DC Universe: Suicide Squad #2

Writer: Tom Taylor
Art/cover: Bruno Redondo

Let me start by saying I enjoy Tom Taylor's take on Harley from Injustice so I'm actively looking forward to a much less cringe version of her in this series than usual. 

The artist is good too - only the cover is a bit distracting for me because all through my post-high school education I would buy these cheap notebooks for classes from the campus store, and they ALL had this swirly design on them, in various colours but including this exact scheme. So it's a little flash backy for me, like I suddenly remember I have an assignment due tomorrow when I look at this! Also... there are a lot of characters winking at me here... and this concerns me. 

Did I miss an in-joke? Are they cracking onto me? Is the background too bright for them too?

Now this issue opens with the ending, which is cool so we'll come back to that at the end - fittingly.
Besides, I like this part better. Yes, I know Scale and Fin annoyed me in the first issue, but Fin suffering without Scale - more interesting. Bit of character development. Looking at him sitting there in his solitary tank, mourning his brother not just for the fact that he was a relative, but because of their telepathic connection - I felt sorry for him. I want him to get revenge. I want him to grow from this. All these feelings intensify when King Shark appears and reveals he can both hear Fin and cause more devastation by what he wants to show him.

I don't really get the next part, either Fin has the fist bump power of ten men, his glowing torso is his power level or he psychically enhanced his tackle attack but he smashes said five inch glass to have a go at Shark - which, you know, fair enough. Both of them get tasered before much can happen, but still. Looked cool.

Then we go from this dark, aquatic revenge flick to a super bright, super close up of Harley yelling about how insane everything is as Deadshot and herself walk alongside Lok. This I could deal with  (after my eyes adjust of course) but damn, she just had to get one more jab in at poor Cavalier, who was clearly too beautiful for this cruel world.
She does get psychically shut up though, so that helps. Should be noted that not only Lok was annoyed with Harley's yapping but Deadshot also seems a bit bothered by what happened last issue.

Anyway, Lok's taking the current Squad walkies to see the Revolutionaries who are currently enjoying their glass cubes.

Lok won't go near them without his psychic zebra bodyguard projecting a shield/force field around him, but is still keen to engage them on 50 missions with the Squad before releasing them. First up, deposing the president of Badhnisia because he won't step down even though Lok and all of his shadow government personnel spent so much time and money on affecting the voting process in another country. I HATE when that happens... just sooo rude. I mean, all they wanna do is put their own preferred person in charge so it benefits them more, and someone in the other country just puts a whole spanner in the works.

Jump to Badhnisia - in the South China sea. King Shark and Fin are deployed underwater to take out the radar dishes so two teams (Team A being Thylacine, Deadly Six, Chaos Kitten, Jog and Harley heading for the capital and Team B comprised of Osita, Deadshot, Aerie and Wink are off to collect the new president) can fly in.

This time we're only really seeing Team B's efforts. Deadshot notices the Aerie looking a bit off and being comforted by Wink. Turns out someone's not keen on flying, which confuses Deadshot because... you know... bird... wings.. flight powers, etc.

 Wink gets a bit upset at Deadshot because he touches the Aerie's wing's without consent - which, fair enough but I didn't sense any malice in Deadshot's actions, it seemed like Deadshot was checking they were real wings. Still, tensions are high between both groups and he shouldn't have touchy-touched. Aerie - we learn, is a they, I think I referred to them as a he in the previous review because we didn't know. And I kinda like that - there's little fanfare about it, it's just introduced normally like it should be, and AFTER we learn a bit more about the Aerie themselves. It's not just - "Hey, here's how they identify, that's a personality right? DIVERSITY!" I did re-read issue one and there is at least one instance of Wink referring to the Aerie as 'they' but I think I might have missed that because like twenty characters were introduced pretty quickly and like... submarines were exploding and stuff.

Aerie themselves don't seem too bothered by Deadshot's actions, and explains how they like flying themselves, but aren't exactly hot about being stuck in a flying machine - which again, fair enough. I guess they forced them to use the plane instead of flying themselves - unlike how Fin and King Shark were able to swim themselves into the fray instead of say, jumping out of a submarine or something.

Team B was supposed to encounter the least resistance but get shot down immediately regardless. Deadshot jumps onto the damaged controls after the pilot takes one for the team, but then discovers he's also been nominated to unwillingly take one for the team.

Deadshot is pretty ticked but manages to land safely via parachute. Aware Lok is listening to everything that's going on - he's about to yell at the Revolutionaries but stops himself just in time. Is this because he's not a Lok fan or because he doesn't want any more blood on his hands from dead team mates/retribution? Could be either. I'm interested to see where this goes.

Poor Deadshot. He's just the gun guy.. he can't even with these powers!

Wink is in and out in a flash with the president that was meant to step in for the government.
They head to the stormwater tunnel to get him out of sight and encounter possibly the unluckiest bastard in this comic so far.

I mean, when you aren't even worth a few steps... ouch. 

Osita picks up the gun this poor chap drops after he's dropped and starts firing and yelling about an ambush before shooting herself to the confusion of the president and Deadshot.

This is the bit we were seeing at the start of the issue, but without the bigger picture. As in, there's no ambush... Osita assassinates the would be president and warns Deadshot not to say a word to tip Lok off.

The Short End of the Jester Schtick

Definitely some interesting developments going on here! THIS is the Suicide Squad shenanigans we need more of, not vague missions with no set up or end of the world threats.

Still living for the whole Wink and Aerie relationship - could these two be any cuter?

I hope they go into a bit more backstory of Badhnisia... it's not like I'm super invested but like.. IS this place in China and if so, are they really trying to put an old white dude in as a leader/puppet?
Like I said, I re-read the first issue because I could have sworn they had a small bit on this country but then I realised it was a very different Squad I was thinking of.
So, if you're interested here's a bit of information about the place... albeit needs some updating by the looks of it.

Harley didn't get much time this week, but boy did she use her time - all five panels of it - to make the most of her facial expressions!

Wondering if next issue will continue what's happening with Team B or if it'll switch to what happened with Team A during these events.

Wotta Comedian!

Harley: THIS IS INSANE. That's not speculation. I'm fully qualified ta say that. This is my professional opinion.


Harley: They killed Magpie -- she seemed nice!
Deadshot: They also killed Cavalier.
Harley: Oh... yeah. I didn't really have strong feelin's about that guy.

Harley: As team bonding exercises go, eatin' a coworker is pretty poor.

Lok: Amanda Waller may have tolerated your running commentary, Quinn. I won't.
Harley: Honestly, it's not really somethin' ya get a choice in.


Wink: There's not a lot of love lost between us. You don't think maybe we should do something simpler first?
Lok: Such as?
Wink: I dunno. Maybe we could try going to the movies together? See if we can watch a singing cartoon princess for an hour and a half without killing each other before we attempt to topple a sovereign nation?

Fin: I want you to know I'm comfortable with those odds.
King Shark: Are... are you wearing one of my teeth as a necklace?

Wink: Yes. They do have wings. And if you touch them again without permission, you'll find yourself very suddenly outside the plane and wishing you had some too.

Aerie: I love flying. I don't enjoy being propelled by a highly flammable liquid and encased in a metal tube that can fall our of the sky and explode without notice.
Deadshot: Right. Well, when you put it that way...

Lok: Deadshot? What's happening out there?
Deadshot: Oh, I just found myself falling out of the sky encased in a metal tube propelled by highly flammable liquid.
Lok: Huh?
Deadshot: Soldiers with machine guns just shot us down, Lok.

Lok: What?! Our intelligence suggested minimal security.
Deadshot: Yeah? Well, you might want to rethink calling it intelligence.

Bonus Panel!

A small interview with Conner and Palmiotti where they basically admit their Harley is annoying as frick. I mean there are two questions in here about team dynamics and past/present relationships and both answers are "Yeah, she's pretty vexing. Even if you like her you'll hate her."

They also confirm that despite being titled and somewhat marketed as a sequel to the movie, it's just an off-spin of THEIR story for Harley. The only interesting thing about this interview is Conner doing the interiors, and that;'s because I actually liked the interiors on that issues. Definitely a step up from the usual artist during their run. 

If you'd like to check out my review of the issue advertised, you can click here.