Secret Society of Supervillains
| Secret Society of Super Villains | |
|---|---|
Lex Luthor's Secret Society, as seen in Villains United: Infinite Crisis Special (2006)
Art by Karl Kerschl |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Secret Society of Super Villains #1 (May–June 1976) |
| Created by |
Gerry Conway (writer) Pablo Marcos (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Base(s) | Gotham City |
| Member(s) | List of Secret Society of Super Villains members |
| Justice Underground | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | JLA Secret Files 2004 |
| Created by |
Kurt Busiek Ron Garney |
| In-story information | |
| Base(s) | Undisclosed location in Nation of Modora (on an alternate Earth) |
| Member(s) | Quizmaster Sir Solomon Grundy Lady Sonar General Grodd Q-Ranger Star Sapphire |
The Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) (also known simply as Secret Society or The Society) is a group of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The SSoSV, first introduced in their own eponymous series with issue #1 (May–June 1976), are an enemy of the Justice League of America, in whose series they made several appearances during the late 1970s.
Editor Gerry Conway created the team to be "a kind of 'evil' Justice League". Since other editors were somewhat possessive towards the more popular DC Comics supervillains, Conway resorted to sifting through DC's back issues in search of members, finally selecting a lineup of relatively obscure and/or forgotten villains.
The first issue of Secret Society of Super Villains was drafted with artwork by Pablo Marcos. Then, according to Conway's assistant Paul Levitz,
Custom in those years was for the editor to bring the finished inks of an issue in to [editorial director] Carmine [Infantino] for a cover conference, during which Carmine would usually sketch a cover design in pen on typing paper. While I wasn’t in the room, I clearly recall Gerry coming back down the hall to his office, confused, as Carmine had looked through the issue wanting to see the villains’ clubhouse or headquarters, and when that wasn’t in the book, asking Gerry to redo it. In my time at DC in Carmine’s years, this was the most significant change in an issue I recall his asking for at that late stage.
In the original story, Darkseid (demanding to be called the Director) founds the group under the title of the Brotherhood of Crime in a bid to hold the world ransom by stealing the world's deadliest nerve gas. The group, made up of Captain Cold, Gorilla Grodd, Clayface, Star Sapphire, and a clone of Manhunter, turns on their benefactor when Manhunter raises the issue of Darkseid's history of trying to enslave humanity. Darkseid is revealed to be an android. Manhunter suspects Darkseid controls it from afar and suggests forming the Secret Society of Super Villains to combat Darkseid while pursuing their own goals.
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