Cobra Commander and Duke are setting up a new take on G.I. Joe that is the modern shot in the arm I didn't realize the series needed. If these prelude titles are any indication, Williamson and his collaborators' take on G.I. Joe is going to quickly ascend to the top of the comic book charts. Read Full Review

An interesting story. Bringing the Transformers, machine life into a civilization that is afraid of machinery, a combination that can only lead to trouble. We now have Duke on the G.I. Joe side hunting down the Transformers, most notably Starscream, Cobra Commander who is fully aware of their existence and Optimus Prime using Megatron's arm. Read Full Review

An incredible discovery tempts a scientist to abandon his principles, cast aside tradition, and reject any reverence for life in Cobra Commander #1. Read Full Review

Cobra Commanderis an excellent addition to the Energon Universe. Joshua Williamson's writing is fantastic and Andrea Milana's artwork is superb. Fans who are familiar with the franchise will appreciate the nods to the established continuity, but newcomers will be able to jump in and enjoy the story without feeling lost. The comic book is a perfect blend of action and suspense. Read Full Review

While the real meat of this five-part story is yet to fully reveal itself, the groundwork laid in this first issue is nothing short of impeccable, throwing out several intriguing storyline hooks and doing a fantastic job of establishing the latest version of this classic villain, with plenty of teases and hinted cameos to please long-time G.I. Joe fans. A violent and ambitious reimagining of the classic Saturday morning cartoon baddie, and another thrilling addition to Skybound's Energon Universe. Read Full Review

Cobra Commander #1 is good. It's really good. The comic might be the strongest debut out of all of the Energon Universe and has me excited to see what comes next. This is a Cobra Commander that already feels manipulative and scheming and where those machinations go and how it connects to everything else is going to be one hell of a ride. Read Full Review

This is a fantastic gateway into the Energon Universe. It was informative and entertaining. My only negative comes from the sequence in Cobra-La where I did not yet understand the world some of the images become confusing in the organic kingdom as I tried to determine what I was seeing, similarly this affected the clarity of a couple of the pages as far as storytelling went, having only a sound effect to indicate why the citizens were running in fear. But this is a minor hiccup and it passed quickly. Read Full Review

Cobra Commander #1 is an early contender for comic book issue of the year. Joshua Williamson, Andrea Milana, and Annalisa Leoni do a remarkable job with the world building around the Rise of Cobra. This adds yet another quality title to the strong Energon Universe. Read Full Review

Speaking as someone who never loved G.I. Joe, I can safely say I'm compelled to read much more in this new Skybound-driven Energon Universe. The creative team has made Cobra Commander seem far more dangerous as a villain who can go it alone but, with the right tools, could rule the world.Cobra Commander builds up sci-fi mythology with genuine intensity and a fascinating central villain. Read Full Review

Ken: One of pop culture's most famous villains gets a spotlight fitting of his legend with this debut issue. From the fear element crafted by Williamson's writing to the spectacular visuals by Milana, Leonii and Wooten, the faceless eyes of terror strike a chord with new and old readers alike. With storytelling like this, it's hard not to cheer for the bad guys. Read Full Review

COBRA COMMANDER #1 leans into the science fiction elements of G.I. Joe, expands on the Energon Universe, and elevates Cobra Commander to an A-Tier villain, all in the first issue. For all of Williamsons troubles at DC, he may have found his truer, better calling with this series. Read Full Review

Cobra Commander #1 is a great introduction to the evil side of the G.I Joe universe that is bound to please new and old fans. The issue does an excellent job justifying its existence, making it almost the most compelling introduction in the Energon Universe thus far. Read Full Review

'Cobra Commander' is the villain origin story the Commander deserved. An enticing tale of power, malevolence, and unrelenting ambition in the latest hit from the Energon Universe. Read Full Review

Williamson and team have crafted an interesting tale to get readers up to speed on the background of this nefarious villain, incorporating elements from G.I. JOE lore that will surely be surprising as you flip through the book. From an art perspective, Milana and Leoni made some killer creative choices, painting a weird-yet-intenseworld for the villains to play in. Although there are some interesting parallels, I enjoyed how off the rails this title was in comparison to the Duke mini-series. I won't say which page, but I audibly gasped while reading this book. Cobra Commander #1 is full of surprises, and the threat of Cobra is starting to become very real in the Energon Universe. Time to go watchG.I. JOE: The Movie. Read Full Review

Strong introduction, but a little too off-the-wall and wild with the lore for a first issue. Read Full Review

If you're invested in the Energon Universe and its various books, Cobra Commander #1 won't waste your time. But of all the miniseries involved in the Energon Universe, it's the weakest start by far. Read Full Review

As I mentioned in my review for Duke #1, the Joe franchise was a blackhole for me until recently. I’ve been doing more research ever since the Energon Universe was announced and have been thoroughly enjoying Josh Williamson’s stories, as well Larry Hama’s latest run on G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. And while I can’t use first-hand experience of how past stories landed, I’ve read enough background and synopses to get a sense for characters’ backgrounds and histories.

So for me, it’s been a really fun time to jump on board with all this new content coming out at once. That’s especially true after the debut issue of Duke wowed me, and now Williamson followed it up with another slam dunk of a debut issue in Cobra Commander #1. From what I can tell, its a unique and fresh take on the iconic G.I. Joe villain. And as a n00b it came across authentic and menacing to see a kind of table-setting for Cobra Commander’s worldview and modus operandi.

Watching Cobra Commander be sacrificed, nursed back to health, and then marked for death to teach him a lesson was a gut punch and shouldn’t have induced as much sympathy it did! Its begs an interesting philosophical question around the impact of nature vs. nurture on some of the worst threats to society. We know what he will become, but could things have been avoided if event from his past had gone a different way? We’ll never know and we’re reminded by his present day actions that he’s fully entrenched in his bloodthirsty, world-domination mindset. And the surprise reveal towards the end of the book was a major “OMG” moment — something I hope stays secret for readers until they see it on the page for themselves. Well done to the entire team for keeping that under wraps for so long!

At first I was a little apprehensive about Andrea Milana’s art as it came off a bit too…fun? Don’t get me wrong, I love this style and Milana nails it. For a story about a murderous villain the designs were almost too pleasant to the eye, with a post-modern, sketch-book style approach. There is a heavy dose of dark shadowing along with some interesting usage of angles in the linework for characters and environments in certain panels. Other panels have some extremely complex and detailed linework. I won’t spoil anything but one of the sequences shows a medical procedure involving a three-headed snake — yikes! As I sat with the issue and want back to it for this review, I couldn’t help but appreciate the art for what it was. Milana’s art is complemented by a vibrant color palette from Annalisa Leoni. Leoni brings each page to life with a wide array of colors but always keeping a slightly darker shadow ever present. And of course the lettering work by Rus Wooton is sublime, with onomatopoeias allowing readers to fully immerse themselves in what’s happening on the page.

I’m simply in awe at how much Williamson has made me feel fully invested in these characters in my first real exposure to them. It’s an ode to his own fandom for the G.I. Joe franchise and the respect he has for the decades worth of work that has come before him. Not to keep lumping the two together, but I can’t think of a better way for these Duke and Cobra Commander series to have kicked off and all roads lead back to Williamson and the amazing team of artists who have joined forces with him. The Energon Universe is one of the most exciting developments in comics in a very long time (it also looks to be quite the financial behemoth which is great to see), and Cobra Commander #1 is a wonderful addition to it. more

Williamson seems to be combining the origins of Cobra Commander here. By making him start out in Cobra-La, but keeping him a human from the outer world as well. That promises an interesting character already. This book also answers one question many of us have been asking, where is Magatron? The next question is how he was found. This introduction should also pave the way for an interesting relationship between these 2 villains for years to come, whether they be allies, enemies or both.
Most of all Kudos to Williamson for coming up with a way to introduce Cobra-La into a comic, something never done successfully before as it's so controversial for many fans.
I look forward to seeing the Commander's quest to build his empire. This should be good. The Energon universe is on a roll. Let's just hope it stays on the glorious path its on and avoid the mistakes of IDW. more

So this is a great read but I must warn, I dont think this is going to be what people expected. I am really rusty on Cobra lore but from what little I remember, this is a bit intense. Cobra Commander is far less scheme'y' and smarmy and far more terrifying and brutal. Cunning and strategic. Tech instead of skills and he embraces this weakness. Much like what was done in Transformers for StarScream, they did for Cobra Commander. The villains in this universe are way more terrifying than what I remember in the 90s and I am down for it.

Both Duke and Cobra Commander are amazing start to mini-series to explain the rise of GI Joe and Cobra. Must reads. Once again the Energon universe is pumping out winners.

Another great first issue, just like Duke's.

Cobra Commander #1
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W: Joshua Williamson
A: Andrea Milana
C: Annalisa Leoni
L: Rus Wooton

Thoughts…

What an issue, from the outset it was a corker. It was completely not what I expected it would be in any way. I remember G.I Joe from my childhood but I am not sure if this is the same origin or not but I was so thrown by what I saw and read. This has to be one of the most surprising issues in the new Energon Universe.

First the story, this has so many WTF moments throughout, it's unbelievable. The origin of the Commander is the first and then it just keeps throwing in more and more. The way it links in to the Energon Universe was another massive moment, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, I think I even whispered Holy **** under my breath. But it's not just the shock and awe of the issue that made it so good. The pacing is great and the story leading up to each of the reveals is really well written and keeps things flowing nicely. This is a really solid start to the series, full of twists and turns and some really interesting set up for the future.

For the art, it is quite angular and sharp and in places it is really colourful and bright. There are some almost body horror moments in the issue and it doesn't shy away from showing the gore and the more visceral moments. There is a lot visually going on in this issue that I can’t mention here as I don’t want to spoil anything, but it will definitely leave an impression after you have finished reading the issue.

So much happens in this one issue, this exactly what you want from the start of a new series. It will grab so much attention for its take on the Cobra Mythology and the way it will shape what is to come down the line. This is a really solid start to the series and one that will get people talking I am sure. I would give this issue 9 out of 10 and I think it will be a hard comic to beat this week.


Solicitation…

In a world where Cobra doesn’t exist, one man’s sinister plans to utilise the mysterious alien substance known as Energon will send shockwaves across the globe.
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I wasn't so much of a fan of this issue as everyone else seems to be. The art wasn't great and I'm not a fan of Cobra-La. It's been a long time since I've seen the GI Joe animated movie, but I like my GI Joe more grounded without alien species and magic. I like how Cobra Commander admits that he's not a fighter and kills the guards with inventions. I'm going to stick with it and see how he connects with Megatron.

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