Deathstroke: The Terminator #5 is a big issue for two reasons. First, it finally reveals the mystery figure behind Slade Wilson’s recent misfortunes. Second, readers finally get to see Slade at his lowest point. Some might point out that losing his biggest confidant in Wintergreen, being stripped of his considerable funds, and once again torching any chance of having an actual relationship with his daughter, Rose, were low points, but this is when they’ll see what happens when a man of Slade’s status hits rock bottom.
Tony Fleecs once again dives into Deathstroke’s past to reveal that being a mercenary is pretty much all Slade knows, to the point where he neglected his first wife, Adeline, and their children. We all know that this dedication eventually leads to his family splitting apart, but Fleecs hammers home how tragic it really is, with Slade brushing off Adeline’s concerns and her all but begging him to stay home. Even when he asks Wintergreen about his latest target, Wintergreen says a single sentence that hits with the force of a bullet: “Do you care, Sir?”
This dovetails nicely with the present-day sections, where Slade is reduced to taking jobs off the dark web just to survive. It’s here that Carmine Di Giandomenico really hammers home how far from grace he’s fallen; his once-pristine orange-and-black armor is dirty and scuffed, his hair looks unkempt, and his signature helmet has a hole blown in it, forcing him to wear an ill-fitting orange-and-black mask. He even starts lamenting to his mysterious new contact about what the point of life is, which feels like something Slade Wilson would never say. Speaking of the mystery contact, they have a surprising connection to another DC team, which opens up another mystery in Slade’s life.
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Di Giandomencio also makes great use of color throughout, once again using lighter tones to separate past from present and help set the mood. The opening, where Slade meets one of his new clients, is streaked with golden-yellow rays representing the morning sun, and when he battles Deadshot and Deathblow again, it’s set against a cold blue background representing the night. The fighting itself remains hard-hitting and brutal, with Slade making use of every weapon he has to take out his opponents, whether it’s a knife thrown through one of Deadshot’s wrist guns or a sniper rifle that he unloads on his mysterious tormentor (who’s also sporting an outfit similar to his.)
That’s nothing compared to the final pages, which feature a massive reveal but also end the book on one of the biggest cliffhangers. To say more would be inviting spoilers, but it’s a moment that ties into Slade’s current downfall. When this book began, his mysterious new enemy told him he would lose everything. The final pages of Deathstroke: The Terminator #5 show that they weren’t bluffing.
Deathstroke: The Terminator #5 finally brings Slade Wilson face-to-face with his mysterious new foe and showcases him at what might be his lowest point. The question remains: if he loses everything, what kind of man would Deathstroke become? Readers will have to wait until next month to find out.
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