History
The original Secret Society of Super-Villains was secretly created by Darkseid as a replacement for the ineffectual Intergang,[1] although it quickly developed into something much more autonomous and individual. Drawing together eight like-minded super-villains, Darkseid also filled out the team's roster with a duped Captain Comet and the clone of Paul Kirk, the original Manhunter. The initial line-up consisted of Captain Boomerang, Captain Cold, Copperhead, Gorilla Grodd, Mirror Master, Shadow Thief, Sinestro and Star Sapphire.[2], though Shadow Thief almost immediately departed and was replaced by Hi-Jack. After discovering the machinations involved in their collective origin, the team quickly began rebelling against their leadership and struggling to function on their own. The team gained numerous members including Funky Flashman, who became their 'agent', publicist and, briefly, leader, and went on to plague several heroes and groups of heroes, while being persistently pursued by Captain Comet. Although entirely self-controlled, the Society continued to have struggles within the group for Leadership throughout most of their career, eventually ending up with a core group consisting of Star Sapphire, Plant Master, Blockbuster and Professor Zoom under the leadership of the Wizard, who embarked on some of their most ambitious schemes. While a second sub group of the Society under the command of the Mirror Master fought the Freedom Fighters while in the service of the Silver Ghost, the Wizard's core team attempted to eliminate the Justice Society of America but were beaten back and left trapped in an interdimensional limbo. Resurfacing months later, they used an ancient artifact to swap bodies with five members of the Justice League of America (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Zatanna and Green Lantern, but were defeated again (though they did learn the secret identities of the five heroes, leading the League to erase their memories and indirectly leading to the events of Identity Crisis, all facts which were revealed much later). Following this incident, the Wizard's Society was effectively dissolved (though they have since returned to face the Justice League again) but a second version of the Society was formed a short time later by the Ultra-Humanite (see Secret Society of Super-Villains II).
Notes
The events chronicled above occurred prior to the Crisis on Infinite Earths and while most of these events likely occurred in current continuity too, some details may have been altered since history was rewritten by the Crisis.
See Also
- 38 Appearances of Secret Society of Super-Villains I
- 5 Images that include Secret Society of Super-Villains I
- Team Gallery: Secret Society of Super-Villains I
Links and References
The Earth-One Index The Secret Society of Super-Villains