Writer: James Bonny
Penciller: Paolo Pantalena
It’s hard to imagine Deathstroke as a family guy, but here we are. The hard hitting, no-holds-barred mercenary actually has a soft side, at least when it comes to his kids. But don’t think that changes things. If you’re looking for excitement, you’re still in the right place.
After the dastardly attack on his life eight weeks ago—organized by former partner Victor Cruz—Deathstroke and his kids, Jericho and Rose, had little choice but to accept refuge at their recent savior, Ra’s al Ghul’s, compound. While being forced to be holed up together allowed for some long overdue quality family time it hasn’t been all S’mores and Kumbahyah. For one thing, Slade, always eager to settle a score, has been busy in the background hunting down Victor’s team members one-by-one hoping to systematically dismantle their operation while Jericho and Rose have engrossed themselves in combat training with the League of Assassins.
But, as with all good things, it doesn’t take long before the Wilson family reunion is disrupted by Victor’s henchmen as the Lawman, accompanied by Snakebite and Mystasia, telepathically locate Rose and take control of her mind to force a confrontation. With Lawman in full control of Rose’s actions, Deathstoke has little choice but to play defense. But as Rose rages against her father, with full intentions of killing him, it quickly becomes clear that the only way to break the Lawman’s mind link is full-blown retaliation which could jeopardize Rose’s life. To that end, Jericho, at Deathstoke’s bidding, sends out a massive mental boom that incapacitates everyone in the room and leaves Rose all but dead. The issue ends with Ra’s al Ghul, the only person able to save Rose’s life, standing over Rose with Deathstroke begging for al Ghul’s help; a situation al Ghul quickly manipulates to his advantage and an added consequence—Deathstroke must be indebted to him forever.
If you can’t tell by my enthusiasm, these are fun times to be following the Deathstroke title. James Bonny has things rocketing along at a mind-blowing pace and the art, which is credited to Paolo Pantalena in this issue, is equally fantastic.
My Rating: 
