REVIEW: Secret Six #6

Secret Six #6, ‘Who Needs Friends, Anyway’ really lives up to its title! This issue also acts as the finale to the mini-series and my goodness, this issue had a lot to get through.

But before we get into the issue itself, let’s take a look at the covers. The standard cover is by Stephen Segovia & Rain Beredo and it really does sum up everything that has been or is going on in this series. As the cover eludes, this issue reveals a huge secret to one of the characters, and the detail of this cover only adds to the scandal.

The variant by Leirix leans into the anime style artwork of the issue. Here we see Jon and Jay take down some sort of machinery and whilst this cover has some great detail, it actually shows the opposite of their relationship in this issue.

The variant cover by Salvador Larroca features the entire Secret Six team though for me the layout is off. With that said the detail is great, giving us a look at our heroes in action and looking confident.

Secret Six #6, just like the rest of the series is an excellent read. In this issue we get some great flashback moments of Jon’s childhood, as we see a montage of everything he’s been through. With him being the son of Superman, it is very easy to forget what a rough upbringing he’s had and here we see how that’s shaped him into the person he is today, which is arguably different to his father. This issue really leans towards Jon and his reactions and experiences. He finds out what Jay and Dreamer have done and of course, he does not agree with it. After a stern talking to by Catman, Jon starts to realise that everything isn’t always as black and white as they might seem.

We also see Jay, Dreamer and Deadshot lugging what’s left of Amanda Waller out of Lori’s way, but things aren’t quite that simple as one of the three acts out of line and rather unexpectedly to get what they want from this mission. One member of the team of course saw this coming, but had hoped the outcome would eventually change, and much to their disappointment it leads to an all out brawl and that isn’t just between these three characters! We see Superman vs Catman, Dreamer vs Gossamer, Deadshot vs Catman, Black Alice vs Banshee, Gossamer vs Superman and Deadshot HELPING Amanda Waller?! This issue is truly explosive in terms of the action, but when it all comes down to it, it all has meaning and it all has heart, even if this isn’t the best way to go about it.

The interior art is by Stephen Segovia, with colours by Rain Beredo and letters by Steve Wands and it is fantastic. It has been excellent throughout the entire series and this issue is no exception. It has a real anime style to it, which really works for such an action packed issue and the same can be said for the emotional aspects of the issue. These characters go through a lot in just one issue and the artwork really brings out their expressions.

(9/10) Whilst Secret Six #6 sees the end of this series, the story is set to continue in the pages of ‘Superman Unlimited’ and ‘Justice League Unlimited’. I have loved this entire series and what I have loved the most is getting to know heroes that I wouldn’t normally have gotten to read. Nicole Maines is a talent to be reckoned with and I cannot wait to see what she does next at DC.