DC’s Suicide Squad has made a habit of recruiting reputable villains, often against their will, to fight on behalf of the US government. Amanda Waller ruthlessly spearheads the group, turning the squad into a lethal force. Over the years, the Suicide Squad has lost its fair share of members. Thankfully for Waller though, there is no shortage of potential members to add to its ranks. She’s not picky about the types of shady characters she brings in to join the squad’s ranks. Regardless of whether they are human or not, any villain with useful abilities is eligible to become a member of the squad.
As a result, the Suicide Squad has recruited a number of both powerful and weak characters. The squad’s diversity of members and its ranging power levels allow them to take on a variety of operations. From simple recovery missions to traveling to alternate dimensions or planets, the squad takes on all kinds of missions that normal people wouldn’t even attempt. Granted, when the members are fighting on behalf of Amanda Waller, the options are to accept the challenge or risk termination.
Updated on September 15th, 2021 by Amanda Bruce: While some members of the Suicide Squad are well known in other franchises, like Batman’s Penguin, others are a little more obscure, like Weasel. Thanks to the 2016 and 2021 movies from Warner Brothers, however, even superhero fans unfamiliar with the comics are getting to know many members of the Suicide Squad. Not every member of the team can be a powerhouse, and the unevenly matched Suicide Squad powers and abilities are part of what makes them so fun to watch. Even the weakest member of the team can play a big role.
25 Weakest: Slipknot
Slipknot has had frequent run-ins with bad luck since his inclusion in the Suicide Squad. Whether it’s in comics or in the movie adaptation, Slipknot always has the unfortunate luck of losing a limb – or his life.
In the comics, he is easily duped by Captain Boomerang into believing that Waller’s explosive threat was a bluff and the same happens in the 2016 movie too. It also doesn’t help that his skills, while best suited for heists and subduing his opponents, do not make him the most effective combatant. If Waller’s bombs don’t kill him, his cockiness and lack of combat ability certainly will. He’s truly one of the worst Suicide Squad members.
24 Weakest: Karin Grace
Unlike most of the Suicide Squads’ other members, Karin Grace was not forced into joining the squad. She joined as a favor to Rick Flag, whom she was seeing at the time. During her time as a member, Karin made many contributions as she even helped the squad finish certain missions. However, she does not have much power compared to some of the other members. As a trained agent, Karin does have knowledge in hand-to-hand combat and firearms training, but her real strength lies more with her skills as a combat medic.
She did demonstrate signs of psychic abilities that allowed her to look into and transport the squad to another dimension. However, this was only temporary as Karin does not display any further abilities beyond that of an ordinary soldier.
23 Weakest: Briscoe
Briscoe was the Suicide Squad’s personal pilot. Similar to the other members of the squad, Briscoe had a disturbing personality trait that allowed him to fit in. In his case, his trait revolves around his obsession with his combat helicopter, Sheba, that he uses to transport the squad. Named after his deceased daughter, Briscoe’s obsession with his helicopter runs quite deep. He takes great care of Sheba’s maintenance and even insists on sleeping in it. During the events of Apokolips Now, Briscoe is killed after his helicopter gets swarmed by parademons, causing him to crash.
Even though he was a skilled pilot, he had no additional skills. However, he was extremely loyal to the cause. Briscoe is gutsy and goes to great lengths to fulfill his mission. In his last moments, he risks his life to make sure the Suicide Squad makes it to Apokolips.
22 Weakest: Captain Boomerang
Similar to Deadshot, Captain Boomerang is one of the longest surviving members of the Suicide Squad. However, he is not one of their strongest characters. If anything, he is actually one of their weaker members. Unlike Deadshot, he does not possess the same ruthless drive to get what he wants. In addition, his weapon of choice happens to be boomerangs.
He knows his way around hand-to-hand combat and he is a noticeable threat to regular soldiers with his signature weapons. However, this is not the case with the other members of the Suicide Squad. Furthermore, he also demonstrates frequent acts of cowardice and won’t hesitate to sacrifice others to save his skin. If anything, the only real purpose for Captain Boomerang is to serve as the squad’s comic relief.
21 Weakest: Harley Quinn
She is one of the most unpredictable fighters in the Suicide Squad, as Harley Quinn’s time in the DCEU demonstrates pretty well, but when she’s compared to the host of powers available to her teammates, she’s definitely not the strongest.
Harley is actually the weak link in a lot of missions. Just as in the movies, she tends to have her own game at play, ready to get out and leave everyone behind. That doesn’t exactly turn out well for her in the 2016 Suicide Squad as her escape lands her right back with the team. Her tendency to go off-book or wind up with the enemy means she often messes up the mission for the rest of the group. She also doesn’t have the sheer power of someone like Killer Frost or El Diablo to help the team get out of those sticky situations.
20 Weakest: Clock King
Out of all the villains in DC comics, Clock King is without question one of the worst. Aside from his impeccable sense of time, his intelligence, and his technological prowess, he doesn’t really stand out as a villain. Clock King does not possess any other abilities that would qualify him as a threat.
His only real purpose would be for support and as a strategist. While timing is something that’s important during the Suicide Squad’s operations, Clock King’s lack of physical abilities in the field makes him more of a liability than an asset.
19 Weakest: Savant
In theory, Savant isn’t weak. He’s a master of several fighting forms. He’s also resistant to a lot of forms of torture because his memory is nonlinear, so his experiences don’t line up in his head in the way they do in reality, allowing him to hold off the effects on his psyche. Unfortunately, that only works for so long.
The comics show this in a way the DCEU didn’t. After being tortured for days, he’s unaffected, but months later, he feels the psychological effects of that torture as if it just happened, causing him to lose focus in the field. The DCEU, instead, showed him as the weak link in his Suicide Squad team. While the rest of the team launched themselves into battle, he tried to flee, making him a casualty of Amanda Waller instead of the mission itself.
18 Weakest: Bloodsport
Bloodsport does manage to do something no one else in The Suicide Squad movie does: break away from Amanda Waller and get her workers to lead his team off of their standard mission. While that’s an impressive feat, he’s still one of the weaker team members because of just how easily he is manipulated by others.
Not only does his daughter push his buttons when she pays him a visit, but Amanda Waller very quickly figures out exactly how to get him to cooperate despite him not wanting to be a Suicide Squad member. Even in the comics, his big criminal act is the result of someone else’s machinations. He’s tricked into being the one who uses the kryptonite bullet against Superman by Lex Luthor.
17 Weakest: Peacemaker
Peacemaker, like Bloodsport and Rick Flag, is a great combatant. All three of them have similar fighting styles and understand a variety of weapons. He doesn’t, however, live up to Flag’s leadership skills, even if he does manage to best Flag in a fight.
Like Bloodsport, Peacemaker is easily manipulated. He isn’t strong enough to see just how Amanda Waller is using them, unlike his teammates, and it causes him to turn on them. Of course, just because he exhibits that particular weakness doesn’t mean the audience will have seen the last of him on screen. A Peacemaker HBO Max series is on the way.
16 Weakest: Penguin
Although Penguin appeared in the first three issues of the Suicide Squad comics, he did not start out as a member. If anything, he acts more like a business partner and only helps the squad for the benefit of financial gain. In later incarnations, he continues to act as a broker to help them accomplish their missions. For example, in Assault on Arkham, Penguin provides temporary shelter for the squad as well as weapons and information to help them infiltrate into Arkham Asylum.
It was not until Suicide Squad # 5, that Penguin temporarily became a member of the Suicide Squad to help them out on a mission to Moscow. Unfortunately, Penguin’s contributions are only limited to providing resources and relying on his underworld connections. Although he makes up for his lack of combat experience with his arsenal of trick umbrellas and multiple henchmen, he is useless without them.
15 Weakest: Mindboggler
Originally a member of the Assassination Bureau, Mindboggler was once contracted to take out Firestorm. In the end, she failed her mission and later accepts Amanda Waller’s offer to join the Suicide Squad.
Mindboggler can use her powers to manipulate the minds of her enemies and can induce illusions capable of affecting her target’s five senses. She is remorseless and has even used her powers to manipulate the mind of fellow squad member, Captain Boomerang. In addition to scaring him, she also humiliated him in front of the rest of the Suicide Squad. With her powers, it seems she would be one of the Suicide Squad’s more powerful members. Unfortunately, this was not meant to be. In the end, she was ironically killed off by the person she herself once humiliated — talk about Karma.
14 Weakest: Weasel
Weasel is a member of Firestorm rogues gallery who was unfortunate enough to be recruited into the Suicide Squad. Originally a colleague of professor Stein, he was a very bitter individual that was teased as a student and harbored resentment for his fellow faculty. This later drove him to murder them, though he was eventually stopped by Firestorm.
Aside from having the powers of his namesake and his animalistic bloodlust, Weasel doesn’t possesses any additional abilities that make him stand out among the rest of the squad. Eventually, he meets his end at the hands of Rick Flag in the comics. He might be a little more durable on the screen in 2021’s The Suicide Squad, but the audience doesn’t get to see what he can do.
13 Strongest: Rick Flag
Unlike most members of the Suicide Squad, Rick Flag isn’t a supervillain. He’s a military commander who finds himself drafted to help Amanda Waller’s team succeed on their missions. That’s true of both the comics and the movies. He also doesn’t have any special powers, so how does Rick Flag make it as one of the strongest Suicide Squad members?
It’s because his leadership is necessary. Flag manages to (mostly) keep the villains in check when some of them really don’t care whether they live or die on a mission. He’s smart enough to find his way out of some of the most lethal situations, and he’s usually conscious of just how Amanda Waller is manipulating him and the team.
12 Strongest: King Shark
A character doesn’t have to be a human or a metahuman to end up on a Suicide Squad mission. King Shark, an anthropomorphic shark, is living proof of that. While the 2021 movie doesn’t show that his intellect is the same as that of the comics, it does show that he’s virtually indestructible.
King Shark is tougher than the average person. With thick skin, he’s resistant to many bullets, knives, and bites. The 2021 The Suicide Squad movie makes him one of the strongest Suicide Squad members as he’s actually able to launch himself at Starro and bite out chunks of the being while the rest of the team finds themselves in a bit more danger.
11 Strongest: Killer Croc
Killer Croc is one of the most powerful members of the Suicide Squad for the same reason King Shark is: he’s nearly indestructible. He might not exactly get along with the rest of the team, but he can cut down just about any enemy in their way.
Not only is he at home in the water and on land, making him perfect for missions that need swimmers, but he also has superhuman reflexes and the ability to heal. He can even regrow lost limbs with a little time, just like most reptilian creatures.
10 Strongest: Ratcatcher 2
Inspired by the comic book Ratcatcher, this is the only Suicide Squad member created exclusively for the DCEU (so far). Her ability to communicate with rats and get them to follow her lead became an indispensable skill in the movie.
Though she might not be as physically strong as some of the teammates she ends up with, Cleo Cazo can hold her own as they bicker amongst themselves. Peacemaker nearly brings her life to an end, but she manages to survive his attack, and lead an entire city’s worth of rats against Starro. That’s impressive and nearly enough to make her the most powerful Suicide Squad member – on screen, anyway.
9 Strongest: Cheetah
Though she might not have been a member of the Suicide Squad on the big screen, Cheetah has done time with Task Force X in the comics. Typically a Wonder Woman villain, Cheetah’s skills are pretty versatile and can be a great asset to the team.
Not only are her reflexes, strength, and speed superior to humans in general, but Cheetah also has literal claws to use against her enemies. She’s also capable for controlling her namesake, just like Ratcatcher. She might not always have cheetahs at her disposal, but her fighting skills certainly make up for that.
8 Strongest: Deadshot
As one of the most frequently recurring members of the Suicide Squad–and the longest surviving–Deadshot has earned quite the reputation. Deadshot’s proficiency with firearms makes him one of the top assassins in the DC universe. He also happens to be skilled in hand-to-hand combat and can fight on equal terms against powerful fighters like Batman.
Additionally, a factor that makes him one of the squad’s strongest is his determination to fulfill his goal. One of Deadshot’s strongest motivations is to eventually take out Waller for forcing him into the squad. While he may possess excellent qualities that make him the unofficial leader of the squad, he is also known for being ruthless. He won’t even hesitate to kill fellow squad members that step out of line, especially if they threaten Waller as he believes that only he has the right to kill her.
7 Strongest: Deathstroke
Unlike most members, Deathstroke’s time in the Suicide Squad was quite short. Appearing briefly as a turncoat during the New Suicide Squad series, Deathstroke pursues a group of Russians who offer him a more profitable deal. It’s no surprise that Deathstroke could not be contained. He is well known as the world’s deadliest assassin and has more than once proven himself worthy of this title – even Deadshot has trouble competing with him.
Deathstroke’s strength and reflexes are 10 times that of an average soldier. He can even use 90% of his brain, making him one of the world’s best tactical strategists. His skills have allowed him to beat multiple members of the league and even fight on equal ground with Superman.
6 Strongest: Poison Ivy
A lot of comic book fans associate Poison Ivy with Harley Quinn thanks to their relationship in modern comics, but she has a long history before meeting up with Harley. In fact, Ivy was a member of the Suicide Squad even before Harley was, having first appeared in the comics during the 1980s.
As one of the champions of “the Green”, Poison Ivy possesses the power to control all plant life. She also possesses several other abilities, including the power to control humans using plant pheromones, mutate plant life into monstrous creations, and can create giant vines capable of bringing down buildings. It is revealed by Swamp Thing that Poison Ivy’s abilities may have a semi-mythical component. He has further stated that her power rivals his own, calling her the “May Queen,” a personification of spring and summer. She’s one of the most powerful Suicide Squad members, if not the strongest member of the Suicide Squad in the comics.
5 Strongest: El Diablo
A former gang leader turned pacifist, El Diablo has led a long and troubled life. In the film adaptation of Suicide Squad, Amanda Waller claims that El Diablo is one of the most powerful metahumans in the world. Sure enough, in both the movie and the comics, El Diablo has more than enough firepower to back up this claim.
It is revealed that El Diablo’s powers are based in magic. He received them on behalf of Lazarus Lane, the first El Diablo. In the film adaptation, El Diablo demonstrates a new ability to transform into a demonic flaming avatar. This avatar was powerful enough to take on Incubus, a demonic entity from another dimension. El Diablo has also demonstrated other powerful abilities, including being able to travel to hell. If anything, this character has only begun to tap into his latent potential, proving he is one of the most powerful Suicide Squad members.
4 Strongest: Killer Frost
As one of the incarnations of Killer Frost, Louise Lincoln is well known for being one of the powerhouses of the Suicide Squad. Her brand of ice-based powers is distinct from other ice villains. One big reason is that she does not have a weakness to flamethrowers or other fire-based abilities. This is due to her powers being centered around thermokinetic cryokinesis. In other words, she can take extremely elevated temperatures and convert the thermal energy to make her sub-zero powers even stronger.
In terms of power and ability, she could potentially surpass even El Diablo as his fire-based powers would only make her stronger. During the One Year Later storyline, she even claims to be able to absorb the thermal energy of the Sun, and, in Justice League vs. Suicide Squad #2, she proves this by absorbing yellow solar energy from Superman to freeze the entire Justice League. The Flash’s version of Killer Frost hasn’t quite shown that level of power in the series but has been able to become a distinct person from her original host, Caitlyn Snow.
3 Strongest: Parasite
Parasite was drafted into the Suicide Squad in New Suicide Squad #9. Arguably one of the strongest members ever to join the squad, Parasite is an immensely powerful villain. Thanks to his ability to absorb the powers and abilities of the people he touches, he’s a recognized threat to even Superman.
Additionally, by absorbing excessive amounts of energy Parasite’s body mutates and becomes even stronger. After absorbing the powers of Strange Visitor and a shapeshifter, his powers have been upgraded. This includes an extended period of time in which Parasite can keep the powers he absorbs. He also develops the ability to absorb the memories of the people he touches, allowing him to learn the secret identities of heroes such as Superman. Parasite’s potential for power makes him one of the toughest members in the history of the Suicide Squad.
2 Strongest: Black Adam
The ruler of Khandaq and nemesis to Shazam, Black Adam was once a member of the Suicide Squad. During his first appearance in the Suicide Squad comics, Black Adam requests their aid to help fight the sorceress, Circe. It was only during the interim period of Suicide Squad Vol. 2 & 3, that he temporarily joined the team.
Black Adam was once a candidate capable of replacing the wizard Shazam, but he was unfortunately corrupted by the power he received. Unlike his nemesis, Billy Batson, who receives the powers of seven Greek gods, Black Adam receives his powers from seven Egyptian gods. Black Adam is virtually an unstoppable powerhouse that even Superman cannot defeat on his own. In addition, with Sinestro’s help, Black Adam was able to move the Moon. He definitely earned his spot as one of the most powerful Suicide Squad members
1 Strongest: Enchantress
Since her introduction, the Enchantress has earned her spot as the strongest Suicide Squad member. After her encounter with the demon Dzamor, June Moone was fused with an extra-dimensional demonic entity. The resulting fusion led June to develop her Enchantress persona, which she could switch to by saying her alter ego’s name. As one of DC’s most powerful magic users, there is little that Enchantress cannot accomplish. She has demonstrated that she has virtually no limits when it comes to her powers which range from flight, teleportation, healing, elemental manipulation, and much more.
In the New 52 comic book line, Enchantress only became more powerful. She has even surpassed Zatanna, who is powerful enough to do anything in terms of magical ability.