In this review of Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5, after four issues of self-loathing and torment, the merc-with-a-mouth experiences an epiphany of sorts, blood-drenched and bullet-ridden of course, but could this bring him back from the brink before it’s too late?
WADE WILSON: DEADPOOL #5
Writer: Benjamin Percy
Art and Main Cover: Geoff Shaw
Variant Covers: Chad Hardin, Paco Medina, Gurihiru
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: June 3, 2026
This review contains spoilers
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 begins at Blind Al’s apartment (currently ablaze) in the aftermath of Hammerhead’s attack. In the midst of the chaos, Al fesses up to Wade that she was the one sending him the mysterious prophetic messages that drew Hammerhead’s wrath. The duo sort through their issues as they extinguish the fire by themselves.
With a fresh costume, Wade bails on Al as he tracks down the Hammerhead and the book of omens he stole from Al. Later down at the docks, one of Hammerhead’s henchmen gets skewered Wolverine style with a set of keys to a long-haul truck. Nearby, the Hammerhead finds the promised loot, but Wade literally crashes the party with the stolen truck. The pair exchange requisite gunfire and Hammerhead high-tails it into the shadows as the badly injured Wade extracts himself from the gory wreck.
Wade destroys the loot and tracks down Hammerhead (more gunplay), but the crime boss skewers Wade with a fork-lift and taunts Wade. Blind Al zaps Hammerhead with a mega-taser from behind (she took a ride share) and reveals another prophecy: she will save her best friend.
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 ends as Blind Al reveals to Wade that what is coming next will require both of them working together. Whatever could it be?
Analysis
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 zips along, mixing pathos, self-loathing, bloody violence, action and dark humor. Writer Ben Percy wraps up the first arc with a few tantalizing answers while hinting at what comes next. Wade might still be grieving the recent loss of his daughter, but now it appears he had a bit of prophetic revelation himself about what to do beyond endlessly punishing himself. Dark Avenger Deadpool wasn’t entirely without mirth in the previous issues, but humor still trickled out.
Blind Al is quite a character herself, resourceful, unrelenting and loyal. In Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 she even gets to play the hero (where did she get that taser?). Of course, she couldn’t kill Hammerhead even if she wanted to. Hammerhead meanwhile is a refreshing antagonist for Wade: arrogant, vicious, driven and not rattled in the least by Wade’s behavior or freaky healing powers.
Geoff Shaw continues to bring Percy’s wild scripts to spectacularly bloody life, continuing their partnership from the recent Red Hulk series (Doom!), and the artist unleashes pure pandemonium and joy. Shaw’s use of perspective and panel composition effectively amplifies the action with exaggerated angles (that truck sequence, Wade dodging Hammerhead’s gunfire).
While Wade takes the brunt of the damage in Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 (quite a long list), Hammerhead’s unfortunate henchman also gets an unwanted and gruesome makeover.
Like Harley Quinn, Deadpool is a character living in a heightened reality with rapid fire dialogue and bizarre characters and events happening in each issue so it’s important to also partially ground the character. In Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5, this is accomplished by Wade’s love for his late daughter and his long-established connection to Blind Al. Without a semblance of humanity or emotional ties, the drama and peril Wade finds himself in would likely fall flat for many readers.
Final Thoughts
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #5 delivers a slam-bang finale to the series’ first story arc, mixing action, humor and emotional depth. The art is solid and the script moves the story along by balancing the exposition with multiple dialogue-free panels. Not necessarily for the squeamish.
