The highly-anticipated film The Suicide Squad was released in theaters and on HBO Max on August 6. Directed by Guardians of the Galaxy mastermind James Gunn, the new Suicide Squad film is a fun, high-budget action comedy that does a number of things better than the first film. Gunn's The Suicide Squad functions effectively as a standalone film and contains a hidden Star Wars actor. The Suicide Squad has a mostly clear plotline and an ensemble cast, keeping a few actors from the previous 2016 film directed by David Ayer.
The Suicide Squad (2021) fixes a major flaw in the first film and has four returning characters. Margot Robbie returns as the iconic Harley Quinn. Viola Davis returns as Amanda Waller. Joel Kinnaman plays Rick Flag and Jai Courtney appears in the new film as Captain Boomerang. While Gunn's film is plenty of fun and mostly makes sense when fans suspend their disbelief, there are moments that could have been better explained or revised to make the story feel more cohesive.
8 Why Open With Savant, Who's Terminated For No Reason
The film opens with a man with white hair named Savant, who's in prison. In exchange for his freedom, he joins the first squad that fails and is massacred—except for Rick Flag, Harley Quinn and Weasel (Sean Gunn), apparently. But viewers learn that Angela Waller has a board full of kill switches ready at any given time, each connected to every member on the team. When seemingly everyone on the team is dead, dying or missing, Savant panics and retreats back into the ocean.
Angered, Angela Waller demands that Savant go back and fight, even though he'd be killed and achieve no victories for Waller. But Waller insists and Savant continues to retreat, so Waller flicks Savant's kill switch. He dies, and it feels nonsensical. That incident proves nothing more than the true extent of Waller's murderous tendencies. It functions as a plot point that removes Savant from the story in an unsatisfying way. So why open the film with a man who viewers never get to know or care about, and who is killed so quickly in such a thoughtless manner?
7 TDK Doesn't Know What His Name Means
At the beginning of the film, there are some great Easter eggs. But there's also a strange scene where a few of the characters in the group ask TDK (played by Canadian actor Nathan Fillion) what his name means. By this point, the initial group of characters is already on a mission and there's no turning back at this point. It's strange that none of these characters would have been briefed on each other beforehand. Instead, they were thrown together without knowledge of each other or what they're doing. This feels unrealistic for a so-called Black Ops mission.
In the film, none of the characters call the lack of briefing or planning into question. Instead, they all agree to the mission without a second thought. When TDK is questioned by his squad, he replies awkwardly that he doesn't even know what his own name means. While a funny and surprising response, it doesn't make sense. It makes even less sense when a few scenes later, TDK tells us that he actually does know what his own name means: The Detachable Kid. Perhaps his memory was also detached when he was asked that initial question?
6 Blackguard Blows Cover For No Reason
In addition to TDK, Blackguard, played by SNL star Pete Davidson, is another character Amanda Waller views as disposable. In the DC Universe, Blackguard has impressive powers. He can create energy constructs and has superhuman strength. He is also known for lacking street smarts and common sense. But the fact that he blew the team's cover by walking out into the open, basically surrendering, is still hard to believe.
Again, everyone should have been briefed beforehand on a clear plan of action if this was truly a Black Ops mission. Additionally, wouldn't Blackguard have been able to create energy constructs to save himself and his team from the enemy army? It seems his powers were underutilized, and Blackguard got himself killed for no clear reason other than for a bizarre moment of awkward comedy.
5 Blackguard Thinks Weasel Is A Dog
It's established in the DC Universe that Blackguard isn't the smartest tool in the shed. To be fair, not many of the film's characters possess great intelligence, as Nanaue, voiced by Sylvester Stallone, makes some funny blunders in the film.
But when Blackguard meets an anthropomorphic bipedal weasel creature named Weasel, Blackguard genuinely asks his team if Weasel is a dog. Yes...Blackguard asks if Weasel, the weasel, is a dog. Clearly, this is a very nonsensical question to ask, even for someone like Blackguard who definitely isn't smarter than a fifth grader. But this feels like a forced joke that doesn't really land.
4 No One Knew Weasel Couldn't Swim
In Weasel's defense, it doesn't make sense that they're even on this mission as they don't seem to be able to communicate with anyone on the team. Clearly, this whole first squad was an intentional recipe for disaster, but still, it's strange that no one on the squad put two and two together that the mission was planned to fail.
Regardless, it's strange that Weasel jumps into the water knowing they can't swim. It's also strange that no one else on the squad knew that Weasel couldn't swim. Why was no one briefed on each other's skills, strengths and weaknesses beforehand?
3 Max-Security Laboratory Doesn't Check Thinker's Suspicious Van
Clearly, Thinker (Peter Capaldi) is in a position of power at the maximum-security laboratory where he works, experimenting on a giant, one-eyed alien starfish. But the fact that the guards don't even check his van for a second is a bit odd. Isn't it protocol in any government-funded high-security building to check everyone, regardless of identity or status?
Sure, it's likely security won't spend much time checking those they see every day, but it still doesn't make sense that they don't even open the back door of the van. While this adds to the humorous undertones of the film, it's a bit illogical that no one would find the eccentric van worthy of a quick inside glance.
2 It Starts Pouring For No Reason
Toward the end of the film, it starts pouring rain out of the blue when the Suicide Squad arrives at the laboratory. This moment, while it certainly looks cool, doesn't make any sense, as the sky is completely cloudless and blue moments prior.
The sudden shift feels dramatic but unrealistic and reminds viewers that the film probably shouldn't be taken too seriously, or literally. Nevertheless, this moment feels epic in its own way and adds to the impact of our heroes' arrival.
1 Harley Quinn And The Javelin
The Suicide Squad is intentionally ironic, silly and fun, often to the point that it seems like the characters are in on the jokes. A particularly meta moment is when Harley Quinn says out loud that she has no idea why she's supposed to hang on to and carry the javelin for the foreseeable future, but will continue to do so anyways.
When she says this, Harley Quinn is admitting that she knows it's nonsensical to carry such a bulky, unwieldly weapon, especially when her character prefers guns, mallets and baseball bats. But she carries it anyway, almost as though she is aware of the illogical nature of this conceit. The winked-at self-awareness here is exactly what allows the film to get away with its unique brand of comedy that might otherwise feel like little more than plot contrivances.