NEW DC 52-SUICIDE SQUAD #1

SUICIDE SQUAD has always been a mid level book for DC. Reintroduced in the 1980's in the LEGENDS mini series, the team that was once a replacement for the JSA during the McCarthy Era became a black op group of villains hired by the United States governemnt to take on those jobs that other teams can't handle. Set in Belle Reve Penitentiary, the team has been traditionally run by the rather rotund Amanda Waller. In a later series, Sgt. Rock ran the team, but the goals and concept of a rotating cast that could die during any mission remained a constant.


Adam Glass and Federico Dallocchio have combined to bring us a surprisingly fresh take on the concept. It begins with Deadshot being chewed on by some rats. no-he's not in an alley somewhere: he's being tortured by some sort of misshapen jailer. But he's not alone. El Diablo is here, having buckets of slat poured into an open wound on his chest.Harley Quinn, looking a lot more Goth than we remember her, is here too, with clamps from a set up jumper cables attached to her face. And Killer Shark is taking his licks too, but actually gets to inflict a little payback in the form of a good arm chewing on one of his captors. And Savant is here too, covered in creepy crawlers as he begs for mercy. 


Welcome to hell for these villains and a couple of unnamed ones. Of course all of this gets told with some nice flashbacks from each of the principals, including Harley's which ties in directly to DETECTIVE COMICS #1. We also learn that they are part of the new Task Force X and how there first mission  went down.So we get to the point where it appears that these villains are going to be executed for the involvement in Task Force X. 


In actuality, this has only been a test to the loyalty of the new Suicide Squad. Amanda Waller, looking more like Beyonce than she ever did, gives them an assignment: kill 60 thousand people at a sports arena in Mississippi in 6 hours. 


Welcome to the anti-hero version of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE.


This book blew me away and was one of the more pleasant surprises from DCnU. I had totally expected to pass on it and bought it on a whim. And damned glad I did. Glass' writing is cool and crisp, revealing just bits of story and leaving a lot of ground to play with. There are so many places this story can go and as far as I'm concerned it can only continue to go up. Dallocchino's artwork is stark and troubling and the graphic degree of violence is way over the top. It fits this book. After all, this is a black ops government sanctioned team of psycho villains. Shouldn't they be pretty much without conscience? Marvel was obviously inspired by the concept when they created THUNDERBOLTS, but they have always(recently) been trying to atone for their acts over the years. The Suicide Squad was never about making amends-it was always about avoiding the death penalty.


Pick this book up. If you a fan of the anti-hero, it will fit your bill and whet your appetite for insane action.

BTW: the hooded woman is in the middle of the torture of Deadshot on page 3.