After being insulted by a club owner on TV, Deadpool heads out to Vegas for an encounter with an old friend/foe.
The Good
I was so pleased to see this issue call back to the classic Joe Kelly run on Deadpool, with the return of "the box" and the reveal of the House's true identity. Actually, the House was definitely the highlight of this issue. He's got that hilarious card-themed gimmick and Barberi makes him (and this new Wildcard guy, too) look so damn slick. Seriously, I almost wanted to turn his reveal page into a pin-up. Kudos to the colorist too. I also love how the whole plot of this issue starts with DP channel surfing and then heading to Vegas with a vendetta - - all just because he was dissed on TV! That's such a classic Deadpool motivation. Grizzly's selection as the villain was a great choice, too. The part where he unleashes his deadly "bear hug" made me laugh out loud, for real.
The Bad
Even though it was added up to a funny line, I still think the way DP got out of the Box was a little too convenient. Actually, "the way" he got out isn't even shown. You can't paint a character into a corner and then just have him magically walk over the paint. C'mon!
The Verdict - 4.5./5
This wasn't as gut busting hilarious as the other DP books have been, but it was still damn funny. Believe it or not, the focus was actually more on the story here and it's great take-offon the Heroic Age. I'll say again how pleased I was to see this issue pulling up some threads from Classic Deadpool (is it classic already? Wow, I feel old.) Also, it's worth noting that Barberi's talents are tremendous. I can see some inklings of influence from Pasqual Ferry in his work, and I really think he should be getting greater attention. He's that good. And I'm really curious to see how this plot with the House and Wild Card (if you'll excuse the pun)... plays out. Place this next to Invincible Iron Man as one of the best books this week.
