Secret Six (Spoilers)

McCheese

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I searched for a thread about this and couldn't find one. I just picked up the first issue of this series and thoroughly enjoyed it.

It's written by Gail Simone with art by Nicola Scott. Both of whom do a very good job with this first issue. Gail writes 5 very distinct and interesting characters. More if you include the lookalike-stripper, some matching twins, and the skinheads (one of them delivers a hilarious "Oh, my white Jesus!" as Catman pounces on him). The team dynamic is fun and the mission that they've accepted seems interesting. Nicola Scott does some really great work on art here. I've never read anything she's worked on before so I was pleasantly surprised to find that she is a very talented artist who has a excellent grasp of storytelling.

Spoilers lie ahead.

The first few pages are about some hapless schmo running afoul of our merry band's first antagonist, a gimp in a box named Junior. The schmo is led through a gay bar to a secret basement by some very chatty Doublemint twins. Junior asks the schmo if he knows who Junior is. The schmo does some serious expository work here as he explains that Junior is a big time crimelord who runs "everything west of the Mississippi" and he "doesn't like to be seen". Junior accuses the schmo, who I guess I should just call Mr. Shelton because I'm getting tired of typing schmo, of helping some woman steal from him. Shelton apologizes, but Junior reaches out of his box and grabs him. He demands that Shelton choose between his own life and the life of his family. Shelton chooses himself over his wife and daughters before Junior drags him inside the box. Bad things happen inside the box...

Elsewhere Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot and Thomas Blake aka Catman ride to a grocery shop in search of ice cream. Deadshot seems to be over his temporary return to/betrayal by the Suicide Squad and Catman is haunted by some nasty business in Africa and is contemplating going straight. Not going straight as in avoiding bars like the one shown earlier, but going straight in the no more criminal activity sense. He even hints at a future in the heroing business. Deadshot thinks he's full of it and proceeds to tell him so at great length. Their conversation continues as they reach the store, grab the ice cream, and find themselves in the middle of an attempted robbery by the aforementioned skinheads. They generally ignore the robbery and go about their business and conversation (with Lawton attributing Catman's reform to a lingering crush on Huntress) until Floyd becomes frustrated by the amateurish nature of the crime. He proceeds to beat the hell out of one of the skinheads, grabs his gun, shows them how to do it right, steals all the money and cigarettes he can hold, and exits the building with Blake in tow. He and Blake continue their conversation on him cleaning up his act until Lawton humorously points out that Blake left two helpless witnesses alone with some angry armed skinheads. Blake goes back in and shows them what for in a very violent fashion.

Meanwhile, in the House of Secrets (I'm not making that name up, I swear) Ragdoll and newest recruit Bane (yeah, that Bane) try to wake up a very drunk Scandal Savage, but only succeed in making her throw up. By the time they actually get her out of bed Deadshot and Catman have returned and are now in costume. They drag her down to a room with a large cake in it and place her in a chair while a stripper, dressed as Scandal's recently deceased lover Knockout, jumps out and wishes her a happy birthday. The group reveals two things to Scandal. One is that they have hired this stripper to do "unnatural" things to help her get over Knockout's death. The other is that they all might be mildly retarded for thinking this would actually cheer anyone up. The gang gets a little nervous when she seems less than thrilled by the gift, but Scandal gets a hold of herself, politely refuses, calls them idiots, and orders them all to meet in the briefing room.

Back in the box, Junior has finished doing whatever nasty **** he did in there. He calls the doublemint twins over and orders them to take the "parts" to Sheldon's home, arrange them humorously for his daughters to find, and leave a tape of him begging Junior to kill them instead of him for the family to watch. Oh, and they should to kill his dog while they're there. Just because. He knows the six have been hired to transport "her" and asks them to get him a suit he can wear because he wants to leave the box. Dun-dun-dun!!!

Scandal briefs the team. we find out that the mystery thief is Tarantula and they've been hired by a mystery man in Gotham (enough with the mysteries already) whose money smells like herring to transport her to him from her high security jail in the new tricked out Alcatraz. Their employer wants to get his hands on whatever Tarantula stole from Junior. She wraps up the briefing with the promise of adding the sixth member when the team reaches their checkpoint in everyone's favorite one stop shop for debauchery, Las Vegas. Catman excuses himself from the meeting when he receives a phone call from Huntress. I actually caught myself making the whip sound effects when I read this. Seriously, who leaves a super secret briefing to take a phone call from the sweetheart. Grow a pair Catman! Anyway, Huntress warns him about Junior and informs him that each member of the Six has a 10 million dollar bounty on their head. She tells him to drop the gig before hanging up and telling special guest star THE ******* BATMAN that she doesn't like doing this. THE ******* BATMAN tells her that there is a bloodbath coming and everyone's hands are going to get bloody in this one.

To be continued.

Excellent first issue, successfully introduced 5 team members and a new bad guy to even the most unknowledgeable audience without seeming rushed in the slightest. Every character had a distinct look, voice, and feel and their interactions were funny, smart, and a little twisted. Floyd and Ragdoll are hilarious, Blake is completely believable and compelling as a bad dude trying to do right, Bane is stoic and aloof, Scandal is depressed without being melodramatic, and Junior is... interesting. Not bad for a series I only picked up because an upcoming cover I saw at Newsarama shows the gang riding through the desert in an ice cream truck and I thought to myself, "How could it not be good?"

4/5 Tafts. I am very glad that I tried this one out and I think you all should too.
 
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Have you read Villains United or the last Secret Six mini?

If you not you should. It is awesome.


Junior seems a little scary and I want to know who the 6th member is.
 
Have you read Villains United or the last Secret Six mini?

If you not you should. It is awesome.
Neither. Like I said, I was hooked by the ice cream truck and knew next to nothing about the Secret Six before that.

If I can find those I'll read them.
Junior seems a little scary and I want to know who the 6th member is.
Agreed on both counts.
I think the solcits said it was Bane.

He is the new 5th member. It's a she and we will like her.
He's right. Bane is #5.
 
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