FOR THE KIDS

It can be difficult reviewing material like this book. One, it’s a companion to a new animated television series. Two, it’s meant to be very safe for kid readers. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t apply some scrutiny to it. So here we go…

G.I. JOE: SIGMA 6 #1
Written by Andrew Dabb and Drawn by Chris Lie
Published by Devil’s Due

SIGMA is a new JOE series meant to focus on a handful of the characters and a bunch of new high-tech toys for them to use in their war against the forces of Cobra. This first issue finds Duke vacationing in Guam and called to duty when a group of oceanographers studying undersea quakes mysteriously disappear. Of course, what he finds is Cobra-related, because this is a comic book, after all. So he must use his wits and training to survive the traps of the evil Destro and bring the hostages to safety. The end.

What you mostly tend to look for in an adaptation comic is first, whether or not the story actually holds together, and second, if it looks like it took more than three days to draw. SIGMA gets thumbs up in both those areas; Dabb is a very good writer, and skilled in turning in scripts in a variety of genres, and Lie’s sort of painted-looking manga style will play well to the junior audience.

Where the book could be better, though, is in the character work. Again, I realize that the younger crowd doesn’t really care about character development and such, but the one thing that the story doesn’t really do is put the focus on Duke and what makes him a special soldier. His bland blonde looks echo the fact that nothing here makes him stand out besides the fact that he’s a JOE. And that he drinks frilly, girly drinks while he’s on vacation. Snake Eyes, Scarlett, and many of the other Joes are well-defined, but Duke has generally been deadly dull, and nothing here suggests to the first time reader that he’s even remotely cool.

Still, the kids get mind-controlled sharks and robots, so the “wicked kewl” factor for the tots should be high. I’d just like to see a little bit more focus on making the book something truly accessible for the older reader who might be giving it a look.

/Mason