Iron Man’s Extremis Virus Gets A Deadlier Twist With DC’s Version

Warning: Contains spoilers for Suicide Squad: Blaze #1

The Suicide Squad is back, and this time they’re paired with a group of new recruits that have been infected with something that’s shockingly similar to Iron Man‘s Extremis virus…but potentially deadlier. Suicide Squad: Blaze is penned and designed by the creative team of Simon Spurrier, Aaron Campbell and Jordie Bellaire. The new series introduces Task Force X to five prisoners who have been injected with an experimental new substance called Blaze that grants them superpowers at a deadly price. At first glance, this has a striking similarity to the virus found in the famous Iron Man comic story, Extremis. When a new twist on the premise is revealed at the end though, it puts things into perspective by giving a horrid peek at where things may be heading.

The Extremis story arc from the 2004 Iron Man series focused on the titular Extremis virus, a biological weapon that was an attempt at reproducing the Super Soldier Serum that created Captain America. When injected, the virus grants the host with exuberant amounts of power including strength, regeneration and pyrokinesis. Administered at low doses though, it can be controlled, as seen later in the series when Tony Stark has it injected into himself to recover from injuries sustained during battle and to take on the villain, Mallen. This is not a virus that should be taken lightly in the comics universe, but Suicide Squad: Blaze has found a way to one-up it.

Much like the Extremis virus, Blaze is an experimental procedure administered by Amanda Waller and her crew that imbues the host with superpowers. The abilities the host will receive are completely random, unlike Extremis, as shown by each patient receiving powers ranging from psychic abilities to invisible arms. They all have one thing in common that makes the Extremis virus seem more palatable. While the host gains unmentionable power, it radically decreases their life span to three months. Blaze is a terminal procedure. It really brings to question whether it’s worth it or not. After all, Blaze is clearly a deadlier version of Extremis. It’s not until the final panels though when Blaze’s true potential is unveiled and why it will likely end up becoming the deadliest threat the Suicide Squad ever faces.

At the end of the issue Harley Quinn, King Shark, Peacemaker and Captain Boomerang are parachuted down along with their new superpowered recruits to take out a target. When one of them is killed in battle though, the major difference between Extremis and Blaze is revealed. While Extremis is viewed more as an independent infection, Blaze works more like a hive-mind. Everyone who receives the treatment together is connected, and when one dies, they all gain a bit of their power with their lifespan decreasing even further. This immediately sets the danger level to a red alert as it makes the reader realize that if one Blaze recipient is left standing, the DC Universe is in trouble. Since the hosts gain their fallen teammate’s power upon death, this can lead to the last Blaze user having the abilities of a god. And while their lifespan may be shrunk down to a ludicrous level since the transference chips away at their days to live, even if they end up with one minute left, the mere thought of what they can do with the strength of all five Blaze members is terrifying.

Extremis and Blaze may have some similarities, but Blaze clearly outclasses in terms of deadliness for both the host and the people around them. For the individual, they lose more hours on Earth with every dying team member. For the world, they risk facing the most powerful metahuman in DC history. No matter the outcome, Suicide Squad: Blaze is going to be a comic series to keep an eye on. Blaze makes the Extremis virus that Iron Man dealt with look like child’s play, and the Suicide Squad are likely going to take on one of the scariest forces they’ve ever fought.

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