Scarlett #1 Review

Background – Scarlett is on the case.

Writing – Scarlett is an agent working for the government. When assigned to infiltrate a party held by some not so friendly people, she runs into a familiar (to both her and the reader) face: JINX! Whatever her mission is at the party is quickly thrown out the window as catching Jinx becomes her only priority. After losing Jinx and causing chaos at the party, she is all but fired. Soon after she is visited by Sgt. Stalker, who sends her on a mission to infiltrate the Clan Arashikage. We end the issue with Scarlett finding Jinx and being caught by none other than Storm Shadow.

This Scarlett is very different from what the TV show gave us. While Scarlett could take care of her own, she always felt like she was laying second fiddle to Duke. This Scarlett is front and center. She needs no one to save her from a fight, which is probably a good thing because she gets into a lot of them. She is VERY headstrong, to the point one might call her reckless. I feel like this a Scarlett who is still very early in her career. Obviously, this is before G.I. Joe but I do hope we get to see her mature over the next 4 issues.

The rest of the cast really doesn’t get much characterization at all. Stalker plays the role of her handler, Jinx is the lover who Scarlett presumes needing rescuing, and Storm Shadow is literally in one panel. Oh, and Snow Job was the helicopter pilot that dropped her outside a temple full of ninjas. At least it’s mentioned that Snow Job and Scarlett have a working relationship from past missions.

Artwork –The artwork by Marco Ferrari is a delight. It is vaguely reminiscent of what has been done by Andrea Milana (Cobra Commander) and Tom Reilly (Duke), but unlike Cobra Commander where the art gives off a very sci-fi nightmarish feel and Duke’s gritty realism, Scarlett is like looking at a spy thriller. All the line work ends up making the characters look very pretty. Yet, it’s almost too pretty. These characters feel less like real people and more like actors playing their characters. The fact that this book takes place in the same universe as the prior books is a little jarring.  I realize they are 3 separate artists (5 if you want to count Void Rivals and Transformers), but a little more unity would be nice.

Final Thoughts – This is a very quick read. Scarlett has the potential to develop into a fantastic book, but outside of being reckless and having a prior relationship with Jinx, we know next to nothing about her or any other character in the book. The art is nice to look at, but it makes it feel like an outlier to the rest of the Energon Universe. It has earned a second issue purchase though, so here’s hoping some of the problems go away by then.

Comic Details

Final score: 3.5 out of 5

Publisher:  Image

Writer: Kelly Thompson

Artist: Marco Ferrari

Colorist: Lee Louridge

Letterer: Russ Wooton

Genre:  Superhero / War

Format: Monthly

Release Date: June 2024