Deathstroke

History

Oirign

At the age of sixteen, Slade Wilson was determined to enlist in the Unted States Army, so he ran away from home and lied about his age to enlist. He soon showed talents and skills in guerrilla warfare far superior to that of any other soldier and was quickly promoted in rank time and time again.

After a while his outstanding reputation landed him under the wing of Captain Adeline Kane, an instructor who became one of his superiors and whom he befriended. Slade trained under Captain Kane, and quickly amazed her with his impressive talents, skills and combat expertise.

Slade mastered several combat styles and was eventually promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. Some time later, Slade began a romantic relationship with Adeline, which led to them having a son together.

Soon after the birth of his first son, Grant Wilson; The Army asked Slade to be a volunteer in a secret medical experiment that was said to be a defense against the enemy’s Truth Serum, and so he agreed. It was later revealed that this “medical experiment” was in reality an attempt to create metahuman super-soldiers.

Slade’s body reacted violently to the experiment, it made him aggressive and enraged, and he needed to remain sedated and bedridden through the birth of his second son Joseph Wilson. Only later would Slade discover that the experiment had worked and actually enhanced his strength, speed, senses, stamina, intellect and reflexes beyond that of any ordinary man. With his duties in the army limited to desk work, Slade dedicated himself to professional hunting in order to fill the void he felt within himself as a fighter. He also then married Adeline Kane.

However, this life too was put on hold, when William Randolph Wintergreen, a lifelong friend, was sent on a suicide mission and was captured. When his superiors refused to help, Slade was forced to do the impossible; he put together a costume and went on an unauthorized solo mission to save his friend. In the end he saved Wintergreen, but was discharged from the army for disobeying orders. Slade decided this was for the best. Fed up with the army and its code of blind loyalty, Slade created the costumed persona of Deathstroke the Terminator, the greatest mercenary the world would ever know by using the knowledge he had acquired from his military training and under the tutelage of master martial artist Natas.

Creation

Created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, Deathstroke first appeared in The New Teen Titans (Vol. 1) #2. Deathstroke was originally known only as The Terminator. But with the making of the popular “Terminator” movie franchise starring Arnold Schwarzenegger (four years later), the name was abandoned to avoid the possible confusion.

Character Evolution

Modern Age: New Earth

Depending on the writer, Deathstroke can be a “violent gun-toting mercenary, unafraid to kill”, a likeable anti-hero, or just another hired gun meant to fill in the pages. His character is molded by a certain Code of Ethics, that may change at any given time depending on the situation of his life. When his code is more strict, he can become one of the good guys, while other times he can almost completely throw his honor out the door and do something as cold blooded and senseless as destroying an entire city, as in the destruction of Blüdhaven in the Infinite Crisis story arc, or even murdering a group of teenage mercenaries.

Post-Flashpoint: Earth-0

Writer Kyle Higgins takes Deathstroke back to his bloody, gritty roots. After finishing a blood-soaked assassination in Moscow involving decapitating a target, Slade catches the attention of a new client. Christoph offers Slade a new contract. It’s a kill and retrieve contract that requires him to work with a young and obnoxious support team that calls themselves “The Alpha Dawgs”. Deathstroke carries out the contract but uncovers a briefcase and a secret within. He takes it back and shows Christoph and then leaves, but not before killing “The Alpha Dawgs” after viewing them as his competition. This version of Deathstroke is also a former member of the elite Team 7.

Deathstroke: Rebirth

As of DC: Rebirth, Slade has returned to his usual tricks. After rescuing Wintergreen from an African warlord’s grip, investigating an attempt on the life of Rose, battling a conspiracy to set up Adeline, a run-in with Superman, and incarceration in a black site, Slade has returned to taking contracts and killing anyone who gets in the way. Most recently, he made an attempt at being something of a good guy and created a team of young heroes. When one of them committed suicide, Slade deemed himself a failure at being good and went right back to being a killer for hire. Most recently, Slade was killed in a fight with the latest band of Teen Titans, only to return from the dead and go into hiding until a phony Deathstroke begins targeting his family.

Major Story Arcs

Modern Age: New Earth

Before The One-eyed Merc

Slade continued to take up contracts under the guise of Deathstroke, becoming famous on an international level, all without telling any of his family members about it. However that all changed the day he was hired to kill a high ranking colonel in the Qurac military. His youngest son Joseph was kidnapped by a terrorist known as ”The Jackal”. The ransom: the names of those who hired him (Slade) to kill the colonel. Determined to keep his code of honor, Deathstroke gambled his son’s life against the power of his meta-human abilities. He killed all the kidnappers and his son was saved, but just barely, his throat had been slit along with his vocal cords and Joseph Wilson would remain a mute for most of his life.

Slade took Joseph to the hospital, and at the time he was also forced to finally reveal his secret identity to his wife, this along with his seemingly careless actions towards their son enraged Adeline and drove her to try and kill Slade by shooting him in the face. Slade managed to dodge the fatal gunshot, but not enough to save his right eye; however that didn’t have a great impact on his physical abilities. Slade and his wife divorced soon after, and Adeline decided against telling her first son, Grant, about Slade’s secret identity, a decision that would later backfire.

Judas Contract

A few years later, Slade was offered a contract by The H.I.V.E. to kill a group of super powered teenagers known as the Teen Titans. Slade refused but Grant Wilson, who ironically idolized Deathstroke (never knowing this was his father), became The Ravager, and assumed the contract himself. As payment, The H.I.V.E. offered him powers beyond those of Deathstroke’s. When Ravager attacked the Titans Deathstroke intervened, but in the end joined his son instead. Together they seemed to be on their way to winning when Grant’s powers suddenly overloaded. His cells began to decay rapidly and Slade Wilson could only watch as the Ravager, his first born son, died in his arms.

Upon Grant’s death, Slade bitterly swore to fulfill his son’s contract and kill the Teen Titans in his stead. Soon however, Deathstroke found the task too difficult to fulfill on his own, and so employed Tara Markov, a young girl with dangerous earth-bending powers. She worked alongside Slade as a spy amongst the Teen Titans, learning all of their secrets and weaknesses. Finally, Deathstroke made his move and one by one he delivered the Titans to the H.I.V.E. At the same time Adeline, who had been keeping tabs on Slade, along with Joseph approached Dick Grayson (a.k.a. Robin) and offered to help rescue his friends if he merely accepted Joseph into the team. This would mark the first appearance of Joseph Wilson as Jericho. Nightwing (the new persona of Dick Grayson) and Jericho successfully freed the Titans, and Slade was apprehended and put on trial for kidnapping. However, Gar Logan, still mourning over the death of Tara (who tragically died at the hands of her own emotionally unstable powers) sabotaged the trial and went after Slade intent on killing him. Slade confronted Gar unmasked and unarmed, and the two men parted in a truce. Slade finally free of the burden of Grant’s death, retired from life as a mercenary, and took up hunting again in Africa.

Titans Hunt

Slade would later return to being Deathstroke, this time however, with a stricter code of honor that allowed him to become an ally of the Titans. When the Titans were captured by the Wildebeest Society, Deathstroke helped the New Titans track down their missing teammates. Much to everyone’s surprise, the leader of the Wildebeest Society was a corrupted Jericho. While transferring the souls of Azarath to the bodies of the Titans, the real Jericho resurfaced and begged his father to save him. Without any other choice, Deathstroke killed his son by driving a sword through his body, causing himself immeasurable grief as he felt it was his fault that both of his sons were now dead.

Full Cycle

A new man, dressed as Ravager, attacks Addie (Adeline) and then Slade. Ravager, working with the leader of Qurac, is planning to blow up the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., and he means to take out Deathstroke along the way. When Slade confronts him Ravager reveals himself as Bill Walsh, who was Slade’s partner in Camp Washington. He blames Slade for his failures in life, and was the one to attack Joseph, as the Jackal, and recruited Grant to H.I.V.E., which would eventually be the death of Grant, all in an effort to get to Slade. Slade then kills Walsh. In the aftermath of Walsh’s death, Slade began to push everyone close to him away, as he felt responsible for everyone close to him dying or getting hurt.

Deathstroke The Hunted

Deathstroke goes underground after he becomes a hunted fugitive for the framed murder of a U.S. Senator. During the manhunt, Slade is seemingly killed, but awakens from death completely healed. This would reveal the full extent of Slade’s healing abilities, virtual immortality. Eventually Deathstroke was able to clear his name, with help from Sarge Steel and the New Titans. He proved that the assassination was actually planned by Steve Dayton who was driven insane by the Mento helmet. While trying to clear his name, Slade’s friends and loved ones also become targets of a wrathful man abusing the name of the Ravager. The assassin kidnapped Rose Worth, the daughter of Lillian Worth – a short term love interest of Slade’s after his divorce from Adeline Kane. Wintergreen rescued Rose, but Lillian was killed. Slade feared he wouldn’t be a good father to Rose, and decided to leave her in the care of Wintergreen. In the final battle with the new Ravager, Slade discovers the murderer, Ravager, is in reality his jealous half-brother, Wade DeFarge.

Titans: Immortal Coil

During the battle with Wade (Ravager), Adeline Kane is shot and presumed dead, until she miraculously reawakens. Following the events of Deathstroke’s World Tour story arc, Slade gives Adeline a blood transfusion to save her life, which apparently also included his regenerative abilities. However Adeline would later resurface as the new H.I.V.E. mistress, driven mad by the same blood that made her immortal.

Deathstroke teams up with the Titans in an attempt to save Adeline and stop Vandal Savage, the leader of Tartarus, who attempts to harvest Adeline’s blood to gain immortality. Bleeding out slowly and drained of her superpowers, Adeline reaches out to Slade and begs him to reunite her with their sons. Deathstroke refuses, but Starfire makes the decision herself, and ends Adeline Kane’s life. Starfire’s drastic act causes Deathstroke to break all ties with the Titans.

A Kid’s Game

When the newest incarnation of the Teen Titans emerges, Deathstroke discovers the spirit of Jericho living inside him, gradually taking over (see the Titans Hunt story arc). with Wintergreen’s help, Deathstroke tries to excise his son, but Jericho resists and takes full control of his father’s body. He then kills Wintergreen and goes after the new members of the Teen Titans (as Deathstroke), vowing to prevent kids from becoming costumed heroes. Jericho uses his father’s heightened skills to subdue most of the Titans, including shooting Bart Allen in the knee cap, taking out Victor Stone’s Cybernetic eye, and nearly killing Robin. The rest of the team, Superboy and Wonder Girl, are finally able to overwhelm Jericho who then emerges out of his father’s body in an attempt to escape, only to be trapped by Raven moments later.

Slade, Haunted by the death of yet another friend, and no moral compass to guide him, decides to recruit his estranged daughter Rose. And so, in a twisted ploy to gain Rose’s trust, Deathstroke hires Wade Defarge (the assassin who murdered Rose’s mother in Deathstroke Hunted) to kill her surrogate family. Deathstroke then steps in to “save” Rose, double-crossing Wade.in the process. Rose inevitably joins her father and becomes the fourth Ravager. With Rose at his side, Deathstroke goes after Raven and his son Jericho who’s still trapped inside of her. His search leads him and Rose to the cult of Brother Blood where they cross paths with the Teen Titans. Soon a three-way battle unfolds between the followers of Brother Blood, the Titans, and Deathstroke. During the battle, Raven loses control and releases Jericho. Deathstroke orders Rose to kill Jericho, but she hesitates and they are forced to retreat instead. Cyborg however succeeds in recapturing Jericho, imprisoning him in a computer disk until Raven finally finds a way to resurrect Jericho into a new body in the follow-on story arc, Titans of Tomorrow.

After the battle with the Titans, Rose‘s failure to kill Jericho and avenge Wintergreen‘s death, Slade starts to re-evaluate his decision to make Rose his protégé. However, this coupled with doses of his own watered down super-serum, pushes Rose over the edge, and she cuts out her own eye, proving her devotion.

Identity Crisis

In one of his most defining moments as the world’s greatest Mercenary, Deathstroke is hired by Doctor Light as a bodyguard against the Justice League. He alone battles and almost defeats the entire team consisting of Elongated man, Hawkman, Atom, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Zatanna, Wally West (Flash) and Kyle Rayner (Green Lantern). Unfortunately, while Deathstroke is embroiled in trying to gain control of Kyle’s ring, Green Arrow jumps Slade and stabs an arrow into his right eye, making Slade lose his temper and thus leading to his defeat. This embarrassment would start a long and bitter rivalry between Green Arrow and Deathstroke, one that would last through One Year Later and even into Green Arrow’s wedding to Black Canary.

The Secret Society of Super Villains

After Nightwing tries and fails to infiltrate the Secret Society of Super Villains as a spy in order to destroy them from within, he realizes that the only way to gain access to the Society is by becoming a member through Deathstroke. Nightwing tries to talk to Deathstroke, but they battle instead. The battle is soon interrupted by Ravager (Rose). Deathstroke then decides to let Nightwing in, if in return he trains his daughter. After the bargain is struck, Nightwing takes up the new identity of “Renegade” and starts training Ravager with a series of seemingly random missions. However, Renegade also uses this time to convert Rose into a hero. Deathstroke quickly catches on and threatens to kill Nightwing (Renegade). But instead, Nightwing makes a deal with Slade: Bludhaven would stay off limits to the Society, and in exchange Rose would be left alone…The deal doesn’t last. Deathstroke later helps destroy Bludhaven using Chemo in Infinite Crisis. An enraged Nightwing in turn breaks his part of the deal, and reveals to Rose that the Kryptonite her father had put in her eye, during one of their missions, was poisoning her and would eventually kill her. After this revelation, Rose breaks off any relationship with her father, and under the guidance of Nightwing, becomes a member of the Titans alongside her half-brother, Jericho. During the Battle of Metropolis, Deathstroke is confronted by Nightwing, Batman, and Robin, who question him about abandoning his code of honor, and his only response is to blame Nightwing.

Titans East

In the aftermath of Infinite Crisis and the events that followed during 52, Deathstroke becomes more twisted than ever. He rebuilds the old Titan’s Tower and recruits a new team consisting of Match, Risk, Kid Crusader, Duela Dent, Enigma, Sungirl, Inertia, and a drugged Batgirl (Cassandra Cain). He uses the team to attack and capture the Titans, including his own children, Rose and Jericho. However, his unstable team soon falls apart when Robin manages to free Batgirl, and at the same time Raven convinces Duela Dent to switch sides. Slade and his remaining Titans face off against both current Titans and the original Titans led by Nightwing, who later came to their aid. Deathstroke’s team is defeated in the end and Slade manages to escape. It is later revealed that the true reason Deathstroke formed his team was to insure that Rose and Jericho had people they could trust, a family, something he could never properly provide.

Final Crisis

During Last Will and Testament Slade is confronted by Geo-Force, the vengeful brother of Tara Markov (see Judas Contract). Geo-Force attacks Deathstroke with everything he’s got. Although Geo-Force’s plan seems at first ill-thought-out, as Deathstroke quickly negates his powers and seemingly forces him into an alleyway down into an alleyway, Geo-Force then explains how he had previously chosen that exact spot in order to impact Slade’s psyche. That particular spot in that alley was the one place Deathstroke had actually lost, as it was the same spot that Joseph Wilson, his son, had his throat cut years before. Deathstroke dismisses the attempted psychological trick and proceeds to tell Geo-Force about his plans to use him to destroy the Justice League. Geo-Force refuses to let Deathstroke win and slits his own throat. The act, almost mirroring the night Joseph was kidnapped, stuns Deathstroke to the core. Deathstroke rushes to try and save Geo-Force, but in such a maddened frantic state he loses sight of the sword in Geo-Force’s hand and is stabbed through the heart.

Following this, in Faces of Evil, Deathstroke is seen recuperating in Bellevue Hospital. As his heart repairs itself, thanks again to his miraculous healing abilities, Slade is haunted by those he has let down in life, including Adeline, Grant, Wintergreen, Joseph and finally Rose. When he reawakens, Deathstroke stands determined to get a last audience with his daughter, even taking such lengths as to fake ailing health. But as soon as the two are left alone, Rose tries to strangle her father, forcing Slade to fight her and reveal at last that he was in fact not dying, but in fact was in perfect health. Father and daughter battle it out, exchanging bitter words until Deathstroke escapes with a dramatic exit and Rose left in tears. After successfully escaping, Slade reveals that his last act as a father to Rose was to create a strong and permanent wedge in their relationship, in the hopes that Rose would grow up not wanting to follow in his footsteps and so would be safe from his cursed life. Deathstroke then decides to start over, to rebuild his reputation, and finds someone new to take under his wing, a young street kid, named Poprocket.

Blackest Night

Slade is sitting in his home reading the diary of an old friend of his that he killed while possessed by his son Jericho. He takes the blame for that murder and goes to the window. Lightning strikes to reveal Rose standing outside the window. She attempts to take her revenge on him while he tries to tell her about the Black Lanterns. She doesn’t believe him until his son Grant, the original Ravager and now in possession of a Black Lantern Ring, comes to kill him. Slade repeatedly attempts to kill him, but is unsuccessful due to the ring’s power. Grant tries to kill hid father by slowly shoving his head into the fireplace, but is stopped when Rose slices him in half. Rose fights Grant while Slade is forced to fight his first wife and his acquaintance, feeling emotional pain.

Batman and Robin

Recently, Deathstroke has been seen working with Talia al Ghul, controlling the body and physical actions of the current Robin, Damian Wayne, in order to kill Dick Grayson, who has taken up the mantle of Batman. Deathstroke is able to control Damian’s actions thanks to a neural-implant inserted into Damian’s spine by his mother while it was being surgically replaced. Grayson defeats Deathstroke by taking advantage of the two-way connection between him and Damian by using a taser on Damian, the resulting electric shock overwhelming Deathstroke’s enhanced senses. He then tracks Slade down and attacks him in his hospital bed for controlling Damian and for the Chemo attack, informing Slade that what happened then is just a ‘trailer’ for what will come.

Titans – Villains for Hire

Deathstroke then recruits Cheshire, the Tattooed Man, Cinder, and Osiris, while taking the name Titans. They ambush Ryan Choi (the new Atom) in his home and then kill him. Deathstroke takes the Atom’s belt, and exchanges Ryan’s body to Dwarfstar for an unknown object. Deathstroke has revealed the secret to life itself and offered it up to the members of his team. Roy Harper and Cinder mutiny against the rest of the group, while a recently resurrected Jericho betrays his father and prepares to destroy both him and the Methuselah device.

Post-Flashpoint: Earth-0

The Legacy

In Deathstroke #3, while still trying to show the world that he’s more deadly and dangerous than ever, Deathstroke turns to his own arms manufacturer for answers about the mysterious contents of the briefcase that he was contracted to take from a former German scientist named Jeffrey Bode. But when the aftershocks of his actions during the Harmory job start to hit, Deathstroke is presented with a new threat called “Legacy“, a threat that only seems to grow no matter how many times it is killed.

Hunt for Lobo

Deathstroke accepts a lucrative contract to targeting Lobo who has recently escaped from a maximum security prison. Embittered by his long captivity, Lobo plans to use his spacecraft called “The Ark” to destroy earth. Deathstroke, accompanied by Zealot and The Omegas , hunt down Lobo and together they eventually battle and defeat Lobo on his spacecraft (The Ark).

The Dark Knight – Knight Terrors

Deathstroke is one of dozens of Batman villains injected with a mixture of Venom and Fear Toxin. He is able to take down the Batplane with his sword, forcing Batman to eject over Harmon Island.

Deathstroke: Rebirth

Sometime in the past, Slade takes Grant and Joseph camping. While Joseph enjoyed himself, Grant refused to camp and slept in the car during the night, exhausting the car battery and stranding the three in the wilderness in the middle of winter. When Slade reprimands Grant, he snaps at Slade. Before he can discipline him, Grant storms off while Slade and Joseph begin walking in a different direction to find a town. Grant eventually runs into a mother bear. Before the bear can reach him, Slade, having followed Grant, kills it, then scolds his son; partly for not knowing the bear was there in the first place, and partly for not being able to flee. Wintergreen then arrives to pick up Slade for a contract in Qurac. He admonishes Slade’s parenting methods, but he still believes Grant should have been able to take care of himself. Before leaving, He goes to kill the bear cubs nearby, thinking it better than not having a mother.

Further ahead in time, Slade and Adeline are in the middle of a heated fight. Adeline is tired of Slade’s adventuring while she stays home with the children. Slade rebuffs her, and when things calm down, Adeline asks for a divorce.

Now in the present, Slade is overseeing the dumping of dead bodies in a country run by his latest client; Matthew Bland, The Red Lion. Slade has agreed to keep American forces out of his country, in exchange for nine million dollars and the location of a target for another contract. Slade’s computer expert, Hosun, transfers some of the contract money into a pro-intervention Senate candidate’s Super Pac, splitting the Democratic vote and allowing the anti-intervention Republican Senator to keep his seat. Once the deal is done, Red Lion goes back on his word to protect his target and gives Slade his location. Once he reaches his target’s hideout, he has his escorts wait ten minutes before fleeing. Before he goes, the two beg for him to spare them, as Deathstroke would have to kill them and Red Lion would then have their own sons killed. The former to hide the fact that Red Lion went back on his word, and the latter to ensure that the sons don’t avenge their fathers’ deaths. He simply rebuffs the two and goes for his target.

Once inside, his target, a sickly Clock King, welcomes him, having already known he was coming for him. Deathstroke tries to shoot him, but Clock King is unaffected because of his time manipulation abilities. Slade prepares a grenade, but Clock King offers him information about a loved one in exchange for his word he will spare him. He refuses, choosing to uphold his word to the victims who hired him and maintain his integrity. Clock King admits that he is already dying and asks if the person he is talking about is less important then killing his target. When Slade asks for proof, Clock King replies with one word; Kenilworth. Slade then returns to his escorts, demanding all the money they have on them in exchange for protection from Bland.

Later, the two escorts a terrorist group’s territory. When stopped by the terrorists, they claim they want to join their group, and brought the body of Deathstroke as a gift. The guards are skeptical, but when the escorts use the word Kenilworth, they are granted entry. That night, Slade – still alive – begins slaughtering the terrorists with the weapons he snuck in. Slade then breaks for a nearby cave. When he tears the door inside apart, he finds Wintergreen, who is upset that Slade took so long to come for him.

The Professional

While Wintergreen gathers his belongings, he recounts his kidnapping to Slade. He then dons his old Ikon suit, but it is out of power. Wintergreen charges it with a few shots, then the two make their escape. Wintergreen gives Slade a rundown of his captors. They then return to Slade’s escorts, who took the liberty of disposing the decoy body used to get in, along with his original uniform.

Later, Congressman Hasgrove is hosting a party celebrating his re-election. While there he receives a package and steps out onto a patio to open the it. Once he sees what’s inside, he immediately kills himself by stepping over the railing. The package is revealed to have been scandalous photos delivered by Hosun. While Slade and Wintergreen have trouble navigating Kenilworth, New Jersey, they eventually locate the Congressman’s body and move to the next phase of their plan.

The group returns to Clock King’s compound, where Ja Zaki is being held captive. Once there, Wintergreen tries to negotiate a surrender. Clock King responds by causing his age to fluctuate. However, Slade appears and reveals the Clock Kings abilities are actually just parlor tricks. Slade then reveals Clock King’s his weakness, due to his true condition Clock King needs to be connected to an oxygen tank. Wintergreen shoots the tank, causing an explosion that disrupts all of the illusions. While Clock King is dying, he’s in shock that Slade abandoned his word, but because Wintergreen fired the shots, Slade’s honor is intact. Once free, Ja Zaki is upset that Slade killed Hasgrove. Slade simply warns him to leave his two escorts and their families alone and leaves.

While on the way out Wintergreen reveals that Hasgrove’s death will undo his political agenda, causing the U.S. to intervene and defend Ja Zaki’s enemies, saving thousands of lives. Slade brushes it off, but Wintergreen reveals that he thought the entire thing was a hallucination. Slade then punches him to convince him otherwise. When he catches on, he begins ranting about the capture, their distress code Kenilworth, and ends by asking Slade where he was all that time. He sarcastically responds that he was golfing.

During another flashback, Adeline leaves home to track down Slade, who has been missing for some time. Leaving food for Joseph and a promise to return in two days, she heads out as Joseph complains that his father will never return. Taking advantage of the freedom, Joseph decides to throw a party. After the two days are up, Adeline’s contact can’t locate Slade anywhere. Upon returning home, she witnesses the mess left behind from the party. She then notices a message left for Deathstroke; a challenge to find the perpetrator written in blood and a picture if Joseph pinned to the wall with a knife. Believing Deathstroke to be the kidnapper, Adeline quickly leaves the house and reaches out to her contact to discover who Deathstroke is. She then calls Slade, who answers only to brush her off as he is traveling to his latest mission.

The mission at hand is to pull Lillian Worth out of Cambodia, in an area controlled by Khmer Rouge holdouts. Her service to various intelligence agencies and the fact that Slade once used her place of work as a safe house earned her a ticket out of the country. As their plane crashes, Slade, Wintergreen, and their crew disembark to find Worth. Once the recon man enters, the rest of the team enters. Things go smoothly for the crew until the recon man gets shot. The shooter is revealed to be a young Rose. When Wintergreen arrives, he convinces Rose that she is safe. Followed in by Slade, Wintergreen repeatedly demands answers as to what is going on.

In the present, Wintergreen and Slade are approaching Fredric, the recon man from years earlier, to confirm that he was the one who sold Wintergreen out to his kidnappers. He tries to shift the blame to Rax, another former ally, but Slade had already found him, dead in his apartment, along with two assailants who he promptly killed. Having been found out, Fredric confesses and asks which of the two will do the deed. However, Slade pulled a disappearing act in order to get into a skirmish with Isherwood, a.k.a. the small time hero, Dr. Ikon. After getting into a skirmish, Isherwood reveals that he had nothing to do with Wintergreen’s kidnapping, but that he was approached by the real kidnappers but didn’t talk. Slade then gets a call from Wintergreen, who just killed Fredric. He then reveals that Hosun has been checking Slade’s Dark Web messages in order to track down a lead. One in particular gets both of their attention; a contract on the Ravager.

Deciding to investigate the contract, he tracks Rose down and finds the apartment where she lives with her boyfriend. Watching over her as she sleeps, Slade leaves when she starts to wake up. He then catches her while she’s on her job: stopping other hitmen from killing their targets. It turns out her latest job was a ruse to lure her into an ambush. Even though she holds her own, Slade took her swords in order to test her. She manages to dispatch all the hitmen and Slade steals a police car and the two escape. While on the move, Rose wants to know why he’s here and he then goes on to explain about the bounty on her head. When they reach their destination, the club where Rose works a second job, Slade voices his disapproval of her choice to work as an anti-hitman. Rose then asks what Slade did to get a bounty put out on her. After rendezvousing with Wintergreen, the three head out to start searching for who put out the contract on her.

Later, Slade and Rose suit up and track a lead. On the rooftop of a building, Rose is texts her boyfriend. However, Slade had Hosun intercept the messages and shoot back fake replies. He then tells Slade about someone who took the contract: Ricky, the man who hired Rose to lure her in to the ambush. Once they finish talking, Rose takes a moment to tell him that she is not intimate with her boyfriend. Slade, however doesn’t care, and says that caring is weakness, and weakness means she isn’t ready to tackle any problem she may face. Slade then flashes back to when Jericho had his throat cut by the Jackal. While he tries to resuscitate him, Adeline is blaming Slade for what happened. He tries to quiet her while they wait for paramedics, and in response, she shoots him in the back of the head. Back in the present, Rose is asking him why he thinks she isn’t ready. He claims that all of the contradictions in her behavior prove that she is a stupid, immature teen. As he jumps in to take down Ricky and his crew, he tells his daughter he can’t take her seriously because she doesn’t believe in anything. He easily takes them out and finds Ricky. Slade has Ricky get his men to stand down, and Ricky asks if Slade will take revenge for taking out the contract. He decides to take some of Ricky’s money as punishment and leaves.

Later, as he’s speaking with Rose, he reveals to her that he took the money from Ricky to find out where it came from by using the serial numbers. After giving Rose a meeting point, he gets into a car with Wintergreen. Wintergreen chastises him for not finding an easier way to spend time with his child. He then chastises him for going to such extremes of sneaking into Gotham City undetected. But Slade wants to avoid a certain someone.

Along the way, Slade trades cars, picks up Rose, and keeps heading towards Gotham City. Along the way, Rose mentions that she is creeped out by his use of a glass eye as part of his disguise. Slade says it’s only to avoid Batman. Rose still thinks it’s unnecessary, but Slade dismisses her. When she tries to talk to her boyfriend, Slade tosses her phone out of the car. While she sulks, he chastises her for making a rookie mistake. When they reach a motel, Slade vets everyone there before settling down. He then flashes back to when Rose was training with Nightwing, revealing that he was watching over her the entire time. Back In the present, after they get back on the road, a biker pulls up alongside them. When Slade pulls over to talk them down, Rose begins fighting all of the bikers. Slade is confused, but realizes she had a vision that got her to act. Even though she saves him, Slade is upset, because she started the fight which possibly made her vision come true. However, one last biker leaps out from their hiding place and shoots Slade, forcing Slade to kill him. Upset about the turn of events, Slade takes one of the now ownerless motorcycles and the two continue on their way.

Once they reach Gotham, Slade stakes out a meeting point with Batman. After the local paper boy – later revealed to be Robin in disguise – goes by, Slade gets out of the trunk he was hiding in and into an SUV, apparently to leave. However, Batman appears in the back seat, demanding to know what Slade wants. However, Slade was ready for him. While Batman was with Slade, he had Rose distract Robin while the sedatives Robin was exposed to earlier take effect. Slade then elbows Batman and tells him he has a job for him in exchange for Robin’s safe return. Then, the enhancements made to the SUV activate; rocket boosters to propel the car into the air to catch Robin as he falls, and explosives on the rear of the car to get Batman out as he and Rose escape.

Later, Slade is seen monitoring the trap set up to contain Robin; a room slowly filling with water. Once Robin awakens, he mocks Slade for being so dishonorable as to use drugs and restraints. Slade responds that honor is irrelevant and only commitment matters. Robin then brings up their last encounter where Robin paid him to drop a contract. As Damian keeps joking, Slade tells him to shut up. Damian then calls him out on all of the wrong he’s done to his family; Adeline leaving him, Grant’s death, and Jericho getting his throat cut. He then calls Rose his last chance to get it right, and starts taunting her. He then goes back to mocking Slade, and in response, he asks what the League of Assassins did to him to make him the way he is; Slade just responds with more sarcastic remarks. Slade, aware of what the League does to instill loyalty, repeats his question, but Robin makes a reference to Grant again in response.

Later as the water is about to submerge Damian, Slade tells him that he pities him, as Batman was too late to save him, but proved he was the most committed in this fight. However, Robin manages to escape on his own, and it’s revealed that Batman was already there. Later, Slade is seen holding a knife to the throat of the one who set Rose up for the ambush that started it all; her boyfriend Richard.

Slade is next seen with Wintergreen flying a damaged plane to exfiltrate the Red Lion, who has been serving as president. Wintergreen complains about the situation, but Slade he ignores him and orders him to keep the plane in the air long enough for him to get Ja Zaki out. Once he reaches the ground he immediately begins killing rioters. Wintergreen informs him that Red Lion is located up in the master bedroom of the presidential house. Slade promises to be in and out in five minutes, but Wintergreen is unsure if he can keep the plane in the area that long. However, because Slade is wearing rocket boots made from schematics Hosun stole from Steel, he’s moving slower than normal. Because there are no motors in this pair, Slade’s enhanced strength can’t move them as well as Steel’s armor can, forcing him to change his estimate to six minutes.

Despite the handicap with his Jet Boots, Slade reaches Ja Zaki but mistakes him for a rebel and not only shoots him, but commands his two pet lions to attack him. After Slade realizes his mistake, Ja Zaki complains about Slade being late. Slade threatens to kill his pets, so Ja Zaki calls them off. The two then head to the roof to make their escape. Once there, Slade calls Wintergreen to bring the plane to his location. Billy tries to talk Slade out of using the rocket boots, as they only have enough fuel for one use, but he activates them anyway. Slade however misses the plane, but blames Wintergreen, who in turn blames the damage done to the plane. He informs Slade that he can survive the fall, but Red Lion’s suit, made from Slade’s old Promethium suit, will crush him inside on impact. However, on their descent, Ja Zaki manages to grab onto the plane, saving them both.

They manage to make it out, but the plane ultimately crashes mid-flight. Everyone survives, but Red Lion is upset because the rebels now have the upper hand, and thinks that Slade is now trying to make up for ruining everything. Slade corrects him, saying he would have left him to die if not for the money he paid him. Slade then goes to check on the fourth passenger; Richard, and tells him that if he wants to kill his child (Rose), don’t fail. The group manages to get a private jet, and on the way, Wintergreen quits, complaining about his “death”, the death of his stand-in, but the nail in the coffin is putting a contract out on his daughter in a halfcocked plan to spend time with her. Slade blames Wintergreen for that, because it was his job to take the contract down, even though he was kidnapped before he could do so. While Slade and Wintergreen were hashing it out in the cockpit, Ja Zaki was trying to get Richard to explain why he went after Rose. He refuses to give up the details; but he remembers why….. Slade was in a relationship with his adoptive mother.

Eventually, Slade returns to the US to visit Patricia Trayce in Los Angeles to talk about Luis (Richard). When she asks him if he’s dead, Slade tells her he spared his life for her sake. As they talk, Luis’s reason for hating Slade is fully revealed; Patricia had a stroke that left her confined to a wheelchair and Luis blamed Slade for it after he walked out on her. Pat reminds him that he wasn’t responsible for any of it and Luis is just a boy.

He then heads off to talk to someone who lives in his old house. Once he gets past Barry, Adeline’s bodyguard, who complains about his unannounced presence, he goes inside to see Adeline, who’s also upset at the unscheduled visit. The two then go about their usual ritual of trying to kill each other while they talk. Adeline is still bitter over past events, and Slade believes that she’s been orchestrating everything that’s happened so far, including hiring Richard, who he recognized from the beginning as Luis Trayce. Once they stop fighting, Slade tells her she wasted her jealousy by letting Luis work for her, and she responds by saying that he wanted to work for her. Slade thinks that all of this was to get get him to join a cult-like faction inside the government known as Core Policy, and that it was all a ploy to lure him to her. As the two draw their weapons on each other, Adeline reasons that because Slade took a contract from them, he can work for them again. However, that was the only contract he has ever broken. She claims the group has changed, but Slade still refuses. She tries offering him a home, but he doesn’t care about that either. Deciding to leave, Slade warns her to leave him be, but she vows to keep coming until everything he loves is gone. As he’s walking out, he tells her that her problem is that she’s failed to accept the fact that she’s brought all of her problems down on herself.

Later, Slade is seen hiding in a cooler being wheeled into a meat locker aboard an aircraft carrier. Once Hosun gives Slade an all-clear via com-link, he gets out of the meat locker by using a modification made to his staff and cuts a hole through it. He then heads for his objective; a hidden bunker where a drug cartel boss is hiding. While Hosun gives Slade the rundown of the opposition, he keeps moving, killing a few guards along the way. However, Hosun suddenly goes radio silent. Then, the ship’s infrastructure changes as one of his target’s security measures. With the ship’s structure changed and no one to guide him through it, Slade is forced to activate the Ikon Suit’s A.I. which is rigged to sound like Wintergreen. While the A.I. makes sarcastic remarks, Slade keeps moving and reaches the outside of the ship. However, he finds an unexpected sight: Superman, ready to take him in to custody.

Deathstroke and Superman stare each other down, and then Slade makes a surprising move; he disarms and and unmasks himself in surrender. As Superman cuffs him, he tells Superman that even he takes him in, his lawyers make Darkseid look like a local librarian. He says that while he wastes his time in detention, he can then kill Alisante, his target in prison. Superman doesn’t know who he’s talking to about, so he explains who Alisante is. Superman however, can only capture Slade. Slade responds that while he’s been authorized to deal with him, that he’s (Deathstroke) been authorized to deal with Alisante. Superman refuses to allow him to kill this man, but then Slade asks him where he was when Alisante’s gang did unspeakable things to the children of a D.E.A. team that captured him; and where he was when government officials where being killed by Alisante and his men. Superman tells him that righteous indignation doesn’t suit him, right as Slade activates his energy staff and fires a blast into Superman’s face. As Superman recovers, Slade breaks free of his cuffs and tells him that he will surrender only after he kills Alisante. Once Superman recovers, he punches Slade in the chest, but the Ikon armor’s energy shield absorbs the punch, keeping him standing. By the third punch, Slade is still standing, but the A.I. warns Slade that the shield is at 9% of its capabilities. Despite the danger, Slade keeps egging Superman on. The last punch pushes the shield too far and it releases the stored energy in a shockwave that disorients Superman long enough for Slade to escape.

Slade returns tracking down Alisante with the A.I. leading the way. While moving Slade complains about the fact that the A.I. sounds like Wintergreen. When he asks about Superman, it tells him that the ship’s lead shielding hides them from him. As he’s asking if he can hear them through all the noise on the ship, Superman punches through the ship, saying that he can. However, the A.I. was broadcasting its voice throughout the entire ship, masking Slade’s location. While the A.I. distracts Superman, Slade is seen pouring some bullets into a green liquid. When a group of mercenaries hired by Alisante to help him escape and kill all of his men arrives, Slade deactivates the safety measures keeping the stolen nuclear warhead aboard the ship in a stable condition. At that moment, Superman finds Slade vowing to end things now. Slade responds that it ends when he says so, and shoots Superman with phony Kryptonite bullets. Unaware they were fake, Superman uses a piece of the hull to shield himself while Slade dives into the ocean and gives chase to Alisante, who got off the ship via submarine. Slade manages to catch up to the submarine and cuts a hole in the side using his energy staff. Once inside, he shoots Alisante, just as Superman lifts the submarine out of the water. Superman pulls Slade out and tosses him onto the deck of the Aircraft Carrier. Slade, refusing to quit, fires his energy staff at Superman and asks why he is really after him. Superman responds that he should have come for him sooner and melts Slade’s staff with his heat vision. He then fires another heat blast, which Slade blocks with his sword. Superman says that even though Alisante may have deserved to die, he still had an obligation to protect him despite his ex-wife’s plans. Slade says that he avoids government work because it’s a waste of lives and money. As Slade draws blood with his Promethium Blade, he tells Superman that even though he foolishly believes taking Slade in will change something, he may have admired him if he himself was a different person. Slade then tells Superman that he can’t kill him, however, he brought someone along who can, his son Joseph, a.k.a Jericho. Armed with the Master Ikon System, Jericho shuts Slade’s suit down while Superman knocks him out.

Four Rooms

Instead of delivering Slade to Adeline, Superman decided to let the Coast Guard take Slade into custody. Eventually he’s sent to a Supermax prison in Colorado awaiting trial. While inside, Slade is interrogated by a man named Dex, who considers himself to be Slade’s Pontius Pilate. When asked about his profession, Slade calls it personal security consulting. Dex brings up the time he saved Grant from the bear, and Slade responds by asking him about his family. Dex then mentions a story he heard about a black ops soldier who was disciplined and forced to ride a desk for the rest of his career. Slade then tells Dex that the man from the story’s potential was wasted where he was, sitting at a desk.

Slade then has a flashback to the time he won his trademark sword in a game of cards in Srebrenica. One of the people there recited the history of the blade, and said that the antique weapon was named Deathstroke. When Slade shows his card hand, one of the men, a talented swordsman, tries to kill Slade with the sword. However, Slade kills him with the blade instead. When another man asks him how he won, Wintergreen, just arriving, tells him that Slade fenced in high school. Slade recognizes him as a British S.A.S agent who rescued him earlier in his career. Wintergreen then realizes that he is AWOL, and leaves him to discuss his mission with his crew. However, there is a snag, the man Slade killed was a member of Wintergreen’s team. In response, Wintergreen has Slade take his place and explains the operation; they are to arrest Dragas, a Bosnian general, for ordering a massacre. Slade, however, knows that they are not officially allowed to be here, and the op is illegal. Wintergreen corrects him, saying that they aren’t allowed to be there. Slade mentions a five million dollar bounty involved and agrees to help them as far as getting their target to the border, as long as they split the profit.

The group heads into Serbia and enacts their plan to capture Dragas. Two of the group ram a truck into the armored decoy truck to get the U.N. troops out of the way. Meanwhile, Slade, riding a horse and wearing a ski mask painted to look like the masks he would wear in the future, scares the Humvee escort away, where it crashes into a bulldozer Wintergreen placed into the road. They then grab Dragas, who was in the Humvee. They all regroup on Dragas, where Wintergreen comments on the horse, before giving orders to get Dragas to the border. However, one of the crewmen was secretly a Bosnian, and he kills Dragas because he and his men raided his hometown. Slade doesn’t care about vengeance, and reminds him that Dragas is worthless dead. He also reveals that the man he killed was a decoy, and that Dragas was actually the driver of the Humvee. When the man makes a move to try and kill the real Dragas, Slade refuses to let him interfere with his payday and stops him. In response, the man tells him that they will keep Slade’s cut as his allies arrive, weapons at the ready.

Slade warns them to back off, but as they are outnumbered, the lead Bosnian gives he and Wintergreen a chance to walk away before they are harmed. However, Slade actually wants to harm them. They call him out on protecting a mass murderer. When Wintergreen tries to defuse the situation, a sniper fires into the group, causing everyone to start shooting. Slade uses the shot as an excuse to start killing all of the Bosnians despite Wintergreen’s protests. Eventually, the two take a hold of Dragas along with their remaining crew, and escape.

After fleeing, Slade and Wintergreen meet again when Slade returns to the service, having been promoted for his actions. Wintergreen calls Slade out because he knows that Slade wants Dragas alive so he could stand trial, and not just for the money. Slade denies it, but Wintergreen sees through his facade and calls him a true believer; someone who is nearly heroic. Wintergreen then asks what happened to make him change. Slade responds that it was a woman, and he remembers first meeting her when he refused to salute her as a superior officer. Wintergreen reminds him that the operation was illegal, and Slade tells him to get to the point. Wintergreen tells him that his promotion was the reward for keeping quite, and mocks him as taking a bribe. Slade then threatens him and leaves, passing an unknown soldier

The solider he passed that day turns out to be Dex, who is surprised he remember him. Slade remembers him by the fact that he earned the Black Star, an award that doesn’t officially exist. Slade argues that it does, and he traded one for a truck once, but Dex denies the award exists again. Slade asks what Dex wants because he has no case against him. However, Hosun and Ja Zaki have testified against him. Adeline refused to cooperate, wanting to take Slade down herself, but she gave Dex the idea to charge Slade with campaign finance violations. None of it matters though unless it can be proved in court that Slade really is Deathstroke. Dex feels that it is right and easier to simply kill him, and she agrees.

Slade is sent back to his cell, and to pass the time he reads up on gravity sheaths, the theoretical quantum mechanic that powers the Ikon suits’ abilities. As he’s reading, he hears screams from outside his cell. When he sees the cause of the screams, he reprimands them. The cause was Red Lion, who came to break him out.

Deathstroke in Chicago

When a Deathstroke impostor appears in Chicago, Slade goes to investigate. Eventually, he catches up to the impersonator; a Reverend who posed as Deathstroke in hopes of doing something about the gun violence in the city. Slade eventually tracks him down and kills him inside of a church. Before leaving, Jack Ryder, who was also tracking the Reverend, wants to talk to him. Slade asks if he will be a threat. Ryder responds by saying that he himself won’t but be, but the being inside him may be, but not a serious one. He then asks Slade if he would have actually taken the contract if the women who set it up could afford him, and he says he wouldn’t. Ryder asks one last question; what he thinks the solution to Chicago’s gun problem is. Slade says that the solution is better aim.

Twilight

Slade returns to Los Angeles to talk to Luis’ mother Patricia about whether or not he will kill him. Slade tells her that he will spare Luis because of the relationship they had. He has one condition however; Luis never goes near Rose again. Pat reminds him that Luis’s hatred for him is because he left them. Slade agrees, and tells her that sparing Luis means that Luis will come for him again, at which point, he will kill him. On the way out, Slade walks into the door. Patricia realizes something is wrong. When she asks about it, Slade takes his glasses off revealing that he is blind in his one good eye. She is shocked and asks what happened.

In the present, Slade and Red Lion are escaping the supermax prison where Slade was being detained. As they fight their way out, Slade is upset that Matthew (Red Lion) came to rescue him. Slade points out that Ja Zaki would never come for him if he didn’t want something. Matthew wants Slade’s help as payback for Slade’s part in causing him to lose his country, but Slade reminds him that he set him up to be killed, a fact he plays off to be bad business. Slade points out that he could have escaped on his own, but he stayed to get a chance to rest. Matthew doesn’t care, though, and tells him about the Deathstroke impostor in Chicago as they board his private helicopter. As they fly away, Slade asks what he’s up to, Mathew tells him he only wants his country back. Slade sees the breakout as an odd form of revenge, and points out that Mathew’s rebels would have slaughtered him without his help, but Mathew argues that his genocide would have done the trick. Slade agrees to investigate the happenings in Chicago, but vows to return for answers.

After taking care of the fake Deathstroke, Slade, now using an older suit because the Ikon suit was left behind during his escape, checks in on Jericho while he and Étienne are asleep. Étienne opens her eyes long enough to catch a glimpse of him, but he’s gone in literally the blink of an eye. He then goes to Dex’s home in Colorado, and catches him while he’s out getting a late-night snack. Dex thinks he’s there to kill him, but Slade only wants to know why his escape didn’t make the news. After Superman made a spectacle of his capture, combined with the fact that a man in a lion costume broke him out of a supermax prison, and fifteen guards are in the hospital, something should have reached the news media. Dex refuses to talk, but Slade deduces that Matthew Bland freed Slade to distract everyone so he could release someone else.

Deathstroke asks who else escaped, but Dex refuses to talk. To sweeten the deal, Slade vows to turn himself in if he tells him. Dex is skeptical, but knowing Slade to be a man of his word, accepts the deal. It turns out that Raptor, a matter thief, also escaped. Slade wonders about what Red Lion wants to steal, and Dex asks him what Matthew wants the most. Slade knows the answer to be – his dictatorship. When Dex asks what he would be needed for Red Lion to get his country back, Slade answers that he needs corrupt politicians and an army. However, Slade realizes that he wants a navy, and also realizes what Matthew plans to steal. Before leaving to intercept Red Lion, Slade hands Dex a notice; Deathstroke is suing the Colorado State Government for twenty-two million dollars, claiming they violated his civil rights. The Stae’s case was weak in that it was hinged on them proving that Slade Wilson is Deathstroke. Because Deathstroke was killing people across Chicago while Slade Wilson was locked up, they now have no case, and no right to detain Slade. As he leaves, Dex argues that Deathstroke can’t sue if he’s not Slade. He shoots back that they have to pay him unless they prove Slade and Deathstroke are the same person, which they can’t. He then leaves for his target destination; the aircraft carrier that belonged to the drug cartel, now being converted into a oceanside casino.

When Raptor and Red Lion begin their plan to steal the carrier, Slade follows Raptor. Hiding in the shadows, he mocks Raptor’s sob-story past and hints that it’s a lie. Revealing himself, Slade tells Raptor he has something he is after. Raptor congratulates him for beating them to the ship, even though he was a day behind them. He then tells Slade he believes he can change the world, and asks Slade what he believes. Slade’s reply is that he believes in Smith and Wesson, and demands the Ikon Suit back. Because he left it behind in his escape, Raptor calls salvage rights on the suit. In response, Deathstroke vows to bury him in it.

As the two begin fighting, Red Lion shows up to witness the fight and mocks Slade for his choice of attire. While Slade maintains the upper hand due to his metahuman abilities, Raptor still manages to hold his own. Unexpectedly, the Wintergreen A.I. begins giving Slade advice, having hacked into his suit’s comm system to help him defeat Raptor. Too busy to be fazed by the development, Slade orders the AI to shut Raptor’s suit down, but Raptor has locked the AI out. Slade then orders the A.I to do the next best thing; call someone who can access the other suit, that someone being Jericho,. Jericho is surprised to hear that Slade is out of prison and asks if Slade is still upset about the role he played in him getting arrested. Slade responds that he has no hard feelings, but before Slade can ask him for the favor, Jericho cuts him off, as he is busy. Slade then asks how much he is getting paid for the job he’s busy with at the moment, and Jericho responds that not everything is about money, a philosophy Slade disagrees with. Getting back to business, Slade asks him if he can help him get in touch with Isherwood. Since he had an Ikon suit and he liked Isherwood, Slade assumes Jericho knows where he is. He instructs Jericho to patch him through to Slade’s comms and then call Adeline. Clearly distraught (Unbeknownst to Slade, Jericho put Isherwood in the hospital recently), Jericho agrees to do what he asks.

As Slade and Raptor continue fighting, they are suddenly thrown off balance and realize that the carrier is moving. Red Lion places himself between them and explains the situation. Red Lion had several hundred sleeper agents enter the United States posing as refugees seeking asylum from his genocide. He called them to service, and instructed them to attach turbojet submersibles to tow the ship into international waters. He then asks the two to stop fighting, but Slade only cares about getting his Ikon suit back. Slade informs Bland that he realizes what his plan is; to break him out of prison to cover Raptor’s escape, and then have Raptor steal the Ikon suit to lure Slade to the carrier. The last thing Slade wants to know is what Matthew wants from all of this, and what he stands to gain from it. Impressed that Slade put all the pieces together, he offers Slade his ex-wife Adeline, and says that all he wants is control of his country and people back, which he blames on the US for losing.

Matthew explains that Alisante, the previous owner of the carrier, was allowed to roam the seas freely thanks to the intelligence team Adeline runs protecting him in exchange for information. Because the carrier has recently been bought and is set to become a casino, it’s an ideal target for Raptor, who prefers to target the wealthy. Between Jericho and the government, most of the intelligence Adeline was getting was found, except for the most sensitive intel, capable of putting Adeline away, hidden in the ship’s nuclear reactor chamber. Matthew then tells Slade what he is offering; he needs the reactor turned back on to steal the carrier and use it to reclaim his country, but the chamber is still radioactive. Thanks to his healing factor, Slade is best equipped to put the fuel rods back into the reactor. In exchange for helping, Slade gets the intel, and Raptor gets to strike at the people who bought the ship. Deciding the risk is worth it, the two, Slade and Raptor, agree to set aside their grievances and help Red Lion.

Once they reach the reactor, the Slade and Raptor don radiation protections suits and enter the chamber. While they reinsert the fuel rods, Raptor asks why Slade is friends with Red Lion even though he will probably kill them both. Slade responds that they are not friends, but they tolerate each others’ existence. Raptor cannot understand how he can tolerate a genocidal despot, but Slade retorts that the tribes he was killing are now killing their formers oppressors, and that Matthew may save more lives than he takes. He then offers to let Raptor keep the Ikon suit if he can make sense of the situation. Raptors cites several occasions as insight into how despots think.

Fifteen minutes into the process, the Wintergreen AI informs Slade that the radiation suits were only meant to last eight minutes. Unconcerned, Slade continues installing the reactor fuel rods. Raptor asks if he intends to misalign the fuel rods and stop Red Lion from claiming the ship knowing how many people he will kill with it. Slade claims he doesn’t care about that, believing that Red Lion will restore order to his country and then avoid doing anything that could justify US intervention. Slade then notices that Raptor’s radiation suit has fumes building up inside of it. Raptor is confused, but Slade knows exactly what is happening. Because Slade is the only one with the ability to generate enough kinetic energy to power the Ikon suit, Raptor installed lithium ion cells in the suit to power it instead. The fume’s are from the cells overheating due to radiation exposure, melting the radiation suit and thus disabling the Ikon suit underneath, leaving Raptor completely exposed and covered in radioactive clothing. Raptor doesn’t buy it, but Slade tells him his best chance of survival is to take off all his clothes and run.

Slade then radios Red Lion to tell him the fuel rods have been inserted, but Red Lion answers that they are too late; Adeline and her team have already boarded. Before Adeline can arrest Matthew, Slade appears, back in the Ikon suit, and reminds her that the ship has already reached international waters. Adeline threatens to tow the ship back to shore and arrest them both, and Slade threatens to kill all of her men if she tries. She gives in and professes her hate for Slade, to which he responds that she never should have married him. Before leaving, she declares that she has made it her life’s mission to kill Slade.

Slade then frees Matthew from his restraints, and tells him that Raptor had fled the ship by the time Slade exited the decontamination shower. He then instructs Mathew to make sure Raptor didn’t sabotage anything. Now free, Matthew asks Slade what he will do with the evidence he has on Adeline. Once alone, Slade ponders what to do while holding the hard drives in his had. After a moment, Slade tosses the drive into the air and blasts them all with his energy staff. After leaving Red Lion to his devices, Slade is later seen in the most shocking of places; sleeping next to Étienne, Jericho’s fiancée. She is wide awake and nervous because she is set to marry Joseph in a week, but when she realizes she woke Slade, he tells her to stop obsessing, as everything will eventually work itself out.

The next morning, as the two get dressed, Slade insists Étienne break off her engagement with Joseph, as he believes she doesn’t love him and is only trying to get at him. Originally, he thought she was working for Adeline, but he knows she loves Joseph too much to let someone capable of a relationship with Slade near him. Étienne claims she really does love him, and he admonishes her for falling for her target. Before leaving on business, he reminds her he will kill her if she tells anyone, and kisses her.

The business he set out to do was returning to Colorado to surrender to Dex, as he had previously agreed to turn himself in after finding Raptor. However, Dex offers to drop the government’s case against him if he drops his lawsuit against the state. He also offers Slade his sword back in exchange for a favor. Slade agrees and travels to The Bronx to capture a data thief working as a cab driver to avoid detection. When he finds his target, the target manages to slip away. However, Earth 0’s Power Girl happened to be nearby and tries to catch his quarry herself. Avoiding her, the data thief tries to run, but runs right into Slade, who used the opportunity to change into his suit. In the scuffle, Slade is injected with some sort of drug , but manages to corner the thief behind a dumpster. The thief offers to double what Slade’s being paid to leave, but Slade refuses and kicks the dumpster into him. Once Slade changes back into his civilian clothes, the drug start to take effect, causing him to pass out. When he comes to, he finds that Tanya took him back to her lab/apartment and cleaned him up. She also explains that his suit was still radioactive, so she cleaned that too. She marvels at his abilities and the tech in his suit, but he tells her he has to leave, and to turn on some lights. Tanya then explains that she believed he already knew that he was blind in his eye.

Seeking answers, Slade takes Tanya with him to see Dr. Villain, his on-call doctor, in Jersey City. As his eye is being scanned, Villain and Tanya trade theories to explain the blindness. When Slade tells them to use simpler terms, Tanya, explains that he is just simply blind and no known medical diagnosis explains it. Upset at the lack of results despite the effort, Slade leaves. Tanya tries to get “Raptor” to stay longer, but he refuses. As Tanya leaves for a break, Villain points out to Raptor that Tanya thinks the he’s the real Raptor and a superhero. Raptor replies that he’s simply taking advantage of the fact that the real Raptor painted his logo on his suit. When Slade returns and asks for the facts about his eye- revealing to Dr. Villain that he has been slowly losing his vision for some time – Villain explains that his time in a nuclear reactor accelerated his vision loss. Villain also explains that there is a 75% chance the blindness will be permanent.

Unable to cure his blindness, Tanya gives Roscoe, a retired police dog, to Slade to serve as his eyes and to be a companion. Slade refuses to keep any type of companion around, but Tanya tries to sway him by offering high tech glasses that allow him to see using sound waves and connect to the Wintergreen A.I. Once online, the A.I. admonishes Slade for still being with Tanya. When he asks if she can hear the A.I., she says she kept it quiet to avoid eavesdropping on a fellow hero. Slade admonishes her for not taking their line of work seriously. At the same time, “Wintergreen” pulls up data on Tanya, revealing her status as a Teen Titan. She claims that she was a Titan, but quit after their leader died. She then went on to graduate from M.I.T. and eventually accepted a job at Star Labs. She says she only acts as a superhero “part-time.” Currently working a case, she asks Slade for help. When he asks how much it pays, he stops and stares at Roscoe.

That evening, the two attend a party in Westchester Village. However, he is recognized by a mercenary trying to perform a hit at the party. A few minutes later, a woman orders him to meet her employer in the men’s restroom or her people will shoot Power Girl. Complying, Slade recognizes the hitman running the operation as Kyle Rogers a.k.a. Deadline. He tells Slade that he has the contract to kill a Congresswoman (Ironically, the widow of the Congressman Slade drove to suicide a while back), and demands he walk away. Slade counters by offering him double his pay to let him take the kill. When he refuses and leaves, Wintergreen sabotages their comms, giving Slade an opening to kill the mercenaries guarding him. While Tanya is forced to engage Deadline, Slade uses the opportunity to change into his suit. As Deadline’s men go in for the kill, Slade arrives on the scene and uses his energy staff to incapacitate them. Having found a use for Roscoe, Slade prepares to fight as the new vigilante Twilight.

As Twilight, Slade and Roscoe dispatch Deadline’s thugs. Slade has his A.I., now dubbed Billy, to hack into Deadline’s comms, and asks him to back off. Deadline refuses and asks why Slade is pretending to be a hero. Slade replies that he lost a bet and says that he (Deadline) was foolish to ignore his previous offer. When Deadline realizes that Slade actually cares about Tanya, he leaps out of the window and blasts a hole in her gut. He then kidnaps the real Wintergreen, who had just arrived, and gives Slade an hour to give up on his target in exchange for Wintergreen.

An hour later, Deadline prepares to kill Wintergreen because Slade was late, just as Slade takes out his remaining men. Tossing one of the men’s bodies into Deadline, Slade declares that he is officially angry. Deadline calls him out for interfering with his contract, but Slade only cares about the fact that he killed a child whose heroism saved his life, moving him to pretend to be a hero for her. Deadline reveals that he filed a complaint with the “Society,” but Slade plans to kill him before that happens. Slade shoots Deadline’s hover discs out and gets in close, even though Billy advises him against engaging a metahuman armed with alien technology in close combat without his eyesight. Despite not wanting to, Deadline phases his hand into Slade’s chest to try to kill him. However, Slade planned for that, because he knew that Deadline’s phasing power would have an unknown reaction with the power of the Ikon suit. In this case, Deadline’s hand solidifies inside of Slade, severing it completely. As the two collapse, the glasses Tanya designed fall off, leaving him completely blind. Against Billy’s advice, Slade tries to finish the job. Commanding Roscoe to attack Deadline, Slade uses the opening to get the glasses back and follows Roscoe. However, Before Slade delivers the final blow that will kill Deadline, Tanya, whose powers healed her, arrives. Unwilling to kill in front of Tanya, Slade knocks him out and then lies about planning to kill him.

The two head back to Tanya’s apartment and while he is alone, Slade and the real Wintergreen talk about what to do with Deadline’s alien rifle. In the end, Slade tells Wintergreen to keep it for him in case he ever needs it, even though it’s rigged to work only for Deadline. Slade decides to have Isherwood try to unlock it, but Billy reminds him that he won’t help. In a lapse of memory he considers using Hosun, and has to be reminded that he disappeared. Unfortunately, Beast Boy, having arrived to hang out with Tanya, arrives. When Beast Boy sees Slade, he reveals the truth about him to Tanya.

When she confronts him, rather than be angry at him, she is upset at herself for helping him. Rather than kill her like she expected, Slade tells her that despite the lies, he respected her work. She then begins fretting about being an accessory to all of the people he killed, but he tells her she isn’t responsible. When she tries to get him to turn himself in, he refuses, but decides to tell her his real name. As she prepares to use force to take him in to the authorities, he kills Roscoe to get her worked up. Enraged, Tanya attacks him, but despite not being able to see, he manages to escape.

Having planned for the eventuality of Tanya discovering the truth, Slade had “Billy” hack into her network days prior to their confrontation. Billy then activates Tanya’s defenses to delay her, while he flees to the base she had built into the apartment block. Reaching his suit, he puts it on, and Billy informs him that Tanya made modifications to it. “Wintergreen” then prepares a plan to kill Tanya, but Slade intends to spare her. As he finishes gathering his gear, Tanya catches up to him and demands his surrender. In response he tells her that being a hero comes at a price and attacks. As Slade blasts her in the ear, she asks him what his price was, but he refuses to burden her with that much horror. As the shot to her ear distorts Tanya’s sense of balance, Slade uses the opening to steal her jet. As he takes off, he tells Tanya that she needs to take being a hero more seriously. To prove him wrong, she destroys the jet before it can leave. When she checks the wreckage, she finds that Slade escaped. As Slade removes the sleeve Tanya sewed onto his suit to get rid of any Failsafe or tracking devices, Billy talks about Roscoe, and explains that he killed him to make Tanya hate him. Because he cares about Tanya, he needed to push her away. Slade silences Billy and demands directions to the airport so he can make it to Jericho’s wedding.

On the day of Jericho’s wedding, Jericho attacks Slade in the church where the wedding is to take place, believing that he murdered Étienne. Slade tells him he wasn’t the killer, but Joe doesn’t believe him and keeps up the attack . When Slade calls him son, he loses it and flies them both outside, right into the path of an oncoming truck. Joe pins Slade and vows to end him.

Flashing back to the previous day, Slade arrives in L.A. to talk to the bride, however, he came upon her while she was talking to her boss. While she is being chewed out for going off the reserves, Slade takes the phone from her to talk to the person in charge: Amanda Waller. Amanda voices surprise that he is no longer in New York, and Slade offers to have one of his private jets fly him to her to eliminate her team. He warns her to leave his kid be, but she demands that he bring her person back to square things away. Slade reminds Waller who she is talking to, and that he will keep her spy around until he gets tired of her or kills her on the spot. At that moment, Wintergreen shows up to talk.

Billy recounts all of the wrongs Slade has done to his children, his ex-wife, Tanya, and his blindness, and that it all has to end somewhere. Slade replies it doesn’t have to, but Billy disagrees. Billy tells him that not even Deathstroke can escape the consequences of his actions, and the cost is everything and everyone in his life. He warns that Slade needs to make things right, and to change Wintergreen’s voice before leaving. Taking Billy’s words to heart, he starts by going to tell Patricia the terms upon which he would let Luis live. He then removes tape from a restrained Luis’ mouth. He tells him that he’s not really helping him, because he knows he won’t listen to him or his mother and change his path. Because he won’t change, he tells him he is a dead man walking and leaves.

On the day of the wedding, Rose, Slade, Adeline, and Barry sit together as they wait for the wedding to start. Rose takes a moment to tell Slade off concerning the contract and the fake family. He responds that he was trying to help her learn about her heritage and drive her to decide who she wants to be. At that moment, Joseph storms in wearing the Ikon suit and possesses the minister, to everyone’s confusion. The possessed minister grabs the gun Adeline had on her and shoots Slade in the head. The shot only grazes him, and Slade suits up in response. Billy warns him that Joe is trying to shut down his Ikon suit.

Returning to the present, Joseph uses his Ikon Suit to stop the truck, destroying it. Joe tries to hit Slade, but Slade dodges and again tells Joe that he did not kill Étienne. As Billy reminds him that Tanya’s glasses can’t truly replace his lost sight, he reveals that she was Waller’s spy. However, Joe still won’t stop attacking him. Slade then lets himself get distracted as he remembers the moment when he saved Grant from the bear attack, allowing Joe to land a blow. As Slade stays on the defensive, Billy studies Joe’s suit in an attempt to locate a weakness. Billy then tells Slade that he can use the gravity field of his suit to expose a flaw in his son’s armor, which he can then use to kill him. As Billy readies the suit’s gravity field to take advantage of the flaw in Jericho’s suit, Slade remembers the day Joseph had his throat cut, and how he secretly cried that day. He then shuts down the Ikon suit, and allows Joseph to beat him. Before Joe can kill his father, Rose tries to calm him down, but Joe knocks her out too.

While Slade is still unconscious, he has a flashback to a memory he had forgotten: the death of Grant. When he becomes conscious again, he’s in the hospital, and is surprised that he can see again. Wintergreen, who is there checking on him, explains that Dr. Villain obtained a new eye and performed a transplant operation. Wintergreen also explains that Slade was talking about Grant and a “new Flash” while he was unconscious. Seemingly ignoring Wintergreen, Slade gets dressed and tells Wintergreen to prep his jet.

Slade then begins investigating what he remembered by capturing the new Flash: the original Wally West, who had been trapped outside of existence until recently. Hiring thugs to lure out Wally and the Titans, he knocks out Wally with a combination of tranquilizers and truth serum. He then takes Wally to his hideout and traps him on a treadmill to keep him from escaping. He then interrogates Wally about his friends, his disappearance and reappearance, and of history being altered. When he is satisfied, he shuts the treadmill off. He then asks Wally about the day Grant died, and he explains that Grant was killed by the powers H.I.V.E gave him. He also apologizes for not being able to save Grant despite his best efforts. Slade then restrains Wally again and asks him about speedsters and time travel. Wally then realizes Slade’s plan; to travel back in time and save Grant. Wally tries to talk him out of it to no avail. Wally then breaks free and pins Slade to a wall. Slade then makes Wally an offer – help him save Grant, and he will quit being Deathstroke. Wally is tempted by the offer, but ultimately refuses, knowing better than most the consequences of trying to alter time. Slade, however, had anticipated Wally’s refusal and had secured a contingency plan. By posing as civilian having car trouble, he was able to capture the second Wally West, Kid Flash.

The older Wally tries to warn the younger Wally about Slade, but Slade knocks the older Wally out and asks Kid Flash to help him save his son. Surprisingly, Slade releases him and appeals to the grief Wally carries over his own dead father to try and convince him to help him bring Grant back to life. To make his point, he has Wally speed them both to see a still comatose Rose, Jericho in a psychiatric ward, and Grant’s grave. When they return to Slade’s base, Slade asks Wally to help him change who he is, then walks off. Wally agrees, but it turns out that Slade already got what he really wanted. By running him to the places the visited, he got a sample of Wally’s Speed Force energy. The two teams of Titans arrive later to find both Flashes, only to find that Slade had accomplished his goal. Using stolen technology grafted into the Ikon Suit, Slade used the energy he gathered from Wally to connect to the Speed Force. Slade tests out his new powers by running. The older Wally, who had recovered by then, tries to chase Slade down. Slade tries to run away from Wally , but Wally stays right with him. When Slade mentions a deal in place, Wally gets confused. Slade then explains the nature of the deal.

A year after the original Teen Titans’ battle with Grant, Slade broke into their HQ. Robin caught him in the act was going to attempt to subdue him, but was cornered before he can make a move. Slade explains that he is there to kill them, having taken up Grant’s contract with H.I.V.E. However, Robin knows that he has a different reason for being there. Slade then offers Dick a choice; take the offer he makes or die. Slade explains that his daughter Rose is going to move in with him because Lillian has died. However, Slade doesn’t want her around him for fear of corrupting her. Though he’s arranged to have her taken care of, he wants Dick to teach her his values in hope that it will keep her from turning out like him. In exchange for this, Slade will convert his contract with H.I.V.E into a Lazarus Contract. He will abandon the contract and leave the Titans alone, but should either man fail to uphold their end of the bargain, the contract will be back on. Robin, seeing the good in this, agrees.

Back in the present, Slade acknowledges Nightwing for keeping his word, and ponders how he was made to forget about Grant. He then stops running and says to Wally that as they now both have super-speed, the playing field is even, however, due to the fact that Slade is a trained mercenary, he now has the upper hand. Unnerved, Wally retreats. As Slade runs, he remembers his past with Grant: the time he saved him from a bear, and the night Adeline asked for a divorce. It turns out that was also the night Grant ran away. Before Grant can get far, Slade catches up with him and makes him an offer; he will let him leave if he hits him and proves he has some capacity to handle the outside world. Angered, Grant punches him in the chest, but Slade is unfazed. Though Slade agrees to let his son leave, Slade intends to beat Grant before he goes. However, Grant is hit by a passing car. As Grant convinces the car’s occupants to give him a lift, Slade watches in the shadows as his son leaves.

In the present Slade goes on an international killing spree, before stopping to check on Rose. Wintergreen also arrives to tell Slade that Jericho has been released, and encourages him to visit him. Slade refuses, as he plans to go on a mission. When Billy asks how long he will be, Slade simply tells him he is going to fix all the wrongs he’s done in the past or die trying. Slade takes the time to try and find Isherwood again, to no avail. He then decides to do what he set out to do by obtaining the Speed Force powers. By running at top speed towards the place where Grant died, he manages to time-travel to Grant’s location not long before Grant made his initial attack on the Titans. When Slade arrives, Grant is confused at Slade’s sudden appearance, so he unmasks himself. Slade then does the one thing no one who knows Slade personally ever thought was possible…he hugs his son.

Slade takes Grant to a safe house in Vermont. While there, Slade tells Grant that he needs to stop working for H.I.V.E. Grant, however, is still too much in awe over meeting his idol. Slade then takes off his helmet, and Grant – still hating his father – stops listening and lashes out, forcing Slade to knock him out. Upset that he failed to get through to Grant, he decides to go back further in time and try again. On try number four, Slade tries telling Grant that the serum H.I.V.E. gave him will kill him, but Grant refuses to listen. At that moment, Grant begins to fade out of existence. Thanks to the two teams of Titans, Slade was cut off from the Speed Force, undoing all of his attempts to change the past and pulling him back into the present.

As Slade reappears in the present at the spot where the Titans first HQ was, he spots the combined Titans nearby. However, despite the Titans cutting off his speed, it turns out Slade managed to tap into the Speed Force through his body rather than his suit. Enraged that they stole his chance to change the past, he decides to use his power to try to save Grant again. Intending to stop Grant from ever running away and then to kill them all (the Titans) when he returns, he speeds off. Jericho travels in Slade’s wake and tries to get him to stop. Too concerned about saving his first son, he runs so fast that he and Jericho get trapped in the Speed Force.

Despite being betrayed, the young Wally West desires to save Slade and runs into the Speed Force after him. Because Slade doesn’t know how to leave the Speed Force, the teams combine there efforts to pull them all out. Robin immediately wants to subdue Slade, but Slade is too caught up on what happened in the Speed Force. Slade is able to temporarily perceive multiples planes of existence simultaneously, but is cut off from the Speed Force. Rather than kill them all, Slade decides to end this by quitting being Deathstroke forever.

PERSONALITY

Slade Wilson has a very complicated personality. He is a trustworthy and honorable man who operates under a strict code of ethics, yet his sense of morality is flawed. Slade is a man who believes in using deadly force, and at times has acted as judge, jury, and executioner for those he deems without honor or worth. However, Slade is particular about the jobs he chooses, often turning down jobs that would compromise his personal moral compass, such as it is. In some occasions, Slade has fought on the side of angels merely because he believed in the cause. Other times, he has taken cases and committed acts other heroes would be disgusted by.

However, Slade is capable of extreme devotion, whether it be to his family, friends or even ex-lovers. He has always sought to protect those who have been close to him, and would not hesitate to lay down his life in exchange for theirs. His greatest tragedies have been his inability to prevent the destruction of those who have loved him. The death of his sons and ex-wife continue to haunt Slade. He is tortured by his helplessness to have saved them.

Slade also has a hard time expressing his feelings. His lack of expression made him neither a good father nor a good husband. At times, he has distanced himself from those he loved for their own protection. On separate occasions, he curtly cut ties with Rose Wilson, his daughter, and Pat Trayce, his lover, in an effort to “save” them from his way of life.

Despite his recent changes, Slade remains a man of mystery. Whether he will walk the side of angels or take the path to hell remains to be seen. You never know quite what to expect from him, and he would have it no other way.

Personal Data

Characteristics

• Height: 6’4″
• Weight: 225 lbs.
• Eye Color: Blue
• Hair Color: White/Blonde (New 52)

Status

• Citizenship: American
• Identity: Secret identity
• Marital Status: Divorced
• Occupation: Assassin, Mercenary, Bounty Hunter, Gun for Hire, Soldier, Warrior

Powers & Abilities

Super Strength / Speed / Endurance / Intellect

As a result of an experimental hormone therapy conducted by the US government, Slade became a super soldier. Unbeknownst to Slade’s superiors, the procedure boosted his brain capacity, increasing his coordination and stamina further than a human could process, becoming an enhanced human. His mind is like a computer built for strategy. Deathstroke’s mental faculties are accelerated by a factor of 9, allowing him to think and perceive nine times faster, affording him a greatly superior reaction time.

It is stated in Identity Crisis that, unlike a regular man, Slade uses 90% of his brain capacity, making him a strategical genius, while normal humans use only 10% brain capacity. Because of this he, by himself, momentarily beat Wally West, Hawkman, Kyle Rayner, Zatanna, The Elongated Man, Green Arrow and Black Canary. Lately, he has also been shown to be able to resist telepathy, namely from his son Jericho. He is said to have “the strength of ten men,” and he also possesses enhanced speed, agility and endurance.

Deathstroke’s muscular system was hardened and strengthened making him far stronger than the average human being. He is strong enough (without his armor enhancement) to snap a sword in half, cut through a car with his own sword, and even trade blows with Donna Troy.

He is fast and agile enough to engage entire teams of metahumans such as the Teen Titans, by himself with no assistance, and combat characters such as Kid Flash, which he has done on several occasions. He has even evaded Starfire’s energy blasts by simply just stepping to the side out of harm’s way. Other characters (such as Hawkman) have often commented on how impressive Slade’s speed, reflexes and agility are.

His endurance and pain tolerance are also above human levels, since Deathstroke has on many occasions continued fighting even when losing massive amounts of blood or taking punishment that would kill a normal human.

In DCNU, Slade appears to have a great degree of enhanced strength. In Deathstroke #1, he was shown ripping the door off an airplane at 40,000 feet above sea level with one arm, indicating physical strength in to the multi-ton range. In Deathstroke #14, Hawkman stated that Deathstroke’s Nth Metal armor increases his strength and natural abilities even further. In reality, Slade, over the years has shown strength, speed, endurance and reflexes above even that of peak human levels to such a degree that they could be classified as low level metahuman.

In DC: Rebirth, It is stated that Slade’s powers are a result of the super soldier serum triggering his metagene, officially making him a metahuman.

Healing Factor

Slade has also been granted a modestly accelerated healing factor which enables him to recover from physical injuries much faster than most normal humans, which supplies him with great longevity. This ability has limitations, as he can not regenerate lost eyes or limbs, although he can heal from fatal injuries such as being shot multiple times, stabbed with a sword through his vital organs, great impacts such as falls from great heights and hits from super-strong metahumans (such as direct hits from Donna Troy). He has recovered from otherwise fatal injuries, but the experience is traumatic.

He has suffered from short-term periods of insanity and animalistic behavior after these “resurrections” (much like Ra’s Al Ghul after using a Lazarus Pit). These episodic feral states are temporary, however, and he eventually regains control of himself.

While Slade’s healing factor is formidable, it still has limits. It’s been shown that if he receives too many injuries in too short a period of time, or becomes too exhausted from fighting too much, his healing rates will slow down until he rests himself.

High Body Temperature

Slade’s constant body temperature is about 110° degrees enabling him to withstand severe cold weather. This high body heat also allows him to survive in very hot weather, making it hard for his body to overheat. This temperature also prevents frequent illness, by killing any potential pathogens he comes into contact with before he can become ill.

Enhanced Senses / Reflexes / Agility

As he is able to think nine times faster than most humans, Deathstroke possesses heightened senses, reflexes, and physical acumen, making him a one man army and genius level tactician. His senses allow him to identify small changes in the air that enables him to react to attacks from behind, and even allows him to cut a fly in half with a paperclip. His reflexes and agility are at such a degree that they allow him to casually dodge point blank gunfire from multiple assailants, fight an entire ninja clan alone, jump multiple feet (from one building to another while tackling a Warhawk), and perform other seemingly impossible feats with ease.

Expert Combatant / Soldier / Marksman

Slade, even before he had his physical attributes enhanced, was considered one of the world’s top (and most decorated) soldiers. He was considered the best even among the members of the elite Team 7 that included characters like Grifter and Black Canary.

He is an expert of unarmed combat as well as an expert in the use of both melee (bladed) and ranged (rifles, guns) weapons. His arsenal is extensive and, with his augmented physique, he can turn any object into a deadly weapon. Nevertheless, he prefers his broadsword, bo-staff/bazooka, and automatic pistols. In short, Deathstroke is the DCU’s premier mercenary and assassin.

Weaknesses

Missing Right Eye

Slade lost his right eye due to a gunshot wound. His ex-wife Adeline Kane was enraged after finding out that her son Joseph became mute due, in part, to Slade’s actions She became enraged at Slade, arguing that he betrayed her and risked her sons life. She then fired a gun at Slade, and he managed to evade the bullet but his right eye was lost. Though, so far, his fighting ability has yet to be hindered by his blindness. In fact, when Slade lost his eye after having it restored, he claimed that he was able to fight better with one eye. This is likely due to him having fought with only one eye for so long.

Blindness

Recently, Slade’s eyesight has begun to deteriorate for reasons beyond anything that is currently known to medical science. After exposing himself to radiation from a ship’s nuclear reactor for too long a period of time, his lost the sight in his one remaining eye.. However, Tanya Spears equipped him with special glasses that allowed him to see, and her pet dog as a seeing eye dog. Eventually, Slade’s on-call doctor obtains a new eye for him and performs transplant surgery, restoring his vision through the one eye..

Weapons & Equipment

Ikon Suit: After his rebirth, Slade came across a prototype of one of his older suits of armor during a rescue mission. Created by Dr. Ikon, in addition to being bulletproof, this armor is able to absorb kinetic energy to power itself. Once activated, the kinetic energy generated by Slade’s superhuman movement speed and reflexes can maintain the suit’s energy levels. Because it requires enhanced reflexes to run, only Slade can generate the kinetic energy needed to keep the suit charged. It can be powered by alternative energy sources, such as a lithium fuel cell, but should such a source run out or stop working for any reason, the suit’s functions will shut down.

The durability of the suit combined with its energy-absorbing properties enable Slade to withstand incredible force, so much so that that Slade can take repeated punches from Superman and still remain standing. Also, if the suit absorbs too much kinetic energy, it will release a shockwave proportionate to the amount of excess energy it absorbed. The suit is also equipped with a sophisticated A.I. system programmed with the voice of Wintergreen, but Slade swore never to use it, breaking that oath only under exigent circumstances.

The suit has four flaws revealed to date. First, It can be shut down by anyone wearing an Ikon suit with the master program in it. Second, the suit’s defensive shield does not work against abilities or materials that disrupt gravity fields. Against such forces, the suit becomes nearly useless. Third, while the Ikon Shield is durable, there are limits to how much kinetic energy the suit cans absorb. If hit with enough force, the shield can collapse, as shown in another battle with Superman. Lastly, if communications with the suit’s AI are jammed while it is online, the defensive shield cannot be activated.

Broad Sword: Slade carries a Promethium broad sword that is more durable than Titanium. The durability of the sword mixed with his metahuman abilities makes this an extremely formidable weapon. He has been known to cut through a jet wing in a single strike with this sword. Also, the promethium in the blade allows it to absorb large amounts of energy.

Grappling hooks: Slade carries grappling guns that shoot hook-lines which allow him to reach great heights or restrain his targets (similar to Batman’s).

Energy Staff: One of Deathstroke’s signature weapons, a near indestructible Bo-Staff (sometimes made out of promethium) that can also discharge an energy blast strong enough to destroy aircraft and even injure or stun powerful beings such as Superman. Lately, he has shown the ability to separate his staff into two nightsticks, similar to Nightwing. The Bo-Staff can also can siphon energy absorbed through his fabled sword in order to magnify it’s blast power.

Other Weapons: Deathstroke’s normal equipment also consists of various handguns, rifles, explosives and bladed weapons. Lately he has been known to use sniper rifles with promethium bullets, though this is more situational.

Deathstroke has also amassed a fairly large fortune due to the contracts he’s undertaken, which he uses mostly to pay for his equipment. He also employs various outside aids, such as Wintergreen, who help him get new contracts, obtain equipment and, when needed, necessary medical assistance.

Former Attire

Promethium Wear & Arsenal: The Deathstroke of a previous continuum used an arsenal consisting of Volatile Promethium spliced within his mesh-woven Kevlar, Chainmail body armor and some few items of weaponry, particularly his swords and ballistic munitions. Because of his regenerative abilities, Slade is largely immune to the mutative effects that irradiated promethium possesses, possibly even enhancing his own metahuman attributes. Recently, Slade was forced to discard this suit on a mission. It was found by another and redesigned, and is now being used by The Red Lion.

Nth Metal Armor: In the Post-Flashpoint Universe, Slade wears a special armor made partially from Nth Metal which is stronger than titanium. This Nth Metal Armor is more durable than regular armors and further enhances Deathstroke’s natural abilities. The armor allows him to withstand heavy blasts, and gives him added protection against piercing weapons. His Nth metal armor is incredibly durable, to the point he is able to take direct hits from Lobo.

Speed Force Battery Cells: Deathstroke once incorporated Speedforce extrapolation technologies devised by Prof. Darwin Elias. Using these power cores, Slade was able to utilize the speed force he would siphon from other Speedsters. Installing these devices into his Ikon Suit Equipment enabled Wilson to have a pseudo link to the Speed Force in which he could utilize all of a speedster’s special powers. These siphoned abilities, combined with his uniforms ability to compress space via it’s gravity sheath, gave him the ability to breach time and dimensions at will.

Godkiller Sword: Deathstroke was temporarily allowed to wield the Godkiller, a powerful blade forged by Hephaestus. As the name implies, the weapon has enough power to kill both gods and titans. Because the sword is magic based, Slade was able to trade blows with Superman while holding it. The Godkiller has the ability to take the shape of any weapon the wielder needs such as a staff, twin swords, binding coils, etc. The weapon has a mind of its own, allowing it to fly to the wielder when separated. Also, in battle, it controls the user almost as much as they control it, guiding their movements and influencing their decisions. Once Slade completed his mission, Hephaestus reclaimed the Godkiller.

Rocket Boots: Copied from designs of an old version of Steel’s armor, Slade put these to use on a recent mission. Because Slade’s version lacked motors, they hindered his ability to move, even with his enhanced strength. The boot jets allowed Slade to fly, and although they allowed him to reach great heights at high speed, they only had enough fuel for one use.

Other Versions

Anti-Matterverse

An anti-matter version of Deathstroke has appeared once. This version was almost identical to Deadpool, a reference to the fact that Deadpool began as a Deathstroke copy. Throughout the comic he attempts to say his name, but never gets farther than “Dead…..”. He attacked both Superman and Batman aboard a cruise ship early in their careers. This was the event in which they revealed their true secret identities to one another.

Earth-9

On Earth-9, an alternate version of Deathstroke is a member of the Fatal Five. This version is a man in an armored suit, and along with his teammates was responsible for the death of that world’s second Atom.

Flashpoint

In the DC universe’s sweeping event Flashpoint, the famed mercenary Deathstroke is a violent and infamous pirate captain in search of his beloved daughter Rose. His daughter, whom Deathstroke considers to be his greatest treasure, has been taken from him and he will stop at nothing to get her back . As the war between the Atlanteans and the Amazons wages on, Captain Deathstroke and his crew of fearsome pirates sail the oceans seas pillaging war ravaged civilizations on his ship, the Ravager.

Amongst their travels, Deathstroke and his crew come upon the feared pirate named Warlord and his ship the Skartaris. When one of Deathstroke’s crew members confirms that the Warlord does indeed have a female captive in suspended animation within his ship’s hold, Deathstroke assumes it must be his daughter and orders his crew to board the Skartaris and leave no man standing. Deathstroke and the Warlord engage in brutal combat with neither captain gaining the upper hand. Once he’s informed that his crew is in possession of the female passenger, Deathstroke orders his crew back to their own ship and disengages his battle with the Warlord. Captain Deathstroke then has one of his crew members, named Icicle, deep freeze the Skartaris and it’s crew of miscreant swashbucklers, but the Warlord escapes the destruction and flees the area on a jet ski. Deathstroke is furious when he finds out that the female passenger was not his daughter, but rather another metahuman named Jenny Blitz.

In an enraged state, Deathstroke tortures one of the Warlord’s captured crew members for any information regarding his daughter’s whereabouts. He finds out that she is being held on the prison island of Saint Helena. To make matters worse, the Ravager lost a handful of crew members during the clash with the Skartaris and is now in desperate need of more crew members. Deathstroke orders his crew to steer the ship toward the island of Saint Helena, where they will pick up more crew and save his daughter. The Captain and his crew storm the prison island, only to discover that Rose is no longer being held there and that she has been transferred to a metahuman lab somewhere in Norway. Before leaving the island, Deathstroke makes an offer to a group of prisoners to sail the seas under his leadership and plunder to their heart’s content or rot away in their cells. Every prisoner takes him up on his offer, including Machiste, Clayface, The Eel, and The Fisherman. Deathstroke, along with his new crew, begin to sail north towards Norway.

on their way to Norway, the Ravager comes across a ship that immediately surrenders and hands over a metahuman named Sonar at the bequest of Deathstroke, who knew that they were holding him. Sonar has the ability to see what’s below the water’s surface, an ability that Deathstroke finds extremely important and helpful. As soon as the Ravager heads into war zone waters near what was formerly Paris, France, it is immediately boarded by the Emperor Aquaman and his brother Ocean Master. Deathstroke is genuinely disturbed by this tyrant’s sudden appearance, and rightfully so, as Aquaman stabs Deathstroke with his trident and orders his brother to leave no survivors.

Gravely injured, Deathstroke lies helplessly as Aquaman and Ocean Master slaughter several members of his crew. Deathstroke is able to recover from his injuries through the combined efforts of Eel and Sonar, however, Deathstroke had to agree to give Sonar fifty percent of whatever his ship collects and to make him second in command. As he and his crew bury their dead comrades at sea, they are attacked by Warlord and his fleet of ships. Deathstroke shoots Warlord in the right eye with a sniper rifle, but before he can fire another shot, Jenny Blitz awakens and hurls several deadly fireballs at Warlord’s fleet, sinking a few of his ships. She then proclaims herself to be the new captain of the Ravager.

Other Media

Television

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

Deathstroke (played by Antonio Sabato, Jr.) appeared in the eight episode of the fourth season of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman .

In the show, he’s a former scientist exposed to magnetic particles by an accident, giving him magnetic powers. After this, he becomes an assassin, killing with his powers. He and his wife take the name Bob Stanton and Carol Stanton when they arrive in Metropolis. They become friends with Clark and Lois, when they discover that Lois is going to interview a billionaire. They plan to assassinate the billionaire before he goes public, assuming his identity and his fortune. Superman finds out and stops their plan, leaving Deathstroke in the hands of the police.

Teen Titans

Deathstroke appeared as the most recurrent villain in the animated series of the Teen Titans, voiced by Ron Perlman. However, since neither of the names “Deathstroke” or “The Terminator” were accepted as suitable for a cartoon aimed for kids, he was called by his birth name of “Slade”. Though this is never stated to be his real name in the cartoon, it’s used as if it’s an alias. Slade’s appearances and motives are unknown at first, and seem to vary with the show’s seasons, with the first season having him manipulating Robin to a point where he could control him and eventually turn him into his apprentice, which eventually fails when Slade underestimates Robin and the relationship he shares with his fellow Titans.

Season Two is broadly based on the “Judas Contract” story where he encounters Terra after she leaves the Titans and lures her in with promises to help her control her powers, all the while manipulating her to make her hate the Titans before sending her back to them as a sleeper agent to gather information. She would then let Slade’s robots into the Tower. Slade further augmented Terra’s powers by grafting a suit onto her body to ease her control, while making him able to control her body should she one day rebel. However, Slade again suffered defeat as Terra eventually turned on him when he tried to force her to kill Beast Boy. She knocks Slade into a pool of lava, killing him.

On account of him being dead, Slade didn’t make any actual appearances in Season Three. He did though make an appearance as a drug-induced hallucination of Robin’s when Robin inadvertently inhaled some dust found on Slade’s old mask. However, Cyborg noted that the dust was triggered from outside the tower which led to further speculation about whether Slade was truly dead or not.

Season Four would see Slade return from the dead as an empowered henchman to Trigon, possessing a vast array of demonic powers such as pyrokinetic control and flight while also being indestructible. Slade would later explain to Robin that he had agreed to serve Trigon and prepare Raven for his arrival in return for his own flesh and blood body being restored, which Robin had realized was missing when Slade was shown to be nothing but his suit and a walking skeleton. During his time as a mere henchman, Slade revealed new sides of himself such as a dark sense of humor while obviously enjoying himself when tormenting the Titans, and Raven in particular whom he apparently didn’t think much of before until Trigon revealed what she really was and what she was meant to do. Because of Raven’s choices or Trigon’s cruel nature, Slade was usurped by Raven as commander of Trigon’s army and cheated out of his reward when Trigon claimed it was him and not Slade who made Raven embrace her destiny. Slade didn’t take kindly to this and, while his new powers were taken away from him, he survived to ally himself with the Teen Titans against Trigon after leading Robin to where Raven was being kept in Trigon’s realm.

After Trigon’s defeat, Slade disappeared. However, Slade would be featured once more in the Season Five series finale where Beast Boy encountered and fought one of his robots after finding a girl that looked just like Terra attending a school. Beast Boy was convinced it was Slade who had made her forget him. Slade claimed to have had no part in it, but rather it was Terra herself who had wished to forget what she had once been and that Beast Boy had no right to remind her of it. Slade is the only villain not accounted for by the end of the series.

In the comics based off the show, Rose makes an appearance.

Smallville

Slade Wilson appeared in the 10th season of Smallville and was portrayed by Michael Hogan. He has been presented as a United States Army Lieutenant General who enforces the Vigilante Registration Act. In the episode, “Patriot”, Slade tricks Green Arrow into signing the Vigilante Registration Act. Later, Slade uses Oliver’s and Aquaman‘s own weakness’s to torture them. Clark Kent and Aquaman’s wife, Mera, step in to save them and Slade was confirmed dead during the explosion of the facility. In the episode, “Icarus”, Slade returns and attempts to reveal the true identity of the Blur. Slade sends one of his military personnel to interrogate Clark’s friends while they were being held at the Daily Planet. As a result, Clark sends Slade into the Phantom Zone where he won’t cause any more trouble with the vigilantes, but after some time, he is freed from the Zone by General Zod as both have become agents of Darkseid. Slade was last reported to be comatose and wasn’t seen for the rest of the series.

Arrow

Deathstroke is the main antagonist in Season 2 of Arrow , with a mission of vengeance to take away everything Oliver cares about.

It is revealed in Island flashbacks that Oliver actually met and befriended Slade. Together they made several attempts to escape from the Island. Slade later became sick, so in a desperate attempt to save him Oliver and Sara Lance injected him with Mirakuru. His body reacted violently, and was presumably dead. When he awakens, he finds Oliver and Sara, but Shado is dead. He swears vengeance upon whomever killed her. Slade is physically improved due to the Mirakuru. He is stronger, can run faster, etc. Later, Slade hears that Oliver was involved in Shado’s death, and is outraged. He leaves Oliver behind on the island as punishment.

Years later when Oliver Queen is back in Starling City, he finds that Slade Wilson (now called Deathstroke) is also in Starling City, threatening to destroy his family and everything Oliver has even valued. After a long fight with Oliver, Slade was eventually incarcerated in an ARGUS prison on Lian Yu.

Deathstroke is played by Manu Bennett.

Young Justice: Invasion

Deathstroke appears in Young Justice: Invasion, voiced by Prison Break star Wentworth Miller and later by Fred Tatasciore . He debuts in the episode “True Colors”, where he is introduced as Black Manta’s bodyguard and the Light’s new enforcer. He attempts to kill Sportsmaster, the man he is replacing, but the mercenary manages to escape with Cheshire’s aid. In “The Fix”, he and Tigress kidnap Miss Martian while she and Lagoon Boy are in Chicago.

He returns in the third season, Young Justice: Outsiders, working with the League of Assassins.

Beware The Batman

Deathstroke (voiced by Robin Atkin Downes) appears in the Beware the Batman episode “Hero”. He is recruited Anarky to target Batman and was first seen under the alias of Dane Lisslow. In “Twist”, it’s revealed that he is both Slade Wilson (a former CIA agent and protégé of Alfred Pennyworth) and Dane Lisslow. After Alfred witnessed how ruthless Slade Wilson was, he had him terminated from the CIA. Losing his career and his family, Wilson is driven to work as a top class assassin and mercenary named Deathstroke. Years later, Alfred wants to mend their relationship, which causes Deathstroke to be fired and left for dead. He now feels betrayed and wants revenge. Deathstroke confronts Batman and Katana, leaving them for dead. In “Alone”, Deathstroke’s memory is wiped out with a chemical compound.

Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons

Deathstroke was the subject of his own limited animated web series called Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons. He was voiced by actor and noted superhero fan Michael Chiklis. The series sees Deathstroke drawn into a complex conspiracy after H.I.V.E. supposedly kidnaps his son Joseph. Initially developed as a series for the CW Seed service, the footage was later compiled into a standalone movie.

Titans

Deathstroke appears as the main antagonist in the second season of Titans, portrayed by Esai Morales. This version of the character is largely true to the comics, with Slade Wilson being a former soldier who became an assassin and mercenary after receiving superpowers from a military experiment. Like in the comics, he became estranged from his wife and son after a terrorist attack on their home that left Jericho mute. He eventually came into conflict with the Titans after being hired to kill an Amazon who was staying in America, which accidentally resulted in the death of Aqualad. Enraged and seeking revenge for the perceived murder of one of their own, the Titans made it their mission to capture Slade, leading the tragic event which ultimately resulted in the death of Deathstroke’s son, Jericho.

Five years after the incident, Slade is shown living in isolation, having gone off the grid and retired from the world of mercenary work. However, after seeing Jason Todd announce the return of the Titans on a news report, Slade decides to renew his vendetta against the Titans, seeking to make them pay for causing Jericho’s death.

Film

Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths

In Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, Slade Wilson (voiced by Bruce Davison) appears as the President of the United States in the alternate reality inhabited by the Crime Syndicate. This Slade still has his white hair and eye-patch, though its over his left eye instead of his right and he never took the serum that enhanced him. His wife was killed by Ultraman (evil Superman), and his daughter Rose was nearly killed by the Archer (evil Green Arrow), but she was saved by Martian Manhunter, who came to her world with the rest of the Justice League to defeat the Crime Syndicate. He is afraid of the Syndicate.

Justice League: Flashpoint Paradox

In Justice League: Flashpoint Paradox , Deathstroke (voiced by Ron Perlman) appears as the captain of the ship, the Ravager.

In this distorted timeline, he and Lex Luthor were looking for Aquaman’s Doomsday device, until his ship was found and attacked by an Atlantean army. Lex Luthor was killed and Slade managed to survive and kill some of the Atlanteans until he was attacked and presumably killed by Black Manta.

Son of Batman

In Son of Batman , Deathstroke (voiced by Thomas Gibson) is the main antagonist of the film.

Slade used to be a member of The League of Shadows and future successor of Ra’s Al Ghul until his actions made Ra’s conclude that he was unworthy. Feeling betrayed, Slade planned to overthrow Ra’s. After Deathstroke defeats him, Ra’s grandson, Damian, appears and protects him, stabbing Deathstroke in his right eye. After escaping, Deathstroke works on a Ra’s Al Ghul’s project to use Langstrom’s Man-Bat gene splicing formulas on members of the League.

Deathstroke shoots Talia and fights Batman briefly until he resuscitates Talia using a Lazarus Pit. Deathstroke and Damian fight, which ends with Deathstroke defeated.

Justice League

Deathstroke appears in the post-credit scene of Justice League, portrayed by Joe Manganiello. It is revealed that he was hired to free Lex Luthor from Arkham Asylum , where he’d been imprisoned after the events of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Luthor meets with Slade on a luxury yacht, and suggests that the two should put together a team to destroy the Justice League (implied to be the Injustice Gang or the Legion of Doom). He is also featured in the extended director’s cut, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, where he is seen as part of Batman’s group of rebels in a post-apocalyptic future where Darkseid has conquered the Earth.

Joe Manganiello was initially slated to reprise his role in The Batman, but the departure of Ben Affleck from the franchise following the critical failure of Batman v. Superman and Justice League, as well as the project subsequently being reconfigured, led to the character being removed from the film.

Video Game

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe

Deathstroke (voiced by Patrick Seitz) is one of the DC characters chosen to appear in Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. He makes his first playable video game appearance as one of the villains, and counterpart of Baraka.

In the game, Deathstroke founded of a group of powerful and skilled assassins dressed up in his image and called ”The DeathStrike Clan”.

DC Universe Online

Deathstroke takes part in DC Universe Online and is voiced by Tracy W. Bush. He is a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains and has several appearances in the main storyline as a major villain.

Batman: Arkham City Lockdown

Deathstroke appears as an main antagonist in Batman: Arkham City Lockdown and is voiced by Larry Grimm.

Injustice: Gods Among Us

Deathstroke appears in Injustice: Gods Among Us, sporting his New 52 design. He is also the character with the most use of guns. In the story mode, he appears to have aligned himself with Lex Luthor and was used in an ambush for Batman at Arkham Asylum. He is later seen as a part of the Insurgency being tortured by Raven and Cyborg. He later joins Cyborg in attacking the enemy’s Watchtower. Deathstroke’s player ability allows Deathstroke to never miss a shot with his guns and do extra damage, however their is a short cooldown period where the majority of his shots miss.

After Deathstroke wins, he is shown sitting at a computer, looking for his next target and flipping a knife. A variety of targets can be seen on his list on the computer (James Jesse, Black Canary, Kyle Rayner, Tim Drake, Buddy Baker and a number of others.)

In his ending (after beating classic mode), Deathstroke defeats Regime Superman. After the Regime falls, new governments must be set up, leading to many more contracts for Deathstroke. The work eventually piles up and becomes too much for Slade. Slade manages to track down most of the people who worked as police for Superman. He trains his new army, and they rule the assassin business.

Batman: Arkham Origins

Deathstroke appears in Batman: Arkham Origins as one of the eight assassins sent to kill Batman. He is first seen when Batman is interrogating the Penguin on the ship “The Final Offer”. Deathstroke drags Batman into an arena on the ship and they begin to fight. When Batman defeats him, Deathstroke is stunned and asks “What are you?”. Batman leaves him for the police. Later in the game Deathstroke is shown in a jail cell in Blackgate Prison.

As a pre order bonus, players will be able to play as Deathstroke in 2 new challenge maps, and two new skins based off his look from the Injustice: Gods Among Us game, and his appearance in The Judas Contract.

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

Deathstroke appears in the Nintendo 3DS version of Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes.

• Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe
• DC Universe Online
• Injustice: Gods Among Us
• Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition
• Batman: Arkham City Lockdown
• Batman: Arkham Origins
• Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

Secret Relationship

It all started when when Deathstroke was looking for Batman and found Cassie. They fought long and hard but Deathstroke won the fight. When Deathstroke made real eye contact, Deathstroke and Cassie fell in love and now they’re dating.

Merchandise

• Deathstroke was featured in Bandai’s toy line for the Teen Titans animated series.
• Deathstroke was featured in Mattel’s DC Universe Classics line as part of the Solomon Grundy Collect and Connect wave.
• Deathstroke was featured in Mattel’s DC Universe All-Stars line.
• Deathstroke was featured in the DC Icons line from DC Collectibles, sporting his “Judas Contract ” design.
• Deathstroke was featured in the Arrow toy line from DC Collectibles.
• Hot Toys produced a Deathstroke action figure based on his appearance from Arkham Origins.
• The Rebirth version of Deathstroke was featured in the DC Essentials line from DC Collectibles.
• Deathstroke was featured in Square Enix’s Play Arts Kai line.
• Deathstroke was featured in Mezco’s One:12 Collectible.
• Icon Heroes produced a Deathstroke figure based on his DC Rebirth design.
• Deathstroke was featured in the DC Multiverse line from McFarlane Toys.

Creators on Deathstroke

“The reason Slade is a good character is because he is a character,” Wolfman asserts. “He has depth. He has morality, and that morality is not a typical one. I like characters who are heavily shaded in gray.” –

“But that moral ambiguity doesn’t make Deathstroke any less compelling. “I think Slade’s ambiguous nature as well as not being sure what he’ll do next makes him someone you want to follow,” maintains Wolfman. “His relationship with his ex-wife, his friends and co-workers is more than just another ‘Man on a Mission’ comic. He’s not out to stop the mob. He’s not out to stop evil. You hire Slade, he does his job. Unfortunately, his own life gets in the middle of things and mucks it all up.”

George Pérez:

“The Terminator, my favourite of the TITANS’ villains, because I really liked the idea of the strong, massive-yet-debonair older man. The fact that he’s definitely a man in his fifties, but he’s strong as an ox, very handsome, very polished – you can understand, again, a sexual appeal. I’m very big on sexual appeal of characters – particularly males. Since all the men are big and muscular, to show a bit of sexuality in them, that’s a tough thing to do. The fact that the Titans have developed – we’ve gotten mail from women who think that Terminator is sexy as all hell. And that’s great. That’s the feeling I wanted.”

Jonathan Peterson, Titans/Deathstroke editor:

“Well, going back to the history lesson. Issue 70 came out and was a hit. And to Dick’s credit, we actually greenlit DEATHSTROKE behind the scenes before the book even shipped. In fact, I recall going into Dick’s office with only the first 12 pages and saying “This is what it is…this is what it’ll look like… please let me do this.” And Dick, who trusted my judgment, said “Okay. Looks good to me. Go for it.”

“So since I was so high on Deathstroke and pushing him, and was looking to give him his own book, I then turned to Marv and said “Look, you’re going to be writing this new monthly about the guy… clearly he’s popular…so let’s use him to a core degree in the Titans revamp story as well. In short, let’s cram him down the readers throats to REALLY get the character out there again.”

Creators on Slade’s development

When Terminator first appeared in New Teen Titans #2, he was a violent gun-toting mercenary, unafraid to kill. And when DC finally gave him his own title, Wolfman says the character wasn’t softened up to make him more appealing or accessible. “In fact, I probably hardened him!” the writer says. “When you’re working with other people, you work at their level. Since he had to accomplish the same goals-he wanted to find his son-be had to work with the Titans. Ho needed their abilities. On his own, he doesn’t have to temper

Terminator isn’t your typical comic-book hero, says Wolfman-in fact, he’s not exactly a hero at all.

“I have always viewed him as pretty much what he is-a mercenary. He’s not a superhero. He’s the protagonist of our hook and has a strict moral code, which regular people would probably disagree with completely. If he’s attacked, he kills. He’s a mercenary, and he takes on jobs as a soldier of fortune. I guess that’s legal. unless you get caught by the other side! That’s the way he has made his money.”

He achieved popularity with his first appearance. Nevertheless, it has taken several years for Deathstroke the series to begin. “It’s strange, because when I created the character with George [Pérez) back in Titans #2, we knew we had something. Dick Giordano thought the character should have stood on his own; that’s how strong he was. We had done several stories that indicated this was a powerful character and could probably get his own book. This eventually became [Titans editor) Jonathan Peterson’s idea. We did the pilot in Titans #70, which was a way of reminding people who the Terminator was, since he hadn’t appeared in years. Reaction was so good that we made a regular series out of it.”