For years, beings of extraordinary ability and power lived among the regular population,
with most unaware of their existence.
However with the rise of superheroes like the Batman of Gotham City and Superman of
Metropolis, their existence was revealed to the world, and governments now had to contend
with a new threat to public safety.
This was further emphasized when General Zod of Krypton arrived on Earth, resulting in
a confrontation with Superman that destroyed a large portion of Metropolis and killed thousands
of civilians.
Although Superman succeeded in defeating his enemy and ultimately saved the world, the
cost both financially and in human lives was enormous.
Leading many to question the wisdom of allowing these super beings to act without government
oversight.
And while both Batman and Superman were largely seen as acting in the public good, some like
Amanda Waller, director of A.R.G.U.S., believed the next super beings to arise may not be
so well intentioned.
After a confrontation with Lex Luthor, Superman sacrificed himself to destroy the creature
Doomsday, once again saving the world.
But his death also meant that Earth had lost its greatest defender, leaving Amanda Waller
convinced the American Government must have a team of super humans ready to be deployed
against future threats.
And so she began to assemble Task Force X, also known as the Suicide Squad, gathering
together a group of dangerous criminals, including a number of beings with extraordinary powers
called Meta Humans, as well as specialized assassins and mercenaries with expert abilities.
Task Force X would provide a powerful yet expendable team they could send into high
risk situations, with the option of disavowing or abandoning them at any time.
The candidates selected for the Squad, included Floyd Lawton, also known as Deadshot, a former
US Special Forces soldier turned master assassin.
He was renowned for his skill with firearms, sometimes paid millions of dollars for his
services.
Amanda Waller however, had been made aware that Deadshot had a daughter in Gotham City,
using her to track down his location, then alerting the caped crusader who apprehended
the criminal.
Although Deadshot fought back, ready to kill his dreaded enemy, his daughter Zoe put herself
between them, forcing him to surrender peacefully.
There was also George Digger Harkness, called Captain Boomerang, a famous mercenary and
bank robber, known for having robbed every bank in his homeland of Australia twice, then
moving to the United States in search of more riches.
However Captain boomerang was captured during a diamond heist by the Flash, a super-fast
Metahuman vigilante who handed him over to the authorities.
From Los Angeles California, the meta human Chato Santana, also known as El Diablo used
his abilities to conjure and control fire as tool to succeed in the criminal underworld,
becoming a feared and respected gangster.
However the same powers which had served him so well as a criminal, cost him everything
he loved, when a fight with his wife led to an unintentional explosion of anger that incinerated
his home, killing his wife and children.
Devastated by his loss, El Diablo surrendered himself to the police.
A former professional wrestler turned criminal, Waylon Jones, also known as Killer Croc, was
a meta human born with a genetic mutation covering his body in hard reptilian scales,
developing into a large, muscular man with super human strength.
During his time in the criminal underworld he was confronted by Batman, and forced out
of Gotham City, hiding out in the Sewers until eventually apprehended by government agents.
Then there was the expert assassin Christopher Weiss, an American of native descent, possessing
special skills, able to climb anything through the use of ropes and harnesses.
Once an archaeologist, Dr June Moon was transformed into the being known as Enchantress during
an expedition in Central America.
As she searched for relics, she found idol and opened it, releasing the spirit of Enchantress
which possessed Dr Moon’s body, allowing her to remain her old self, until speaking
the word Enchantress, which would allow the sorcerous within her to take control.
When Amanda Waller learned of her unique abilities, she assigned Colonel Rick Flag to capture
and guard her, then taking possession of the creature’s heart, which was the only way
anyone could threaten or control Enchantress.
Rick Flag and June Moon spent so much time together, they fell in love, just as Waller
had expected, giving her leverage she could use against them both.
Colonel Flag, a Special Forces officer and veteran soldier, was charged with leading
the Suicide Squad, acting as a representative of Waller and the government, supervising
the Task Force, ensuring they followed orders and stayed on mission.
He was joined by Tatsu Yamashiro, a Japanese Samurai assassin wielding a Katana sword,
imbued with the soul of her deceased husband.
Nicknamed Katana, she is a master of various forms of martial arts, highly skilled and
loyal to Rick Flag.
Finally, there was Dr. Harleen Quinzel of Gotham City, known to most as Harley Quinn,
once a prominent psychiatrist in Arkham Asylum, before meeting the Joker and falling in love
with the clown king of crime.
The Joker, a psychopathic crime Lord and long-time adversary of Batman, was eventually captured
by the Dark Knight and sent to Arkham Asylum.
However he then met Dr Quinzel, and slowly manipulated her into falling in love with
him, then asking her to smuggle in a machine gun as he arranged for his people to attack
the hospital, and killing the staff to escape incarceration.
Before leaving, he had Dr. Quinzel placed on the shock therapy table, torturing her
and damaging her mental state.
Despite this, she took the pain, then following the Joker and even confronting him at gunpoint.
The Joker then took her to Ace Chemicals where he had once fallen into an exposed vat, emerging
with pale white skin, green hair and a deranged mind.
First asking Dr Quinzel to pledge her devotion, she then jumped into the chemical mixture.
Although the Joker considered walking away and letting her die, he ultimately choose
to dive in after her, waking her with a kiss.
Harley Quinn as she became known, now had pale white skin like the Joker, and a mind
completely devoted to the man who was both her lover and creator.
Together they terrorized Gotham City, dubbed the King and Queen of crime.
And even killed Jason Todd also known as Robin, an ally and protégé of Batman, then writing
a mocking message on his combat armor.
Eventually however, the Dark Knight tracked them down, leading to a violent confrontation
resulting in the capture of Harley Quinn.
While the Joker was able to escape.
Harley was then taken into custody and sent to Belle Reve Federal Penitentiary, where
Amanda Waller had arranged for all her potential candidates to be transferred.
Waller then had a meeting with her superiors, proposing the idea of Task Force X and convincing
them of the need for such a group by having Dr. June Moon transform into Enchantress so
she might teleport away and return almost instantly, having stolen high level documents
about Iranian Nuclear capabilities.
After such an impressive demonstration of power, the government approved the use of
Task Force X.
However the Suicide Squad’s first mission, would come about not from an external threat,
but by one of their own creation.
Amanda Waller had underestimated the capabilities of the Enchantress, who took control of Dr.
Moon’s body in the middle of the night, and stole back her heart, then finding the
Idol which contained the spirit of her brother Incubus, finding a random man at a midway
city subway station, and using his body as a vessel for her brother.
Together they sought revenge against mankind, who once worshipped them as gods, before they
were betrayed and imprisoned.
By combining their powers, they were able to cause mass devastation, creating a mystical
superweapon and turning innocent civilians into mindless monsters rampaging across the
city.
Amanda Waller then called on Rick Flag to assemble the Suicide Squad, telling them that
a terrorist attack was taking place in Midway City, ordering them to rescue a high value
asset who was trapped amidst the chaos.
Each member of the team had a small explosive device injected into their neck to ensure
compliance, warned that if they disobeyed orders, tried to escape, or caused any trouble,
they could be killed at a moment’s notice.
Despite this warning, Captain Boomerang convinced Slipknot that the notion of explosives in
their neck was a lie meant to scare them into following orders.
And so the two decided to attempt escape, with only Slipknot able to get away.
However the devices in their necks were real, and so Colonel Flag triggered the explosive,
killing the man instantly.
The rest of the Squad continued on the mission, engaging the minions of Enchantress, killing
a great many while demonstrating their individual skills and abilities.
When they at last reached their target they came to learn that it was Amanda Waller herself,
who required an extraction.
Waller was furiously attempting to cover up her participation in the release of Enchantress,
and even killed the other government Agents in the building, so they could not report
on the Suicide Squad’s involvement.
They then escort her to the roof of the building where a helicopter was scheduled to arrive,
however it had been hijacked by the Joker and his crew, who even arranged for his men
to find the scientist responsible for the explosives used to control the Suicide Squad,
forcing him to deactivate the chip inside Harley Quinn, allowing him to attempt rescue.
The Joker and Quinn then took off together and were momentarily reunited, until the helicopter
was shot down, with the Joker managing to push Harley out onto a roof to safety while
he crashed into the city streets.
Amanda Waller was then extracted by a second helicopter but that was too was taken down,
allowing for Enchantress to capture and probe her mind for information.
Believing the Joker was dead, Harley rejoined the Suicide Squad, who then learned the truth
of Enchantress and the mission they were really assigned.
Although Rick Flag decided to release them of their obligations, the Suicide Squad decided
to continue on their mission, engaging Enchantress and Incubus to stop them from destroying the
world.
El Diablo then demonstrated the true extent of his powers, transforming into a creature
of pure flame, battling Incubus and ultimately sacrificing himself to destroy the creature.
The rest of the Squad battled Enchantress but were defeated, and told to bow before
her in worship.
Harley Quinn, seeing that they could not defeat her by conventional methods, feigned obedience,
kneeling before the sorcerous, only to quickly rise, cutting open her chest with katana’s
sword, then tearing out her heart, and weakening her enough to allowing Killer Croc to launch
an explosive at the swirling ring of energy she created.
Finally deadshot finished it by shooting the explosive, ad detonating it at just the right
time, to destroy the portal and defeat Enchantress.
Rick Flag then destroyed the creature’s heart, killing the sorcerous for good and
freeing Dr Moon from her possession.
Amanda Waller who was revealed to still be alive and in possession of another detonator
to activate the explosives within the members of the Suicide Squad, recaptured the team,
and once again sent them to Belle Reve penitentiary.
However she did not prove entirely ungrateful to them for their efforts, taking ten years
off their prison sentences, and allowing them special privileges in their cells, like cable
tv and coffee machines with Deadshot even granted supervised visits with his daughter.
Yet soon it was revealed that the Joker had survived the helicopter crash in Midway City,
and arranged for his people to break into Belle Reeve, at last rescuing Harley Quinn,
and escaping together.
In the aftermath of the chaos and destruction caused by Enchantress and Incubus, Amanda
Waller was under tremendous scrutiny, at risk of losing everything she had worked to achieve,
and so reached out to an occasional ally in Bruce Wayne, giving him classified information
on a number of metahumans such as Enchantress, the Flash and Aquaman, in exchange for using
his influence to protect Waller’s position in the government and cover up her involvement
in the events of Midway city.
Bruce Wayne, who Amanda Waller knew was really Batman, then warned that she must shut down
the Suicide Squad, or else he and his friends would.