Suicide Squad #11 Featured Reviews 

“Suicide Squad” #11

By | November 26th, 2020
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo feel like they broke new ground in their run on “Suicide Squad.” The series has featured a group of new characters with Osita alongside Suicide Squad staples like Deadshot. It is remarkable to consider just how adventurous this run has been. Taylor immediately moved on from Amanda Waller in the first issue, spotlighting a new leader for Task Force X. It’s great to see a comic book series that is interesting in plotting the future instead of staying beholden to what came before. Unfortunately, this incarnation of “Suicide Squad” as we know it is coming to an end. With so many new concepts and ideas being fleshed out here, I’m interested to see if Taylor is able to find a way to resolve the conflict in the title. It’s time to check if “Suicide Squad” #11 is able to stick the landing.

Written by Tom Taylor
Illustrated by Bruno Redondo
Colored by Adriano Lucas
Lettered by Wes Abbott

The explosive final issue is here! Task Force X has been through hell and back. Now they’re the last thing standing between a human bomb and an island full of innocents. Which means that even if they win the day, there’s nowhere to run when the Justice League arrives to clean house!

Due to my fondness for character development established in the past couple of installments, I had a feeling that “Suicide Squad” #11 would deliver in terms of quality. I did not expect “Suicide Squad” #11 to work so well as a finale. I love the way Taylor’s opening sequence will catch readers off guard. This opening is laid out in an impressive visual composition by artist Bruno Redondo. A returning character joins the team again in a shocking plot twist. Redondo is able to contrast some of the physicality really well between the different characters in the series really well. I don’t want to go any further without really giving a spotlight to color artist Adriano Lucas. Lucas and Redondo use negative space, drop the shading on certain panels, and give the title an impressively bright hue.

“Suicide Squad” #11 is a comic book series that has an impressive collaboration between the creative team. In a violent sequence, Taylor will position clever dialogue, Redondo will contribute precise linework and Lucas utilize an interesting color palette. Layouts are constructed like a jigsaw puzzle at times but Redondo is careful to make sure the action and movement is clear. There have been times in the past where Redondo and Taylor didn’t feel perfectly in sync but “Suicide Squad” #11 shows this team collaborating at their absolute best.

Despite the fact that these books are about a group of criminals, Taylor makes sure to keep the dialogue witty and the tone light. These are characters who have experienced great hardship but they still make jokes and don’t take every situation too seriously despite how dire it is. Taylor puts the team into some really bad situations in this script specifically. His script is structured incredibly well and has a great sense of progression. Taylor is great at telling stories with ensemble casts that have tons of personality. “X-Men Red” was an incredibly underappreciated series that carried over lots of elements into this title.

Taylor and Redondo have kept up the series tradition of epic title pages in “Suicide Squad” #11. The last few pages explore political views in the space of comics and examine the nature of corruption within political power. There’s a really overt tie to American politics here as well that will have some readers feeling divisive about the title. I would prefer that Taylor be a little more subtle about his use of metaphors or even talk more directly to the reader like he did in “X-Men Red.” All that being said, I’m glad that “Suicide Squad” has something to say and a political voice. Aspects like these were missing from the meandering series that were released prior to this title during Rebirth.

The Deadshot issue was one of the very best in the series and I was thrilled to see Taylor and Redondo follow-up on it the way they did here. This issue accomplishes too much in just a few pages and is paced so incredibly well. The last moment is a hearty combination of badass and sweet that is the perfect sendoff even if nothing else about these characters are ever addressed again. There is so much potential in comic books moving forward with younger team characters that aren’t as seasoned. Throughout this series, Taylor has really explored the personalities of people like Osita and I hope that DC is able to utilize this team going forward in a similar manner.

“Suicide Squad” #11 has incredible action, beautiful pencils, and a good dose of humor to keep readers satisfied enough to read through the series again. This installment is so good that it will raise the quality of the previous issues with the excellent payoff scenes to longstanding character relationships. “Suicide Squad” #11 is exactly the finale we needed for a series that was never afraid to push the envelope while being incredibly funny.

Final Verdict: 9.3 – “Suicide Squad” #11 is a near-perfect finale for a series brimming with humor and espionage.


Alexander Jones

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