This is especially seen as the various members of the Squadron Supreme each struggle with the limits of their power, grappling with both morality and mortality in a flawed yet honest characterization of superheroes occurring just months before Watchmen. One the other hand, it also features a dark undercurrent concerning the abuse of power, more in keeping with the gritty Modern Age comics to follow. On one hand, Gruenwald’s miniseries focuses on the soap opera-ish elements of the characters’ personal lives, as also seen in Chris Claremont’s X-Men at the time. What makes Squadron Supreme unique is it sits (somewhat uncomfortably) between two eras of comic books.

In particular, the premise of both Injustice and Civil War share quite a lot in common with Squadron Supreme, especially in regards to competing factions of both heroes and villains fighting for supremacy. Mark Gruenwald's epic comic helped pioneer the social dilemma of superheroes, debuting a full year before Watchmen. Related: Scarlet Witch Summoned The Squadron Supreme To Fight Themselves The final battle claims the lives of several characters, including Nighthawk, causing the remaining members to finally surrender. Meanwhile, Nighthawk allies himself with the remaining villains to form the Redeemers. This is ultimately used to indoctrinate villains into their ranks. Their resident genius, Tom Thumb, creates a behavioral modification device. Batman pastiche Nighthawk steps down as President of the United States, allowing the team to ultimately take control of the government. Written by the legendary Mark Gruenwald and illustrated by the Bob Hall, Paul Ryan, Paul Neary and John Buscema, Squadron Supreme opens with society already on the verge of collapse. In fact, they were once the heroes of their own twelve issue miniseries published in 1985 by Marvel.

While they were most recently featured as the antagonists in the Mephistro-controlled reality of Heroes Reborn, they weren't always the bad guys. The Squadron Supreme are essentially Marvel's answer to the Justice League, so much so that they are near-carbon copies of the League.

Squadron supreme by mark gruenwald