"New Suicide Squad Vol. 1: Pure Insanity" Review

"New Suicide Squad Vol. 1: Pure Insanity"
by Sean Ryan, Illustrated by Jeremy Roberts
Publisher: DC Comics
Release Date: July 21, 2015

Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

Summary from goodreads.com:

Setting the world’s most dangerous super-criminals against the most insidious threats to national security: that’s the idea behind the elite black-ops unit officially designated as Task Force X. It’s perfect…on paper.

But the real world rarely goes according to plan. Threats evolve. Teammates turn on each other. Blood and betrayals flow like rivers. And that’s why Task Force X is better known as the Suicide Squad.

Vic Sage aims to change the equation. Replacing Amanda Waller as the puppet-master of Suicide Squad’s motley crew, he’s introducing wild cards like Deathstroke and the Joker’s Daughter to whip the existing team-Deadshot, Harley Quinn, and Black Manta-into shape. But the world’s deadliest assassin and the Clown Princess of Crime have ideas of their own…and no explosive implants to keep them in line.

Can this new Suicide Squad survive-or will it implode before it even begins?

Collects issues #1-8

My Review:

I think I was the same as a lot of people, and I wanted to read this graphic novel out of curiosity for the new movie, Suicide Squad, coming out next year. This book, which includes comic books #1-8, was a great way to get a feel for the characters and set up of the film, but I didn't think it all tied together extremely well. I definitely still got caught up in the action, and I became invested in some of the characters so I had to see how it ended. But there were still some holes and disjointedness in the overall story.

I would have loved to have gotten to know the characters a little better. Especially the actual Suicide Squad instead of having so much of the narrative devoted to those who pull the strings in the office. I became especially attached to Manta, Harley, and Reverse Flash. I was really pulling for them, and I would have loved seeing more fleshing out of their characters. Joker's Daughter, Deathstroke, and Deadshot were all in and out so fast my head was spinning. They weren't able to add much to the story.

I'm sure I will continue this series, because I became invested in the characters. The action was great and kept me turning the pages as fast as I could. But I think I will try to read some of the other incarnations of the Suicide Squad, just to see the story from a different angle. I really liked the idea of the team up of villains, and all of the characters have an interesting story to tell. This one focused just a bit too much on the red tape of the missions instead of the motivation of the characters for me.


Main Characters: 4/5
Supporting Characters: 2/5
Setting: 4/5
Art: 4/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
Writing: 4/5

Bottom Line: This graphic novel is a great primer for the upcoming Suicide Squad film. It's a nice step-off for some interesting characters and a unique premise.

Disclosure: I received an e-copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.