Suicide Squad

Corrina: No Victories Here

Ray: Three issues in, the two stories in this Suicide Squad anthology are diverging in quality, and not in the way I expected. I haven't been a huge fan of Jai Nitz's previous El Diablo stories (although it is very impressive that he's consistently written the character in all his solo appearances since his debut), but this six-part story has elevated the character by pairing him with his own team of magical-bases convicts. Combining originals and obscure DC antiheroes into a dysfunctional unit, this issue pits them against a major threat in the form of Sebastian Faust. The son of Felix Faust has been a hero or antihero for most of his run, but his heel turn this issue is given a good reason - even as he desperately tries to escape the curse his father put on him, it keeps coming back to haunt him. The schism in the team makes sense, and Klarion and Gentleman Ghost in particular get some good scenes.

On the other hand, the Katana story by Mike Barr seems to be losing some momentum this issue. Katana's body has been stolen by Eve, the lover of the leader of Kobra, and the two of them have some weird love play going on with her stuck in the body of her arch-nemesis. The Suicide Squad battle the seemingly-evil Katana and Halo (the poor naive girl just can't figure out what's going on and is defending her foster mom even if she's acting kind of evil).

More compelling is Katana trapped inside the Soulsword. With Maseo by her side she battles against the evil previous owner of the sword as well as an army of undead minions. This feels like a genuine relationship, which is a point in its favor, but too much of it feels like a generic zombie thriller. The ending sets up more Freaky Friday antics in the next three issues. Both stories are readable, but the former has more hooks to bring me back.