The Suicide Squad

Launched by Frew Publications in 1952, this short-lived single-issue series from writer-artist Peter Chapman introduced a grimly satirical team of expendable anti-heroes—a precursor to later, more famous takes on the concept. Though it ran for only one issue, its darkly humorous premise and Chapman’s distinctive, pulp-infused art have made it a cult curiosity among collectors of Australian comics. The series matters as an early, idiosyncratic example of the "villains-as-protagonists" genre, predating the trend by decades.