REVIEW: Suicide Squad: Dream Team #2

Suicide Squad: Dream Team #2, “Shattered Dreams” establishes itself as a prologue story to DC’s next world affecting event, ‘Absolute Power’. The situation goes off the rails in true Suicide Squad fashion as Dreamer attempts to get to the root of Amanda Waller’s diabolical motivations. Things aren’t looking too good for the island nation of Gamorra as Waller gets what Waller wants.

The standard cover is by Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, and Adriano Lucas. The Dream Team drops in on unsuspecting Gamorra militia as Harley quips their arrival. One of the guards is in the middle of blowing a bubble with his gum which only adds to the fun of this cover. 

The variant by Sweeney Boo continues her themed covers with Harley Quinn playing with whomever’s behind the scope sight. Her alabaster skin and stark blonde hair really stick out against the darkened background. Wearing a devilish, Joker like smile and brandishing a tarot card of Death creates an impish image of a Harley that’s not to be trifled with.

Jerry Gaylord’s variant is another great depiction of nearly everyone on The Dream Team. Oddly enough, Harley Quinn is absent but Bizarro is front and center, so that makes up for it. The more stylized piece gives off an anime feel to the art which is more than a little appealing.

The interior art team consists of Penciller Eddy Barrows, Inker Eber Ferreira, and Colorist Adriano Lucas. Together they do a fantastic job of differentiating between reality and the dreamscape, which gets used a lot this issue. The motion throughout the book is very fluid and it’s easy to forget the scenes aren’t actually moving. The background details are also very impressive. In particular, there’s a sequence with a landed helicopter and even when it’s not in panel, the wind of the whirling propellers is still present. It’s definitely a visually driven issue and the art team rose to the occasion.

Nicole Maines, lettered by Becca Carey, lays a lot of ground work for the upcoming ‘Absolute Power’ event in ‘Suicide Squad: Dream Team’ #2. Picking up where last issue left off, Dreamer and Harley Quinn try to stop the team from fulfilling their mission as they’ve uncovered Waller’s true objective. Through the chaotic action sequence that follows, Dreamer manages to escape and confront Waller in the Dreamscape. Here we get some interesting insight to Waller’s humble beginnings and the good intentions that’ve paved her path of damnation. Again, Maines does a superb job of capturing each character’s voice and manages to invoke a small amount of sympathy towards one of DC’s more irredeemable characters. There’s still going to be a lot for Waller to answer for as ‘Absolute Power’ draws near.

(8.5/10) This issue’s layouts felt less jumbled than in issue #1 making the flow of the story more coherent. The art is top notch and the book is worth picking up on that alone. Add in the fact Nicole Maines is proving to be quite the storyteller and this book becomes a must have.