nothing to worry about
So, the Infestation story is in full swing at this point. The zombie horde is barreling through the IDW universes, consuming both human and robot alike. It was hard for me to wrap my head around the Transformers tie-in, but G.I. Joe was the series I was anxious to read, but not because I wanted to see zombies invade the Joes. I really enjoy all of the G.I. Joe series, and because of the realistic slant of the universe, I was especially worried about the supernatural zombies taking over. And then I saw the B.A.T.s, and the robot zombie concept took hold. It turns out, that G.I. Joe: Infestation has been the best of the whole series! The first issue is devoid of the flesh hungry variety (hopefully it will stay that way), and the focus was on the Cobra B.A.T.s becoming infected, wreaking havoc. Unlike Transformers: Infestation, I think there will be huge repercussions from the tie-in. The B.A.T. units were introduced some time ago in G.I. Joe: Cobra, but the androids are still not functioning. It’s a problem that the Cobra R&D eggheads have been working on since Chuckles sabotaged their base. The callout from this will be Cobra getting the uppder hand and solving their malfunctioning android problem.
This story starts with Cobra hijacking a Joe transport/escort in the middle of the ocean. The tip off was the complete absence of tech or heavy escort, meaning the Joes must be hiding something big for such a low profile. The three man team of Joes are quickly overtaken by Baroness are her Eel team. The creepy Interrogator makes an appearance, a nice little nod to G.I. Joe: Hearts & Minds.
The only negative part of the story was Psyche Out divulging the back story of the item they were transporting. G.I. Joe: Infestation #1 is a Cobra tale, with Joes thrown in. It starts with Cobra members, takes place at a Cobra base, and for the most part is told from Cobra character’s perspective. Psyche Out’s back story sounds like a massacre at a Joe base, all their tech getting infected and killing them. There was no mention of any of this before now, no lead up or hints from the other books. His story sounds like it would be awesome to read and see unfold. At least I wouldn’t have the sense that I’m walking into a story already happening.
Still, this Infestation tie-in is wonderful. The story is well told, the characters are consistent, and the art isn’t half bad either.