I don't follow the G.I. Joe comics at all. I sort of have one I grabbed at Free Comic Book Day this spring. But I picked up September's Cobra Special #1 based solely on Chris Sims' glowing review of it (You can check his site out here).
I admit I don't understand the story. I don't have the slightest clue who the Paoli brothers are and what bigger role they play in the GI Joe universe. But that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy this issue for the masterpiece it is.
It's a story about duality. One brother sees their situation as freedom, while the other sees it as slavery. The artwork tells this as much as the words do. You see, the first half and the second half of this book mirror each other. The style, layout, and sometimes the image itself are exact mirror images of what occurs on the corresponding page in the other half. Even the page numbers mirror each other. They count up to the halfway point in the book and start counting down again.
It's a piece of beauty, is what it is. It's also a perfect example of what can be done with this medium. I don't fully understand the story, but I will reread it over and over just to appreciate the way its told. I definitely have to salute writer Mike Costa and artist Antonio Fuso on this one. Good job, guys.
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