Codename G.I. Joe Starts Here...
Duke: I have followed every order to the best of my ability sir. And right now my country is lying to me. I'm getting answers. I will know what that flying robot is, then I'm taking it out.
Duke is the first G.I. Joe entry into Skybound's Energon Universe. It is written by Joshua Williamson with art by Tom Reilly.
Decorated soldier of the United States Military Conrad "Duke" Hauser has seen the impossible. A fighter jet that transformed into a giant robot and killed his friend Tyler "Frosting" Frost. But no one. Not even his commanding officer Clayton "Hawk" Abernathy will give him the answers he needs.
Now six months later, Duke goes on his own independent search for answers. Only to find himself drawn into a war. A war that only a Real American Hero has a chance to survive...
Duke contains examples of:
- Bloodier and Gorier: Like in Transformers (2023), Duke doesn't shy away from gruesome deaths. In issue #1, Duke finds Dr. Burkhart and the other alien conspiracy theorists all gunned down.
- Brilliant, but Lazy: Clutch's characterization in the series evokes this. While he's shown to have a degree from MIT, he seems content to live the simple life as a mechanic at a junkyard.
- Call-Back: One of the conspiracy theorists talks about seeing a massive truck standing up.
- Colliding Criminal Conspiracies: Duke's illegal, off-the-record investigation into his encounter with the Decepticons causes him to accidentally stumble upon a hidden weapons factory under a M.A.R.S. Industries building.
- Continuity Nod: Hawk shows Duke a footage of Optimus Prime firing with Megatron's arm.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Duke initially has the upper hand against Mercer during their first encounter but only to get mobbed by M.A.R.S. security before being dragged out of the building.
- Death by Cameo: Dr. Adele Burkhart, a minor character from Marvel Comics' G.I. Joe series, is featured and killed in issue #1.
- Enemy Mine: Duke and the Baroness have to work together to escape an underground prison they're both dumped in, and a M.A.R.S. kill squad led by Major Bludd. Once out they part ways, so their partnership is nothing close to how it was in the first live-action film, though it might bring that to mind.
- Enemy Rising Behind: Mercer makes his first appearance by grabbing Duke from behind.
- Entertainingly Wrong: Duke wrongly believed that M.A.R.S. Industries was responsible for creating the flying robot (AKA Starscream) that killed Frosting.
- Foreshadowing: A dying Dr. Burkhart tells Duke that the man who shot her and the alien conspiracy theorists "flew all the way from Australia." Her killer, Major Bludd, shows up in Issue #3 to track down Duke and even brags to him about what he did to his victims.
- Frame-Up: After Duke finds the hidden weapons factory, the shadowy organization that owns it has the scientist he was working with and a number of innocent people killed and frames him for the murders because killing him themselves would draw too much attention.
- From Camouflage to Criminal: An unwilling example. Duke's search for answers gets him into deep trouble with the United States government especially after M.A.R.S. frames him for various murders. This sends him on the run.
- He Knows Too Much: Said almost word-for-word by Mercer after Duke discovers that M.A.R.S. Industries has a secret factory that's making weapons. This led to Duke's aforementioned Frame-Up and as well Dr. Burkhart's death and her research on what M.A.R.S. were building stolen.
- It Works Better with Bullets: Duke grabs a M.A.R.S.-made assault rifle to take out a B.A.T., but he quickly finds out it is unloaded. So he decide to use it as a club to disorient the B.A.T. and long enough to tear its head off.
- Moe Greene Special: The Baroness delivers one on Major Bludd. But it didn't kill him; only slowed him down temporarily.
- Mythology Gag:
- One of the books Duke is shown to be reading to gain some answers over what happened to him is called "Mindbender", after the infamous Cobra Mad Scientist.
- Dr. Adele Burkhart was a character rescued from COBRA by the Joes in issue #1 of Marvel's G.I. Joe debut comic series. She appears and then is killed here in issue #1.
- Dr. Burkhart had a schematic of the M.A.S.S. Device, the Cobra superweapon in the pilot miniseries of the first G.I. Joe animated series.
- The weapons shown developed at M.A.R.S. include H.I.S.S. tanks, F.A.N.G.s, B.A.T.s, S.N.A.K.E.s, and a C.L.A.W.
- The squad of police officers who attacked Duke wear armors and helmets similar to the Iron Grenadiers.
- In order to join what will become G.I. Joe Duke's death is faked for him. This mirrors the original G.I. Joe IDW comics where faking ones death was a mandatory part of joining the team.
- No-Sell: Duke makes an ineffectual punch on a B.A.T., which then simply sweeps Duke aside. Even when Duke rips its head off, the B.A.T. is still going after him until Duke finally shuts it down by smashing its head on its power source.
- Shared Universe: Part of Skybound's Energon Universe.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: Duke's encounter with Starscream in issue #2 of Transformers (2023) has turned him into one.
- Shoot Him, He Has a Wallet!: Duke is quickly confronted by a squad of police officers as he stands in the middle of a massacre. Duke raised his hands up and tried to de-escalate the situation, but one of the officers shouts "He's got a gun!" and they proceed to shoot him. Thankfully Duke barely escaped with his life.
- Spy Fiction: What the book has been described as. With Duke going on the run to investigate the mystery of the Transformers and what will become Cobra.
- Time Skip: After the opening prologue which clearly has taken place soon after Transformers (2023), issue #2 the story skips ahead by six months. Making this the farthest entry in the Energon Universe timeline so far.
- Use Your Head: Duke rejects Destro's offer to find the flying robot by headbutting him. However, Destro is left unaffected due to his head made out of metal while Duke is left with a large bruise on his forehead.
- Duke use the decapitated head of a B.A.T. to smash its power source.
- We Can Rule Together: After Duke is roughed up by a B.A.T., Destro offers Duke to work for him and M.A.R.S. while proposing to find the flying robot that killed Frosting. Duke rejects his offer by headbutting Destro's metal head.
