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They are a morally bankrupt world's answer to the Justice League. Right there that tells you, they don't respect law, order or justice... or good-old fashioned common sense. They have devastated their own planet in their power grabs and they often come to ours looking for, well... more. They have our powers, they have our personas... they are like a diseased version of us. 
The Crime Syndicate are a team of evil counterparts of the Justice League, existing on Earth 3. Their original membership included Atomica, Deathstorm, Grid, Johnny Quick, The Martian, The Outsider, Owlman, Power Ring, The Sea King, Superwoman, and Ultraman.
History
Trinity War
Main article: Trinity War
The Crime Syndicate arrives on Earth 0
The Outsider was sent to Prime Earth as an emissary, preceding the entire Syndicate. He was responsible for creating the Secret Society of Super-Villains to make way for his masters.[1] Using Pandora's Box, the Outsider opened a portal and let the Crime Syndicate through. The Sea King didn't survive the journey, and they carried an unknown prisoner with them. They declared that this Earth belonged to them.[2]
Forever Evil
Main article: Forever Evil
Sending out a call to the Secret Society and to the world, they began shutting off electronic communications and restarting them under their control. However, their seeming power was hampered by the weakness of their own pride, and they were eventually defeated by the Injustice League. In the end, almost every member of the team died, Owlman got free to lead his own criminal empire, the Ring of Volthoom selected Jessica Cruz as a new host and made her the next Power Ring, and Ultraman and Superwoman were jailed by A.R.G.U.S.
The Darkseid War
Main article: Darkseid War
The Syndicate goes to war
Seeking answers about the Anti-Monitor, Power Ring (Jessica Cruz), Cyborg, and Mister Miracle entered Belle Reve in an attempt to speak with the surviving Crime Syndicate members. However, the Ring of Volthoom possessed Jessica and hacked into Cyborg, resurrecting Grid.[3] Despite their plan not working as intended, the Justice League met with the Crime Syndicate members in discussing a plan to stop Mobius. In the end, Ultraman and Superwoman were killed during the fighting, leaving only Owlman and Grid's consciousness, which was now bound to the Mobius Chair. The two met with Metron, who taught Owlman how to use the chair; however, they were both killed mysteriously.[4]
Resurrection
The team was resurrected sometime after the Darkseid War. After the appearance of the Doom Symbol in the sky, they came to know about Perpetua and tried to gain her notice by trying to start a mass slaughter on their planet. Their plan was successful as Lex Luthor arrived to their homeworld and took them to her to have an audience with her. She agreed to let the CSA serve her, assigning them the duty of leading the humans of Earth 3, whom she had turned into Apex Predators. Johnny Quick was vaporized by Perpetua for trying to oppose the idea of the CSA working with her, since he saw her as a great evil threat. When they left, Lex remarked that he had watched many of them die and even their homeworld was destroyed, yet they were now alive before him. She, in turn, stated that the Multiverse heals itself and sets things back into the order that it thinks is correct.[5]
The Crime Syndicate members, however, didn't retain any memory of their deaths. After Perpetua finished taking over the Multiverse, Earth 0's John Stewart, Superman of Earth 23 and Wonder Woman of Earth 6 struck Earth 3 to destroy the tuning fork that was powering her with Anti-Crisis Energy. Owlman defeated John Stewart, but didn't kill him since he was seething at the Batman Who Laughs and the other evil Batmen taking over Earth 0, as he believed that he was supposed to be the most twisted version of Batman, and was hesitant about Perpetua remaking the Multiverse. After learning from him that iterations of him had existed and died across realities in the past, he decided to betray his team, believing that he'd be reborn if he died anyway. As they were fighting their enemies, Owlman used the gun that he created at Qward to kill both Ultraman and Superwoman, before blowing up the tuning fork along with himself.[6]
Post-Death Metal
The All-New Crime Syndicate
After Wonder Woman convinced the Hands to rebuild the Multiverse,[7] Earth 3 was reformed as well. In this new timeline, Owlman and Ultraman were active for at least nine years,[8] but after meta-criminals became more prolific, Earth was attacked by the Starro Collective, who sought to control the metahumans[9] in its never-ending war against the Overlords of Oa. However, a group in Metropolis managed to kill the queen Starro, ending the invasion.[10]
With the existence of metahumans proved, meta-criminals became more active. Owlman, Superwoman, and Ultraman began scheming to build a power base to control the other metahumans, but charismatic genius Alexander Luthor formed the Legion of Justice with the goal of protecting people from meta-crime. For a variety of reasons, the group from Metropolis reformed to defeat them, and from the satellite headquarters that Luthor had built, they surveyed the world that they now ruled as a syndicate of crime.[11]
However, the world was chaotic and beset by problems, which Ultraman refused to exert the team to solve.[12] So when Amanda Waller showed up and claimed the role of manager to give the Crime Syndicate their benefits while she managed the crises, Ultraman took her offer. However, prodding from the enemies of Amanda Waller led him to attack her, unifying the team under her control, because none of them even liked Ultraman. Boosting the rosters with agents from her world, Waller plotted to use the team as her own personal Justice League.[13]
See Also
- 64 Appearances of Crime Syndicate (Earth 3)
- 30 Images that include Crime Syndicate (Earth 3)
- Team Gallery: Crime Syndicate (Earth 3)
Links and References
Footnotes
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #6
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #23
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #47
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #50
- ↑ Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #1
- ↑ Dark Nights: Death Metal Multiverse's End #1
- ↑ Dark Nights: Death Metal #7
- ↑ Crime Syndicate #2
- ↑ Crime Syndicate #1
- ↑ Crime Syndicate #3
- ↑ Crime Syndicate #6
- ↑ War for Earth-3 #1
- ↑ War for Earth-3 #2
  This character has been primarily an enemy of the Justice League, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Justice League Villains." |