The Secret Society of Super-Villains is a name that has been used by several groups in the DC Universe. The original was a team put together by Darkseid who would later take control of their own leadership and battle the Justice League. The second version was a team put together by the Ultra-Humanite to battle the Justice League.
The Ultra-Humanite's Society[]
The next incarnation of the Secret Society was organized by the Ultra-Humanite, who organized foes of both the Justice League of America and the Justice Society of America.
- Ultra-Humanite
- Brain Wave
- Monocle
- Psycho-Pirate (Roger Hayden)
- Rag Doll (Peter Merkel)
- Cheetah (Deborah Domaine)
- Floronic Man
- Killer Frost (Crystal Frost)
- Mist
- Signalman
Underground[]
When the JLA resurfaced with the Big Seven members, Brain Wave started to gather a new Secret Society to take down the newly formed Justice League (JLA 80-Page Giant #1), but Brainwave was actually the Martian Manhunter in disguise—the formation of this Society was a trap made by the League to defeat more supervillains in the same time (as the tale was told by the Rainbow Raider to Sonar III, it is uncertain whether this tale actually happened; at the very least, there may have been some embellishment).
Members gathered by "Brainwave" were:
- Amos Fortune
- Black Hand
- Blockbuster (Roland Desmond)
- Bolt
- Captain Boomerang (Digger Harkness)
- Cheetah (Barbara Ann Minerva)
- Cheshire
- Crazy Quilt
- Deadshot
- Doctor Alchemy
- Doctor Phosphorus
- Doctor Sivana
- Fiddler
- Floronic Man
- Gorilla Grodd
- Heat Wave
- Hector Hammond
- Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln)
- Major Disaster
- Monocle
- Per Degaton
- Penguin
- Poison Ivy
- Prankster
- Psycho-Pirate (Roger Hayden)
- Rainbow Raider
- Riddler
- Royal Flush Gang (minus King)
- Scarecrow
- Signalman
- Solomon Grundy
- Sonar
- Star Sapphire (Carol Ferris)
- Wizard
Alexander Luthor Jr.'s Society[]
Organized by Alexander Luthor Jr. in the guise of Lex Luthor, the Society formed over rumors of the JLA mindwiping Dr. Light. With a ruling council of six members overseeing a structured roster of 200 strong (Villains United #1), the Society is a grave threat to the superheroes of the world. Joker is notably absent from this roster, because he is the only villain the other villains all feared — and rightly so, as the Joker murdered several of the Society's roster in revenge for being left out.
The Society's council[]
- Lex Luthor (Alexander Luthor Jr. in disguise, leader)
- Black Adam (betrayed by the Society)
- Talia al Ghul
- Doctor Psycho
- the Calculator
- Deathstroke the Terminator
Other versions[]
Justice Underground[]
The Justice Underground is a fictional superhero team in the DC Multiverse. The Justice Underground is an alternative version of the Secret Society of Super Villains from the Anti-Matter Universe (an inverted world where there are heroic versions of villains and villainous versions of heroes).
Fictional history[]
The Underground experienced some temporary victories in their battles with the Syndicate, both as a team and individually. For example, the Quizmaster's underground connections allowed him to interfere with the supplies needed by the Crime Syndicate for various operations, such as the speed serum that Johnny Quick requires to maintain his super speed.
One by one, the Justice Underground members were all defeated, captured or killed. For example, Ultraman (the antimatter Superman) rendered Sir Solomon Grundy inert on a Saturday, and Lady Sonar sustained massive injuries from having her sonic abilities reflected back to her by Power Ring (the antimatter Green Lantern). Lady Sonar was forced to replace much of her shattered body with bionic implants. It was in this form that she resided as the guardian of Modora, the final free nation of the Anti-Matter Earth.
Upon her home's invasion, Lady Sonar was successful in defeating Johnny Quick (the antimatter Flash) by temporarily shifting his body out of phase with reality. She was eventually destroyed by the Owlman (the antimatter Batman) and the rest of the Crime Syndicate when they finally conquered Modora. Lady Sonar was placed into cryogenic storage alongside her teammates, ready to be reanimated in a zombified state if the Syndicate decides it necessary. Their remains are located in the Crime Syndicate's Panopticon on the Moon's surface.
The Justice Underground was released by the Martian Manhunter as a team of associate JLA members reversed back into the matter universe. It is unclear how they were able to recover from their injuries, though it could be inferred that the Owlman healed their injuries while they were in stasis.
Members[]
- Quizmaster (the antimatter Riddler) – The Quizmaster is the leader and the smartest man alive. He does not have any superpowers. His incredibly high IQ and knowledge of almost all disciplines enabled him to be as effective a fighter as any of his compatriots with superpowers. Quizmaster later adopted the alias of Enigma.
- Sir Solomon Grundy (the antimatter Solomon Grundy) – Sir Solomon Grundy is a distinguished, poised mountain of a man. During an aerial bombardment of Dover, he was blasted to life out of the white rock. Sir Solomon appears to be identical in physical appearance to Solomon Grundy, with the exception of a trimmed mustache and a small goatee. In keeping with his educated personality, Sir Solomon dresses himself as a 19th-century Englishman would and speaks accordingly. His super strength and invulnerability made him a formidable hero.
- General Grodd (the antimatter Gorilla Grodd) – General Grodd is a renegade freedom fighter from a militaristic ape nation.
- Star Sapphire (the antimatter Star Sapphire) – This version of Star Sapphire is a knight-errant from the other side of the galaxy.
- Lady Sonar (the antimatter Sonar) – Lady Sonar is a female version of Sonar.
- Q Ranger (the antimatter Major Force) – The "quantum-powered dynamo".
In other media[]
- In the Justice League two-part episode "Secret Society", Gorilla Grodd, Giganta, Killer Frost, Sinestro, the Parasite, the Shade, and Clayface form the eponymous group. While doing so, Grodd takes pains to encourage a more cohesive organization in order to avoid the infighting of Lex Luthor's Injustice Gang. The Society defeat the Justice League in their first encounter, but are defeated in the subsequent rematch.
- The Justice Underground appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series episode "Deep Cover for Batman!". This version of the group is led by the Red Hood and consists of unnamed heroic versions of Black Manta, the Clock King, Doctor Polaris, the Gentleman Ghost, Gorilla Grodd, Sinestro, the Brain, and Kite Man. After a battle with the Injustice Syndicate, most of the group was captured, but the Red Hood contacts Batman's world to look for new allies. Batman soon arrives and helps free the heroes before helping them capture the Injustice Syndicate.