DC's Task Force X is a secret government program in the DC universe that has become more commonly known as the Suicide Squad thanks to the frequent turnover rate of the expendable characters that usually make up the ruthless Amanda Waller's roster of incarcerated and manipulated supervillains (and sometimes heroes).
Of course, the Suicide Squad's always changing line-up of characters have seen quite a few reboots over the years that have brought along new members to the team for specific missions or as nods to other storylines that have been forgotten by some fans, so we'll take a closer look at a few forgotten members of Task Force X.
10 The Original Suicide Squad Weren't Well-Known Supervillains
While most fans are familiar with modern versions of the Suicide Squad that first formed after the Crisis on Infinite Earths event reshaped the DC universe, the original versions of the team that first appeared during the Golden and Silver Ages have become largely forgotten by modern comic fans.
The original version of the team that appeared in Star-Spangled War Stories featured a rotating cast of forgotten characters, while a newer version appeared in The Brave And The Bold that was led by Rick Flag Jr. like modern versions as his scientific team investigated monsters before the team was rebooted by the Crisis.
9 The Penguin Briefly Worked With The Post-Crisis Squad
There were a number of criminals who were drafted onto the post-Crisis roster of Task Force X that was assembled by the cold government agent named Amanda Waller, which included one of Batman's rogues from Gotham City, Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin.
The Penguin was brought on to plan a rescue mission in order to earn him an earlier release from prison, though Flag forced him to join the team on the mission. The Penguin almost died during a battle with the Russian military, and he left the team after the mission to return to the safety of prison.
8 Black Adam Joined Task Force X During War Of The Gods
Wonder Woman and the heroes of the DC Universe became involved in the War of the Gods event that required all hands on deck, which led Shazam (then known as Captain Marvel) to return the powers to his enemy Black Adam so he could join the fight.
Black Adam then recruited a new roster of the Suicide Squad to help him take the fight to Circe and drive her away from her fortress, losing only a few members of his roster in the process. Black Adam was then depowered and returned to prison by Shazam after the event before he attempted to reform alongside the JSA.
7 Grant Morrison Briefly Joined The Squad As The Writer
When Grant Morrison was writing Animal Man, he added a version of himself into the story that allowed Buddy Baker to actually meet his maker, an in-continuity character who was able to manipulate and create in the world around him by writing events down as The Writer.
While he's mostly remembered for his brief appearance in Animal Man, The Writer was later recruited onto Black Adam's squad, as he explained he was now under the control of another creator after appearing in the continuity. Unfortunately, The Writer suffered a bout of writer's block in the heat of battle and was viciously killed by Circe's forces.
6 Barbara Gordon Made Her Comeback As Oracle Working With Suicide Squad
While her career as Batgirl was ended by a violent encounter with The Joker that left her paralyzed and in a wheelchair in the pages of The Killing Joke, she would later return to keep working with the Bat-Family as the brilliant information broker and cyber-hacker known as Oracle.
However, some fans might forget that the first appearances of Oracle and the ultimate reveal of her secret identity as barbara Gordon that also canonized the events of The Killing Joke occurred in the pages of Suicide Squad after she offered her services to Waller's Task Force X.
5 Superboy Joined The Suicide Squad Well Before Infinite Frontier
While Conner Kent/Superboy is currently being forced to work alongside the newest roster of Task Force X in the Infinite Frontier era that has also added characters like Peacemaker from the live-action movie from James Gunn, it isn't the first time that Superboy has worked with the Suicide Squad.
When the Metropolis Kid was operating in Hawaii and working alongside local enforcement, he was brought along on an official mission with the Suicide Squad that took the team to an underwater fortress of a high-tech crime syndicate known as the Silicone Dragons. Superboy helped save the rest of the Squad but stopped working with them after the mission.
4 Steel and Power Girl Were Manipulated Into Joining By Thinker
John Henry Irons/Steel first briefly worked with the Suicide Squad during the Our Worlds At War event, though he was later brainwashed and manipulated into joining the team alongside Power Girl by The Thinker during the Forever Evil event in The New 52.
While they were initially recruited by Amanda Waller, it was later revealed that was actually a hologram created by Thinker in order to create his own team to take out the real Suicide Squad. Steel and Power Girl then joined the Squad to take on Thinker who had taken over the body of OMAC, though they both left the team shortly after saving the day.
3 JSA Members Like Hawkman Were Conscripted By The Government
Amanda Waller was given a new position of power during Lex Luthor's brief presidency, which saw a new Suicide Squad formed as Task Force Omega under the supervision of the new government that was easily compromised by an organization known as Onslaught.
This eventually saw the Squad conscript heroes from the Justice Society of America like Hawkman, Power Girl, Stargirl (then known as the Star-Spangled Kid) and Wildcat to help take out Onslaught as the other members of the team were either captured or couldn't be trusted, but they returned to the JSA shortly after.
2 Bane Was Betrayed By The Squad And Sent To A Prison Planet In Salvation Run
While Bane is best known for his association with teams like the Secret Six, he did spend some time with the Suicide Squad when they were tasked with hunting down and capturing other super-villains to presumably bolster their roster.
However, it was eventually revealed that the Squad was being used to round up the supervillains in order to exile them to a distant planet called Salvation. While Bane was part of the team rounding up the villains, he was betrayed by the Squad and left on the planet during Salvation Run, though the villains were eventually able to return to Earth.
1 Vixen Remained With The Squad After Losing Control Of Her Powers On A Mission
Following her first stint with the Justice League, Vixen returned to her modeling career until a shoot she was on was massacred by drug dealers after inadvertently photographing their operations. Vixen called in the government which sent her in alongside the Suicide Squad to take down the drug dealers.
She called in Roy Harper/ Speedy to assist her on the mission as well. However, after Vixen lost control of her animal side and killed the dealers, she decided to remain with the Squad for a few missions until she felt she was recovered.