Deathstroke vs Deadshot: Round 1

Yesterday, Bleeding Cool was kind enough to make us aware that Deathstroke and Deadshot have themselves a good scrap in Batman #28, released earlier today. Here's their description of it.

...in Batman #28 by Tom King, Mikel Janin and June Chung, published tomorrow by DC Comics, fans will get what they have wanted for ages. With Deadshot and Deathstroke divided by allegiances to the Joker and the Riddler as the War Of Jokes And Riddles — and Batman’s post-coital-and-proposal conversation with Catwoman — continues after the previous Peanuts-inspired interlude. 

And a full-blown, knock-down battle between the two across the streets of Gotham with a longevity more like a cricket game than a baseball match. And a little on the Miracleman #15 side, too…

The article in question mentions that they've been in conflict before but that it's not a regular occurrence. By my quick count, this would be the fourth and they're fairly well spread out.

For kicks, we're going to go over each one, starting with Deathstroke: The Hunted #41. But first, if you're somehow less familiar with Deadshot, here's some abbreviated background from the DC Comics website.

An assassin (and) expert marksman, Floyd Lawton lives by a simple code: do the job that you're hired for with the least amount of casualties possible—after all, you're not being paid to waste bullets. 

...Deadshot is obsessed with precision, firmly believing that the target who’s been paid for should be the only one taken down. In the midst of a successful career, Lawton was taken down by the Dark Knight and sentenced to life in prison...Deadshot joined the Suicide Squad—a team of villains recruited by Amanda Waller to carry out covert (and highly illegal) missions. Often the de facto leader of the team, Deadshot always aims to complete the mission at hand... even if it kills him.

Along with his ability to "never miss" his target, Deadshot possesses an unfulfilled death wish...His reasons for this are unknown—many speculating family upbringing, loss of a loved one or simply not having anything left to live for. However, this complete disregard for his own life, along with his commitment to the job, make Deadshot one of the most dangerous assassins in the world.

One of them. Deathstroke can lay claim to that title too. But in the first meeting, Deadshot got a clear upper hand.

In 1994, Deathstroke's solo book took on the sub-title "The Hunted". Slade was being framed for an attempt on the president's life so the government was hell-bent on bringing him in. They first sent Deadshot's Suicide Squad teammate Bronze Tiger after him, but when the man in charge of the operation (Sarge Steel) lost faith in Tiger, Deadshot was sent in as well. Deadshot showed up while Tiger and 'stroke were grappling.

During that era, Deathstroke had a habit of returning to life in a berzerker frenzy. As a result, he popped back to life in the next issue and would live on to encounter Deadshot again, several years later. But there's little question that Deadshot got the first solid punch in.

Before moving on, I want to point out that Deathstroke also appears on the cover to #30 of Batman, something I'd missed earlier.