Deathstroke: The Terminator #2 doesn’t waste any time, immediately picking up where the debut issue left off. Having lost his close friend Wintergreen and literally getting blown to hell, Slade Wilson’s surrounded by a veritable army of law enforcement officers. But due to his super soldier abilities, he’s back on his feet and mad as hell. And when Deathstroke gets angry, blood tends to get spilled in very large quantities.
That bloodshed is depicted in great detail by Carmine Di Giandomenico. Whole pages showcase Slade ripping through his opponents, with limbs flying in all directions. Bullets smash through faces, spraying out blood and brains. Thanks to Ivan Placensia’s excellent use of shadows and color, this carnage can be depicted in full without getting slapped with an M rating. But there are also moments when the loss of his friend, his fortune, his weapons, and being blown up takes its toll on Slade; his posture slumps, and you can see the weight of the world on his shoulders.
I also have to give credit to Di Giandomenico for his designs, which feel right at home in the DC Universe and the dark, dangerous world that Slade’s made home. It’s especially notable in the costume Deathstroke wears, as there’s plenty of armor and weapons that you’d expect a mercenary to have, including his signature katana and pistols. It also stands out thanks to the orange-and-black combination, which is something only a supervillain would wear. Most redesigns for certain characters often veer too far into realism, but I’m glad this one doesn’t.
DC
But Deathstroke: The Terminator #2 isn’t all savagery and severed limbs. Throughout the issue, Tony Fleecs flashes back to moments in Slade’s life, reflecting on the damage he’s caused. The first moment comes after his ex-wife Adeline shot out his eye; it speaks volumes that he had to talk down Wintergreen from putting out a hit on her. “I brought death into our house,” he says in a rare moment of self-reflection, while also saying that if the roles were reversed, he’d never stop until he got his vengeance. Is it on the nose? A little. Is it poignant? Definitely.
Fleecs also continues to stoke the mystery of the being who’s stripped Slade of his life, as that being can communicate telepathically with Slade and begins tormenting him. There’s also the fact that a contract is put out on Deathstroke’s head, and certain villains have come to collect. It significantly ups the stakes: now Slade will have to stay one step ahead of the world while figuring out who set him up. It’s also a hell of a hook to keep readers invested.
Deathstroke: The Terminator #2 hits the gas on its main story, upping the stakes while also bringing plenty of emotional weight. It’s often said that the most dangerous people are those with nothing to lose, and considering that Slade Wilson was already plenty deadly, that spells bad fortune for anyone who gets in his way.
You must be logged in to post a comment.