- Written by Rob Williams
- Pencils by Jim Lee & Philip Tan
- Inks by Philip Tan & Scott Williams
- Coloured by Alex Sinclair
- Cover by Jim Lee, Alex Sinclair & Scott Williams
“THE BLACK VAULT” part 3! It looks like a well-deserved day off for the Suicide Squad-until things go off the rails when the bizarre energies of the dark sphere Amanda Waller’s team brought back slowly drive everyone in Belle Reve Penitentiary to acts of violent, bloody madness. Everyone except the crown princess of crazy, Harley Quinn, who’s somehow been…cured?
Pickup your copy of ‘Suicide Squad’ #3 at Comixology now!
For any of the haters of the first two issues: ‘Suicide Squad’ #3 is here to show you that this series can do action on a major scale. I read a lot of reviews of the first issue which talked about how Jim Lee was being wasted on ‘Suicide Squad’ due to its lack of action. This issue (the main story) is action from start to finish.
With Zod unleashed from the dark sphere all hell breaks loose. The last issue ended on a major twist with the ‘death’ of Captain Boomerang. This issue is so fact paced that there’s little time to react to that moment. In fact there’s little time for any genuine character development in this issue. In almost all of my other reviews of current DC Comics ‘Rebirth’ series I’ve spoken about how the action is being cleverly mixed with character… that is not the case with ‘Suicide Squad’. Having said that it still works.
If DC Comics has learnt anything from the reaction to the ‘Suicide Squad’ film then they’ve learnt that audiences enjoy the fun factor of these characters. The difference with the comic is that the character retain every bit of who we have come to know them as. Their personalities still shine through the action, there’s just no need for unnecessary development when the action is this fun.
That being said the fact General Zod has now put in an appearance is hugely intriguing. I have literally no idea where the story is going to go in the run up to ‘Justice League vs. Suicide Squad’ in the New Year. His powers make him far stronger than the Squad which cleverly mean that we as an audience are already rooting for them to somehow get one over on him.
I’m looking forward to seeing more of his interactions with the individual squad members. Writer Rob Williams is still able to shoe horn in some comedy even in the middle of all the chaos.
There’s a whole mix of people working on the art in this issue. Ultimately it is Jim Lee’s style that shines through. There are hints of Philip Tan but his style is overshadowed by that of Lee. ‘Suicide Squad’ does remain one of the more conventional looking comics currently in print but that is again not necessarily a bad thing. It’s a solid page turner with strong environments and well defined characters.
Verdict
‘Suicide Squad’ #3 is a solid, action-packed issue. It furthers an interesting story without becoming bogged down in it’s huge cast of characters.
3 stars
