WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Suicide Squad, now in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.
One of the most confusing parts of the theatrical cut of Justice League was how it set up the Injustice League. Fans were unsure whether a team-up movie with villains like Lex Luthor and Deathstroke would resonate at the time, and even after the success of Todd Phillips’ Joker, it was a tough sell. However, thanks to James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, the villainous team can be revived, only this time, they should go up against Idris Elba’s Bloodsport and the rest of Task Force X.
The first post-credit scene of Justice League has an escaped Lex Luthor hiring Deathstroke so they can assemble their own gang of equalizers. At the time, the powers that be seemingly had plans for villains like Jared Leto’s Joker to join up as well, with characters like Black Adam and Orm also being up for grabs had the DC Extended Universe persisted with its original road map.
But, in reality, as the Snyder Cut showed years later, the Justice League is too strong for the Injustice League. Unless Lex’s crew had a mountain of Kryptonite, Superman alone would stop them. Add in Batman, a Flash who can navigate space-time, Wonder Woman, Aquaman and a fully-upgraded Cyborg, and the Injustice League would be completely outgunned.
Gunn’s movie, on the other hand, portrays a much more vulnerable team that feels on the same level as Lex’s squad. And with that being the case, it’s easy to see a scenario in which the two teams of bad guys face off. Task Force X’s Bloodsport and Lex’s Deathstroke, two assassins with family issues, could go to war to prove who the real alpha is. And as Gunn’s film proved, this villainous civil war can be as kooky as it is action-packed. After all, Bloodsport and Harley’s crew went up against Starro, showing they’re no walk in the park. There can also be high stakes, stemming from something as simple as Lex appropriating Starro’s mind-control abilities, which will warrant Waller deeming him a threat to national security.
Sure, the Suicide Squad is second-tier compared to the Justice League, but it feels like there’s just way too much explosive common ground for them to take on the Injustice League. And exploring this direction even paves the way for Lex and Waller to unite, eventually putting their best warriors together. By bringing the Suicide Squad and Injustice League to blow, the DCEU could follow a new direction while also not letting a key threads go to waste.
To see Task Force X in action, The Suicide Squad is currently in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.
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