12th Level Intellect: The Wall

This article was originally published at DC Infinite on April 7, 2014.

John Ostrander (1) made his debut at DC Comics plotting the 1986 mini-series Legends. The series was moderately successful, but served as a launching pad for Ostrander’s most popular comic series, Suicide Squad. In Legends Ostrander created a character that would not only serve as the focal point of Suicide Squad, but would become one of the most adaptable and popular characters to emerge from the 1980s: Amanda Waller.

Ostrander realized that Waller would be an unconventional, if not shocking choice to play the role of a tough-as-nails commander willing to accomplish her mission at any cost. Only middle-aged white men like General Lane and Sergeant Steel had previously filled that sort of role. Ostrander was not a fan of business as usual, and played to that reversal of expectations in her first appearance.

Amanda Waller is not physically shown in the first page on which she appears. She has plenty to say though, providing the reader with a clear sense of who the character is. She is loud and commanding, bringing a colonel into her office and dismissing his stern attitude with a blend of sarcasm and dismissive remarks. What begins as a disembodied voice slowly takes shape throughout the page. In panel three, Ostrander reveals she’s a woman. In panel four a hand is shown, revealing she is black. It is not until the following page though that she is first seen as an entire person.

Her first appearance is undoubtedly meant to be shocking. (2) Only her face is shown, filling the panel. She’s angry, reprimanding Colonel Rick Flagg for a vaguely racist remark. Waller is not a woman to be trifled with, and she’s not like any woman that had ever appeared in a DC comic book. Full-bodied, black, and with more willpower than some Green Lanterns: Amanda Waller was something entirely new to the superhero genre.

Ostrander’s creation of Amanda Waller represents an understanding of diversity beyond many current writers working at DC. She certainly represents a wide variety of diverse factors: body type, gender, race, age, and—later—socio-economic background. But she was much more than the collection of her traits. In Suicide Squad, she was a fully realized character. Waller grew beyond the tropes of a militant commander to reveal unexpected depths. Her attachment to both her team and the missions she sent them on were driven by her life experiences and often conflicted with one another. She was simultaneously haunted and strengthened by family tragedy that had nothing to do with super powers. She was an incredibly human character. This made her accomplishments in the series all the more incredible.

One of Waller’s most notable moments came in Suicide Squad #10. Batman sneaks into Belle Reve Prison to discover the secrets of the Squad and expose them to the public. He views the team as “a travesty of justice” that must be abolished, which sets him in direct opposition to Waller, the team’s sponsor. Upon discovering that Batman has hacked into the team’s files, Waller sends her operatives to stop him. In the course of five pages, Batman plows through the team: taking down a half-dozen guards, Duchess (3), Deadshot, and Rick Flagg. He only stops when he looks up to see Amanda Waller holding a sub-machine gun.

It’s not the gun that stops Batman, though. It’s the woman holding it. In a calm and confident manner, she explains that if he were to expose the Squad, then she would expose his secret identity. Whether she actually could discover that Batman is Bruce Wayne is unknown, but if she is bluffing, then Batman is scared to call her on it. Instead he agrees to hand over the information he had stolen and leaves the prison having failed in his mission.

Not only is this moment powerful because Batman is perceived as an unbeatable superhero, but because he represents the status quo in DC Comics. He is a white, wealthy, physically-fit man. Ostrander’s choice to have Waller defeat Batman, rather than some other urban vigilante, was not simply due to his star power. His appearance as the most popular character in DC Comics highlights what makes the Suicide Squad and Amanda Waller, in particular, so unique. They do not conform to the status quo, but are all the better for it. Waller wins a metaphorical victory, too.

Having not only stood up to Batman, but also made him back down, Waller’s nickname was secured. Amanda Waller was The Wall.

This was her consistent characterization throughout 68 issues of Suicide Squad (66 issues, one annual, and one special). It established her character firmly within the canon of DC Comics. Neither hero nor villain, she would continue to operate in the shadows fighting for good using dubious means.

She also proved to be a very adaptable character. Waller has appeared in multiple live-action and animated television shows, animated features, and a movie (all of which were non-cameo roles). Without a doubt, she is one of the most popular pieces of intellectual property created at Warner Brothers in the 1980s.

She has also appeared outside of the WB wheelhouse in Michel Fiffe’s Copra. (4) Part Suicide Squad homage and part indie comic, Copra captures the essence of Amanda Waller in Sonia, the leader of a similar team framed for the use of a weapon of mass destruction.

It’s a relief that Fiffe is writing a version of Amanda Waller, as Ostrander’s Amanda Waller has disappeared from DC Comics. In the New 52 revamp of their superhero comics, Waller was reimagined as a young woman of athletic build. Her family and urban roots were replaced with a special ops background. Instead of being a uniquely qualified woman in a special position of power, she was written as a stereotypical military commander: violent, cruel, and often wrong. Her new design turned a highlight of diversity done right into a stereotype. (5)

Perhaps the most damaging change to the character was the shift in body type. Amanda Waller was one of very few examples of overweight individuals in superhero comics, especially ones not characterized as villains. Her new figure is stereotypical of super heroines. A change in coloring could quickly turn the new Amanda Waller into Harley Quinn dressed in a suit. Whereas her old design emphasized her character over her physical characteristics, the new one objectifies her. Even with a military background, she wears high heels and pant suits that emphasize her breasts and thighs. It’s a disappointing development. Superhero comics already lack in diversity—real diversity—and do not need it to be removed.

The Wall is not merely diverse because of her race, gender, and weight. She represents diversity because she is a relatable human being who has a unique story to tell in the tapestry of DC Comics. Her role as a wife and mother, as a person who rose up from poverty, and as a woman confronting a glass ceiling all provide diversity as well.

This type of diversity, told with real characters that can share experiences with an audience that will never personally face, represents the value of diversity. Amanda Waller was one of the best examples of this. She lived through traumas and struggled with things that no other character in DC Comics had. She brought value not just to comics like Suicide Squad, but to the lives of its readers. That character is gone, for now.

There are signs of hope though. The new Ms. Marvel, created by G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona, is as exciting of a new creation as The Wall was in 1986. She’s a young woman of Pakistani origin who practices Islam. Most importantly, she is a fully realized character. She is not defined by her minority status, but by her humanity. It’s important to create more characters like that, like The Wall, who represent not just the diversity of our society, but our shared humanity as well.

(1) Ostrander’s name will be used to denote the writing of Amanda Waller in every issue of Suicide Squad in this article. However, it’s important to note that that comic was also extensively developed by Ostrander’s collaborator, and later wife, Kim Yale. Yale first worked on the series in Suicide Squad #23 and continued to contribute until its conclusion. Her impact on the characters is undeniable. I am only discussing the specific issues Legends #1 and Suicide Squad #10 in this column, so I will only be using Ostrander’s name, since he wrote these issues alone.

(2)Her initial appearance was drawn by the legendary John Byrne. However, it was Luke McDonnell that would define the character’s physical appearance and mannerisms, as he drew every issue of Suicide Squad.

(3) Duchess is better known as Lashina, the leader of the Female Furies from Apokolips. Duchess played an interesting role within the Suicide Squad. Not only was she an alien devoted to violence, but she was easily the Squad’s strongest member. She outmatched characters like Rick Flagg and Bronze Tiger in terms of physical strength and brutality. This sort of role was and still is predominantly reserved for men in superhero comics.

(4) Copra is a truly incredible superhero comic, one of the best published in the last decade. Fiffe applies a visually striking sense of composition and design that places the book on a level of its own. Although it can be hard to find, it is worth the effort and money.

(5) Another very popular character from the 1980’s created by John Ostrander and Kim Yale was Oracle. Left paralyzed after The Killing Joke, Yale found her treatment distasteful and worked with Ostrander to include appearances of the mysterious Oracle in various DC Comics before revealing her identity in Suicide Squad #38.