A classic DC supervillain team makes a surprise 60th anniversary comeback

If there’s one thing that the Absolute Power event has proven, it’s that Amanda Waller is resourceful. Over the last few months we’ve seen her plans to take down the superheroes of the DC universe come to fruition, thanks to a team up with the deadly android Failsafe and the Braniac Queen, not to mention the creation of an army of power-stealing Amazo robots. Batman, Superman and the rest of the superhero resistance have fought back, of course, but in the latest issue of Absolute Power: Task Force VII it’s revealed that Waller has a new set of allies up her sleeves…

Spoilers for Absolute Power: Task Force VII #5

The main focus of the new issue, from writer Alex Paknadel and artist Pete Woods, is Barry Allen’s conflict with the speedster power-stealing Velocity. Towards the end of the issue, however, we cut to Wonder Woman’s beloved Steve Trevor who has managed to infiltrate Waller’s prison on Gamorra Island. There he witnesses the arrival of some mysterious figures from another universe, realising with a shock that one of them is Donna Troy – Earth-3’s evil Superwoman, surrounded by some familiar faces.

Yep, Waller’s latest allies are the Crime Syndicate, who turn 60 this year. In case you’re not aware of this dark alternative to the Justice League, the original line up of the team (then named the Crime Syndicate of America) first appeared in 1964’s Justice League of America #29 by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky. ‘Crisis on Earth-Three!’ introduced several evil counterparts to DC’s best known heroes, in the form of Owlman (a dark version of Batman), Ultraman (Superman), Power Ring (Green Lantern), and Johnny Quick (the Flash).

The line-up has shifted many times over the intervening 60 years, with the current version still featuring Ultraman and Johnny Quick, alongside the second Power Ring (an alternative to John Stewart), Black Siren (the evil version of Black Canary), Etrigan the Demon, and Nocturna AKA Natalia Knight.