Skybound pulled another Wednesday surprise today, hiding an appearance by video game bad ass Lara Croft inside G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #330. They also announced that a five-issue crossover miniseries, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero/Tomb Raider, will follow in October from writer Kyle Higgins and artist Elena Casagrande.
The miniseries sends Lara Croft to Cobra Island in search of a hidden treasure called the Arbco Star, teaming her with Shipwreck and several other Joes as they race Destro and the Baroness for the prize. Higgins and Casagrande will be joined by colorist Alex Guimarães and letterer Pat Brosseau on the crossover.
“Tomb Raider meets G.I. Joe. Lost artifact, a Destro plot and a joint infiltration mission to Cobra Island– the appeal of a story like this should be obvious,” Higgins said. “Having never had the opportunity to work with either, I was quite excited when Alex Antone called to ask me if I’d like to build an adventure for both. We’re taking some really fun swings with both brands–and there are definitely some deep cuts for G.I. Joe fans!”
The surprise debut continues a pattern Skybound has established, similar to having copies of Rom #1 hidden inside M.A.S.K. #1 blind bags last month. The G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero ongoing, separate from the Energon Universe’s G.I. Joe series, is written by Larry Hama with art by Paul Pelletier, and has been running continuously in various forms since 1982. It’s kind of surprising that this is the first meeting between Croft and the G.I. Joe team, but it seems like a natural team-up.
“We love a surprise at Skybound, and when we were approached by Hasbro about the possibility of introducing Lara Croft to the world of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, we were so excited for the opportunity to do something new and unexpected!” said Alex Antone, Skybound editorial director. “Kyle and Elena have really outdone themselves with this series – it’s the crossover event you never knew you wanted, but won’t be able to live without!”
Here’s a look inside the first issue of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero/Tomb Raider:
Covers for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero/Tomb Raider #1 include a main cover by Casagrande and Guimarães, shown above, with variants by Stjepan Šejić, Chris Mooneyham, Leirix, and Lorenzo Tammetta and Mike Spicer:
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero/Tomb Raider #1 arrives Oct. 7.
Update, July 9: Skybound has announced that G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #330 has sold out at the distributor level, and they’ll release a second printing on Aug. 12, featuring this cover by Chris Mooneyham:
