Sugar. Spice. And everything nice. These are the ingredients that were conspicuously missing from the first 4 issues of Robbie Thompson’s Suicide Squad. These past two issues seem to have accidentally added all of them, as well as a good helping of…
CHEMICAL (Task Force) X
Or maybe just some entertaining writing, who knows? Let’s take a look, because this issue is probably my favorite of the run.
Super Ultra Mega Fight Night
Ultraman has Bloodsport on the ropes, and it’s up to Superboy and the Squad to save him! While they are down one Peacemaker (he’s been sidelined by Waller for now), the rest of the Squad is ready to rock and roll on Earth-3. Robbie Thompson starts the issue, however, focusing on Waller, something I think this series could have used in the beginning. It’s nice to see even just a little bit of characterization from her, some kind of peek behind the curtain. It’s always important when you’re writing a character to be a genius or mastermind that your audience gets to see their train of thought. No one likes when a “genius” magically deduces something out of the blue and no one can tell how they got there. It’s a problem extremely present in characters like Amanda Waller, and was HORRIBLY present in Red X last issue, so I’m glad Thompson took the time to demonstrate a bit of motivation for Waller, as well as her train of thought regarding Peacemaker.
Once we get towards the meat of the issue, the big event is absolutely fantastic. The interaction between Ultraman and Superboy is so good that I almost don’t want to talk about it here for fear of spoiling the whole thing, so I’ll leave you with just this little snippet:
I KNOW YOU FIND THIS AS AWESOME AS I DO OH MY G O D
The whole fight is also beautifully illustrated. Dexter Soy absolutely reigns supreme this issue on sheer merit of action alone. Eduardo Pansica and Juilo Ferreira do a fantastic job as always in the front half of the book, but this fight hands down takes the cake for me. Couple that with Alex Sinclair’s colors, and you’ve got one of the most beautiful sequences this series has produced so far.
Aside from the obvious bit of exploration of Conner that we get in the fight, this whole issue seems centered on giving us more ground on the mystery of how he ended up on the Squad, and what Waller wants from him. That, however I absolutely CANNOT get into without MASSIVE spoilers, so I’ll leave that for you all to read for yourself. I will say, however, that it has the potential to be my favorite possible move this book could have made, and I actively stood up when I read it for myself. This book is shaping up to be REALLY good, and I hope it follows through.
Recommended if…
- You’re here for Superboy. It’s okay. I am too. Well, that and my job.
- Things are coming together and you are HERE FOR IT
- You’re in this for the long haul.
Overall
This issue was good. Like REALLY good. I’m praying this marks a turning point for the book because if so, I’m going to be hanging off those cliffs every month. I cannot wait for issue 8.
Score: 8/10
Disclaimer: DC Comics provided Batman News with an advance copy of this comic for the purpose of this review.
