G.I. Joe 2 (2008)

## [Source]

***G.I. Joe #2*** is the second regular issue of IDW Publishing's *G.I. Joe* series. It was published on February 11, 2009. The issue was written by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Robert Atkins.

## Publisher's summary

*The Pit, the G.I. Joe headquarters, has been infiltrated and Cobra will claim the first victim. Meanwhile, Snake Eyes has gone awol and his actions are being questioned by his friends, except for Scarlett who still trust in him. In some unknown location, Destro is making his move and he receives the unexpected visit of the deadly Baroness.*

## Plot

In The Pit's Fobbit Hole, Brainstorm oversees the successful test of the Broadcast Energy Teleporter under General Hawk's supervision. As the Fobbits revel in their success, Dusty enlists Brainstorm's help in trying to figure out the mysterious cargo that he, Frostbite, and Airtight have been working on for two days.

In Manila, Stalker's team track down a lead on Nico Mandirobilis. Their chase is interrupted by Snake Eyes, who cuts washing lines that obscures their driver's visions, causing him to crash the car and allowing Nico to escape.

Back at The Pit, Duke is angry at Scarlett for sending Stalker's team to capture Nico when it was his operation that uncovered the Cobra lead. Duke warns Scarlett that Snake Eyes is AWOL and her continued association with him is going to take her down as well. Scarlett checks in with Lab Rat who gives her the run down on the weapon that Snake Eyes recovered from the assassination attempt on Nico. The gun is made of ceramics and plastic polymers and uses compressed air to fire polymer needles. His examination of the powder shows minerals, proteins and acids all in the same ratios as found in the Human body. Both the gun and powder show signs of being disassembled atomically.

Brainstorm looks into the mysterious cargo. Unknown to him, the team is being watched by the cargo's owner – Laird James McCullen and his associated Roderick and Glynis McDougall. They recognize Brainstorm as Ward Michaelmas, former head of physics at Chicago University who was reported dead five years previous. McCullen had hoped to revenge himself on the American force that disrupted the weapons deal in Istanbul but realizes that he has stumbled on something greater. He orders them to get a location on the device. Below Castle Destro, the Baroness infiltrates the building.

In The Pit, Brainstorm calls off the investigation into the cargo until the morning, hoping fresh eyes will solve it. As the Joes leave, the case opens and several spider-bots emerge. The bots are controlled remotely by Glynis and Roderick. They have also failed to determine the machines' location due to GPS cloaking. At The Pit, the bots attack. The first casualty is Bankshot. On the roof of Castle Destro, McCullen attempts to boost the signal to find The Pit. As he does so, he is confronted by the Baroness with a gun trained on him.

## Appearances

**By type**

Characters

* Bankshot (First appearance)
* Baroness (First appearance)
* Brainstorm (First appearance)
* Dial Tone
* Destro (First appearance) (As "James McCullen")
* Duke
* Dusty
* Flint
* Frostbite
* Hawk
* Lab Rat (First appearance)
* Leatherneck (First appearance)
* Nico Mandirobilis
* Glynis McDougall (First appearance)
* Roderick McDougall (First appearance)
* Nestor (First appearance)
* Recondo (First appearance)
* Scarlett
* Snake Eyes
* Sparks (First appearance)
* Stalker (First appearance)
* Wild Bill (First mentioned)

Creatures

	+ Clyde (First appearance)

Events

Locations

	+ Castle Destro (First appearance)
	+ Greece (First mentioned)
	+ Istanbul (Mentioned only)
	+ Philippines (First appearance)
		- Manila (First appearance)
			* Luzon (First appearance)
	+ United States of America
		- Chicago (First mentioned)
			* Chicago University (First mentioned)
		- The Pit
			* Sector Nine/The Fobbit Hole
	+ Yalta (Mentioned only)

Organizations and titles

* G.I. Joe
	+ Fobbit (First appearance)
* General

Sentient species

Vehicles and vessels

Weapons and technology

* Ceramic gun
* Multipoint Asynchronous Subether Station (First mentioned)
* Star-Sat Twelve (First appearance)
* Spider-bot

## Quotes

"*This is what you called me in here to see, Brainstorm? You turning on a radio?*"
"*General Hawk, I know this looks insignificant. But we've powered this boom box with energy broadcast from the B.E.T. The Broadcast Energy Teleporter provides wireless power delivery.*"
"*And that's different from an extra-long extension cord how exactly?*"
—Hawk and Brainstorm**[src]**
## Trivia

### G.I. Joe references

* First appearances of **Bankshot**, **Baroness**, **Brainstorm**, **Destro**, **Lab Rat**, **Leatherneck**, **Glynis McDougall**, **Roderick McDougall**, **Recondo**, **Sparks**, and **Stalker**. **Wild Bill** is mentioned but not seen.
* The Broadcast Energy Teleporter is based on the Broadcast Energy Transmitter from *G.I. Joe The Movie*.
* Brainstorm is the first new member of G.I. Joe introduced by IDW Publishing in the comics.
* Destro makes reference to the M.A.S.S. device, which originated in the A Real American Hero animated series.
* Bankshot is the second new member of G.I. Joe introduced by IDW Publishing. He is also the first member of G.I. Joe to be shown being killed.
* Adam Hughes variant cover was originally created for *G.I. Joe: America's Elite #17* by Devil's Due. The cover was not used as it was deemed to be "too sexy" by Hasbro at the time.

### Pop culture references

* The song that plays when the Broadcast Energy Teleporter powers up the stereo is "You Never Even Called Me by My Name" by David Allan Coe.
* Bankshot makes reference to the Chuck Norris film *Code of Silence*. Despite Sparks remarking that it is an "old-school karate flick," *Code of Silence* is actually a crime thriller.

### Real world references

* The term "Fobbit" refers to non-combat personnel who do not leave the safety of a Forward Operating Base. It is an amalgamation of the abbreviation "F.O.B." and "Hobbit", a race from J.R.R. Tolkien's *Lord of the Rings* series who like to remain safely at home.
* The PX/BX referenced by Brainstorm refers to an exchange, a type of retail store found on US military bases that sell consumer goods.
* Stalker mentions that it is monsoon season in the Philippines. This roughly puts the date setting for the issue somewhere between June and November.
* The vehicle that Nestor drives in Manila appears to be a Land Rover.
* Brainstorm mentions the Mohs Scale, an ordinal listing of mineral hardness ranging from talc to diamond, when studying the mysterious container from the *Badeaux Strait* wreck. A "solid eight" on the scale puts the container's composition in the same hardness as topaz, cubic zirconia, hardened steel, and spinel. Alloy 1090 is standard grade carbon steel.
* Brainstorm's mug has the wording "...mmm 3.1415" on it. 3.1415 is the first five digits of Pi, making the mug a joke that reads "...mmm, pie." This mug also references one of Homer Simpson's catchphrases.
* Glynis refers to controlling the spider-bots as being like "playin' X-Box.
* Roderick makes reference to the Trojan Horse gambit.
* Weapons
	+ Flint is armed with a revolver pistol.
	+ Baroness aims a M1911 with silencer and laser sight at Destro.

## Cover gallery

Cover A. Art and colors by Dave JohnsonCover B. Art by Adam HughesRetailer Incentive Wraparound Cover. Art by Adam Hughes
## Notes and references

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 ***G.I. Joe #2***
2. ↑  *G.I. Joe #2* on Comic Vine
3. ↑ *G.I. Joe #1*
4. ↑ *G.I. Joe #3*