DC's Most Badass Team Officially Debut Hardcore New Roster And Costumes

The DC Universe's new team is composed of an unexpected roster of heroes and anti-heroes. While the Justice League and the Justice Society are flagship groups, DC has built a massive collection of teams just as compelling. The Suicide Squad carved out its own identity through dangerous black-ops missions, the Creature Commandos put classic horror monsters in the midst of military action, and the Doom Patrol embraces surreal science fiction. The Teen Titans and Young Justice explore the growth of DC's next generation of heroes, and the Legion of Super-Heroes do the same in a future timeline.

DC has also spent decades expanding its shared universe by integrating characters and concepts from acquired publishers and partner imprints. Perhaps the most influential additions came from Charlton, whose heroes Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, the Question, Peacemaker, Nightshade, and the original versions of the Watchmen-inspired characters became permanent parts of DC continuity. Fawcett introduced Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family, while Quality contributed Plastic Man, the Blackhawks, Uncle Sam, and the Freedom Fighters. Vertigo added John Constantine, Swamp Thing, Animal Man, and Lucifer Morningstar, while Milestone gradually brought Static, Icon, Rocket, Hardware, and the rest of the Dakotaverse closer to the main DC Universe.

Wildstorm is one of the imprints that have flown under the radar, but characters like Grifter, the Authority, StormWatch, and the WildCATs are still influencing the wider DC multiverse to this day.

DC Introduces A New Team Of WildCATs

Superman: Father Of Tomorrow #3; Written By Kenny Porter; Art By Danny Earls And Nick Filardi

Superman: Father of Tomorrow #3 shows how no effort to create a utopian world is safe from pushback, as Jor-El a.k.a. the Father of Tomorrow has shared his Kryptonian technology with the whole planet, only for his godlike power and intellect to be read as a threat to humanity. To prepare Earth for Superman's potential change of heart, General Lane enhances himself as Captain Atom and assembles a WildCATs team composed of Zealot, Void, G.I. Robot Mark II, Grifter, Deathstroke, and an armored Green Lantern. These characters seem loyal to Lane's philosophy of proactive defense against the world's most philanthropic superhero.

Void, Zealot, and Grifter are the three WildCATs from Superman: Father of Tomorrow's timeline who originally hail from the Wildstorm universe that housed the original team. G.I. Robot is perhaps the most famous member of the Creature Commandos, and Deathstroke is known for being an assassin-for-hire with no particular loyalty to any team. Meanwhile, the armored, helmeted Green Lantern's identity is a mystery, meaning they could be any of the human Lanterns from Sector 2814, a villainous cosmic character posing as a Green Lantern, or a brand-new member of the Corps making their debut in this continuity.

WildCATS Desperately Needs A Big-Budget Adaptation

DC Already Took The First Step Towards A WildCATs Movie Or Show

Today's superhero landscape has become far more welcoming to teams that once seemed too obscure for mainstream audiences. The recent success of the Suicide Squad, Peacemaker, and Creature Commandos has proved that general audiences appreciate unconventional ensembles with distinct personalities and strong worldbuilding, regardless of their established popularity in pop culture. WildCATs possesses many of those ingredients, supported by memorable characters like Grifter, Zealot, Spartan, Maul, Voodoo, Warblade, and Void. A modern production could fully capitalize on the WildCATs' strengths with large-scale action and high-end visual effects, whether in live-action or in animation.

The prospect of a WildCATs movie or show seems plausible following Maria Gabriela de Faría's introduction as the Authority's the Engineer in James Gunn's Superman. Although Gunn has since canceled The Authority movie, the Engineer's existence in the DCU suggests other Wildstorm characters already exist. The Authority's live-action debut, at least as individual characters, opens the door to other Wildstorm adaptations as audiences become familiar with that branch of the DC catalog. The Engineer and other Authority members can establish the cosmic technology and covert organizations shared by the WildCATs, as well as the edgy tone that made the Wildstorm universe so popular in the 1990s and 2000s.

Which WildCATs member is your favorite?

Superman: Father of Tomorrow #3 is now available from DC Comics