Deadpool, The Complete Collection (Vol. 1) Daniel Way (Writer), Andy Diggle (Text), Steve Dillon (Illustrations), Paco Medina (Illustrations), Carlo G. Barberi (Illustrations), Bong Dazo (Illustrations) | Rating: ★★★★☆

All right, all right, I'm way late to the game in actually reading Deadpool. I had read a few issues here and there through the years (something that would have been impossible to avoid considering my ex was obsessed with him) but not the entire collection. When I saw that the library had the first two volumes, I pounced (and vowed to buy the rest in time) and devoured them in a very small frame of time.

Marvel has always been one of my go-to favourites when it comes to comic books and this graphic novel illustrates why. Deadpool is hilarious and dark--action packed and... well, did I mention hilarious? It's easy to see why he has become such an iconic fucker (can we just curse freely in Deadpool reviews?) and why his stories are so appealing to comic readers. I loved seeing familiar faces from varied Marvel stories popping up here and there; seeing Deadpool's origins (or parts of them) was truly entertaining. I have always had an interest in characters that toe the lines and have a bizarre sense of humour, so it's only natural I love Deadpool.


You see, he is unreliable to his very core. There's something deeply satisfying about this and all of the strips he is featured in. He is neither good nor bad. Sane nor insane. It keeps things interesting and I do love a good laugh, which is altogether common for this character. Deadpool is frankly one of the funniest (and maybe at times disturbing) comic book characters of all time and for someone like me it's impossible to not love him.

I think my favourite part of this first volume is the humour and the nods to other Marvel properties. I enjoyed the way Deadpool's dialogue was framed--from his narration to his interactions with other people. It made some otherwise shaky storytelling fun and tied together nicely. You should always expect a little madness, a lot of instability, when it comes to who Deadpool is at his very core and if you aren't interested in that outlook his stories won't be for you.

Overall, the illustrations were stunning and the dialogue was a blast to dive into. I'm looking forward to more action, banter and entertainment in the next volume which is sure to be a big time fuckery of archetypes, humor and more. The weakest length was, again, some of the plots--but the execution and comedic effect really pay off and sweep over its lows. Deadpool is a can't miss comic that is utterly a morally grey romp.