Amanda Waller's Summer Side-Project (Part 2)

Continuing last week's retirement files for the Shadow Fighters, the team assembled by Amanda Waller to fight Eclipso in the villain's monthly series. The whole thing ended in a victory for Earth's heroes, and though the Justice League, the Spectre, the Phantom Stranger and a couple of losers like Prism (who?!) participated in the final battle, they were never Shadow Fighters, so won't get a spot here. But first, let us end the bloodbath that started in Part I.

Subject: Commander SteelProfile: Retroactive Golden Age hero
Powers: Cybernetically enhanced physical abilities
Mission: Free the South American country of Parador from Eclipso's stranglehold.
Chance of survival going in: Low. If the Character ever had any glory days, they were far behind him. A WWII hero created in 1978, then integrated into the All-Star Squadron, Henry Heywood would later become the grandfather of Justice League Detroit's Steel, an elderly hero by this point portrayed as being out of his depth.
Retirement: DECEASED. Killed by Eclipsos while trying to protect Major Victory's back. (Eclipso #13)
Final report: Still dead, though his legacy lives on in the JSA's Citizen Steel, another of his grandsons.

Subject: Peacemaker
Profile: Charlton hero
Powers: Military training and various non-lethal and lethal weapons
Mission: Free the South American country of Parador from Eclipso's stranglehold.
Chance of survival going in: Fair. Though the only Charlton headliner not to ever star in his own DC monthly, there was potential in his premise (a man who would commit acts of violence in order to ensure peace), especially in the violent 90s, but perhaps the character had been taken too far, madness-wise, to still remain viable.
Retirement: DECEASED. His helicopter is destroyed while fighting Eclipso's armored division. We later see his charred corpse. (Eclipso #13)
Final report: Christopher Smith's death was confirmed when his soul was featured in Day of Judgement. Others would take up the mantle, including Mitchell Black in the Charlton-centric L.A.W. A Peacemaker using the Christopher Smith identity appeared in the new Blue Beetle series, before changing to Black, and then to a new name, perhaps an indication that DC Editorial had lost track of each Peacemaker's death.

Subject: Chunk
Profile: Former member of Flash's supporting cast
Powers: Teleportation and an extra-dimensional space inside himself he can shunt people and objects to
Mission: Accompany Justice League to Parador to cleanse the world of Eclipso.
Chance of survival going in: Fair. A beloved minor character, the only reason writer Robert Lauren Fleming used Chester Chunk may well have been because he had affection for him. Why else even THINK of Chunk? However, beloved minor characters also make for shocking deaths (see Creeper).
Retirement: RETIRED FROM SHADOW FIGHTERS. Chunk survived the final battle in Parador. (Eclipso #18)
Final report: Chester Chunk presumably continues to work as a "removal specialist" in Central City. I am not aware of whether or not he finally married Wally West's old girlfriend, Connie Noleski.

Subject: Bruce Gordon
Profile: Sometime host of Eclipso
Powers: Foremost expert on Eclipso
Mission: Lead Justice League to Parador to cleanse the world of Eclipso.
Chance of survival going in: Good. Unless DC was interested in destroying a villain they had just elevated to the A-list, there was little chance of Bruce dying. Either this was going to end with Eclipso trapped once again in Bruce (not the case), or he would be out there and Bruce would need to stay alert to fight him (the case). Either way, Gordon looked to be part of the equation.
Retirement: RETIRED FROM SHADOW FIGHTERS. In the short term at least, the nightmare seemed to be over for Bruce Gordon. (Eclipso #18)
Final report: Though Eclipso would use other hosts, in time he would return to Bruce Gordon. Most recently, Eclipso has been using Bruce as a host in his bid to "kill God". The Justice League is taking care of it, but thanks for offering.

Subject: Mona Bennet
Profile: Member of Bruce Gordon/Eclipso's supporting cast
Powers: None, though she has used an armor tricked out with sun guns
Mission: Accompany Justice League to Parador to cleanse the world of Eclipso.
Chance of survival going in: Fair. Just the right person to kill to give Bruce Gordon a victory that feels like defeat, and as Mona had been going over the edge recently, quite a possibility.
Retirement: RETIRED FROM SHADOW FIGHTERS. Mona Bennet survived the final battle and announced she was pregnant with Bruce's child. (Eclipso #18)
Final report: Mona Bennet seemed to have been killed recently when Eclipso took control of Bruce Gordon. It is unknown if this is indeed the case, or what happened to their child.

And that's the cheery ending to my Shadow Fighters Files! Other members of the team, like Nemesis and Nightshade continued to serve under Amanda Waller, so their retirement parties will just have to wait...

Comments

rob! said…
I loved Who's Who. *sigh*
Anonymous said…
That's what happens when the Bronze Tiger or Flag are not leading a mission?

And who was the mission leader?

Roger
Siskoid said…
At this point, Flag's dead, but in any case, this isn't the Squad. It's the Shadow Fighters. The de facto team leader was Bruce Gordon.
Anonymous said…
I think the problem was perhaps that they thought the enemy was the Silver Age Eclipso, no the Bloody 90s Eclipso.

Damn budget cuts in Inteligence! That didn't happen with Reagan (kidding)!

Roger
Patrick C said…
I love this series of Suicide Squad retirement files! I know I found them a couple years late, but wondering if you still plan on continuing them? I tried searching your blog, but it seems this was the last one.

Big fan of the blog!

pc
Siskoid said…
Really a matter of collecting and reading the next Suicide Squad series over (the Sgt. Rock one).
Patrick C said…
If you have the issues, the squad had a mission in Superboy 13-15, with at least one retirement I can think of off hand.

I don't know if it counts as the Squad (I'm pretty sure it doesn't), but Amanda Waller also coordinated the attack on the Parasites in Bloodbath, the ending miniseries to the Bloodlines Annuals. That was my first exposure to The Wall, and I remember wondering who the heck this woman bossing around all the superheroes was! I remember that comic fondly, and I've been holding off on rereading it, as I'm pretty sure it will not hold up. You know, now that I'm an "adult."
Siskoid said…
I do have that Superboy story, I could at least give you that! I'll put it in the pipeline!

As for Bloodlines, I'm disturbed to hear it was your gateway into Suicide Squad (of sorts). Rough! ;-)
Anonymous said…
"Damn budget cuts in Inteligence! "

Sorry to interrupt a great discussion on the infamous Eclipso 13 (which is how I got here via a Google search on Dr. Mid-Nite II), but I had to point out the irony in the above post. OK, back to Eclipso 13!!!