Writer: Tom Taylor / Artist: Daniel Sampere / DC Comics
I do my best to not start every Suicide Squad review with “Damn, I love this book.” But damn, I love this book.
Tom Taylor consistently delivers a comic that’s as entertaining as it is sincere. A lot of times, a comic is one or the other, but Suicide Squad has a healthy balance of both. I shouldn’t care this much about a group of mercenaries and killers whose heads can spontaneously combust at any given moment, but here I am.
Issue #7 was no exception. It was a break from the main conflict as The Revolutionaries broke free from their captor, Ted Kord’s grasp and removed their implants. But now Ted Kord is hunting them down, so they’re not in the clear yet. Deadshot, who was under the impression that he’s received a full pardon, returns home to his family, particularly his daughter. He wants to throw the merc life away and make up for lost time. He’s got shaggy hair and a beard, and he’s got a cute little dog in tow as well. This is starting to sound familiar. *Coughs in John Wick*
Of course, the good times were short lived as the hired guns sent by Ted Kord came to collect Deadshot by any means necessary.
While the story was familiar, it still did a good job of reinforcing Deadshot’s prime motivation that fuels all of his decisions. We know he cares about his daughter. She’s all he ever talks about but seeing her in the flesh only provides a firmer foundation for why he cares about her as much as he does. On top of that, it’s pretty prevalent that she loves her dad just as much as he loves her. Much to her mother’s dismay, she’s taken up archery lessons in an effort to follow in her father’s footsteps, the difference being she aims to never kill.
It’s stuff like this that really goes a long way in making these characters feel real and relatable. And Taylor tends to do it every single issue in an effortless fashion. I’d be jealous if I wasn’t so inspired.
Sampere’s art really sells the conflict in this issue as well. The way he conveyed Floyd’s daughter really hit home the nature of their relationship in more ways than you might think. There really is something to the phrase “Seeing is believing.” On top of that, Sampere’s action scenes rival the action in some Hollywood blockbusters. It’s crazy. I often find myself bobbing and weaving my head like I would if I was watching something like The Winter Soldier of Netflix’s Daredevil. But I’m not. I’m simply reading a comic.
Suicide Squad #7 provides us with a John Wick-esque story centered around Deadshot. There’s a disgruntled protagonist who wants to throw his dangerous life away in an effort to spend more time with his family, a shaggy head of hair and even a cute little dog. Nothing could go wrong, right?
10 Jaded Mercenaries out of 10
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