The Suicide Squad: Meet the New Team

Meet the new team, same as the old team

Waller: “You know the deal: Successfully complete the mission, you get 10 years off your sentence. You fail to follow my orders in any way, and I detonate the explosive device in the base of your skull.”

The Suicide Squad

2016’s Suicide Squad was an odd movie. Despite mediocre reviews and being overstuffed with bland fight scenes, it earned a cult following and even won an Academy Award (for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, but still.) Fast forward five years and DC’s taking another swing at the Squad. They won’t say if it is a sequel or a reboot, but The Suicide Squad is coming.

I hope that’s enough set-up for you, cause we have 16 characters to get through. So who has joined the Suicide Squad? Let’s find out.

Harley Quinn

Played by Margot Robie and Kaley Cuoco

King Shark: “You got us uniforms! [reads a T-shirt] Ooh, Suicide Squad? Is that our name?!”
Harley: “Ugh, it’s some group that keeps trying to get me to join.” –

Harley Quinn “Being Harley Quinn” Season 1, Episode 5)

You may know her as The Joker’s moll, but Harley Quinn has plenty of experience with the Suicide Squad.

Dr. Harleen Quinzel was a psychiatrist assigned to Arkham Asylum. She tried to treat The Joker, but was gaslighted and driven mad. Renaming herself Harley Quinn, she became a supervillain and Joker’s sidekick. She was eventually recruited for the Suicide Squad, where her violent antics could be directed at even worse villains.

If you want to know more about Harley Quinn, check out her backstory.

Bloodsport

Played by Idris Elba and David St. Louis

Waller: “Robert DuBois. He’s in prison for putting Superman in the ICU with a Kryptonite bullet.”

The Suicide Squad

Will Smith was unwilling or unable to reprise his role as Deadshot, but luckily, he isn’t DC’s only sharpshooting assassin. Meet Bloodsport.

Robert DuBois was a draft dodger who was terrified of dying in Vietnam. Robert’s brother assumed his identity and fought in his place, eventually having all his limbs amputated after being wounded. Robert went mad and became obsessed with the Vietnam War.

Lex Luthor manipulated Robert so he would try assassinating Superman. He was given the codename Bloodsport, several prototype guns, and Kryptonite bullets. Bloodsport shot Superman with the Kryptonite and went on a killing spree. Superman healed once the Kryptonite was surgically removed and talked Bloodsport down with help from his brother.

Rick Flag

Played by Joel Kinnaman and Adam Baldwin

Deadshot: “Tell me, Colonel, what’s Waller got on you?”
Flag: “Not a thing. Some of us don’t have to be blackmailed into serving their country.”

Justice League Unlimited “Task Force X” (Season 2, Episode 4)

Someone’s got to keep these psychos, monsters, and clowns in check. That someone is the Suicide Squad’s leader: Rick Flag.

Colonel Rick Flag was the sole survivor of an army squad that fought a Yeti. His service record and ability to defeat the monster got Flag assigned to lead the Suicide Squad. At first reluctant, he soon came to care for the team.

Col. Flag was inadvertently responsible for publicly revealing the Squad’s existence. A series of black op missions caused him to suffer a breakdown and try assassinating a senator who was blackmailing the Squad. He was stopped, but only because Deadshot killed the senator before he could. Col. Flag has since recovered and resumed leading the team.

Peacemaker

Played by John Cena

Peacemaker: “I am Peacemaker. I want peace. I love peace. Enough to kill for it.”

Vigilante Vol. 1 #36

The Suicide Squad is always assigned a superhero to keep them on a short leash. This time it’s Peacemaker: the man who loves peace so much he’s willing to fight for it.

Christopher Smith was the son of a Nazi commandant. He hated his father’s legacy and became a pacifist and a diplomat. He was also a vigilante called the Peacemaker who deposed warlords and tyrants resistant to diplomacy. Yes, it’s hypocritical for a dedicated pacifist to fight, but at least he used rubber bullets and non-lethal weapons. Or he did until he was reinvented as an assassin.

Readers eventually learned that Peacemaker is mentally ill. He believes that anyone he kills or who dies around him is trapped in his goofy-looking helmet and can talk to him. Peacemaker eventually died crashing a helicopter into a tank being used by a villain. Several other heroes have taken on the mantle. 

King Shark

Played by Sylvester Stallone and Ron Fuches

King Shark: [bites the head off a goon] “Hey, Takashi, can you incorporate this into a rainbow roll? Light on the rice, I’m watching my figure.” 

Harley Quinn “New Gotham”  (Season 2, Episode 1)

The Suicide Squad may have a lot of vigilantes and gunslingers, but they’ve still got some powered villains. You don’t get more superpowered than King Shark.

Nanaue is the son of the Shark God. Divine blood turned him into a super strong half-human, half-shark, but also cursed him with a shark’s bloodlust and hunger. Nanaue ate several swimmers before being arrested by Superboy, who nicknamed him King Shark.

King Shark escaped and went on several feeding frenzies. He was eventually captured and forced to join the Squad. King Shark is usually portrayed as a nerdy film buff when he isn’t hungry. His intelligence depends on the writer, ranging from a beast to tech-savvy social media maven.

Captain Boomerang

Played by Jai Whitmin and Crispin Freeman

Captain Boomerang:  “It’s not a bloody children’s toy. It’s a refined and elegant weapon which, in the hands of a master like yours truly, can lop yer bloody head off!”

Suicide Squad Vol. 1 #7

Most people would think that the lady dressed as a clown is the Suicide Squad’s comic relief. If you think that, you’re either a blooming drongo or you don’t know Captain Boomerang.

“Digger” Harkness was an Australian immigrant and crook. He was hired by a toy company to be their mascot, Captain Boomerang. Harkness used his childhood experience with boomerangs, but audiences weren’t impressed. An enraged Harkness became a criminal.

Captain Boomerang has an arsenal of trick boomerangs, including tricked out versions that spray acid, explode, or are razor-sharp. Captain Boomerang is a major jerk, often making racist, sexist, or homophobic remarks. This usually results in him becoming the butt of jokes from those he insulted or getting beaten up by whoever he just pissed off.

The Thinker

Played by Peter Capaldi and Neil Sandilands

The Thinker: “You may be the fastest man alive, Allen. I’m the fastest mind.”

The Flash “Therefore, I Am” (Season 4, Episode 7)

The Suicide Squad is home to old and new villains, but The Thinker was committing crimes while the rest of the cast was still in diapers.

Clifford DeVoe was a struggling lawyer who believed that that most criminals were too moronic to get away with crimes. He began consulting them and planning capers in exchange for a cut of the cash, adopting the alias The Thinker. He was eventually captured by Jay Garrick, the original Flash.

The Thinker escaped from jail and stole a device called the Thinking Cap to battle The Flash. The cap gave him telekinetic powers and the ability to mind control others. Unfortunately, prolonged use of The Thinking Cap gave DeVoe terminal cancer. He buried the hatchet with The Flash and retired. Jay helped DeVoe with his condition until the end.

Polka-Dot Man

Played by David Dastmalchian

Polka-Dot Man: “But look at me… I went toe-to-toe with The Batman. That’s who I am.”

Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! #3

Holy Swingin’ Sixties, Batman! We’ve got one of DC’s most gimmicky characters: the Polka-Dot Man.

Little is known about Abner Krill, the guy who would become Polka-Dot Man. It’s implied that he became a criminal for the sole purpose of matching wits with Batman. His suit is covered in polka-dot shaped gadgets, including buzzsaws, teleporters, and a sun-themed flashbang.

Polka-Dot Man was a joke among Gotham’s criminal elite and eventually became an alcoholic. His biggest claim to fame was getting Gotham detective Harvey Bullock in trouble for police brutality. Polka-Dot Man died an undignified death in Final Crisis Aftermath when his head was crushed by a manhole cover.

Ratcatcher II

Played by Daniella Melchior

Bloodsport: “Don’t worry, yeah? I’m gonna get you outta here alive.”
Ratcatcher II: “I’m going to get you out of here alive.” –

The Suicide Squad

The Suicide Squad is bringing together A-listers and forgotten foes. It also serves as the debut of a new villain: Ratcatcher II.

Otis Flannigan was an exterminator who was arrested for killing someone in a street fight. He learned to train rats while imprisoned, eventually escaping and kidnapping the officials who sentenced him. Otis began calling himself the Ratcatcher and used an army of rats to torture his jailers.

One of the jailers escaped and told Batman about the Ratcatcher before he died. Batman was able to survive the vermin army and Ratcatcher’s poison to defeat the villain. Ratcatcher made a few more appearances before being murdered in Infinite Crisis. Ratcatcher II is his daughter and successor. The trailers for The Suicide Squad seem to be playing up a surrogate parental relationship between her and Bloodsport.

Savant

Played by Michael Rooker

Savant: “I still think I could take you. Fortunately for me, we’ll never know because… because I don’t mind cheating.”

Birds of Prey Vol. 1 #56

Not every Suicide Squad member is well-known. Meet Savant, a recurring frenemy of the Birds of Prey.

Brian Durlin was a spoiled rich kid who wanted to be a superhero. Batman told him to quit because he didn’t care about protecting others. Durlin became a hacker called Savant and used his new skills to set up a blackmail operation.

Savant encountered the Birds of Prey when he kidnapped Black Canary to learn Batman’s secret identity. Birds leader Oracle rehabilitated Savant to keep his blackmail out of evildoers’ hands. Despite a few backslides, Savant eventually became a far more neutral character; not a hero by any means, but not a villain.

Sol Soria

Played by Alice Braga

Juan Soria: “D-didn’t you ever see Star Trek?! The anonymous guy in the red shirt always dies! That’s how you know Kirk’s in danger! If you don’t have a name, you’re screwed!”

Suicide Squad Vol.5 #33

O.K., who the hell is this? There is no one in the DC universe named Sol Soria. The closest we’ve got is a one-off character named Juan Soria. So here’s his story, I guess.

Juan Soria was a Justice League fanboy who lost a hand in an industrial accident. He injected himself with nanites that allowed him to open any digital lock. The Justice League refused to let Juan join and arrested him when he became a bank robber.

The Suicide Squad recruited Juan for a mission, making no secret that they hated him and saw him as cannon fodder. What he didn’t know was that their target was powered by positive emotion, so the Squad made him depressed to weaken their foe. As a reward for his service, Juan was given a better prison cell. Unfortunately, his cellmate is Killer Croc, who had expressed interest in eating him. Juan hasn’t been seen since. Do the math.

Blackguard

Played by Pete Davidson

Harley: [sees Weasel] “Oh my God, is it a werewolf!?”
Blackguard: “You sat me next to a werewolf?! [pulls at his seat belt] Yo, let me out!”

The Suicide Squad

Wow, we’re getting into the obscure villains now. So aside from being part of the Suicide Squad, what is Blackguard’s claim to fame?

Dick Hertz (facepalm) was an enforcer for a gang called The 1000. He was given a suit of armor that can create an energy mace and shield. Batteries are sold separately. He was the first villain to fight superhero time traveler Booster Gold.

Green Lantern eventually convinced Blackguard to leave The 1000. He joined the Suicide Squad, but was killed on his first mission. And nothing of value was lost.

Weasel

Played by Sean Gunn

Col. Flag: “Hey! Hey, he’s not a werewolf! O.K.? He’s a weasel. He’s harmless. I mean he’s not harmless, he’s killed 27 children, but y’know…” –

The Suicide Squad

Say what you will about the rest of the Suicide Squad, but one thing about Weasel is certain: he freaks me the hell out. The dude just looks creepy.

John Monroe was a teacher who had been bullied as a student. The stress of teaching drove him mad. He dressed up as a weasel and began killing his tormentors. The Weasel tried to kill the hero Firestorm, who was attempting to get a job at the school, but was beaten and arrested.

The Weasel only served one mission with the Suicide Squad. He seemingly killed The Thinker partway through the mission and was put down by Col. Flag with the Thinking Cap. An animalistic Weasel later appeared, seemingly unconnected to Monroe. 

The Javelin

Played by Flula Borg

Cover: “Beware The Javelin, My Son!”

Green Lantern #173

We all know that several members of the Suicide Squad will die, but the big question is who will be the opening kill? Sol Soria and Blackguard are good guesses, but my money’s on Javelin, the former Olympian who became a criminal for unexplained reasons. He was an enemy of Green Lantern prior to joining the Suicide Squad and fights with a variety of trick javelins.

Javelin has seemingly died multiple times in the comics. He’s been impaled on his own javelin, blown up by his explosive javelins, and run over while protecting one of his teammates. Yet no matter what happens, Javelin always gets back up to try again. That, or the writers forget he’s supposed to be dead. One or the other.

Mongal

Played by Mayling Ng

Mongal: “It was not a request. Once the ashes of the fallen have been scattered throughout the universe, by rights, I claim [Maxima’s] sword, her title, and the Crown of Almerac.”

Our Worlds At War

I’m actually surprised Mongal is appearing in The Suicide Squad before Mongul, her far more popular brother, made it to the silver screen.

Mongal is a conqueror from Debstam IV who has strength, speed, and durability comparable to Superman. Mongal fought several space-faring superheroes, but never caught on with readers.

Mongal’s biggest claim to fame is becoming the ruler of a planet called Almerac during the event Our Worlds at War. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to save her. She was eventually killed by Mongul because he thought his family was making him weak.

T.D.K

Played by Nathan Fillion

T.D.K.: “My power will astound you! Watch as I detach my limb and transform it into a deadly weapon!”

Secret Origins Vol. 2 #46

The final member of the new Suicide Squad is one of the strangest heroes DC Comics ever created. T.D.K. is short for The Detachable Kid, originally known as Arm-Fall-Off-Boy. Yes. This was real.

Arm-Fall-Off-Boy has a long and storied history in DC Comics, with several integral appearances in, – nah, totally kidding.  He appeared in an issue of the Legion of Superheroes when they were auditioning for new members. What Arm-Fall-Off-Boy had in eagerness, he lacked in skill, useful powers, and anything the Legion needed or wanted.

Who is your favorite member of the new Suicide Squad? Tell us in the comments.

Image courtesy of HBO Max.

Jared Bounacos

Jared Bounacos has written for Movie Rewind since 2016.