"'Deathstroke: RIP' will, however, have at least one permanent casualty -- me. The story arc will be my last for Rebirth Deathstroke as I take my bow with the double-sized issue #50."
 |
| Deathstroke super-scribe, Christopher Priest |
The above quote is from current Deathstroke (2016) writer, Christopher Priest, confirming his departure from the series to CBR.com's Tim Adams (Click here to read the full article). Priest killed off Slade Wilson in the final issue of the "Terminus Agenda" story arc setting up "Deathstroke: RIP" in which his children, Rose and Joseph, come into conflict from the ways that they deal with their father's death. Rose wants revenge and to preserve Deathstroke's professional honor while Joseph wishes to distance himself from his villainous father by becoming the best hero he can be.
Undoubtedly, Priest has left the most indelible impact on both Deathstroke and his mythos since his legendary co-creator, Marv Wolfman. The welcome return of Wintergreen, the incredible Ikon Suit, the comingled origins of his trademark sword and his infamous nom de guerre, a Black Panther-reminiscent frenemy in the Red Lion, a Deadpool-adjacent ally in Death Masque (with a "Q"), a genuine "evil twin" variety villain in Doctor Ikon were all welcome additions to the assassin's canon. Most importantly, Priest readjusted the character locus of Deathstroke so that he was first and foremost a villain and not some ersatz anti-hero. Priest's story "Chicago" from Deathstroke #11, which addressed street-level gun violence in America, has been hailed as a modern classic.
Priest took Deathstroke, that many people wrote off as only a full-throttle action villain and wrote the character intelligently, with depth, nuance, sophistication, and dare I say....humanity (admittedly the darker side of humanity). Many writers took the straight action approach with Deathstroke, and it can work for him, but Priest turned the world of Deathstroke into one of international intrigue and mystery, which was more closely related to James Bond adventures than, say, the standard mindless Stallone/Schwarzenegger fare. Priest artfully and adeptly crafted rivetting "cat and mouse" games played with the likes of Batman, Superman, Adeline Kane, Doctor Ikon, the Red Lion, the Justice League, the Secret Society (of Super-Villains), Two-Face, and Hugo Strange. Priest portrayed Deathstroke and a cold-blooded killer, but not an inhuman one. Though he was never comfortable expressing positive emotionality, Preist showed during the "The Professional" and "Defiance" arcs that Slade Wilson was capable of loving Rose and Joseph and caring about other young heroes like Kid-Flash and Power Girl, though he ultimately sabotaged those relationships in an effort to save them all from the pain and suffering that he felt he would inevitably bring them.
All told, Priest's run with Deathstroke is one of the best that the character has ever been honored to have. I'm sad that Priest is moving on as I feel that he has considerably raised Deathstroke's stock as a character and elevated his overall gravitas as one of the most dangerous forces in the DC Universe. The only good news is that Priest has six more issues remaining on Deathstroke (#s 45-50), one of which being double-sized, to which I am eagerly looking forward. Furthermore, Priest is set to begin a run on a new volume of Vampirella (2019) for Dynamite Entertainment this July, which I will definitely be including on my pull list.
Though Priest confirmed his departure from the series, it is unknown at this time if the Deathstroke title itself will end with #50 or if it will continue on with a new creative team. Whatever the case may be, given Deathstroke's involvement with season two of DC Universe's Titans and CW Seed's development of a Deathstroke animated series I think that there is indeed a bright future in store for Deathstroke in DC Comics going forward.
Priest took Deathstroke, that many people wrote off as only a full-throttle action villain and wrote the character intelligently, with depth, nuance, sophistication, and dare I say....humanity (admittedly the darker side of humanity). Many writers took the straight action approach with Deathstroke, and it can work for him, but Priest turned the world of Deathstroke into one of international intrigue and mystery, which was more closely related to James Bond adventures than, say, the standard mindless Stallone/Schwarzenegger fare. Priest artfully and adeptly crafted rivetting "cat and mouse" games played with the likes of Batman, Superman, Adeline Kane, Doctor Ikon, the Red Lion, the Justice League, the Secret Society (of Super-Villains), Two-Face, and Hugo Strange. Priest portrayed Deathstroke and a cold-blooded killer, but not an inhuman one. Though he was never comfortable expressing positive emotionality, Preist showed during the "The Professional" and "Defiance" arcs that Slade Wilson was capable of loving Rose and Joseph and caring about other young heroes like Kid-Flash and Power Girl, though he ultimately sabotaged those relationships in an effort to save them all from the pain and suffering that he felt he would inevitably bring them.
All told, Priest's run with Deathstroke is one of the best that the character has ever been honored to have. I'm sad that Priest is moving on as I feel that he has considerably raised Deathstroke's stock as a character and elevated his overall gravitas as one of the most dangerous forces in the DC Universe. The only good news is that Priest has six more issues remaining on Deathstroke (#s 45-50), one of which being double-sized, to which I am eagerly looking forward. Furthermore, Priest is set to begin a run on a new volume of Vampirella (2019) for Dynamite Entertainment this July, which I will definitely be including on my pull list.
Though Priest confirmed his departure from the series, it is unknown at this time if the Deathstroke title itself will end with #50 or if it will continue on with a new creative team. Whatever the case may be, given Deathstroke's involvement with season two of DC Universe's Titans and CW Seed's development of a Deathstroke animated series I think that there is indeed a bright future in store for Deathstroke in DC Comics going forward.
