but most of the rest we have already seen sans dialogue. I guess a lot of that stuff needed to be rehashed for those who don't know the original comics, but I hope it gets better. Out of anyone, I do have faith in Jerwa.

On the whole tragic SS/SE relationship, I kind of see that as all being resolved. In the Marvel series the two of them were adversaries but never really enemies. That is what made it so cool. When SS went back to Cobra it was late in the series when the writing had kind of weakened some, and it was so short that you got the impression he would be back to himself soon enough. The DD run kind of mangled the whole thing. There are so many different timelines with M&A and SS keeps on switching sides.

Valid points. I like seeing Snake-Eyes's origins synthesized into one continuous story arc, and I think that in the end this will read much smoother than digging through multiple Marvel issues. I actually thought that it was refreshing to see homages of the older comics, though. I'm really looking forward to the story to come. Just my opinion. Yeah, I'm liking Jerwa too.

Storm Shadow is definitely a perplexing character. I always liked him best as a Cobra ninja - it just seemed more fitting and true to his character. Personally, I think that Storm Shadow is just "morally confused" and isn't sure of himself. He still doesn't know where his place in the grand scheme of things is. I can identify with that.

I kind of like this "suspenseful element of mistrust" that has been created with regard to Stormie's ever-changing loyalty. Will any of us ever be sure that Storm Shadow isn't going to "change sides" again in the future? Of all the characters in the Joe universe, I've found Storm Shadow to be one of the most realistic and believable (or maybe I'm thinking most human?) due to his constantly shifting stances. But look at what he's been through...

He's had to deal with Snake-Eyes usurping his coveted role as "apple of the Hard Master's eye." He's learned that the secret scrolls of Arashikage techniques (supposedly passed on exclusively to family members) have been given to Snake-Eyes. He's lost the love of his life in a most bitter fashion. He has to live with the fact that he's betrayed so many. Multiple "brainwashings." The list goes on...

Just my opinions, though. I confess that you made good points, Dan.

We should have threads like this more often.

You have made good points, too. I just had a hard time with the way SS was handled in the DD run. In the Marvel run he worked for Cobra but we found out early on that he was conflicted and he pretty much stayed true to his initial character or a good guy who blurred the edges and got into some bad stuff because he was bent on vengence. The only time that actually changed (whether he was working for Cobra of GI Joe) was at the very end of the series when he was brainwashed (which was a rather weak storyline that I felt Hama never really got to resolve).
Then in the DD run Stormy starts out bad (which made sense) but comes back to good kind of (warns Hawk about the assassination) then fights SE and gets rebrainwashed around the silent issue. Then we go baaaaack in M&A I and he is working with Snake Eyes and fighting him at the same time. Then in M&A II he is good again but life stinks because the other chick gets brainwashed, and then in America's Elite he is good but still acts bad half the time. It's like a ping pong game with Storm Shadow's personalities.
I personally feel that Zartan is the character that has been treated the best out of anyone. He is a mercenary with no real loyalties to anyone except his family. He has had a few moments of moral clarity that have made him less likely to be a baddie, but for the most part he is the same as he has always been. Not really evil, but not tied down by any moral compunctions either. Firefly is another good example as he embodies the most serious evil. No ideology, no loyalties, nothing. He is out for the money and will do anything and probably enjoy it. These two characters shine because DD has not done to him what they did to many of the Joes (Duke, Hawk, Flint) and tried to make them too human. Now instead of fighting the bad guys they are arguing with each other over crossed lines and ideology. I know that may be more realistic in some ways, but I find it much less entertaining.
I reread SE declassified and enjoyed it more the second time. Hopefully it will get better. IMO Jerwa is a true Joe comic fan. I have been much more impressed with his work than anyone else except Hama. I am sick of everyone else trying to rehash an old Marvel story. Now that Wingfield is back trying to blow up the world again I am assuming this won't change with the new writer. BTW, what happened to the Red Shadows? I was kind of thinking that since the leader got away that we would hear from them again but we got Wingfield instead.

That's the end of my rant for now. Here's to turning the ship around.

Here's to turning the ship around.

I hear you.

The Red Shadows are undoubtedly still out there, biding their time. With all of the trouble Devil's Due took to introduce them and the prominence they enjoyed in the final story arc, I'm sure we haven't seen the last of them.

That's kind of the problem for me, though. It's like >BOOM< Red Shadows come, take out Cobra Commander, kill Lady Jaye, wreak general havoc, and the leader excapes and then we just skip a year and the Joes are pared down and just chasing leads on a fractured Cobra group.
To me it just doesn't seem that difficult to keep things going in the right direction. I know that writing isn't easy, but in terms of keeping the story coherent and flowing in a logical fashion I don't see what the problem is.
Another problem that I have had is the fact that in the original line we had the main story with two short lived TF crossovers (the first of which was presented in a way that you could totally ignore it if you wanted to). The second TF crossover as well as all of the issues devoted entirely to past events happened in the waning months of the series (about #140-155) when the series was getting weaker. Since DD started (45 or so issues) we have the main series, two alternate universe series (TF crossovers and Reloaded, as well as the Dreamwave series but that doesn't count), at least three entire series that have taken place at an earlier time (M&A I, much of Frontline, and SE:Declassified. I'm not sure where to put M&A II). It is really hard to keep track of what is going on when. To me this is a sign of weakness. It's like "We're not really sure what to do with GI Joe, so everyone gets a shot and then we'll scrap all that and bring everyone back to life".
I'm sorry that I have turned this thread into a DD rant, because I have actually been a fairly strong supporter and I like a lot of things about the series. It's just that the frustration of never seeing any of the grand schemes really come to any fruition that makes sense is getting to me.

Yeah, a few months ago they promised us that the changes in the comics would bring about great things, well they seem to have scrapped that. Personally I think they need to fire their writers, and get some real ones.