It has been a while since I looked at a DC book here, so I figured for this week's review, I'd look at a rather unusual choice to give a comic too: Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke the Terminator.
Created by Marv Wolfman and the late great George Perez, he first appeared in The New Teen Titans #2 (December 1980). A mercenary by trade, Slade was formerly of the United States Army. A secret experiment made him into a superhuman. He was stronger, faster, smarter. He was the Six Million Dollar Man...only without the pricey bionics. He would eventually become a mercenary, one of the deadliest assassins in the world. He would cross paths with the New Teen Titans after the death of his first son Grant, and his second son Jericho would become a member of the group himself.
Eventually, he would solidify himself as one of the Titans' greatest villains with The Judas Contract storyline. Despite that, Slade's relationship with the Titans would grow more complex over the years, and he would even act as an ally to them on occasion. Of course, considering the numerous reboots of the DCU over the years, his current status and relationship with the Titans is as muddled and incomprehensible as everything else.
The comic we're looking at this week is the first issue of his first ongoing series. Yes, the character would become a big hit with fans, so much so that DC gave him his own comic. This series started in 1991, and would last for 60 issues (as well as four Annuals and a #0 issue) before its cancellation. So, does the first issue do a good job of setting up Slade's then-new status quo? Or is it simply a botched job? Let's find out in Deathstroke the Terminator #1!
The cover is a Mike Zeck piece. It's well-drawn, but it's basically just a pin-up. Our man standing in one of those "macho hunter" poses with his gun slung over his back. Not much to say about it, really.
"Full Cycle - Chapter One: Assault!"
Writer: Marv Wolfman
Penciler: Steve Erwin
Inker: Will Blyberg
Colorist: Tom McCraw
Letterer: John Costanza
Editor: Jonathan Peterson
Executive Editor: Dick Giordano
The story begins with a prologue, set in the snowy mountains of Germany. A strange one-seated helicopter heads towards a train.
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| "Throw me off the train for drunkenness, eh?! I'll show 'em!" |
The helicopter manages to evade two other helicopters that were defending the train. The helicopter's pilot manages to make their way on board the train. The pilot shoots some guards and makes off with an object.
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| "Finally, the Thermos of Power is mine!" |
The pilot then manages to make their way to the locomotive. The pilot shoots the engineer and a woman. The woman is Adeline Kane. The pilot tells her to say hello to Slade...in Hell. As they toss her out of the train.
The pilot gets back to the helicopter and takes off as the train goes off the bridge and crashes into the ground in a ball of fire.
Now, I know what you're thinking. Wait, isn't this Deathstroke's comic? Where is he? Well, don't you worry. We do focus on him now. Our man Slade is in Kenya, doing a bit of hunting. Using his superior reflexes, he's able to get in front of a bull elephant he is after. He then takes down the elephant with one shot to the head.
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| "God, I hated that elephant." |
A Kenyan villager drives up to him, asking if he's alright. Slade is fine. he wasn't hunting this elephant just to brag about it. It was a job. He was hired by the villagers to kill the elephant as it destroyed their homes and crops. The elephant's meat will be able to help keep the village fed, and the tusks can be sold. The money can be used to help rebuild the villagers' homes. An eye for an eye.
Slade returned to his home, which he shares with his old friend, a former British Army man named H.R. Wintergreen. Wintergreen gets a call from a man in "Searchers, Inc." He informs Slade of Adeline's being shot. And she's in critical condition.
The two prepare to head to the train station in Kisumu. It'll take them to the Nairobi Airport. The pilot and their mysterious helicopter then attacks. Slade tries to blast the flying machine with his staff, demanding to know who the pilot is. The pilot just tells him they're Slade's past, coming back to haunt him. The pilot leaves a parting gift: The destruction of Slade's home.
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| "My house! MY COMIC BOOK COLLECTION! NOOOOOO!" |
Despite the long trek, the two manage to make their way to the hospital in Stuttgart where Adeline is recovering. It's here that in the form of Wintergreen's journal, we get a recap of Slade's origins. How he first met Adeline Kane back when he was a regular soldier, and she was a trainer for an elite branch of Special Forces. She helped make him into one of the very best soldiers in the United States armed forces, and the two got married. He went off to fight in a war, and she stayed behind due to being pregnant with their first child: Grant.
Back to the present! Adeline briefly wakes up, telling Slade her attacker knew who she was, before slipping back into unconsciousness. Slade leaves, realizing her attacker stole something from the train her group was protecting. Wintergreen points out that they don't know what was stolen, nor do they know who even hired Kane in the first place. Slade believes the attack is personal, intent on drawing him out, and he wants some answers.
The two head out to a nearby castle.
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| "Blimey, I think I saw this place in Castlevania!" |
It's here that we get a further recap of how Slade became the man he is today. When the military wanted to test out a substance that promised to help resist truth serums, he volunteered. The experiment caused Slade to become incredibly strong, ripping his way out of his restraints like they were made of tissue paper. The doctors managed to take him down with a sedative. Adeline and Wintergreen fought their way through a lot of red tape to see him. Slade ended up in a coma for weeks but would recover. Over the next few months, he alternated between being incredibly fatigued and being just as incredibly strong. Despite that, he would continue to be a husband and father.
At the age of 17, his first son Grant ran away to New York City. Angry and sullen, he got involved with gangs. The alien princess Starfire crashed into his apartment, and it led to him meeting the Teen Titans. This encounter left him angrier than ever, and he agreed to undergo experiments to become the first Ravager. He and Slade fought together, Grant never knowing Slade was Deathstroke. Grant died from the experiments' side effects, and Slade swore revenge.
In the present, Slade puts a gun to the head of the castle's owner: a man named Waller.
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| "Slade, you know her rules. No wearing shoes in the castle." |
The merc demands to know what Addie was doing when she was shot. Waller refuses to divulge anything, saying that Slade is not supposed to be in on Addie's work. He tells him to leave.
Slade ties him up and looks it up himself. He and Wintergreen drive to Baden, Germany. According to Waller's records, Adeline received payments from an address there. It's the home of a man named Willem Neustadt. He owns a company called Neustadt Chemicals. Slade notes that a lot of men were killed in the train attack, which leads Slade to wonder what exactly what was being transported that need that much security.
Wintergreen tries to get Slade to relax, while flirting with the waitress. Slade points out that there is no way the person who killed those men could go to Kenya from Germany in under an hour. Well, not either having a very advanced form of transport or superpowers. I mean, any of the Flashes could make it from Kenya to Germany in under an hour. Or Superman. Or Supergirl. Or Wonder Woman.
Wintergreen fears that Slade's letting his emotions affect him on this little adventure, but it's tabled when Slade spots Neustadt's missus entering the house. The chauffeur with her is also holding a concealed firearm. He's a guard. Slade enters the house. Mrs. Neustadt is outraged. She says she gave him what he wanted, and he swore he'd return her son Peter to her.
Yeah. Slade is just as confused. He asks her to explain, and she tells him she told him the route for the train so he could get the plutonium on board. Which means, Dr. Brown, plutonium still was not something available in every corner drug store. Even in the 90s. Unseen by Slade, some men prepare an ambush...
We then switch scene to the country of Qurac. The man who attacked the train gives the plutonium to some Quraci army men. The story ends with the man putting on a familiar mask...
...revealing himself to be the new Ravager.
This comic was pretty good, in my opinion. We get an interesting mystery set up with Deathstroke and Wintergreen trying to find the identity of the new Ravager. I also got a bit of a chuckle from Wintergreen flirting with the waitress. What I find the most interesting about this comic is how different Slade is here. You see, my first exposure to the character was from the Teen Titans animated series. In the cartoon, Slade was much more...pure evil, for lack of a better term. He did lack the complexity of his comic counterpart.
Steve Erwin turns in some fine pencils for this issue. His pencil work is competent, and it does the job. It's good to look at. this is the first I remember ever seeing him credited on a book. His art reminds me of Neal Adams, which makes sense as Adams was one of Erwin's inspirations as an artist. His work is good stuff. I don't think it's flashy, but it does the job.
If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2015 trade paperback Deathstroke the Terminator Vol. 1: Assassins. I think it's a surprising hidden gem of early 90s DC.
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