I'm really torn on this book. To some degree, Deadshot seems like a character who really can't sustain a miniseries without the context of the Suicide Squad. On the other hand, he's one of my favorite characters from that team, and I have to admit that on the surface, this creative team nails him. Gage is clearly a Squad fan, making reference to several story elements from that series and from the first Deadshot miniseries, and I give him full credit in terms of "getting" the character. Steven Cummings and Jimmy Palmiotti turn in a pretty stirring art performance with some great and occasionally even kind of funny action scenes. However, once this character is dropped into the plot of the miniseries, I start to think he might be in the wrong place, and it's up to Gage and the rest to convince me otherwise as the series goes on.
I should start out by stating my biases, and that is that Suicide Squad by John Ostrander is one of my favorite comic series of all time. I try not to be a continuity fanatic or anything, but it pisses me off when people disregard or fail to understand the characters in the way that Ostrander put them together unless they've got a much stronger independent take, which is rare. Gage knows his Squad and his Deadshot, and he shows in this first issue that he absolutely gets the character. References to Deadshot's deathwish, his dead son and dysfunctional family, his failed therapy and even his twisted version of a love life show that Gage has done his homework. This reads to me more like Floyd Lawton than any take on the character in the last 10 or so years since Suicide Squad ended.
Gage and his collaborators also do some terrific action sequences. Cummings, Palmiotti and Sinclair open with a really great sequence that shows off Deadshot's arrogance and skill, and there's another one toward the end of the issue that is equally impressive. A good action sequence is one thing, but Cummings shows imagination as well as style, with Deadshot's background sniper shot in the beginning serving as a nice bit of comedy in contrast to the dialogue and his shot underneath the car and into the kneecap at the end being a clever little bit of business. Cummings also really sells some of the important character moments, like Lawton's realization about his child both on paper and in person, or his anger at Firebug in the hotel suite. It's an attractive style, too, reminiscent of Chriscross with just a touch of the lush style of Adam Hughes.
However, for all that Gage really does some terrific moment-to-moment writing and he really gets the core character, he sort of lost me when he dropped him into the main plot of the miniseries. I like Deadshot as someone who's more than a little psychopathic, and putting him into a situation where he can go all Yojimbo just seems like a weird place to put the character. It's not completely unbelievable, as he went on a similar vigilante rampage for his son in the previous Deadshot miniseries, but casting Deadshot in what is essentially a role for the Punisher doesn't seem like a natural fit.
There's a lot to like here. The art is gorgeous, and Gage has some very fun and clever moments in the writing. The dialogue is sharp and witty, the characterization solid and the general tone pretty much perfect. It's the plot itself that I'm not sure about, and time will tell whether that's an insurmountable problem or just a minor taste quirk on my part. So far, I'm hopeful, because this is a pretty strong start. 8/10
