(Panini Books)

Following in the footsteps of acclaimed Deadpool scribe Gerry Duggan was never going to be easy, but after a somewhat shaky start in the opening issues of this collection, new writer Skottie Young proves he has what it takes.

Having undergone a mindwipe at the end of his previous series, the reset button has definitely been pushed after years of character and plot development for Wade Wilson. This is very much a back to basics approach, as there are no longer the ties with friends and family which proved so important to Duggan’s run, and instead we see an approach which owes much to the blockbuster Deadpool movie series, with Negasonic Teenage Warhead promoted to the role of sidekick following her successful celluloid appearances.

The initial arc is the weakest in this volume, setting up Deadpool’s status as once again toting out his services as a mercenary-for-hire. But business is slow, and it will take a threat so unfathomably huge that the combined forces of Earth’s superheroes will be unable to stop it to once again propel Wade into the big leagues. Because if he can’t stop rogue Celestial Groffon the Regurger there won’t be a planet left for him to worry about…

The culturally-fuelled humour which characterises Wilson isn’t quite on the mark in this storyline, and it’s very much a by-numbers narrative lacking in any real depth.

Things take a massive leap quality wise in the rest of the book, which finds Deadpool trapped in Weirdworld for years, battling zombies in a shopping mall a la George A Romeo, and trying to get out of a massive funk which saps his funny.

Following his stand-out work on Rocket Raccoon, there were few writers worthy of taking over Deadpool, and it’s a relief that his initial faltering start is swiftly supplanted with a run of outstanding issues. Let’s hope this is just the beginning of another exceptional period in Deadpool’s long and varied comics history.