• Reviews

• All
• Music
• DVDs
• Live
• Cinema
• TV
• Books
• Comic Books
• Video Games

Jan 06, 2011 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

Secret Six brings us strong writing, excellent characterization, good art, and slam-bang action. This title is the spiritual successor to the Suicide Squad, the standout series from the 1980s. Appropriately, this volume brings in John Ostrander, the writer of that series, to further flesh out the character of Deadshot and he co-writes a later chapter that features the Squad and Amanda Waller (basically DC’s best character). In subsequent chapters, Gail Simone brings Black Alice into the Six’s mix, which presents plenty of opportunities for these fleshed-out rapscallions to play off each other (Rag Doll and Bane are particularly amusing; Jeannette is the most intriguing).

All these wonderful qualities are undercut by a line-wide crossover: DC’s Blackest Night event. Simone definitely makes some pretty good lemonade out of these lemons (bringing back The Fiddler, for instance, who was the first member of the Secret Six to die, way back in the Villains United limited series). While it probably wouldn’t have bothered a reader of a monthly title, to see random zombies wielding Black Lantern power rings was a bit of a shift in tone and premise that don’t do a reader’s attempts at suspending disbelief any favors.

Even so, it’s kick ass writing about whacked-out villains. The series is highly recommended, even if this isn’t the favorite volume. (www.dccomics.com)

Author rating: 6/10