The Suicide Squad Does The Biggest Thing 2016’s Movie Failed To

James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad really does justice to its name and premise, unlike the 2016 movie. With the former functioning as a sequel linking back to 2016’s original Suicide Squad, the latter promised to introduce a team of DC villains who would reluctantly put their lives on the line to ensure Amanda Waller’s mission was successful. The title of the film suggests many, or perhaps all, the members of Task Force X can die at any moment. But among many other flaws, the first Suicide Squad movie only killed off a few characters — all of whom were predicted to die early into the movie.

These characters were Slipknot, whose ability to climb anything didn’t really contribute anything to the team, El Diablo, whose tragic backstory telegraphed his heroic sacrifice as soon as he was introduced, and Enchantress, June Moon’s villain counterpart who was defeated in a clichéd final battle. Suicide Squad made it clear that Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and the Joker (who faked his death at one point in the film) were always safe, regardless of how dire the situation looked. Fortunately, James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad fixed this issue right from the get-go.

The Suicide Squad‘s first action sequence killed off multiple characters in a gruesome fashion, but the sequel’s unpredictability didn’t come only from its shock value. Weasel appeared to die even before the battle began, and Captain Boomerang, who survived the events of the first movie and developed a friendly relationship with Harley Quinn, also met an unfortunate end just a few minutes in. The movie opened with a tough and determined Savant as the audience’s point of view, only to reveal him as the soon-to-die weak link in Amanda Waller’s “bad” Task Force X team, which was promptly decimated.  The Suicide Squad did more justice to its name than its predecessor just by killing off seven members before the main story had even begun.

While this is a vast improvement, The Suicide Squad also went a step forward and refused to give Rick Flag, Polka-Dot Man, and Peacemaker unlimited protection from death. Rick Flag went from compliant soldier to righteous hero who preferred to die over betraying his own principles, Polka-Dot Man found meaning in his traumatic past at the very last moment, and Peacemaker earned a bullet to the throat because of his undying wish to achieve “peace” at all costs. King Shark, Bloodsport, and Ratcatcher 2 also came close, and Starro received a tragic death upon admitting he never had evil intentions.

The Suicide Squad is chock-full of character deaths, and all serve a purpose within the story. It was only until the end credits that Weasel and Peacemaker were revealed to be alive, and Amanda Waller finally got the chance to use her bomb implants in the movie. Although it was evident that prominent characters such as Harley Quinn and Bloodsport were always less likely to bite the dust, the movie did succeed in preserving the notion that nobody was safe.

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