1987 Series Opponents
Brimstone
First Appearance: Legends #1 (November, 1986)
Brimstone was an artificially-created being generated from a "techno-seed" that Darkseid unleashed on Earth during Operation: Humiliation.
- Body Backup Drive: As an artificially-created being, Brimstone can be recreated whenever Darkseid needs him.
- Flaming Sword: Brimstone generates a sword that is made of the same concentrated plasma as the rest of his body.
- A God Am I: Brimstone believes himself to be the fallen angel of an avenging god, sent to rid the Earth of its false gods and graven idols.
- Large Ham: Brimstone believes himself to be a fallen angel, and speaks in an appropriately overblown style; claiming to be an "avenging angel" out to rid the world of "false gods" and "graven images".
- Our Giants Are Bigger: Brimstone is 50'6" tall.
- Playing with Fire: Brimstone can generate and project balls of fire from his eyes and hands.
- Super-Strength: Brimstone is strong enough to hurt Wonder Girl with his powerful blows.
- Super-Toughness: Brimstone is able to withstand blows from the likes of Supergirl.
Catseye
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #53 (May, 1991)
Catseye was a bioengineered metahuman agent of the Yakuza.
- Animal-Themed Superbeing: Cats and especially leopards.
- Artificial Human: He's apparently a bioengineered meta-human that serves as enforcer for the Yakuza.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Gets scratched by his own poisonous claws when fighting Bronze Tiger.
- Mysterious Past: His real name and origin remain a mystery.
- Poisoned Weapons: His claws will be treated with venom if he expects a tough fight.
- Poisonous Person: His claws are coated with poison.
- Tattooed Crook: His entire body is covered in tattoos that make him look more feline-like.
- Wolverine Claws: He has razor-sharp claws implanted in his fingers and toes which are covered in poison.
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
The Jihad was a team of super-powered international terrorists-for-hire that operate out of Qurac. The team was created and guided by Qurac's President Marlos.
- Terrorists Without a Cause: A team of super-powered international terrorists-for-hire, Jihad has no particular ideology, although their actions are generally anti-American.
Rustam
Raza Kattuah
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
Rustam is a professional archaeologist and leader of The Jihad, Rustam wields a flammable weapon called as Psi-Scimitar, this weapon allows him to engage with Suicide Squad and especially with his main foe Rick Flag Jr.
- Absurdly Sharp Blade: Besides setting it on fire, the Psi-Sword can also cut open portals to other dimensions.
- Adventurer Archaeologist: Used to be one before becoming part of the Jihad.
- Flaming Sword: His signature Psi-Sword.
- Not Quite Dead: He and Flag were apparently killed during the destruction of Jotunheim, when in fact both ended up falling to Skartaris.
Agni
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #17 (September, 1988)
Agni is an Asian Indian pyrokinetic who could create progressively larger fireballs by snapping his fingers. He is named after Agni, the Hindu god of fire. Agni acted as field commander of the Jihad when Rustam was unavailable.
- Eyepatch of Power: Agni wears an eyepatch over his left eye.
- Finger-Snap Lighter: Agni can create progressively larger fireballs by snapping his fingers.
- Playing with Fire: Agni can conjure up flaming spheres which he can hurl at targets.
Badb
First Appearance: Suicide Squad' #17 (September, 1988)
A preteen Irish telepath who could mentally instill panic and hatred. She is named after Badb, the Celtic goddess of war.
- Enfant Terrible: In her first appearance, Badb is described as being 'not quite ten years old'.
- Evil Redhead: The redheaded Badb is a vicious sadist who can cause people's worst fears to manifest.
- Funetik Aksent: How her Irish accent is represented.
- The Paralyzer: After making eye contact with her target, Badb can cause their fears to manifest. This paralyzes them and may cause cerebral hemorrhages in weaker targets.
- Sadist: A vicious sadist, Badb enjoys the agony she inflicts on people. However, she's usually capable of restraining her psychotic urges enough to perform her mission.
- Supernatural Fear Inducer: After making eye contact with her target, Badb can cause their fears to manifest. This paralyzes them and may cause cerebral hemorrhages in weaker targets.
- Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: A vicious sadist, Badb enjoys the agony she inflicts on people.
Chimera
Chimera was actually Suicide Squad member Nightshade, who infiltrated the Jihad alongside fellow Squad member Nemesis.
See Captain Atom for more information.
- Reverse Mole: She was actually Suicide Squad member Nightshade, who infiltrated the Jihad alongside fellow Squad member Nemesis.
Dahak
First Appearance: Outsiders Vol. 2 #5 (March, 1994)
A demon who used the body of an old Quraci woman as its host.
- Demonic Possession: Used the body of an old Quraci woman as its host.
- Killed Off for Real: Killed when an airplane tail crushed it to death.
Dervish
Nema
First Appearance: Outsiders Vol. 2 #5 (March, 1994)
A speedster and martial artist, Dervish was a member of the third incarnation of the Jihad and romantically involved with fellow member Manticore III. She later joined The Outsiders and then Strikeforce Kobra.
See here for more details.
Djinn
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
His body was reduced to a binary code and stored in microchips within a magnetic bottle.
- Bald of Evil: Djinn's digitized form is completely bald.
- Brain Uploading: Djinn was described as "the world’s first digitized man". Apparently his brain patterns were encoded as a software intelligence, which can manifest as the high-tech equivalent of ectoplasm.
- Eyepatch of Power: Despite his body being digital, Djinn manifests wearing an eyepatch.
- Intangibility: He could phase through walls and attacks, and disrupt circuitry he phased through.
- The Needless: The Djinn lacked most conventional vital needs. However, the "bottle" was kept hooked to computers with programs taking care of him.
- Super-Speed: His virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
- Super-Strength: His virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
- Super-Toughness: His virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
Ifrit
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #17 (September 1988)
Ifrit was a new artificial intelligence, similar to Djinn, based on the brain patterns of Mindboggler, whose mental engrams were salvaged by Quraci scientists, and twisted to induce extreme aggression and hate; she was healed of this by sentient Israeli computer Dybbuk and fell in love with him.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Mindboggler's mental engrams were salvaged by Quraci scientists, and twisted to induce extreme aggression and hate.
- Brain Uploading: Created through the same process used to create Djinn.
- Intangibility: She could phase through walls and attacks, and disrupt circuitry she phased through.
- The Needless: Ifrit lacked most conventional vital needs. However, the "bottle" was kept hooked to computers with programs taking care of her.
- Robo Romance: The artificial intelligence Dybbuk agreed to help Amanda Waller reprogram the digital djinn known as Ifrit, formerly the Suicide Squad's Mindboggler. Subsequently, Dybbuk and Mindboggler fell in love and became electronically engaged.
- Super-Speed: Her virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
- Super-Strength: Her virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
- Super-Toughness: Her virtual body possesses superior speed and low superhuman strength and robustness.
Jaculi I
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
A young Bedouin with the ability of moving at super-speed in three second spurts. He carried an assortment of explosive javelins. Jaculi was slain by Captain Boomerang.
- Javelin Thrower: Well-trained with javelin-like weapons, both as melee weapons and as missiles. The javelins he carries have an explosive charge built-in.
- Super-Speed: Jaculi can produce three-seconds bursts of superhuman speed, accelerating instantly. This can be used for a dash during which he'll move at several hundred miles per hour.
- Trick Arrow: The javelins he carries have an explosive charge built-in.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: Never wears a shirt.
Jaculi II
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #17 (September, 1988)
The second Jaculi was a woman with the speed and weapons of the original. She was reportedly a former Việt cộng elite trooper. She was slain by Deadshot.
- Javelin Thrower: Equipped with explosive javelins, which she’s skilled at using.
- Legacy Character: The second Jaculi was recruited to the second iteration of the Jihad group. It's unknown whether she has any connection to the original Jaculi.
- Super-Speed: Jaculi is able to move at superhuman speeds for short bursts, around three seconds or so. She can do that often, with maybe only a second or so between bursts .
- Trick Arrow: Equipped with explosive javelins.
Koshchei the Deathless
Jess Bright
First Appearance: The Brave and the Bold #25 (September, 1959) (as Jeff Bright); Suicide Squad #17 (September, 1988) (as Korschei the Deathless)
Jess Bright, former member of the original Suicide Squad. He could animate the dead using specialized electronic implants, controlling them via telepresence; this control was accidentally broken by Shade the Changing Man.
- Artificial Zombie: Developed adhesive electronic disks capable of reanimating corpses. Such artificial undeads can be given orders via a sort of master disc, which can broadcast to nearby "zombie discs".
- Elite Zombie: His "zombies" aren't meat puppets. The dead person still has the skills, powers, memories, personality, etc. they had in life.
- Evil Cripple: Bright lost his fingers, both feet and much of his face to frostbite. While working for the Chinese, he operated in a wheelchair, hooded and without working hands. After being recruited by Soviet spymaster Zastrow, he had prostheses built for his fingers, feet and face.
- Face–Heel Turn: Jess Bright was an original member of the Suicide Squad. After he was left for dead on a mission, he became Koshchei The Deathless, a member of the Jihad.
- Facial Horror: Bright lost much of his face to frostbite after being Left for Dead, before being saved by the Chinese.
- Left for Dead: On the original Squad's final mission in Cambodia, Evans and Bright stayed behind to fight a yeti allowing Flag and Grace to escape. The two fell, seemingly to their deaths, giving their teammates a chance to escape the Yeti. Evans did die but Bright managed to survive using his knife to wear the Yeti's skin to keep him alive until finally reaching a Chinese military outpost.
- Ridiculously Alive Undead: His "zombies" aren't meat puppets. The dead person still has the skills, powers, memories, personality, etc. they had in life.
- Spell My Name With An S: Some writers have given Bright's first name as 'Jeff' rather than 'Jess'.
- Super-Empowering: After his near-death, Bright spent decades developing skills about creating low-to-mid-range metahumans.
- Undeathly Pallor: Koschei's skin is a greenish-grey, making Bright look like a zombie.
Manticore (I - III)
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
Manticore is the name used by three essentially identical members of the Jihad. The original was a Greek man. His body was surgically altered, and he wore an exo-skeleton that could shoot claws out of his hands and grenades out of his tail. He was killed on his first mission against the Suicide Squad by Deadshot. Manticore II was also a member of Jihad, and he was killed by Suicide Squad member Duchess. Manticore III was also a member of Jihad, romantically involved with Dervish, who was killed by Wylde fighting the Outsiders.
- Achilles' Heel: The body of the original Manticore was armoured, but his face was not: a fact Deadshot took advantage of to kill him. this flaw was corrected in subsequent versions.
- Back from the Dead:
- The original Manticore was briefly resurrected by Koschei the Deathless as an enthralled zombie, but he was quickly killed again by the Suicide Squad.
- One of the Manticores appeared on a dissection table in the Suicide Squad's labs and was raised as a member of the Black Lantern Corps.
- Beware My Stinger Tail: The suit has a grenade launcher stored in his scorpion tail.
- Legacy Character: Three different members of the Jihad have used the codename Manticore.
- One-Steve Limit: Manticore IV was a hero and member of the Global Guardians.
- Outlaw Couple: Manticore III was romantically involved with fellow team member Dervish.
- The Speechless: Manticore I and II were not shown speaking behind animalistic growls. Manticore III could speak normally.
- Spike Shooter: The suit has claws that shoot at a high velocity out of his hands.
- Super-Strength: Manticore is at least strong enough to lift a car.
- Super-Toughness: Mantcore can shrug off small arms fire.
- Wolverine Claws: The suit has claws that shoot at a high velocity out of his hands.
Piscator
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #60 (December, 1991)
An Atlantean renegade and self-styled Janissary.
See Aquaman: Rogues Gallery for more information.
Ravan
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #1 (May, 1987)
Last surviving thugee, his back was broken in single combat with the Bronze Tiger. He later returned wearing a cybernetic harness because of his broken back. After being captured by the Bronze Tiger he joins the Suicide Squad.
See Suicide Squad: Operatives for more details.
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #41 (May, 1990)
The Red Shadows were a covert military group under the former Soviet Union that acted as direct counterpart for the Suicide Squad.
- Dirty Commies: The Red Shadows were a covert military group under the former Soviet Union.
- Evil Counterpart: The Red Shadows acted as direct counterpart for the Suicide Squad.
- Psycho Rangers: The Red Shadows is the Russian equivalent of the Suicide Squad.
Major Zastrow
First Appearance: Firestorm Vol 2 #62 (August, 1987)
Major Zastrow was the director of the U.S.S.R.'s division of superhuman operatives, the Red Shadows.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: Zastrow is usually dressed in old-fashioned clothes: a suit with a tie, a fedora and, if appropriate, a raincoat.
- Bald of Evil: Is completely bald.
- The Chessmaster: Calm and intelligent, Zastrow constructs extremely intricate plans which anticipate his opponents' actions, or outmaneuver them by predicting their reactions.
- Evil Counterpart: To Amanda Waller.
- Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: Zastrow is a chain smoker.
- Majorly Awesome: One of the few characters who can out-think and outmaneuver Amanda Waller.
- Manipulative Bastard: Zastrow constructed extremely intricate plans which anticipated his opponents' actions, or outmaneuvered them by predicting their reactions.
- Non-Action Big Bad: Zastrow does not do any supervillain antics—he plays the Great Game like a challenge of pure intellect. He leaves battling superheroes to his superpowered underlings.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Zastrow is Russian for 'shadow' so it is unlikely it is his real name.
- Scary Shiny Glasses: He wears a pair of thick glasses hiding his eyes.
- The Spymaster: Zastrow is an extremely intelligent spymaster, strategist and tactician. He plays the Great Game with an uncommon skill.
Bolshoi
First Appearance: Outsiders #10 (August, 1986)
Bolshoi was originally a member of the People’s Heroes. He was later transferred to the Red Shadows.
See here for more details.
Lamia
AKA: Natalia Andreyevna Spirin
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #54 (June, 1991)
A member of the Red Shadows with pheromone control powers.
- Femme Fatale: How Lamia typically uses her powers.
- Living Aphrodisiac: Lamia has pheromone control powers, allowing her to make herself irresistible to men.
Molotov
First Appearance: Outsiders #10 (August, 1986)
Molotov was originally a member of the People’s Heroes. He was later transferred to the Red Shadows.
See here for more details.
Mrs. Gradenko
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #54 (June, 1991)
Mrs. Gradenko can turn into a ferocious bear. This beast can kill a number of armed men, or engage superhumans in combat.
- Bears Are Bad News: Mrs. Gradenko can turn into a ferocious bear. This beast can kill a number of armed men, or engage superhumans in combat.
- Dumb Muscle: Zastrow mostly used Mrs. Gradenko as a bodyguard and enforcer. He keeps her close at hand and tells her who to attack. Zastrow does not seem to trust her ability to operate on her own, or follow complex orders.
- Never Mess with Granny: Mrs. Gradenko's human form is a little old lady – a next-door blue-collar Russian retiree.
- The Nose Knows: She trusts her sense of smell more than her sense of sight.
- Our Werebeasts Are Different: Mrs. Gradenko can turn into a ferocious bear.
- The Speechless: In human form, she seems unable to speak and may not be fully sapient.
Pravda
First Appearance: Outsiders #10 (August, 1986)
Pravda was originally a member of the People’s Heroes. She was later transferred to the Red Shadows.
See here for more details.
Schrek
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #55 (July, 1991)
Schrek was a vampire and an agent of the Red Shadows.
- Albinos Are Freaks: Schrek had white hair and skin and red eyes, and was the most monstrous of the Red Shadows.
- Compelling Voice: Schrek could control people with his voice.
- Names Torun Away From Really Fast: Schrek is German for 'fright'.
- Our Vampires Are Different: Shreck was a vampire who also possessed the metagene.
Stalnoivolk
AKA: Ivan Illyich Gort
First Appearance: Firestorm Vol 2 #67 (January, 1988)
Ivan Illyich Gort was born in Russia in the early 1900s. As a young man, he participated in a series of secret experiments that gave him superhuman physical characteristics. He was created to serve as a symbol of Soviet resistance during World War II and given the code name Stalnoivolk (translated as Steel Wolf).
- Boulder Bludgeon: Gort often uses pieces of rock, concrete, asphalt, etc. as thrown weapons. If need be he can easily rip out a large chunk out of a nearby structure for this.
- Dirty Commies: Stalnoivolk is an unrepentant Stalinist.
- Disco Dan: Gort is trapped in his antiquated Stalinist beliefs, and will likely remain a hardliner and a Stalinist until he dies. He would be very happy to see the old order restored to Russia, especially if that means the return of a "great patriotic leader" like Stalin and a sense of grandeur for his country.
- Distinguished Gentleman's Pipe: Like his idol Stalin, Gort occasionally smokes a pipe, even in the field.
- Exposed to the Elements: Gort has been shown how he was chopping wood without outerwear, not paying attention to the frost.
- A Handful for an Eye: Once crushed a handful of concrete into dust to blind an opponent.
- In a Single Bound: Gort's increased strength allows him to make titanic jumps. He has been shown to jump with great precision to attack flying enemies, ump between buildings, and jump from planes without the benefit of a parachute.
- Not Wearing Tights: Stalnoivolk does not wear a costume. Instead he dresses in older, well out-of-fashion suits or combat fatigues.
- Older Than They Look: Although he's now a centenarian, Stalnoivolk is kept vital by his powers. He ages at maybe a fifth or sixth of the normal pace.
- Outdated Outfit: He generally wears older, well out-of-fashion suits.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: As long as something is authoritarian, determined and vaguely Marxist, Gort likes it. For instance, he thought that the Khmer Rouges were a good regime. He had also never come across black people before being reactivated the 1980s. He tends to just address them as "Black" and doesn't seem quite sure what to think of them. His only cultural context for them is presumably from the 1930s. He'll thus generally come across as racist.
- The Stoic: Gort is generally the strong and silent type. This is mostly because he's blasé about run-of-the-mill jobs. He has killed many, many people and he simply doesn't care who or what he’s killing.
- Super-Strength: Increased strength allows him to throw a person into the next block, make titanic jumps, break a person's neck with a slight movement of his hand, break through a strong wall, throw cars and climb buildings, clinging to them.
- Super-Toughness: Gort is incredibly resilient. He withstood a direct hit from a .44 caliber bullet and the nuclear explosions of Firestorm.
Troublemaker
AKA: Anatoli Feodorovitch Kalunnin
First Appearance: Suicide Squad #54 (June, 1991)
Troublemaker was an operative of the Red Shadows who could use his mind control to create illusions or give visions.
- Dirty Coward: The insecure and cowardly Troublemaker was coerced by Zastrow with constant threats of being given to the vampire Shreck as food.
- Embarrassing Nickname: Troublemaker did not like his codename.
- The Friend Nobody Likes: Nobody in the Red Shadows likes Troublemaker.
- Killed Off for Real: Troublemaker tried to take on Deadshot by conjuring up a second image of himself, but the assassin was so quick he could shoot both.
- Master of Illusion: Troublemaker can use his mind control to create illusions.
- One-Steve Limit: Troublemaker is also the name of a Green Arrow villain.
William James Heller / White Dragon II / William Hell
First Appearance: (as William Hell) Suicide Squad #4 (August, 1987); (as White Dragon) Justice Society of America Vol. #2 (March, 2007)
The wealthy leader of the Aryan Empire, a white supremacist organization. Heller initially adopted the identity of William Hell, a vigilante who targeted minority criminals while recruiting white criminals to join the Empire. However, the Suicide Squad successfully discredited him by "exposing" Heller as an impostor of the real William Hell (actually a disguised Deadshot) and subsequently framing him for Hell's murder. He later returned as the second White Dragon, and continued to serve as a recurring thorn in the Squad's side.
- Evil Former Friend: Well, Eviler Former Friend. White Dragon and Deadshot were childhood friends, but they drifted out of touch. By the time they met up again, Heller was an avowed white supremacist and a target of the Squad.
- Freudian Excuse: Heller's parents were killed during a race riot, and he was then taken into the care of his Nazi sympathizer grandfather, who molded Heller into a white supremacist like himself.
- Killed Off for Real: After being one of the most recurring foes of the Squad, he's finally killed when Plastique blows him up.
- Kill It with Fire: He's killed when Plastique breaks a hole in his mask and causes an explosion inside his armor.
- Master Archer: As William Hell he was skilled enough with a crossbow to shoot an apple off Captain Boomerang's head.
- Nazi Grandpa: As a boy, Heller went to live with his grandfather, who had supported the Nazis during World War Two. Under his grandfather, the boy went from conservative to flat out racist.
- Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He portrays himself as trying to fight crime, but it's a thin mask to excuse him targeting minorities. He certainly seems to believe his rhetoric as he feels minorities are inherently criminal, but to everyone else it's obvious he's just spouting racist dogwhistles rather than any sincere desire for justice.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Heller is a major white supremacist figure and during his time as William Hell makes sure to specifically target criminals who are people of color.
- Rogues' Gallery Transplant: He spent part of the '90s as a Hawkman rogue.
- Tragic Bigot: He's a monster, but his parents were killed during a race riot and his Nazi Grandpa used it to help radicalize him into carrying on his legacy. It's hard not to understand how he ended up like he did, even if he's otherwise one of the most unsympathetic villains.
- Trick Arrow: As William Hell he used a crossbow equipped with a zipline and explosive bolts.
- Wild Card: He's eventually recruited into the Squad, but spends his time repeatedly trying to kill Waller and betray the Squad out of revenge. He eventually betrays them to the General and Atreus to kill them all.
2001 Series Opponents
- Mysterious Past: Nothing is known about her, not even if she's really Mexican.
- The Smurfette Principle: She's the only female at Onslaught.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: She just disappeared after Onslaught was defeated.
2011 Series Opponents
Min Jie-Ru
The crime-boss sister of the Suicide Squad member Yo-Yo.
- Color Character: Red Orchid.
- Monochromatic Eyes: Her eyes are completely red.
- Poisonous Person: Red Orchid appears to have an altered, plant-based physiology that allows the emission of airborne toxins and paralytics.
- Red and Black and Evil All Over: Her colors are red and black and she works for a terrorist organization.
Dean Higgins
The brutal leader of Basilisk.- Secondary Color Nemesis: Dresses in green armor.
- Tom the Dark Lord: Has a surprisingly normal name for the leader of a terrorist organization.
2016 Series Opponents
- "Freaky Friday" Flip: She and Katana end up exchanging minds during her respective run.