Bullet Review Back Issue Box: Suicide Squad #10

I continue my look back at Mark Shaw's history in the DC Universe and seeing if his past predicts his current persona of Leviathan. 

We close a brief chapter in the Shaw timeline by looking at Suicide Squad #10. Writer John Ostrander capitalized on the Manhunter craze of Millennium to rescue Shaw (as the Privateer) from comic limbo and bring him into the Suicide Squad.

Obviously, with an ongoing company hook of 'Who is a Manhunter sleeper agent?' readers must have wondered if Shaw was brought back only to be revealed once again as a Manhunter. Instead, he is shown as a debonair character who is also incredibly skilled in espionage. 

After having shown his true colors by helping the Squad destroy a Manhunter temple, and with the New Guardians formed, Shaw was looking for the next stop in his life path. And that is where this issue comes in.

Back Issue Box: Suicide Squad #9

I continue my back issue box dive looking at Mark Price Leviathan by taking a peek at Suicide Squad #9. As I mentioned in my review of Suicide Squad #8, Mark Shaw was rescued from comic book limbo in this book. It had been nearly a decade since he had appeared in the Justice League. So John Ostrander was doing his best to re-introduce Shaw (as the Privateer) to the comic book world. And what better event to do that in than Millennium, the mini-series which thrust the Manhunters cult as a universe-wide threat.

In Squad #8, Shaw arrives as a vicious martial artist with a genteman's swagger and manners.

Here, we see him in action. The Squad is sent out on a mission to thwart the Manhunters. Shaw is one of a few new members on the team. One of the conceits of Millennium was that there were sleeper agents hidden in all books. I am sure when reading this book, there had to be some suspicion with Shaw as perhaps still being in the fold.

Luke McDonnell remains on art and brings his usual rough and tumble style to the book. As I have said before, McDonnell's look is perfect for this title, a bit rough and raw, consistent with our characters.

On to the book.

Back Issue Box: Suicide Squad #8

I continue my look at the corruption of Mark Shaw/Leviathan by looking at Suicide Squad #8 from 1987. 

Suicide Squad was one of the many new ideas which sprung from the immediate post-Crisis DCU. It felt like DC was really creatively clicking on all cylinders around this time and this book was one of the better things during this time to hit the racks. 

John Ostrander had written Legends and in that series put together this new concept Suicide Squad. Super-villains were being pressed into duty for their country. With bombs implanted in their necks, the bad guys had little choice but to try and survive risky missions and shave time off their sentences. All this was done under the thumb of the newly created Amanda Waller.

The rumor (and I would love to ask him if it is true) is that Ostrander thumbed through Who's Who to find C and D list characters to add to the every rotating cast of characters. Sure, there were regulars - Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, the Enchantress to name a few. But there were plenty of villains who met their end in this book too. It gave it an edge.

We see Mark Shaw in this issue, his first true post-Crisis appearance. Did Ostrander find him in Who's Who and advocate for his inclusion? Was he already toying with the idea of the Manhunter solo book which is just around the corner? Or was this a sort of mandate by DC given Millennium and all the Manhunter nonsense there was around the corner?

With a couple of missions under the team's belt, Ostrander slows things down a bit with this issue. 

'Personal Files' (note that it isn't personnel files) is written by Ostrander with art by regular artist Luke McDonnell and inker Bob Lewis. In it, Simon LeGrieve takes a look at recent character interactions. There isn't much super-heroing happening here. No mission. Just a look at the characters personal lives ... hence the title.

I can't help but wonder if this was an homage to the famous 'A Day in the Life' issue of the Wolfman/Perez New Teen Titans, also coincidentally the eighth issue of that book.

As for McDonnell, I can only say I love his art. It is gritty and rough, perfect for this book and it's themes.