Rick Flag: Bio, Origin & History

Real Name: Rick Flag

First Appearance: The Brave and The Bold 25 (September, 1959)

Powers: None. Trained in Military Tactics and Hand-to-Hand Combat.

Affiliation: Suicide Squad

Love Interests: Karin Grace (which as you will see, is kind of creepy).

Enemies: Batman, Changing Origin Stories

Did You Know: There are 3 Rick Flag’s in the DC universe: Rick Flag Sr, Rick Flag Jr and Rick Flag III.

A Little History

One of the founding members of the original Suicide Squad. Rick Flag was one of a group of 4 people who took on the most dangerous of missions. In the initial story, it was revealed that each of the four had promised to carry on the work of others who had sacrificed themselves for others.

In the case of Rick, that promise came in the form on his fallen men. Rick watched as his wingmen gave their lives as decoys so that he could fly in and destroy an enemy carrier ship. Afterwards, he carried on, continuing to make good on his promise to his friends as a member of the Suicide Squad.

Other sacrifices had to be made.

It was clear that he and another squad member, Karen Grace were in love. However, the two feared that becoming involved would jeopardize their ability to risk their lives and fulfill their individual promises.

In 1986 the squad was reactivated and Rick Flag was once again chosen to lead it, This time, however, the squad would be much different than the last. This time, the squad was comprised of people with less than ideal backgrounds. For example, Captain Boomerang was offered a pardon if he accepted and took on missions with the Suicide Squad.

A change came to the story of the squad in the late 1980’s. Instead of the original members being those who carried the promise to avenge fallen soldiers, the new members were comprised of those who didn’t necessarily follow orders and had shady pasts. As well, in this story, after the War was over, Flag had a son who he aptly named Rick Flag Jr.

Rick Flag Jr.’s mother died while saving his life from an oncoming car. Much like his father, Junior felt a need to carry on and fight for the fallen. This need to fight for the fallen grew after his father, Rick Flag Sr. died while on a mission to save people. This led Junior to become the new leader of the Suicide Squad.

Rick, much like his father would fall for a female member (Karen) of the Squad. Unfortunately, this time, so too did two other members of the squad. The two others ultimately sacrificed themselves for Karen, thus driving a wedge of guilt between her and Rick. Rick left the squad for a short while but would return and take his rightful spot as its leader. Much like the story of his father, he too would lead a group of criminals looking for pardons.