The Suicide Squad spoof you never saw coming

Got this from my buddy Randy a couple days ago who knew I would find this interesting. From the pages of Excalibur written by Chris Claremont. I'm guessing Claremont or whoever that worked on that title was a fan of The Squad and or The Amanda Waller character. Of all the postings anywhere on the internet about The Suicide Squad I know you damn well never saw this coming.

Millennium Week 4 with The Suicide Squad

Any of you remember the late 80s DC 12 issue maxi-series Millennium? It was similar to Marvel's Secret Wars II in which it was it's own title but also crossed over into just about every DC title at the time including Suicide Squad issue 9. So tonight I was browsing at this Millennium TPB at a discount book store after work and came across a couple pages of unknown (at least to me) clip art which is actually a prelude to Suicide Squad #9. I took a couple of pictures of this page with my iphone for your viewing pleasure.

What a pleasant surprise, a real nice way to end my day by getting to read some Ostrander era Squad stuff I previously was unaware of. On the this page the Squad is informed that their going to be transporting a bomb to the Manhunter's fortress in the Bayous. Slipknot and Boomerang initially refuse to take part in the mission upon which they are informed that not only are they going to go but also will have to wear explosive bracelets. And if you want to see how that worked out in Suicide Squad # 9 you can have a look here . . .
http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2005/06/lame-ass-villain-7-slipknot.html

Suicidal Tendencies with Shadowpact

Shadowpact 10

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So I was in LA this past weekend and found a really cool comic shop (Golden Apple Comics) where I picked up some Shadowpact back issues (1,2, 9 and 10) from their $1 discount back issue boxes. Between having some former Squad members (Nightshade and Enchantress of course) on the team and with my growing interest in Ragman I've been meaning to check out some Shadowpact stuff for a while now.
Those issues were a good read I'll be on the look out for more. Aside from just the all around good writing I liked the some what subtle Suicide Squad reference in issue 10. And on some what of a side note I went ahead and grabbed a copy of Checkmate 10 which guest starred Shadowpact. In that issue Checkmate enlists the aid of Shadowpact to counter act a magic based ritual process that Kobra uses to expose Checkmate and other government agencies infiltration attempts. . .
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Checkmate_Vol_2_10

Ragman and The Hayoth team up fan art

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I've always been a fan of the Israeli meta human team know as The Hayoth who first appeared in the pages of The Suicide Squad and would later be seen in The Specter and Checkmate in the old DCU. But more recently I've been getting into the Ragman character since having read some stuff with him (Ragman Suite of Souls one shot and Day of Vengeance #1)  I've found in back issue discount boxes. DC has other Jewish superheros like Atom Smasher and Batgirl but what I liked about these particular characters is that their powers and identity as heroes centers around Jewish lore and mysticism. 

Oct. 3rd Update: 
I decided to add this clip art of Ragman in action from Day of Vengeance #1 (2006). Something interesting I learned about Ragman's suit in this issue is that the new souls that are collected often try to resist helping Ragman when called upon. Kinda think of it as a new prison inmate who hasn't learned the rules yet and think they can act like they're still on the outside. Well we know how that eventually plays out.

"...and then he suggested I could have a job only after I gave him one."

Yep that's actually a line in episode 1 of Vixen. Talk about an animated show with an edge! So apparently CW Seed isn't a TV cable channel it's some sort of CW network site. And the new Vixen series are actually just these 5 minute long mini episodes. So far 6 have been produced and depending how successful they are Vixen might become a live action show which I think would suck (pun intended) just like every other comic book based TV series out there. I say just make it a full length 30 minute episode animated series and leave it at that. Anyways, loved the first episode top notch writing and animation can't wait to see episode 2
http://www.cwseed.com/shows/vixen/episode-1/?play=f4cef08a-4fd7-4ab5-941a-b97e88800872

RAGMAN: Suit of Souls one shot (2010)

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So this past weekend I was at a comic shop that had a discount back issue box (50 cents each or 5 for $2). I decided to go for the 5 issue deal which included this Ragman one shot issue. I enjoyed it so much I decided to write this posting even though it's not Suicide Squad related. The issue is basically an origin story about the Ragman suite as told from the perspective of the current Ragman (Rory Regan) who is grappling with conflicted feelings about his deceased father who happened to be the former Ragman.
But what exactly is the "Ragman"? Simply put, a council of Rabbis hundreds of years ago who had once created the mythical protector known as The Golem used a variation of those Golem spells to create a suite made from rags. But unlike the Golem which is just magically animated clay the suite would be worn by a person and hence forth have a soul and a conscience. The suite gives it's wearer increased strength, speed, agility, limited flight, partial invulnerability and a slowing of the aging process. It can also capture the souls of evil people which it's wearer can draw strength and knowledge from.

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The former Ragman was a Jew who fought the nazis as Ragman in Poland during World War II and later immigrated to America where he retired the suite and changed his name in order to assimilate and start a new life. When it came to his son Rory he kept his Jewish heritage a secret until his mid teens. He was eventually murdered by gangsters who wanted to use his pawn shop as a drug dealing front. After Rory found the suite and took up the Ragman mantle he began to learn about his father's true origins which triggered a mix of feelings. On one hand he felt pride for his father's Ragman legacy but harbored feelings of resentment and confusing over his secrecy about his Jewish heritage. With the help of a local Rabbi Rory works through his feelings about his father and using the suite's abilities to communicate with captured souls he learns a deeper truth about his father's motivations and ultimately finds some peace of mind and closure. Preview the first few pages of the issue here . . . http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=preview&id=6716

Suicide Squad Convergence, worth the read if . . .

 . . you find it for free on youtube which I happened to by chance last night. I had no idea what this whole convergence shit with DC was but based on these two issues I guess it has to do with some sort of old and new DCU cross over. So we do get to see some of the classic Squad but it's pretty scant on development. They did a descent job on the plus size Waller but we get far too little of old DCU Bronze Tiger, Poison Ivy and Count Vertigo. Bronze Tiger gets one line and Vertigo doesn't say a thing in either issues. Too much of the writing was spent on DC characters they already use frequently in the new DCU in particular Deathstroke and Deadshot. Kinda mediocre art work for both issues. Nice try DC but I'm still not spending any of my hard earned income on your new comics.

Convergence Suicide Squad 1 and 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9pAVucJnAU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IY387p2T89o