Whew! This is how you do an annual. Priest has closed so many doors yet, he has opened so many more. Just when I think this title is going to slow down, I read an issue like this. If you would have told me that I would ever care about Deathstroke this much pre-Rebirth I would have called you crazy. This book has reinvented the character in so many ways and continues to elevate itself each and every month. Do yourself a favor, pick up this book! Read Full Review

This take on Deathstroke is something of a masterwork and this is about as insulated a book as it gets in comics, watching to see where it goes next will be fascinating. Read Full Review

Deathstroke has another home run with this one. Read Full Review

This may be one of the book's finest hours, and it's had a lot of them. Read Full Review

Deathstroke Annual #1 brings a satisfying and aptly dark conclusion to the Defiance arc. The comic provides more insight into Slades psyche, and the other members of the team make their own dramatic choices. The art team puts in some solid work to boot, and this comic gets a recommendation. Give it a read. Read Full Review

In conclusion this was a really stong issue and one of the strongest in a while. With the announcement of No Justice, hopefully this book could potentially return back to bi-monthly as I feel that it going monthly has hurt it. Hopefully this issue is a sign for better times in the future. Read Full Review

Not a great comic for the casual readers but essential for anyone who has been following the series from the beginning (and this is a series anyone who likes superhero comics should be following). Read Full Review

Priest brought his A-game to this one, from the quiet moments between Kid Flash and Power Girl to Slade's hilarious attempt to con someone else into doing his killing for him. Read Full Review

Denys Cowan does some excellent art on this, which really helped carry me through the parts of the book I found a bit less engaging, in terms of story. Read Full Review

"Deathstroke Annual" #1 plays off Deathstroke's corruption of character and explores how he has damaged those surrounding him. Read Full Review

I have to say, I'm sad to see this team break down as quickly as it did, though the getting here was fascinating, as it used some of the more interesting abandoned characters of the New 52 and Rebirth in ways that were exciting and different. With a complex tale, a morally ambiguous main character and a lot of fascinating twists and turns, Deathstroke Annual #1 pulls off the nigh-unthinkable by making me care about Slade Wilson as a hero. Read Full Review

This Annual pretty much rips apart the Defiance team and has at least two moments that will shock the hell out of the readers and one that may have made a certain reviewer shed a couple of tears.  Yea, the feels are there, but unfortunately, the art wasn't, but that's the only thing I can really fault this Annual for.  If you are reading Priest's Deathstroke, you have to read this.  All you others, start reading Priest's Deathstroke starting at the beginning. Read Full Review

If you're like me and live for the drama, then this issue will satisfy that itch, but with the lackluster art and more exposition than story, it's probably only a must-read for folks following the series. Read Full Review

I am actually pretty shocked at how good this book it. Priest goes to some odd places in this book but he really sets up something great for both Power Girls. The characters behave a little out of their normal behavior but that doesn't stop this book from really making moves. Christopher Priest is many things but afraid of shaking things up is not one of them. He leaves us with a lot of questions and many roads to take and I call that the mark of a good writer.

This was a fantastic issue with so much happening all at once, my only real gripe is the ending. I feel like *spoiler* would be more effective without the ending.

Rebirth was very kind to Deathstroke, giving him so much depth and development he nearly instantly has become one of my very favourites to read every month. This year's annual focuses on struggles team Defiance faces internally. Wally decided to quit, Tanya feels like she doesn't belong in the group, Rose is missing, Joseph realized he has no reason to belong in it anymore either, and finally, Slade's lies and manipulations seem to catch up to him one by one. Every relevant character has their own problems, and that's exactly what makes the Defiance run so interesting - there's simply no filler arcs, they all connect and lead somewhere, very organically. Priest sure planned everything out and prepared for long term storytelling, instead of writing short stories one after another, all barely connected and not leading anywhere.

Deathstroke's annual may not leave you as touched as after reading this week's annuals of The Flash and Detective Comics, both having serious emotional punch, but it's a solid read, worth recommending. more

I am extremely conflicted as to what to think about this book. There are some standout scenes, don't get me wrong, but I can't help but feel dissapointed, like this annual didn't really serve as a functional epilogue to 'Defiance.' Despite a pair of fantastic scenes at the start and end of the issue, the rest of the book moves along at a brisk pace, but sometimes it feels like it's too fast for the amount that it is trying to do here. Also, the objective of this book was to establish that Deathstroke is back to super villainy, yet it seems like he gives up the hero act for little reason, save for one big twist towards the climax of the issue. Yet it still doesn't feel like enough to warrant an entire arc's worth of character building going down the drain. Not to mention, the twist completely loses all impact it could have had with a tacked-on epilogue. The art's decent, the action is passable, but this book just ends up feeling messy in the end. more