Amanda Waller recruits her Task Force X to retrieve a mystical object
​that many factions are seeking, including Zoom and Vandal Savage.

ACTION/FANTASY

Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018)

Directed by Sam Liu

Written by Alan Burnett

Starring Christian Slater, Vanessa Williams, Billy Brown,
C. Thomas Howell, Tara Strong, Liam McIntyre, Kristin Bauer
​van Straten, Gideon Emery, Jim Pirri, Dania Ramirez

Sequel to 2013's Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox

Based on characters from DC Comics

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Connor Eyzaguirre

November 9, 2018

8/10

DC has proven time and again that they do their best work in animated form. Their animated catalog just translates better to animation than it does to live-action (with a few exceptions). Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay is one of their recent entries in this vast DC animated universe, and it is one hell of a wild ride. It's a grisly, hardcore R, high stakes adventure featuring some of DC's most underappreciated villains. This iteration of Amanda Waller's Task Force X features Deadshot, Bronze Tiger, Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Killer Frost, and Copperhead. Unlike the disappointing live-action movie, every character stands out.

This time around, Waller wants the Squad to track down a mysterious card that was stolen from Dr. Fate's sanctum. This card allows the bearer to get pushed to the front of the afterlife line and bypass Hell, granting paradise to whoever has it. Naturally, this interests a number of outside parties including psychotic immortal Vandal Savage and dying speedster Zoom, who is keeping himself alive following a severe brush with Flashpoint Batman. The voice talent all excels here, and the story is refreshingly original and engaging.

I'm amazed at how gruesome this movie was. There's more gore in this film than most horror movies, and from the same company that produces Teen Titans Go. DC's versatility really comes out in films like this, yet they can't seem to get a cinematic universe off the ground despite five films to get it right and one on the way in December. Stick to what you know, DC. Keep giving us kick-ass animated action flicks.