Deadpool Team-up #899

Marvel has given Deadpool yet another ongoing book; because two wasn’t enough. This time, the title centers around the Merc with a Mouth teaming up with various other characters from the Marvel U. Is this one worth getting, or is it more suited as emergency toilet paper? Read our review to find out!

Deadpool was a character created back when Rob Liefeld was still relevant, and people thought pouches and impossible muscles were a good thing; if that doesn’t tell you anything about the character, I don’t know what will. He eventually went on to become a joke character, being written on the very brink of obscurity. Then, one day, the Internet caught wind of him. They ate up all of his crazy jokes and made lots of noise about how they love him so. This is the only possible reason I can come up with when I ask myself “Why the Hell does this schmuck have three different on-goings?”

Yes, Deadpool now has three different on-going books at the same time; I’m here to review the first issue of his newest series “Deadpool Team-Up” which for whatever retarded reason Marvel decided to start at #899. One smart decision they did make was to give the privilege of writing this book to one Mr. Fred Van Lente; if anyone can make this book not awful it’s either him or Joe Kelly. So, Fred Van Lente is writing this and you know what; I really liked this issue.

The plot involves Deadpool teaming up with Hercules after the two meet in a maze that ol’ Pooley was dreaming about. Turns out that that is no coincidence that Wade was dreaming about this place; it’s a trap created by Nightmare, Lord of the Dream Dimension, and Arcade, that stupid villain that you probably forgot about until just now. Well the two manage to get to the center where they must face off with hallucinations; for Deadpool this involves the dual voices that he’s been talking two for the last year now, for Herc it’s apparently his own children. This problem is quickly solved when Wade stabs himself in the head.

Okay, so the plot isn’t amazing; the real saving grace of this story is that Fred Lan Vente writes it in a way that doesn’t take it too seriously; this is a key to success for both the characters in this book. So the two end up making for a great duo, which manage to make this very, very stupid issue work better than it ever should. That also means that if you don’t enjoy silly humor; steer clear of this thing at all costs. Otherwise, dig in and enjoy the mindless fun.

As far as art goes, again, I ended up really loving this; this lacks the shiny, annoying look that I’m used to seeing from the regular Deadpool on-going title. Instead it’s a bit lighter, honestly something I wasn’t expecting and was very surprised by when I opened up the issue to read it.