A Paranoid Hawkeye

Veteran writer Christopher Priest returns to comics for the DC Comics Rebirth event in  Deathstroke, Volume 1: The Professional. Priest, ever the professional himself, utilizes all the standard tools that has made his arsenal familiar: quippy dialogue, chapter headings, sometimes-confusing flashbacks, and, oh yes, planting the seeds for a long play.  For the most part, his devious tactics are all on point, but with this collected edition falling under the Rebirth project, the mighty Priest may have failed in one main regard: this series was not all accessible for the new reader that DC was obviously attempting to recruit, especially, perhaps, after the character’s long-run on CW’s Arrow.

The Professional does not get into an origin, or at least, not linearly, which is as fine as it is stylish. Priest has the reader immediately jump into action as Slade Wilson, Deathstroke, politically, if not violently, acts with an African government in order to rescue a friend. And then Wilson’s family arrives. Using the term “dysfunctional” as a description for this family is akin to calling President Trump “loud”. The dynamics are fun as the mystery begins. Again, Priest is no doubt looking into the long play. Wilson kinda-sorta teams up with his illegitimate daughter, Rose, the would-be assassin called the Ravager, in order to find out who put a price on her head. The two go on a road trip to Gotham City as their dynamic plays out like a paranoid version of Clint Barton and Kate Bishop from Matt Fraction’s Hawkeye run.

For those coming in fresh, again, which one assumes is one of DC’s main sticking points, almost none of this would make sense. Rose’s genealogy, the lives-and-deaths of Grant and Joe, Slade and Adeline’s marriage, all falls back onto the heavy pre-52 continuity that old-time fanboys such as myself enjoy, but could be a huge question mark emoji for younger millennials.

Carlo Pagulayan, and especially Joe Bennett, provide thick, beautifully laid-out pencils, but at times the similarity between characters without the surname of Wilson, lends to some of the confusing narrative. Speaking of returning vets, much appreciation to seeing Larry Hama’s name grace the credit box for breakdowns on issue one.

Priest has laid the groundwork for what can be fun run, especially now that the obligatory Batman guest spot is out of the way. Maybe this will also give Priest the chance to clarify his narrative and make Deathstroke more Leon and less Walter Sobchak.

Thanks to both NetGalley and DC Comics for the advance preview of the new Deathstroke title. Reminds me of my letterhacking days and receiving similar advance copies for solicitation. I’m glad to be able to contribute such reviews again.

As Always,

theJOE