The Dreadnok War is upon us, and Cobra Commander is about to discover the truth of the adage about “the enemy of my enemy.” Your Major Spoilers review of G.I. JOE #13 from Skybound Entertainment awaits!
G.I. JOE #13
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Tom Reilly
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Editor: Ben Abernathy
Publisher: Skybound Entertainment
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: November 5, 2025
Previously in G.I. JOE: When Cobra Commander is betrayed by one of his closest allies, he’s targeted for revenge by the Dreadnoks! But in his darkest hour, the only one who can save Cobra is… Duke? What in the Cobra-La is going on around here?
THE ENERGON IS RUNNING LOW
The building of Cobra as a terrorist army has been remarkably successful, thanks to a strong foundation of Energon excavated from the swamps. Unfortunately, that source of Cybertronian power has been exhausted, and Cobra Commander has sent out the call to his allies, rallying the Crimson Twins, Major Bludd, Mercer, and the mysterious Chameleon to help search for more. Even Destro gets in the act, albeit with a few manipulative words to the Commander’s new right-hand man, the Dreadnok Ripper. That’s when they discover a strange, pulsing Energon source somewhere in the desert; a signal strong enough that the Commander thinks it might be another Transformer. Setting off to personally investigate, he is unaware that G.I. Joe is also aware of the signal and that they have a man on leave in the same area. Duke, while ostensibly on R&R, takes the opportunity to investigate the signal himself, which is how he personally witnesses the Commander discovering the source of the Energon pulse.
Oh, and he also sees firsthand that it was all a setup, and witnesses his enemy being betrayed by his own men!
CURSE HIS SUDDEN BUT INEVITABLE BETRAYAL!
The pacing of this issue is amazing, going from a briefing in the Cobra throne room to a full-on battle in the desert with unexpected speed, then ending up with a full-circle moment as the real architect of the events is revealed. It’s a neat bit of closure for part of the story. The other part, leaving two unlikely allies on their own, chased by an army of Dreadnoks who hate them both, is classic cinematic madness, giving echoes of The Defiant Ones, all the while making me think of Butch and Sundance and the Bolivian army.
Visually, the story is just as impressive. My favorite moments are the sheer brutality of Duke finally going toe-to-toe with Ripper, a sequence that is shown in red tones, intercut with a gravely wounded Cobra Commander looking for a way out. The other moment that took my breath away was the reveal that the arriving reinforcements aren’t Cobra, nor are they G.I. Joe. They are the Dreadnoks, led by Zarana and Zandar, and they have bones to pick with both Duke and the Commander.
BOTTOM LINE: TOP-NOTCH ACTION-ADVENTURE
Once again, Williamson kicks out the metaphorical jams with G.I. JOE #13, delivering on Skybound’s promises of a story that will bring things to a boil and shake up the power structure of the Energon Universe with style, excellent art by Tom Reilly, and a Rus Wooton coloring job that elevates it all, earning 4.5 out of 5 stars overall. There’s even an oblique Evil Dead reference, which doesn’t make the story structurally better, but absolutely adds to my enjoyment of it.
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G.I. JOE #13
The use of simple, canonical details to go where no G.I. Joe tale has ever gone before makes this one not just a good comic book, but among the best of G.I. Joe iterations.
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Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.