Secret Six #13 – Review

By Gail Simone (writer), Nicola Scott with Carlos Rodriguez (pencillers), Doug Hazlewood with Rodney Ramos & Carlos Rodriguez (inkers)

The Story: Half the team (Bane, Scandal and Jeannette) are on the run on the lunatic island prison with Artemis, who is looking to save other Amazons. The other half of the team (Deadshot, Catman and Ragdoll) are watching Wonder Woman being prepped to be the supper for some gruesome monster. And, they’re being sent to track down and kill their rebellious colleagues. Simone even fits in a romantic look at Liana K. struggling with her feelings for Scandal.Random  note: Being a Canadian sci-fi guy, I actually met Liana K. in real life.

What’s Good: The art was great. There are so many names on the art team this month that I couldn’t tell you who did what, but whatever twister game they used to decide who would draw what panel, the end product is great. I would even say that the art in this issue beats the solid art in the last. There are a few faces that look a little forced, but there are many others that are expressive, clear, and beautiful.

There’s a lot of tension and immediacy in the danger the Secret Six is in right now. But somehow, without breaking the pacing or relieving the tension, Simone showed us Scandal’s childhood, some vulnerability in Bane and Jeannette, more funny weirdness in Ragdoll, and some moral compass in Catman and Deadshot.

Simone is also a deft hand at handling issues that others would find difficult to balance. She managed to fit extraordinary rendition, a modern-day run-around of human rights, into the story without making it look preachy or clunky. She depicted a lesbian romance without being titillating or crass. And while almost all her characters kill at some point, she spent a moment in this issue humanizing the victims of the Secret Six. Well done, Ms. Simone!

What’s Not So Good: Having Wonder Woman unconscious in front of the monster who will eat her, but then deciding with no explanation to tie her up nearby was weak villainy and Simone could have done better. She’s a solid writer and plotter who didn’t need to fall back on this clichéd (and creaky) plot device. In the end, despite the danger, neither the monster, nor the Secret Six’ employer come off quite as scary as all that. The former is a bit too cartoony, and the latter is a sociopathic Mr. Rourke with a different kind of island.

Conclusion: Gail Simone continues to hit doubles, triples and home runs. If you like your heroes weird, anti-social, filled with a healthy dose of lethal vigilantism, you should be reading this book.

Grade: B-

-DS Arsenault