Target: Snake Eyes Part 3
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| "Target: Snake Eyes Part 3" | |||||||||||||
| Publisher | IDW Publishing | ||||||||||||
| First published | November 7, 2012 | ||||||||||||
| Cover date | November 2012 | ||||||||||||
| Written by | Chuck Dixon | ||||||||||||
| Art by | Will Rosado | ||||||||||||
| Colors by | Romulo Fajardo, Jr. | ||||||||||||
| Letters by | Neil Uyetake | ||||||||||||
| Editor | John Barber and Carlos Guzman | ||||||||||||
Cobra's transport ship, full of 40 billion euros' worth of treasure, comes under attack from Arashikage and G.I. Joe alike!
Synopsis[edit | edit source]
Gold bullion, hard cash, bearer bonds and rare artwork: all this and more, Cobra has assembled into a grand fortune worth 40 billion euros for the purchase of the Eastern European nation of Tryolvia. Cobra Commander is none too happy with the considerable price tag, but the Baroness consoles him by explaining that Tryolvia's possession of its own currency means that they can short the dollar and euro and gain much of their expenditure back. The Commander declares that the palace Palast Dessen Viirenvrost will be his new headquarters, with Savane suggesting "Cobra-La" as a new name for it... a name that the Commander deems "ludicrous".
G.I. Joe's Snakehunter program has identified Cobra's money ship: the Neptune Bonanza, a Portugese ship owned by subsidiaries of Vendri, with a heavy security presence aboard. A G.I. Joe drone keeps track of the ship while a team moves in to intercept, hoping to catch Cobra and the Arashikage alike when the ninja make their move on the boat and take down all of their enemies at once. Some hours later, the number of heat signatures on the boat seems to instantly double as ninja spring seemingly from nowhere to attack the guards, and Scarlett realises that they must have already been aboard, hiding in the shipping containers brought on in Albania! This is what the Joes have been waiting for, and Lighthorse brings their plane around so that the team can jump; Scarlett refuses Tripwire's suggestion to let Cobra and the Arashikage wear each other down, wanting confirmation that Snake Eyes is dead.
While the Joes jump from their plane into the sea below, Snake Eyes and Juro eliminate the bridge crew of the carrier; elsewhere on the ship, Eisenherz — a towering man with a burning hatred for ninjas — tears the Arashikage warriors apart with his minigun, ignoring the fact that his tracer rounds are setting off the fuel stored in the containers around them. Juro and Snake Eyes seek to sneak up on the man, but he spins around at the last minute, forcing them to dive for cover. As the Joes make their first moves to board the boat, Toehold — peeking over the side — is shot dead, prompting Tripwire to start providing covering fire by firing blindly with a grenade launcher; the team divides into two squads, with Tripwire's Squad One heading to the bridge to take control of the ship, and Scarlett's Squad Two going after Snake Eyes. On their way to the bridge, Roadblock and Beachhead spot a group of Arashikage retrieving pallets of cash from the decks below, and take them out with a pair of grenades — though Roadblock laments the loss of the money.
Eisenherz's minigun runs out of bullets, prompting him to fight Juro up close with a huge knife, but thanks to Snake Eyes, the other ninja is able to choke the huge man with a noose of barbed wire, letting his silent brother strike the killing blow. The two ninja make their way to the lower deck, where Scarlett finds Snake Eyes scuttling the ship, and orders him to freeze. The two find themselves in a standoff, Scarlett insisting that she can let Snake Eyes live if he comes with her — but his only response is to shoot... behind her, at Juro, who was moving in to kill her. She insists that she will still kill him if he doesn't surrender, but cannot bring herself to shoot as the ninja walks away into the darkness. As the boat sinks, Roadblock laments the loss of its precious cargo, while Scarlett remains angry and confused over what happened, only knowing that she owes Snake Eyes her life again. And beneath the sea, Snake Eyes emerges from a shipping container, wearing a breathing mask and carried by a man-portable propulsion device.
Storm Shadow is brought a video clip transmitted from a camera in Juro's cowl, which he ordered brought to the clan's oyabun in the event of his death; it shows Snake Eyes turning on him and shooting him dead. Furious, Storm Shadow realises that he has been blind to Snake Eyes' treachery... and now, for his betrayal, his sword-brother must die!
Featured characters[edit | edit source]
Characters in italics appear only as video or images. (Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| G.I. Joe | Cobra | Arashikage |
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Quotes[edit | edit source]
"Maybe we should hold off. Let the snakes and ninjas even the odds a little."
"Too many variables. And we want confirmation."
"You mean it's Snake Eyes. You want to see him die."
"It's the only way I'll believe it, Trip. I've been fooled too many times."
- —Tripwire and Scarlett
"We are boarded! Little men in red everywhere! Viper brothers, forward! This is our ship! We will hose their guts into the sea! Ninjas! I hate them!"
- —Eisenherz is kind of nuts
"Man, getting in the middle of a dogfight is never a good idea."
"Especially when we're the dog they both hate."
"Woof woof."
- —Beachhead, Tripwire and Torpedo
Notes[edit | edit source]
Continuity notes[edit | edit source]
- Scarlett not being able to shoot Snake Eyes as he walks away is extremely reminiscent of Helix's inability to do the same thing, from Cobra Command, Part 8. This is either an internal homage, or just an instance of Chuck Dixon recycling ideas he's already used.
- Storm Shadow making excuses for Snake Eyes and being unable to see his treachery has been going on since Snake Eyes #15. That's all over now, though!
G.I. Joe references[edit | edit source]
- Savane suggests naming the royal palace Cobra-La, after the ancient civilisation from 1987's G.I. Joe: The Movie. This is not the first reference to Cobra-La in IDW continuity.
Real life references[edit | edit source]
- Among the treasures gathered by Cobra is Rembrandt's 1660 self portrait.
Errors[edit | edit source]
- Eisenherz yells about his hatred for the "little men in red"... but with the exception of Juro, all the Arashikage are wearing white or gray.
Covers (2)[edit | edit source]
- Cover A: Scarlett with Snake Eyes overhead, by Kenneth Loh and Joana Lafuente.
- Cover RI: A striking black-and-white Snake Eyes, by James Biggie.
