This is the last story arc of the original run, and we open on the island of Diabloverde, where we find a man running for his life down the streets. He gets attacked by a bunch of super-powered losers - Deadline, Bolt, Blockbuster, Sudden Death, and Shrapnel - for being out after curfew. During their game of Hot Potato Homicide, Bolt mentions that the gig may be boring, but it pays well and they get time off their jail sentences. Hmmmm.
Two locals, Maria and Rimon, look on in horror, but this is all a diversion to cover Maria reaching the coast and sailing to the U.S. Where she will kill Amanda Waller, as one does. Waller and her team are currently based at the Institute for Meta-Human Studies, and The Wall's enlisted the help of old cast member Dr. Simon Legrieve and the Dybbuk, a sentient AI working for the Israeli super-team. They want to help another AI, dubbed Ifrit, created by the group Jihad and based on Mindboggler, who died in the first story arc of the book after Captain Boomerang let her get gunned down. It's Waller's hope Dybbuk can release her of the programming insisting she kill the Squad.
While she and the others wait, Maria infiltrates the building and takes Boomerbutt hostage, although he's all too happy to lead her to Waller. I'm reminded of what Dave Campbell said on his blog, Dave's Long Box, lo those many years ago: Captain Boomerang is a complete and utter dick. What a great character.
They show up just as something is starting to happen with Dybbuk and Ifrit. Ramban can't just whip up a spell whilly-nilly, so he settles for a nifty light show and promising to send Maria to Hell via the 'Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth.' The threat of being in the crossfire kicks Boomerang's self-preservation into gear and he disarms Maria with a nifty elbow to the gut/judo flip combo, as Dybbuk and Mindboggler emerge.
Except Mindboggler prefers to be called her true name, Leah Wasserman. Mindboggler was nothing more than 'a reaction to her upbringing.' She's also convinced Dybbuk to take a more human name, and now Leah and "Lenny" are getting married. Everyone except Colonel Hacohen is in favor of this, and Ramban points out the Colonel is not Lenny's father and has no say. Besides, Leah seems like a 'nice Jewish program.'
Well, that's all very amusing, but Boomerbutt's still got the would-be Gavrillo Princip in a hammerlock. Waller asks what the deal is, and doesn't like what she hears: the Suicide Squad is on the loose in Diabloverde. A man named Edwardo Guzman gained powers from the metagene bomb and used them to overthrow the previous regime. He was elected president, but began calling himself Guedhe, a god of death, and shut down everything while declaring himself dictator for life. Which could be a problem since he seemingly couldn't be killed. When a resistance rose up, the Suicide Squad arrived to back Guzman.
I must confess confusion as to why, if he's shut their economy down. What's the U.S. get with no production of crops or exploitation of natural resources? Waller puts in some calls and Professional Shithead Sarge Steel confirms the CIA stole her idea. You know, Sergeant Rock had to fight a Nazi with a metal hand, and I bet we've never seen that guy and Sarge Steel in the same place. Makes you think.
Waller demands a peso from Maria and tells her she's just hired the Suicide Squad to liberate her country. Ostrander used this bit - the merc being hired for a ridiculously small amount - in GrimJack, too. Boomerang of course raises a fuss, but Waller points out she'll cover everyone's fees with her shares of their previous jobs, and he didn't seem too concerned about Maria killing Waller, so he's going, or else. Because this is the Squad's last ride, baby.
There are a couple of pages about Deadshot's costume being sent to him in the mail, after he symbolically "killed" himself several issues ago, someone contacting Cliff Carmichael, the current Thinker with an unknown offer. Also a delegation from Vlatava ask Count Vertigo to resume leadership of their country to help stabilize it, but the Count is too depressed and suicidal to be certain it's a good idea.
{10th longbox, 256th comic. Suicide Squad #63, by John Ostrander and Kim Yale (writers), Geof Isherwood (penciler), Robert Campanella (inker), Tom McCraw (colorist), Todd Klein (letterer)}
2 comments:
Do they really do the Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth joke?
You betcha! On the next page, Colonel Hacohen asks about it and Ramban explains he read it in a comic when he was small.
This is also just a couple of issues after Ostrander and Yale throw Grant Morrison's stand-in from Animal Man into the book and have them get eaten by a werewolf.
Suicide Squad's a funnier book than I expected when I started reading it, which I've seen some people say was Kim Yale's influence.
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