G.I. Joe #70 (April 1988) – “Fair Trade” – Larry Hama/Ron Wagner/Randy Emberlin
This one continues from last issue, with Wild Bill and Maverick trying to control the damaged plane while Zarana and Thrasher threaten them. But the plane took heavy damage while taking off from the airfield in Sierra Gordo and it’s overloaded with the Dreadnoks, their Thunder Machine, and the hostages they took. The plane goes down in the jungle, but Wild Bill manages to keep it from being smashed to pieces and it looks like everyone in the back is okay. Back in Rio Lindo, General Villavaca (the new dictator in Sierra Gordo) and Chip Goodfellow (representative of the North American Banana Monopoly
who’s been bankrolling Villavaca’s takeover) are freaking out because the Joes got the American ambassador out of Rio Lindo with some documents that prove the collusion between Villavaca and North American Banana. Villavaca asks Destro to find the Joes and the ambassador and take care of them and he agrees … after Goodfellow offers to pay for his services. Villavaca’s not convinced however, and sends troops into the jungle to stop the Joes and to find the downed plane. In the jungle, Hawk and the other Joes follow the counter-revolutionaries to an isolated village where they expect to find a guide to get them across the border. Villavaca’s men are waiting to ambush 
them and the ambassador is wounded before they can take out the government troops. Their guide is also dead, and Villavaca’s men got a message out by radio, so they’re really in trouble now. The house is soon surrounded by Villavaca’s men, who hesitate to attack over open ground. But Villavaca orders them to charge and calls Destro to get him in on the action. The Joes put up a good defense but figure they’re dead when Destro shows up in a helicopter. But he blows away the rest of Villavaca’s men and offers to supply the counter-revolutionaries with weapons if they promise to nationalize North American Banana when they take over the country and let Destro’s company run it. The ambassador is pissed off about the double-dealing, but Hawk reminds him that this is how things work in the real world. Elsewhere in the jungle, everyone has survived the plane crash (although Thrasher’s
face is kinda smashed up), but now the Joes have to walk to the border with a bunch of injured hostages, three hostile Dreadnoks, and hardly any supplies. This is a pretty good issue, giving a realistic view of the Byzantine politics that were actually going on in Central America at the time, with deals and counter-deals being made so fast that you had no idea whose side you were on from one minute to the next. I love the Dreadnoks, so it’ll be interesting to see if they can work with the plane crash survivors to get everyone out, or if they’ll just revert to their asshole ways. I think Zarana is smart enough to know that her survival depends on cooperation … at least for the moment.
G.I. Joe Special Missions #10 (April 1988) – “Turnabout” – Larry Hama/Herb Trimpe
This one starts with Chuckles and Roadblock near Oxford, England in civilian clothes. They’re supposed to escort an African prince (Ngoto) back to Equatorial Kalingaland so he can claim his throne. But the country has been under a Marxist regime lately and its supporters don’t want Ngoto taking over, so they’ve sent a bunch of people to kill him. Roadblock and Chuckles take out the attackers, the last of whom is blown away by the prince himself. Turns out “young Prince Ngoto” is a middle-aged Oxford don who knows how to use a hunting rifle. They head for the airport, where they board a commercial flight to
Equatorial Kalingaland, reasoning that an indirect route ill throw off the prince’s opposition. But the Joes soon spot a couple of suspicious-looking passengers, so Roadblock goes to snoop around a bit. He finds weapons hidden in the on-flight meals and removes the firing pins, so when the men try to shoot the prince their guns are useless. They land in Tenerife and quickly board a Joe transport, which Wild Bill, Slipstream, and Lift-Ticket plan to fly under the RADAR from an unusual direction to throw off any more pursuit. Chuckles mentions to Ngoto that the Americans are worried he might’ve 
gone Red at Oxford, but Ngoto assures him he’s no Marxist-Leninist. Despite all their precautions, the plane is spotted and a MiG is sent up to blow it out of the sky. Wild bill tries some fancy maneuvers, but Roadblock saves the day by blasting the MiG with his .50 calibre machine gun. One of the engines takes a hit, but Wild Bill manages to land on an isolated highway long enough for Chuckles, Roadblock, and Ngoto to get out in an AWE Striker jeep. They make it to the capital where Ngoto tells everyone he’s declaring a general amnesty and bringing democracy to Equatorial Kalingaland. To that end, he decides to cut ties with both the USSR and the United States, which pisses off the American ambassador. But Roadblock sees it as a good sign, since
Ngoto refuses to be bought and paid for by either side, but will feel grateful to the Joes (and America) for helping him. This is another good look at real-world politics (in Africa this time) through the lens of a fictional country. Ngoto’s decision is a good one that unfortunately didn’t occur too often in real African countries. And it’s nice to see an African prince depicted as a modern politician instead of some backward-thinking puppet in stereotypical tribal dress.