Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad

• Credits: by Libbylawrence
• Published: April 14, 2000
• Link: Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad

March, 1986: Captain Comet leads a new Rehab Squad team of hardened supervillains while his usual team is on leave. Assisted by Christopher Chance (the Human Target), the team battles the Force of July and exposes its employer as a Saudi oil minister who wants to profit on a war in the Middle East. After the new team recruits attempt to escape, Captain Comet and Moonbow subdue them. Blossom splits from Mayflower's body and leaves as a separate being. Rehab Squad members: Blossom (splits from Mayflower), Captain Cold (briefly joins the Squad), Captain Comet, Cheetah II, the Eradicator (briefly joins the Squad), Rick Flag, Mayflower (splits from Blossom), Moonbow (joins the Squad), Neutron (briefly joins the Squad), Paragon (briefly joins the Squad). Villains: the Force of July (American Dreamer, Freedom Train (dies), Lady Liberty, Major Victory, Minute Man, Silent Majority, Sparkler), Ghanem (a Saudi oil minister). Guest appearances: Christopher Chance (the Human Target). [“Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad”]

• March, 1986: Captain Comet dreams of a meeting with Superman, Batman, and Green Lantern in which he explains how he met with three military leaders named Logan, Castle, and Cable, who wanted him to make changes to his Rehab Squad. They wanted to rename the team the Suicide Squad and change its membership. Captain Comet resigned along with most of his team except for Rick Flag and Karin Grace (Goldstar). Captain Comet asks the three JLAers for help starting up a new team. Green Lantern suggests the name New Guardians, while Superman offers the use of a smaller version of his Fortress of Solitude relocated to the island of Vumania, owned by Jimmy Olsen. Then Captain Comet wakes up and reviews Flag's three new choices for the team: the Eradicator, Neutron, and Captain Cold. [“Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad, Prologue: What a Dream”]
• At the Meta-Human Rehabilitation Agency (MHRA), director Rick Flag informs Captain Comet that while his usual team is on leave, his new team will be Captain Cold, the Eradicator, Moonbow, Neutron, and Paragon. He also explains that Lyla (Harbinger) has quit the team. The new assignment is to stop an anti-Middle East hate group from disrupting peace talks in New York City. Christopher Chance (the Human Target) poses as Anthony Doss, the speaker at a Middle Eastern culture rally. While Captain Comet and his team watch, the Force of July arrives to speak. Chance attacks Major Force, and the team moves in to fight the Force. [“Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad, Chapter 1: Raw Recruits”]
• Captain Comet and his team battle the Force of July, and all Force members manage to escape except Lady Liberty. After she refuses to answer any questions, Paragon uses his mental powers to painfully extract the address of the Force of July from her unwilling mind. Captain Comet and his team travel to the Force of July's headquarters in the northern Rocky Mountains. There, they expose the white-hooded employer of the Force as Ghanem, the Saudi Arabia minister of oil who wanted the U.S. to invade the Middle East in order to profit from the war. The Rehab Squad battles the Force of July, and the Eradicator kills Freedom Train. Neutron uses his powers to knock out the Force of July, then turns on Captain Comet and tries to kill him with the help of the Eradicator and Paragon. Captain Comet and Moonbow manage to subdue them and summon help. [“Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad, Chapter 2: Turncoats”]
• After Debbie Domaine (Cheetah II) pleads with Blossom to become Rachel Green (Mayflower) again, Blossom splits herself from Rachel's body and leaves Rachel normal once more. [“Captain Comet's Rehab Squad: The Suicide Squad, Epilogue: Growing”]