Suicide Squad Death Is For Suckers Review By Deffinition
Suicide Squad Death Is For Suckers is the third New 52 book featuring Task Force X. If you’ve read my reviews on Volume 1 and 2 then you know I’ve thought they were stellar stories that cemented the team as one of the best in comics.
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Suicide Squad has it all: drama, action, despair and twists around every corner. The last two books have really set a high bench mark for the following stories.
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But can this live up to the prior works?
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That’s what I’m here to find out! The New 52 has it’s ups and downs and I’m really hoping that this doesn’t fall into the latter.
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So with that out the way let’s dive in to Suicide Squad Death Is For Suckers.
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The Jokes On You
Deadshot is dead. After shooting himself in order to stop Regulus (see Basilisk Rising) the marksman has succumbed to his wounds. We attend his funeral with the team and see first hand just how thankless a role in Task Force X is. The Squad, Now out in the open, offer the perfect opportunity for other villains to strike.
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Green rain pours down and this signals the return of The Joker. Tying neatly in with Death Of The Family, he has returned to get Harley Quinn back, it’s a terrifying opening that really speaks volumes to his and Harley’s ‘toxic’ relationship. It’s abusive, filled with jealousy and a clear indicator of exactly why Harley is the way that she is.
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The two fight back and forth till both are on the brink of death and you realise that whilst they share love there is also a sense of regret. Harley wishes that she’d never carried out the misdeeds that she did whilst in the Joker’s care and it’s a fascinating insight into the character. Never before has she been such a victim and never before has she gained such empowerment in finally ending things with the Clown Prince Of Crime. Metaphorically it works brilliantly as a showcase of inner strength. Too many times people stay in abusive relationships in order to have things easy so it’s good that we finally see Harley become a role model. In standing up for herself she elevates the opening arc to be one of the best in the Suicide Squad run yet.
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Not so Deadshot
Tying into the Resurrection Man’s hand from the previous Volume, Waller has begun bringing dead members of the Squad back to life. Deadshot, Yo-Yo and even Voltaic all return to the fray, aware something is wrong but unable to place their finger on it.
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I feel this aspect really cements Waller as The Devil. Whilst it’s often been jokingly hinted at, it could be argued that this is the first literal example of it being so. Being in The Squad is hell and even in death, the soldiers are not granted a reprieve. She rules over them and it’s an interesting avenue for the creators to take as it truly confirms the disparity that the team are now confined to.
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Family Affair
The groups final mission in the book involves infiltrating Basilisk headquarters and taking down one of it’s faction’s leaders…Yo-Yo’s sister. It’s an eventful tale that while full of twists and turns doesn’t quite live up to the finale of the prior two books. There is still a lot of fun reveals here however and Yo-Yo in particular has a badass moment when he wraps his neck around a villain, exposing his nanite explosive and giving Deadshot the perfect getaway.
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Eventually the group journey down into the sewers to escape and after meeting a new character we are left with a cliffhanger in which another character gets shot.
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Yep, that one again.
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Yep,. the exact same ending as the last two books.
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Due to this repetition it feels slightly by the numbers and the innovation that I once applauded the creative team for seems to be running slightly low here. That’s not to say it’s bad. Newcomers may be enthralled by the turn of events but I just found them to be a bit predictable especially after they are a complete repeat of the last two volumes.[spacer height=”20px”]
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There still is a lot of potential to deliver on in further books, it’s just that this one doesn’t quite live up to it’s full imaginable possibilities.
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The Verdict
Suicide Squad Death Is For Suckers is an enjoyable ride with the infamous Task Force X, albeit slightly predictable. I still had a lot of fun with this book it just seems to be slightly formulaic, which I commended the prior books for avoiding.
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It’s definitely worth picking up if you are a fan of the previous books and the ‘Death Of The Family’ Easter eggs will delight any fan reading the tie in stories. I just wish there was more here to really sink your teeth into.
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That’s why Death Is For Suckers gets an….
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