Suicide Squad- Volume 04 Annual

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My Rating

Rating: 4 out of 5.

“For The Wicked, No Rest”

A broken asset has escaped Belle Reve, leaving several medical staff and guards splattered along the halls of the prison complex. Precautions had been taken as this particular prisoner, or “prisoners,” were in the process of being operated on. Candence Laramie and her symbiote, Dennis Gaines, had been one of the more unique assets of Amanda Waller, but on this night, one of their deaths had triggered a massive lockdown event.

Determining to recover her prized science experiment, Waller must call on her Suicide Squad as the clock is ticking. With Candence Laramie injured and roaming the Louisiana swamplands, the warden of Belle Reve only has six hours before her prize bleeds to death. With her A-Team already on assignment somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, Amanda hastily recruits a new team from the population of killers and psychopaths she governs over. The only question is: will this Suicide Squad accept her deal or rest their heals in permanent solitary confinement?

What strange forces have been unlocked with the death of Dennis Gaines? Will Malcolm Merlyn be able to lead a group of sociopaths who despise teamwork? Who will become the secondary asset targeted by Amanda Waller that night? Collect the series to find out!

Reviewer Notes

There are far worse things between heaven and hell than those terrorizing the streets of Gotham. I will state this up front, I’m a fan of the Suicide Squad movies, and I hope they make more of them. However, this is the very first comic book I’ve read featuring the group. Why, you may ask. Well, I recently discovered that one of my favorite DC Comics characters from the 1990s is killed off in this particular annual.

I refer to the vampire/singer from the 1996 punk band Scare Tactics. Nina Skorzeny, aka Scream Queen, and her bandmates were created by writer Len Kaminski back in the days when Marv Wolfman was creating his “Weirdoverse”. As one spoke in the collaboration wheel, Kaminski would go on to write very interesting stories revolving around the DC monster band. Unfortunately, Scare Tactics only lasted for twelve issues before they faded into history, taking their vampire hottie with them. That will be the last we see from Scream Queen until this 2018 comic book annual.

I found it interesting that Scream Queen would be found in Belle Reve, as Wolfman’s Weirdoverse took place on an alternate Earth timeline. I’m not sure if she merged into the primary DC timeline during a crossover event. Either way, it was fun to see her in another comic book even if she doesn’t make it through to the end. Curse Amanda Waller!

The Suicide Squad Vol.04 Annual 01 was an excellent read even if it lacked substance. It’s pure action with some mystery thrown in as a backstory. I always enjoy seeing the more obscure DC characters being featured. When it comes time to read more DC Comics, I would definitely pick Suicide Squad over the big five any day of the week. This annual gets a solid four out of five stars from me.

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