Secret Six #8 review

I've loved Day in the Life issues since the Eighties, when they were a speciality of the New Teen Titans, so any time a writer wants to throw one my way, it's fine by me. And that's what Gail Simone does here, providing a breather after the seven-part epic that kicked off this series.

It's a nice simple tale - nice knifewoman Scandal Savage is asked out by Liana, the terribly sweet exotic dancer previously paid to 'cheer her up' by dressing as dead lover Knockout. Meanwhile, killer for hire Deadshot is invited to spend the evening with new Secret Sixer Jeannette the banshee. What could be better than going out as a foursome, with a strict no-killing rule for Floyd and Scandal?

Of course, there's action aplenty, as trouble finds our off-duty quartet, and it makes for some fun scenes which, as ever, develop character along the way. The disappointment is that we don't learn anything new about Jeannette, and I'm itching to know why she's joined the team, and seems reluctant to use any banshee scream she might possess.

Incidental delights along the way include the introduction of cringing crony Insignificus, a creepily charismatic cross between Blackadder's Baldrick and Marvin the Paranoid Android; the Hypertime superhero bar; and a rather grave nod to DC-centric podcast Raging Bullets. There's also a fun scene in which Floyd borrows a smart suit from Catman when he can't find a tux - he's obviously forgotten that when he started out in Gotham City he always dressed in top hat and tails. There's also a couple of pages devoted to 'Ragdoll Dreams', a Tiny Titans-style look at the little bendy fellow's slumbering visions. It's cute, but not terribly funny. What it does do, though, is show us another side to Ragdoll, who was becoming a little one-note with his constant lewdness. We learn that just as even the best of us has a dark side, the worst of us has a light aspect.

Regular artist Nicola Scott is absent this issue but Carlos Rodriguez and Bit do a fine job filling in, and Six colourist Jason Wright ably provides visual continuity with previous issues (he really deserves a cover credit, as a vital partner in this book's success).