Blood Syndicate

Blood Syndicate

The Blood Syndicate, artist Denys Cowan.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance Blood Syndicate #1 (April 1993)
Created by Dwayne McDuffie (writer)
Ivan Velez Jr. (writer)
Denys Cowan (artist)
In-story information
Member(s) Aquamaria
Boogieman
Brickhouse
DMZ
Dogg
Fade
Flashback
Holocaust
Kwai
Masquerade
Oro
Tech-9
Third Rail
Wise Son

The Blood Syndicate is a fictional multicultural gang of superhumans created by Milestone Comics and published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in Blood Syndicate #1 (April 1993), and was created by Dwayne McDuffie, Ivan Velez Jr. and Denys Cowan.

Publication history

In Milestone Comics' fictional city of Dakota, the Blood Syndicate is a loose affiliation of super-powered individuals brought together by circumstance; 35 issues of their eponymous comic book, written largely by Ivan Velez, Jr., were published between 1993 and 1996.

The Blood Syndicate differed from other supergroups in that they were (in Velez's words) "not a team - they're a gang". In fact, they were the surviving remnants of multiple street gangs (thus the name, a combination of "Paris Island Bloods" and "Force Syndicate"), who had gained superpowers in the so-called Big Bang, and decided to use them for a greater purpose. However, their constant in-fighting, the unsustainability of their methods, and their lack of a central vision (particularly after the death of their first leader) led to the Syndicate's eventual disintegration.

Fictional Team History

The "Big Bang" refers to an incident in which gang members from all over Dakota met in one, huge battle. Unknown to them, or even to the police involved, the tear gas used to disperse them was tagged with a radioactive agent called "quantum juice." Many gang members and police officers died. Others are transformed, some according to what they are next to; for instance, Aquamaria, landing in water, gains water powers, and Brickhouse merges with a brick wall and becomes brick. Other entities are affected in other ways. Dogg, a normal dog, discovers he has cognitive abilities and develops speech. Other heroes and villains that the Syndicate would encounter later would also gained their abilities from encounters with the gas. Some of them, such as Static, were neither gang members nor police.

Coming Together

The gang members eventually come together, forming a new gang. This takes some time. The original members are actually killed by Holocaust, only to be saved by Flashback. He vacillates, only to recruit Wise Son, threatening his mother in the process. Third Rail is found in a homeless camp deep below the streets, suffering from guilt over his father. Templo is recruited, through deceit, from a local church. The group meets and agrees to work together. After an initial disagreement, they agree to go by "Blood Syndicate", a combination of the names of the two rival gangs, "Force Syndicate" and "Paris Bloods".

Their first raid, on a crack house for operating capital, results in the deaths of many drug addicts and criminals and in the recruitment of Masquerade, who had been recruited to guard the actual drugs. They meet back at their original spot, only to be ambushed by a large contingent of local criminals. Templo is killed and the gang works together, killing every single one of their attackers.

Media Spotlight

They attract the attention of Dakota's local media. The Dakota Chronicle, the city's most popular newspaper sends reporter, Roberta "Rob" Chaplik, to score an interview with the Syndicate. Chaplik follows them to a raid on a crack-house, their main source of money. She actually perishes, but the powers of Flashback save her.[1]

Initially, the Blood Syndicate's methods were violent, but they softened over the course of the series. They killed less and less. Unfortunately, this was not enough to convince the traitor Masquerade. After stealing from the team, he was not convinced they would spare his life. (Of course, 'he' is relative, as it turns out Masqerade was a woman all along.)

The Syndicate faced multiple threats and disasters. The unstable nature of their powers causes their original leader, Tech-9, to perish. The less popular Wise Son is forced to replace Tech as leader. Another gang leader, John Wing, whom they humiliate (he is actually urinated on by Wise Son) kills his wife in order to summon the 'Demon Fox.' This powerful demonic entity would prove extremely difficult to beat. He almost slays the entire team and is also able to get deep inside their heads psychologically. After his first defeat, he attempts to influence others to affect the team. Another villain, Rift, with reality-warping powers, temporary kills most of the people the Syndicate cares about, by dumping Paris Island into the ocean. These deaths lasted for some time. Eventually, Rift is manipulated into reversing the murders.

Racial tensions arise briefly as a mystical incident reveals that long-standing Syndicate member Boogieman is a shape-shifting white male. His status as a reliable member of the team is enough to make it through.

There were bright spots during the team's history. Third Rail and Brickhouse began a romantic relationship and eventually move out to start a new life together. Wise Son's little sister and son, both of close ages, develop powers of their own, teleporting long distances through mirrors. They frequently visit the team and strike up a friendship with Dogg.

Tensions

The team develops money troubles due to having driven most of the crack gangs out of town, plus renovation bills.[2] They managed to find one last crack house. They decide on a raid and then more responsible use of any resulting money. The raid goes badly, leaving team member Kwai shot.

Though having moved out, Brickhouse and Third Rail's troubles are far from over. Third Rail is attacked by a gigantic villain called the 'Techno-Shaman' and is ultimately saved by Brickhouse.

Kwai recovers from her injuries but learns that she is on the last life of a series of mystically granted lives. She travels to her home realm, Kwen Lun, the Wondrous Lands, in a desperate attempt to gain at least one more buffer life. During Kwai's troubles, Dogg deals with operatives of a murderous organization called S.Y.S.T.E.M.. who want to experiment on him and other Bang Babies. Fade and Tech-9 confront a simmering attraction for each other. Masquerade also deals with another branch of S.Y.S.T.E.M.[3] Upon returning home Kwai meets with her old friend, the Monkey King, and the two plead to her father, the Jade Emperor for another life. The Emperor denies this request, declaring that she has grown too attached to the mortal world. He then sentences her to death without reincarnation stating that she has broken the blood contract between them by rebelling against him.

To save Kwai's life the Monkey King recruits most of the Syndicate to go with him to Kwen Lun to save her while Tech-9 and Flashback stay behind as backup. In the Kingdom of Ti Yu (Hell), Kwai is offered marriage to the Dog God there to save her existence, but decides she can't marry him and goes on to meet the Grey Lady. There she learns that her entire existence as Kwai has been a nothing more than to provide entertainment to the gods of the Wondrous Lands in the form of a never-ending battle against the Demon Fox. The Grey Lady offers Kwai once more a chance to live and marry the Dog God but she refuses, deciding that she will no longer allow to gods to control her existence - even if it means death. The Grey Lady, impressed with her spirit allows her to return, with the warning that her father will not stop until he has his revenge.

The Beginning of the End

After returning it is revealed that The Demon Fox aided Masquerade in imitating Tech-9 - by giving Masquerade some of Tech-9's essence so she can assume leadership of the Blood Syndicate. In an all-out battle royale between the Demon Fox and Masquerade vs the Blood Syndicate - Kwai and the Demon Fox destroy each other, leaving the 9 year-old Nina Lam surviving. The Syndicate confronts Masquerade for her deception where she proclaims that under her leadership they had become more efficient than ever before and that with her they can achieve their true potential as a team. Failing to convince the others of this Masquerade leaves the team once again. Wise Son, although, disagreeing with her methods admits that that she is right and that they "never lived up to the hype". He states that they have all kept too many secrets from each other and that they all fight each other more than their enemies. Tired of the pain that they have endured and the constant violence around them, the team disbands. A few days later, while recounting the events of the past ordeal to Rob Chaplik, Dogg appears before Wise Son telling him that "the Syndicate isn't over, its just stopped for a while is all", to which Wise Son smiles and replies "thicker than blood G, thicker than blood."

Milestone Forever

Since their disbanding the Blood Syndicate left a hole in the hearts of its members, powerful people left to fend for themselves. But when Holocaust makes his inevitable return he does so and reinstates the Blood Syndicate as they once were a gang. He tries to take his actions out into the street and claim Dakota City as his own, he is stopped by Wise Son and other heroes as they Wise Son himself challenges Holocaust into a battle for the rightful ownership of Syndicate. Wise Son wins and it seems that Holocaust has burned himself to death, yet again. It remains to be seen if Holocaust actually died, but to all present Wise Son is their leader, who has ideas to bring his family to the light away from Holocaust's fire.

DC Universe

Following the death of Darkseid (as chronicled in Final Crisis), the space-time continuum was torn asunder, threatening the existence of both the Dakotaverse and the mainstream DC universe. The being known as Dharma was able to use energies that he harnessed from Rift (upon that being's defeat in Worlds Collide) to merge the two universes, creating an entirely new continuity. Only Dharma, Icon and Superman are aware that Dakota and its inhabitants ever existed in a parallel universe.[4]

In the revised continuity, Holocaust has been defeated in battle by Static (now a member of the Teen Titans) and the similarly powered Black Lightning (of the Justice League of America).[5]

Solicits have revealed that in February 2010, Holocaust will show up as an adversary of the Teen Titans in issue #80 of their series.[6] On the covers for issues 80 and 81, he is shown battling Aquagirl and Superboy respectively.[7]

Membership

Kwai, artist ChrisCross
Tech 9, artist ChrisCross

Other characters

Other media

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, February 10, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.