With the release of The Suicide Squad directed by James Gunn, I have decided to rank every character from the film. Major spoilers ahead:
17. Mongal: Of the characters from the doomed “A Team” Mongal has little to no moments in which she stands out. While barely any of the members from the first team aside from Harley and Flag have much to do, they at least get one or two moments to stand out before they are killed off. Mongal is given practically nothing aside from one line before she idiotically attempts to take down a helicopter by grabbing onto it and getting herself and Captain Boomerang killed.
16. Captain Boomerang: While it was easy to predict from the trailers that Captain Boomerang would not live long in the film, I still could not predict just how quickly he would be killed off. Being one of the only four characters to return from the original Suicide Squad, Boomerang is quickly axed off when Mongal crashes the helicopter on the beaches of Corto Maltese. It’s a shame that Jai Courtney was only in the film for a few seconds as his character was one of the few redeeming qualities that the original film had. However, he at least has a beautifully graphic kill scene with his boomerang and few nice moments of camaraderie with Harley, even giving her a sincere smile as a way of saying goodbye before he is violently torn apart.
15. Weasel: Sean Gunn is an actor who deserves way more credit. Not only does he do the motion capture for Rocket Raccoon in the MCU, but his brief role as Weasel is something to be admired. The character is the first one taken out of the film, with the team failing to realize that this mindless feral creature cannot swim. A lot of the film’s laughs are from this character as he is easily the dumbest member of the team, yet also the most unsettling, being said to have killed 27 kids. After drowning and being thought to have been killed, the character wakes up in the mid-credits scene and runs off. Maybe we will see the character die an a possible sequel.
14. TDK: It pains to me to see one of my favorite actors wasted in this movie, but at least Nathan Fillion gets a few moments to briefly shine before he gets killed at the beginning of the film. TDK (also known as “The Detachable Kid”) is quite possibly the most useless member of the first team, with him only having the ability to remove his arms and use them to slap people around at worst. However, he seems to be absolutely convinced that his power is not useless as seen with how determined he looks when using his ability. His death scene is absolutely hilarious as all it takes for him to get killed is when the Corto Maltese soldiers shoot his arms which causes him to bleed out.
13. Blackguard: Even before the trailer came out, I knew Pete Davidson’s character wasn’t going to make it. Going by the character’s name alone, he didn’t even sound like someone who was going to be a main character. Despite myself seeing his death coming from a mile away, Blackguard still stands out for being the reason that the entire first team is killed off, as he contacted the Corto Maltesean soldiers before going on the mission. However, this does little to help him as he is the first to be brutally murdered by the vicious soldiers. Davidson’s brief but very entertaining performance elevates Blackguard far more than necessary as he is shown to be very dimwitted and gullible, as seen when he believes Harley’s claim that Weasel is a werewolf and freaks out. Blackguard is definitely not the most important character in the film, but he is probably one of the more entertaining characters from the film’s opening.
12. Javelin: Before the trailers came out, I instantly knew that this guy would bite it. The other characters at least seemed like they might have had a chance, but just looking at Javelin immediately screamed cannon fodder to me. The trailers pretty much confirmed my prediction as they did very little to hide his death in the film. However, of the team members who are killed off in the opening, Javelin arguably has the most importance as he gives Harley his signature weapon before dying, which she uses for the majority of the film. He is also shown to be somewhat laid back and affable, attempting to strike up a conversation with TDK about the latter’s name and flirting with Harley over his accent. Despite him not having a ton of screen time due to him being one of the doomed characters from the film’s opening, I liked Javelin way more than I thought I would.
11. Savant: I just adore Michael Rooker more with each project that I see him in. His role in this film is more or less a cameo, but he still brings a great deal of personality despite not having that many lines or screen time. Of the characters who are killed in the opening, Savant easily gets the most screen time. From what we are shown of his personality, he seems to be the most grounded member of the first time alongside Flag and seems to have more experience in combat than the others. However, he is also very unpleasant and cowardly. He needlessly kills a canary with a ball, calls the other Task Force X members amateurs and tries to abandon the mission when he sees them all die. However, he fails to remember the bomb in his neck and pays the price for it. The canary eating his remains after his head explodes is just icing on the cake.
10. The Thinker: While the version of the Thinker that appeared in the fourth season of The Flash is probably a better portrayal of the character, I still believe that the Thinker that we see in the film is very well handled. As a scientist who works for the ruthless dictator of Corto Maltese Silvio Luna, the Thinker is shown to very manipulative yet well spoken. He is the head scientist in Project Starfish, experimenting on Starro the Conqueror and using several innocent people as test subjects. Like always, Peter Capaldi just oozes with charm in his performance. One of my favorite moments with him is when he makes a quip about Ratcatcher 2’s threat to have a ton of angry rats crawl inside his body. His death at the hands of Starro is absolutely brutal but well deserved. While I wish that Capaldi had been in more of the film, I am glad that he was at least given more screen time than actors who were wasted like Nathan Fillion and Jai Courtney.
9. Starro the Conqueror: Years ago if you told me that a giant starfish from outer space would be the main villain of a live-action DC movie, I would not believe it. I wouldn’t question it with an animated movie or even a live-action television series, but I did not think that they would be willing to do that for a movie, let alone one that was under DC and WB. However, I am so happy that James Gunn was able to get full creative freedom for this movie, as not many directors would have the guts or ability to try and bring Starro the Conqueror into live-action. Nevertheless, Gunn was unsurprisingly able to pull it off. Originally an alien who was aimlessly floating through outer space, Starro was picked up by astronauts and brought to a Nazi base called Jotunheim in Corto Maltese. The Thinker performed several horrific experiments on it along with hundreds of innocent people. It is eventually revealed that the U.S. government was involved with Project Starfish, which is why Waller sent the team in to destroy it, not to save lives but to cover up the government’s role in it. When Starro is released and wreaks havoc on Corto Maltese, it is absolutely horrifying as it is able to crush buildings with its giant body and take control over people by having tiny versions of itself attach to their faces. Starro’s death at the hands of Ratcatcher 2 is epic but also tragic, as the creature’s final words are of it lamenting that it would have been happier if it was just left alone floating through space. Starro’s final words are quite tragic as it was originally just a creature that was taken from its natural habitat. The fact that the film is able to make you feel sorry for a giant evil CGI starfish is quite impressive. Starro is not the most complex character in the film, but it is easily one of the most fascinating antagonists in the DCEU.
8. King Shark: King Shark is a character whom I have been seeing a lot of lately. From his first live-action appearance in The Flash to his absolutely brilliant portrayal by Ron Funches in the Harley Quinn animated series, this character seems to have gotten quite the following. As a famous member of the titular team, it was inevitable that we would see him in this movie. David Ayer originally even wanted to use King Shark in the 2016 film, but feared that he would be too expensive and instead went with Killer Croc. Nunaue/King Shark (voiced by Sylvester Stallone) is portrayed in this movie as a simple minded and childlike yet extremely dangerous member of the team who simply just wants to have friends in his life. While he still greatly enjoys eating people, Nunaue is still an immensely endearing character who will never eat someone he considers to be his ally. I still adore Funches’ version of the character in the Harley Quinn animated series, but this version is shown to be even more lovable and engaging. Stallone provides a hilarious voice for the character and greatly helps the film’s comedy by giving the character a very dumb but sweet edge. Special mention should go to Steve Agee who physically portrayed the character on set and deserves just as much of the praise as Stallone.
7. Rick Flag: This movie has made me appreciate Joel Kinnaman far more than I ever thought I would. Colonel Rick Flag was one of the four characters from the original film to return for its standalone sequel. However, unlike the first Suicide Squad, Flag is much more interesting and charismatic. He is no longer a bland and forgettable protagonist with a generic love interest but instead one of the most charming characters in the movie. Flag is sent on the diversion team in the opening of the film and is the only survivor alongside Harley (and later Weasel as the post credits scene revealed). After being rescued by the freedom fighters and joining the main characters, Flag is shown to be a more laid back character who is able to give a sense of camaraderie with members like Bloodsport and especially Harley. When it is revealed that the Americans were responsible for the horrific experiments around Starro and Waller only put him with Task Force X to destroy the evidence, Flag becomes enraged and attempts to reveal the evidence to the press. This shows a much more humane side to Flag that I did not expect to see. Unfortunately, he is brutally murdered by Peacemaker in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the film (pun intended). If Flag was killed in the first Suicide Squad, I would not have cared in the slightest. However, thanks to Gunn’s writing and the better direction that he gave Kinnaman, his death is easily one of the saddest moments in the film. If I had one regret surrounding the film, it would be that we won’t see Kinnaman as the character in a future movie.
6. Polka-Dot Man: It brings me so much joy to see David Dastmalchian in such a major role in a blockbuster of a film. The actor has been in a ton of superhero media, especially with DC so it was nice to finally see him in a leading role. With Abner Krill/Polka Dot Man, the actor easily gives his best performance to date as this very odd and obscure but nonetheless tragic character. A character with the ability to disintegrate people by shooting literal polka-dots, Krill is one of the more quiet characters in the film who does not enjoy killing people unless he absolutely has to. However, the hilarious and surprisingly deep twist is that he can only kill people if he imagines them to be his abusive mother, who was a S.T.A.R. Labs scientist performing experiments on him and his siblings so they could gain super powers. When he states that he is the crazy one of the group, it isn’t because he prides himself on being a psychopath. It is because he is quite literally going crazy due to seeing everyone as his mother. His polka-dots are extremely deadly to his enemies but also to himself as well, as if he does not vomit them up twice a day, he will grow tumors all over his body and eventually die. His unexpected death at the hands of Starro is heartbreaking as it occurred only seconds after he found purpose and happiness in feeling like a super hero. While he is easily one of the most obscure characters in DC history, Polka-Dot Man is absolutely one of the most memorable characters in the film.
5. Amanda Waller: Viola Davis is honestly perfect as Amanda Waller. I cannot imagine anyone else in the role, especially after this film. Waller was easily one of the highlights of the first Suicide Squad movie. Even in that film’s worst moments, Davis shined as the corrupt government official. As the orchestrator of Task Force X, Waller serves as the overarching villain of the film, with her ruthlessly forcing Bloodsport to join the team by threatening to send his daughter to the most dangerous prison in the world. Waller proves to just as cold in this film if not more so. She deliberately sends Flag, Harley and the rest of the first Task Force X team on a suicide mission so they could serve as a diversion for the Corte Maltesean soldiers in order for Bloodsport and his teammates to infiltrate the beaches of Corto Maltese undetected. She even admits to an associate that he doesn’t know half of the things she’d do to achieve her goals. The ending of the film shows an unstable side to Waller as she screams at the top of her lungs to the team when they refuse to follow her orders to let Starro destroy Corto Maltese. While Waller was great in the previous film, she was even better here.
4. Peacemaker: Whenever a former WWE wrestler pursues a movie career it can go very poorly. The two major exceptions to this are Dwayne Johnson and Dave Bautista. When John Cena threw his hat into the ring in movies, it was a rather mixed bag. His movies like Blockers and Bumblebee are fine but then you have films like Playing with Fire, which is an abomination of a movie that should not be viewed by anyone. It wasn’t until I saw Cena in this that I was convinced that he could be an amazing actor. Cena portrays Christopher Smith/Peacemaker, a demented and self-righteous vigilante who believes in achieving peace at all costs no matter how many men, women and children he has to kill to get it. This is a fact that he himself stated. Peacemaker serves as the more or less second in command of Bloodsport’s team and develops a heated rivalry with him. Throughout the film, the two repeatedly argue and mock each-other. They go as far to have a contest to see who has the coolest amount of kills. The vigilante constantly shows a bloodlust and arrogant attitude throughout the film. However, there are a few moments in which he shows a glimpse of humanity. When killing Flag, he is shown to be quite upset as the man was a national hero and was absolutely right in how horrific the experiments of Project Starfish were. He is shown to be somewhat shaken by Flag’s final words of Peacemaker’s name being a joke, as the man is quite literally a walking contradiction. Even when attempting to kill Ratcatcher 2, Peacemaker does not want to murder her but still feels like he has no choice as he cannot trust her. Despite that, he is easily the least sympathetic member of the team and his defeat at the hands of Bloodsport is immensely satisfying. Unlike the other characters in the film, Peacemaker never changes as a person. He starts the movie as a monster and ends the movie as one. Cena has proven to me that he can be a terrific actor and I cannot wait to see the upcoming Peacemaker show on HBO Max.
3. Harley Quinn: Margot Robbie was born to play Harley Quinn. Even with the lackluster quality of the first film, most people agree that she was the best aspect of it. After Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn was released, Robbie proved that no one can play Harley Quinn in the DC Extended Universe besides her. While I loved Birds of Prey, I have to admit that Robbie’s Harley is even better in this film, with her being used to her full potential. Robbie’s Quinn is just as lovably insane as ever as she entertains phenomenally with very little effort. After receiving Javelin’s signature weapon after he dies, Harley is captured by the Corte Maltesean army and brought to the corrupt president Silvio Luna, who shows a romantic interest in her. As expected, Harley immediately hooks up with him before quickly murdering the dictator when he reveals that he plans to execute children by feeding them to Starro. After which she is captured and tortured by Luna’s more ruthless subordinate General Mateo Suarez before quickly escaping in one of the best scenes in the film and joining up with the titular team. Robbie is so entertaining in the role and never fails to shine as the character. Along with Birds of Prey, this film has proven that Harley does not need to be attached to the Joker to stand out as Robbie is honestly flawless as the character (and because Jared Leto is just awful as the Joker but more because of the former). I cannot wait to see Harley inevitably appear in the DCEU again.
2. Bloodsport: When it was announced that Will Smith would not be returning as Deadshot, many people assumed that Idris Elba would be recast as him. However, Gunn revealed that Elba would be portraying Bloodsport instead in order for Smith to return in a potential sequel. Despite that, many people still assumed that Bloodsport would basically be the same character as Deadshot. The fact that their skill set is extremely similar and their motivations regarding their daughters did little to convince people. The trailers only seemingly confirmed that Bloodsport would be a copy of Deadshot. However, this proved to be anything but he case as not only is Elba’s character extremely different from Smith’s Deadshot but he is honestly even better. Unlike Deadshot who is a loving father to his daughter and is rather indifferent when killing people for money, Robert DuBois/Bloodsport is the complete opposite. He is shown to enjoy killing people and has no problem being a horrible father to his daughter. This is shown to be the case when he repeatedly curses her out and insults her deceased mother as well as initially having no problem with his daughter going to prison when he believes that she will just be sent to juvenile hall for stealing a smart watch. However, a more humane side to the character emerges when he meets Cleo Cazo/Ratcatcher 2. Bloodsport initially dislikes Cleo due to his fear of rats and the fact that she repeatedly tries to bring out the good in him. However, upon hearing her tragic backstory, Bloodsport develops an attachment to her and eventually saves her from Peacemaker’s attempt on her life. His transformation into a leader is well thought out and very satisfying. Elba portrays the character with a hilarious amount of snark and gruffness that just makes the character so well defined and engaging. As the main character of the film, Bloodsport easily beats out Deadshot. If another Suicide Squad movie is made, I sincerely hope that Elba returns as the character.
1. Ratcatcher 2: Of the characters in the film, I was initially excited to see Ratcatcher 2 the least. The Ratcatcher character has never interested me and I did not see how this version would change my mind. However, I am happy to admit that that Ratcatcher 2 was easily my favorite character in the film. Cleo Cazo/Ratcatcher 2 is the daughter of the original Ratcatcher (played by Taika Waititi) who unlike the other characters is not actually a bad person. She is shown to be the only one who isn’t a killer and as such stands out among the group. While most of the other characters are hardened criminals with a violent edge, Cleo is a sweet and endearing individual who is kind to nearly everyone. She was only arrested because she robbed a bank with rats and the state she was put on trial in considered the rats a weapon. In addition to always being accompanied by her adorable pet rat Sebastian, Cleo is shown to be the friendliest member of her team as seen she offers to be King Shark’s friend just after he attempted to eat her and when she is the only one who doesn’t attempt to kill the camp of freedom fighters who the group thinks kidnapped Flag. Cleo’s bond with Bloodsport is extremely heartwarming as the two are almost completely different and yet are able to find common ground due to their tragic pasts surrounding their fathers. Despite her friendly nature and sweet personality, Cleo is definitely not a soft pushover as she is able to contribute to the team several times and is even the one to take down Starro. It has been stated that this character is the heart of the film, and I could not agree more. Daniela Melchior is incredible in the film and I cannot wait to see her appear as Ratcatcher 2 in the future.
