SPOILER WARNING: This issue contains spoilers for Deathstroke # 21, which are available now.
After priest and artist Diogenes Neves spent the majority of the last issue in a “Gathering the Team” exercise for the new status quo of the series, they dedicate Deathstroke # 21 to… gathering the team, albeit from different angles. Agendas are revealed, mysteries deepened, and the sincerity of Slade Wilson’s conversion challenged. But perhaps the biggest reveal comes on the last page, where Defiance’s missing member makes her debut.
It really does look like Terra is a double agent. Again.
Everyone is on a mission
This edition, like most of Priest’s previous run to the title, is divided into segments that are delimited by a word or phrase in a completely black field. Here the marker is the character or characters in focus for the scene. The opener is dedicated to the pasture of the League of Assassins, who executes a genocidal butcher called the grocer. It’s unclear how she fits into the series, however – will she join Deathstroke’s Team Defiance? Are you resisting them? Or just complicate things?
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From then on we’re on a more solid footing as Adeline, Slade’s ex-wife and mother of his sons, takes center stage. Adeline and Slade did not break up amicably, as reported in this issue – former Mrs. Wilson shot Deathstroke in the eye after blaming him for the death of her son Grant and in retaliation for seeing his daughter, Rose, out of wedlock had . (Addie is not putting things quite so nicely.) Now, however, she is ready to run Project Defiance as a secret government initiative, with Deathstroke reporting directly to her.
Deathstroke comes with it … kind of.
The next section, “Wally and Tanya,” brings a moment of lightness to the subject while also giving a rather intriguing look at what drives these characters, their similarities and differences. Wally West – Kid Flash – asks Tanya Spears, aka Power Girl, what class she is in. A perfectly reasonable question considering they are similarly old. “I have two PhDs,” she replies. Tanya also sums up her genesis, noting that her mentor, Karen Starr, the original power girl, left Tanya with her name, powers, and access to her tech empire when Ms. Starr returned to her own earth.
This is worth noting because in the quicksand of post-rebirth continuity, the status of Earth 2 is still a big question. In the New 52 universe – still the operational timeline in many ways – Earth 2 was an alternate reality where a war with Apocalips brought the planet to its knees and the world was only saved by the heroic sacrifices of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman . Eventually, this version of Earth was destroyed, despite the fact that after the convergence, its heroes found and colonized a new planet. But in the continuity before Flashpoint, which is vigorously reasserting itself elsewhere in the DCU, Earth 2 was home to the Justice Society and other Golden Age originals, of which Jay Garrick’s classic version, Earth 2’s Flash, recently appeared in the Batman / Flash crossover “The Button”. In both continuities, Karen Starr was originally from Earth 2 before emigrating to Earth 1. Tanya’s testimony here suggests that Power Girl’s repatriation – which took place in New 52 – has definitely taken place; From today’s perspective the question is to which earth 2 she returned.
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Later, in the final scene of the issue, Adeline reveals that “the black kids” weren’t part of her plan for the team, which could create an interesting dynamic when loyalty is tested. It’s also worth noting that Kid Flash and Power Girl, the only clearly heroic members of Defiance, are also the only ones who don’t have a deep-seated hatred of Deathstroke.
His children, for example, certainly harbor a grudge.
In the scene “Jericho and Rose”, the half-siblings discuss whether or not Deathstroke killed Jericho’s fiancée Étienne, and both agree that yes, he probably did. Jericho has some doubts, however, and states that “learning the truth is my only motivation to join Pop’s team.”
Slade, on the other hand, takes his mentoring a new generation of heroes very seriously. First, in the “Slade” chapter, he scours news reports for a world crisis that is likely to test Defiance’s courage. He finally finds it strange by recognizing the chauffeur of the president of a small nation as a former notorious drug lord. Although there is a contract for the man, Deathstroke executes him “on the house”, triggering an international incident. Call Defiance Now!
But of course the twist comes in “Wintergreen”, the final chapter in which we learn that Slade’s not always trustworthy confidante conspires with Adeline to “end Deathstroke forever”. Wintergreen and Adeline also contribute to Etienne’s death by discovering that they “both know” that Deathstroke was not responsible.
And then there is the last page of Terra. Who not only “has the stomach for a little bit in the ass”, as Adeline puts it, but is downright eager to dive.
Although Terra has appeared in a variety of Titans-related series over the years, the contradicting, earth-powered character is best known for her role in Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s classic “The Judas Contract,” in which she made her way into the Teen enchants Titans before revealing herself to be a spy for Deathstroke. This story arc also strongly suggested that Slade and the underage Terra were in a sexual relationship. At the beginning of his run on the current Deathstroke series, Priest had said he would clarify once and for all the truth about the relationship between Slade and Terra, which he believed would take place in a crossover with Teen Titans. Plans have clearly changed since Terra didn’t even show up in this recently completed crossover, but maybe that story is coming soon.
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In any case, it was no secret that Terra would appear in the Defiance series; After all, it’s right there on the cover. But her role as a saboteur is a twist. Of course, nothing is straightforward in Deathstroke’s world where rival assassins always think five moves ahead; It’s entirely possible Slade recruited Terra before Wintergreen and Adeline even got the chance.
This unrecognizability goes a long way in adding to the tension and excitement of Deathstroke. What is Slade really up to? Can he defeat his opponents? Should we even want it? He’s certainly smart enough not to trust his ex; but what does he know? And of course, what are the consequences for the young heroes who follow his example?
About the author
Shaun Manning
(1032 published articles)
Shaun Manning has been writing for CBR since 2006. During this time in which the site has won multiple Eisner Awards, Shaun has interviewed some of the greatest writers, artists, and editors in the comic book medium, as well as the stars and directors of comics and science fiction television and film. All of this started when he picked up a tattered copy of Marvel’s Transformers # 1 at a flea market when he was around seven or eight years old (thanks, Captain Vic!) And then delved into superhero cartoon and the the X-Men in middle school with the X-Men Death of Superman. You see, media connections and event comics can attract new readers! Soon, completely corrupted by Sam Kieth’s The Maxx and Steven T. Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen’s House of Secrets, Shaun introduced the wonder of Mature Readers comics at an age when it really wasn’t. Shaun can be found on Twitter at @FasterthanShaun raging about comics and politics.
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