Comedy Comes from Pain.

Volume 2 of Gary Duggan and Brian Poshen’s Marvel Now run starts off with a blast from the past. A “lost” Deadpool issue has been found in the back of a file cabinet and we get to see Peter Parker and Tony Stark in Deadpool’s universe. The “flashback” is a delight. Deadpool saves everyone while pissing them off at the same time. Classic Deadpool.

Fast forward to where we left off. Agent Preston is unhappily ensconced in Deadpool’s brain. Necromancer Michael and Ben Franklin are trying to help find a way to rectify the situation. The past comes back to bite Deadpool and Michael in their asses. There are lots of shenanigans and Deadpool runs into other Marvel heroes, including an almost homoerotic adventure with Spiderman.

Volume 2 gets dark pretty quickly. Deadpool looks at the big picture and goes right for the end game without regard for conventional morality or the opinions of others. He’s not wrong, and it is entertaining to read, but it’s also a little uncomfortable. Deadpool’s mind is a beautiful and terrible place. Very bad things have happened and still happen to Deadpool. He turns around and does some fucked up shit in turn. As cynical and ironic as he may be, there is still a good heart at the core of Wade Wilson. He wants to save his friends. They just may not like the way he does it.