SECRET SIX #1 REVIEW

[Blake Petit]

Review by: Blake M. Petit Blake@comixtreme.com
Quick Rating: Excellent
Title: At the Point of Puncture (Unhinged Part One)

The Secret Six seeks to fill its roster.

Writer: Gail Simone
Pencils: Nicola Scott
Inks: Doug Hazlewood
Colors: Jason Wright
Letters: Swand S.
Editor: Nachie Castro
Cover Art: Nicola Scott
Publisher: DC Comics

It is not an exaggeration to say that a lot of people have been waiting for this book since Villains United. With that book, and with the follow-up Secret Six miniseries, Gail Simone took a bunch of second-rate supervillains and made them some of the most exciting characters in the DC Universe. C’mon, show of hands, four years ago how many people would have been excited about a comic where one of the main characters was Catman?

So anyway, to kick off the ongoing series, the Secret Six are down a member. Catman and Deadshot are off on a supply run, where they ponder the meaning of their little team, while Ragdoll and the new fifth member attempt to snap Scandal out of the daze she’s been in since the death of her girlfriend, the New God Knockout. And say what you will, the plan they come up with is something that the Justice League would never have come up with. The team has a new job – head out to San Francisco to find would-be superhero who’s caused some trouble in the past for the Batman family. Catman gets a phone call, however, that leads him to believe things aren’t on the up-and-up.

Simone has given these characters real depth. Not a one of them is the two-dimensional crook they were when she picked up on them. She does a magnificent job this issue of explaining their goals, their hopes, their desires, and their personalities as a whole.

Joining her on the series is her former Birds of Prey collaborator Nicola Scott, whose work here is even better than it was on that title. She has a richness and detail that just wasn’t there before. Oh, she was always good. Now she’s great. Doug Hazlewood and Jason Wright’s inks and colors are a perfect compliment for her linework. I’ve never seen it look this good.

I couldn’t wait for this book from the moment it was announced, and the first issue didn’t disappoint in the slightest. Absolutely a great issue.

Story:

Art:

Overall:


Buy Secret Six products from X-World and save!

[Mark Blicharz]

Gail, Geoff, Abnett and Lanning. The trio that make crappy characters awesome. All I have to say.

[Ben Lehnsherr]

Hey, its the Thunderbolts, but....not.

Picked this up, but I won't be getting anymore. Gail Simone writes everyone with the same voice, and the art doesn't match the script much at all. I can see Simone is a good writer, but I haven't been able to connect with much of anything that she does, to be honest.

[Blake Petit]

Yeah, just like the Thunderbolts...

...no wait, that's a group of villains being forced by the government to serve their time doing missions for them. Actually, that's more like the Suicide Squad, not the Secret Six.

Well, the original Thunderbolts, then!

No, no, that was a group of villains pretending to be heroes in an effort to take over the world.

Which incarnation of the Thunderbolts was a group of supervillains using their services for hire while trying to stay off the radar? I'm confused.

[Ben Lehnsherr]

......me, too.

[Fatal Rose]

Best new book out there? YES!

Is this a ongoing series?

[Blake Petit]

Originally Posted by Fatal Rose

Best new book out there? YES!

Is this a ongoing series?

Indeed it is. Finally.

[Terry Verticchio]

Holy blazing bags of crap, this book rocked!

Let's see now...Gail is redhead...Nicola is a redhead...I have an unheathly obsession for redheads and this book rocks...coincidence?

I don't think so!

[jonsnow]

I forgot to snag this last week, I feel stupid.

[Blake Petit]

Originally Posted by jonsnow

I forgot to snag this last week, I feel stupid.

It's not too late! Rush to your local comic shop and beg them to have mercy on you!

[WhereIsTony]

Originally Posted by Ben Lehnsherr

Hey, its the Thunderbolts, but....not.

Picked this up, but I won't be getting anymore. Gail Simone writes everyone with the same voice, and the art doesn't match the script much at all. I can see Simone is a good writer, but I haven't been able to connect with much of anything that she does, to be honest.

a rare disagreement ben, I love the way simone writes these characters, I cannot wait to see who the sixth member will be.

This has jumped to the top of my DC pull list.

[Ben Lehnsherr]

Originally Posted by WhereIsTony

a rare disagreement ben, I love the way simone writes these characters, I cannot wait to see who the sixth member will be.

This has jumped to the top of my DC pull list.

Actually, I think I'm gonna re-read the issue. There were some parts I liked, and I may have been overtly criticial of Simone, considering my distaste for her Wonder Woman title........ God knows I need more quality DC books in my pull.

[Fatal Rose]

The fact that this is an ongoing series has made my life better and a much happier man.

[Wolfwood]

Yeah, this was great! The villain is a guy in a box? How cool is that ?

[Mark Blicharz]

I've read it again and I have to say that this is the best single issue of any book based on a group of villains I've ever read. It was by far the best book of the week that it came out as well.

[Terry Verticchio]

"The Justice League oughtta be calling any day now"

"All Teen Titan-y..."

"I think I seen Captain Marvel do that one for charity."

"She's gonna kill us all." "Not me I brought the ice cream."

Loved all of it.

[Fatal Rose]

Quick question, why is Bane apart of this team?

[Terry Verticchio]

The team needs a brick.

First they had Parademon and then Knockout. So now Bane. At least that's my opinion.

[Fatal Rose]

I hope this art team stays with the book for a long while.

[Whirlysplat]

This book had some good moments. Probably the best was the prostitute in the Cake sequence. Catman and the Skinheads was also amusing.