Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguebrings yet another new and excellent interpretation of the beloved comics by John Ostrander into the diverse lineup of film, animation, and television adaptations. Ostrander’s vision was the DC answer to Guardians of the Galaxy, though with expendable DC villains forced into situations that either reduce their sentences or see them die.
Depending on the roster of characters and the dynamics at play, Task Force X’s outings always make for an entertaining and shocking ride. For how the squads of past and present measure up and where Kill the Justice League falls in, here are the most noteworthy rankings.
Warp
Elias Toufexis
Smallville was the CW’s DC universe show that ran for ten seasons and centered on Tom Welling’s iconic version of Clark Kent, but it also eventually incorporated the Suicide Squad in its vast DC story, making it the first time Task Force X debuted in live action. you’re able to say this was the barebones of the future adaptations to come.
Rick Flag and Deadshot are valuable members to include, and it’s something that the Smallville version got right. As for bringing Plastique and Warp on board, the latter of which was never even on the Suicide Squad in the comics, that was a bolder choice. Most disappointing is that nothing terribly grave or exciting is in store for their fates, as you might expect.
Jessica Parker Kennedy, who portrayed Smallville’s Plastique, returned to the CW DC television universe with her role as Nora West-Allen, or speedster XS, in Arrowverse’s The Flash.
Rick Flag actor Ted Whittall played Admiral Olsen in 2016’s DCEU Suicide Squad film.
Cupid
Amy Gumenick
The Arrowverse found much better footing with the Suicide Squad than its CW predecessor. The Suicide Squad task force is still used very sparingly, only showing up in a small number of episodes across seasons (two of which they really go on missions), but ARGUS remains a huge part of Arrow and The Flash.
The teams are led by Team Arrow’s John Diggle, or Spartan, and his wife Lyla Michaels, who have the pleasure of working with convicts like Bronze Tiger, Deadshot, Shrapnel, and Cupid on world-saving missions around the globe. When those episodes come, they’re spectacularly spot on, especially with Diggle’s contempt for Waller and her initiative.
Harley Quinn makes a brief cameo appearance in her cell and never gets put on the squad. She is voiced by actress Tara Strong, whose version of Harley appears in the Rocksteady games and various animated films.
Copperhead
Gideon Emery
While Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay starts off on the right track (quite literally, considering it starts on a train), it falters the rest of the way and just can’t quite deliveras compelling or important of a storyline as Kill the Justice League. Everything revolves around a stolen card with supernatural properties to allow one to bypass hell and get a straight shot to heaven, and is, of course, something Waller wants.
It turns into a cross-country RV road trip adventure, with villains like Vandal Savage and Zoom there to stop them. Bronze Tiger and Copperhead’s characters are the standouts here, since crucial members like Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, and Deadshot don’t feel utilized to their fullest. However, Deadshot’s ending is surprisingly heartwarming.
Slipknot
Adam Beach
The Suicide Squad received its first major DCEU movie outing in 2016, taking place after the events of Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman. The stakes were high, there was a balanced roster of notable and less notable DC villains, and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller were a match made in heaven.
Despite some questionable story moments and issues with pacing, every actor here was memorable and gave some outstanding performances, even Jared Leto’s Joker. The Batman connections flowed with the storyline, and the soundtrack ended up being one of the best parts.
Black Manta
N/A
Justice League Dark: Apokolips War puts the Suicide Squad in an interesting state in terms of lineup and hierarchy. Amanda Waller has died, and Harley Quinn becomes the defacto leader to guide them in one of their most perilous conflicts yet, called upon by the Justice League’s heroes to help thwart Darkseid and his planet-conquering legions.
Task Force X is also without Deadshot, and Harley and Boomer are instead accompanied by King Shark, Bane, Cheetah, and Black Manta, who all get some weapon upgrades from Lex Luthor. Their screen time is very minimal yet still impactful and charming, and they ultimately live up to their name in this one.
The Shark
Cavalier
The Revolutionaries (Osita, Wink, Fin, Scale, Thylacine, Jog, Deadly Six, Chaos Kitten, T.N. Teen, and The Aerie)
If you’re looking for one of the more intriguing comic book storylines for Task Force X, Suicide Squad: Bad Blood by the duo behindInjustice: Gods Among Us, Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo, is one to consider. The direction for Harley Quinn and Deadshot comes with many twists, which include pairing up with a terrorist group of metas called the Revolutionaries.
Amanda Waller also loses control of Task Force X, which now consists of characters like Zebra Man, the swashbuckling musketeer Cavalier, Magpie, and Shark (different from King Shark). They find themselves working for the enigmatic Lok before a series of betrayals occurand surprising villains pop up.
Weasel
Sean Gunn
Belle Reve received plenty of new metahuman inmates since the 2016 outing of the Suicide Squad, and James Gunn takes the liberty to showcase lots and lots of the more ‘unheard’ ones. The opening introduces you to all the cool new players, like TDK, Javelin, Savant, and Mongal, only for you to lose almost all of them in the scenes that follow.
This already nails the critical comic book accuracy that you can’t become too attached to these characters. You also have the return of Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flag, Deadshot gets swapped out for Bloodsport, and John Cena creates the perfect Peacemaker. Polka-Dot Man’s mommy issues, the use of Starro, and Ratcatcher 2 steal the show.
John Cena’s journey as Peacemaker continues on the HBO Max show Peacemaker.
Black Spider
Giancarlo Esposito
2014’s Batman: Assault on Arkham went in a simpler direction for the Suicide Squad, not a world-ending or supernatural one that the team is familiar with, and was all the better for it. Grounding the storyagainst the backdrop of Gotham and Arkham Asylumallowed these characters and their reluctant teamwork to shine through in the best ways possible.
The choices in character designs for Deadshot and King Shark are also very different from what you’ve seen before and set them apart from other versions. How Batman and key villains like Riddler, Joker, and Penguin play into the story is executed well, the voice cast is superb, and the schemes to remove nanobomb implants and squad betrayals are represented as well.
King Shark
Samoa Joe
Though Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League offersrepetitive and boring enemies and gameplay mixed with live service, it’s all swept away by the best version of the squad we’ve seen to date. Harley Quinn, Deadshot, King Shark, and Captain Boomerang are as faithful, witty, and combative as you could ever hope for.
Their dialogue does wonders to capture the characters, filled with just the right adult humor and clever responsesthat prove brilliantly quotable. You’ll be laughing more times than Captain Boomerang can pee on something or try to claim a finger. The only flaw with this video game adaptation (since Task Force X is all playable) is that you only expect to lose the Justice League and none of them.
