There has been a lot talk among fans of which characters will survive director James Gunn’s new DC Comics adaptation and, for Blackguard, the odds of showing up in a sequel do not look very good.
Yet, I actually think adding him to the Suicide Squad cast is an ingenious choice, and I am looking forward to seeing it play out on screen, which probably sounds strange after I have already assumed him to have a short life expectancy in the film.
Created by DC Comics writer and artist Dan Jurgens , Blackguard is the evil alter ego of a man with the unfortunate name of Richard Hertz, which I am positive will serve as the inspiration of much mockery in The Suicide Squad.
Blackguard’s first mission for the super-criminal group, as seen in the first issue of Booster Gold’s self-titled series in 1986, was to accompany a fleet of troops in a robbery of S.T.A.R.
Given Richard Hertz’s lack of superpowers, The 1,000 was able to make him more superhuman with the aid of a special suit that enhances his physical strength, betters his basic skills in hand-to-hand combat, and comes equipped with a battle mace and shields created out of pure energy.
Realizing his incompetence while using the armor they trusted him with, The 1,000 sent a mystery mercenary known as Mindancer to break Blackguard out of his jail cell just so they could put him in their own custody.
Sometime later, while he was still down in the dumps over losing out on his shot with The 1,000, Blackguard came into contact with Neron, who is more or less the Satan of the DC Universe.
Neron agreed to his request and endowed him with average levels of intelligence and, in return, Blackguard was asked by the demon to team up with fellow villains Earthworm and Cheetah to take control of a superhero-themed bar called Warriors, which was owned by former Green Lantern, Guy Gardner.
As you could have likely guessed, the attack on Warrior’s did not go in the villains’ favor, and even resulted in what initially appeared to be Guy Gardner incinerating Blackguard.
After years behind bars, Blackguard was given another chance to prove his worth as a supervillain, but it would also be his last.
Now operating the Suicide Squad on her own, Amanda Waller took an interest in Blackguard as a potential new member.
As it turns out, the General was actually planning to turn against the team and did so by promptly ripping Richard Hertz’s head off.
Of course, the man has been known to be extremely lucky at times, such as when he came out without a scratch when Guy Gardner’s attack should have killed him, so perhaps he will just be part of a running gag in The Suicide Squad in which he just barely survives what should have been a bitter end.
Jason has been writing since he was able to pick up a washable marker, with which he wrote his debut illustrated children’s story, later transitioning to a short-lived comic book series and amateur filmmaking before finally settling on pursuing a career in writing about movies in lieu of making them.