Checkmate (comics)

Checkmate (comics)

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Checkmate (comics)

Checkmate is a fictional covert operations agency within the DC Comics universe. It first appeared in Action Comics #598 and proceeded to have its own ongoing title in Checkmate! (vol. 1). In the wake of events depicted in the mini-series The OMAC Project and Infinite Crisis, Checkmate has been re-chartered as a United Nations Security Council-affiliated agency and has its own new series, Checkmate (vol. 2).^[1]

Publication history

Cover to Checkmate (vol. 1) #33, the series' final issue

The Checkmate organization was created by Paul Kupperberg, John Byrne and Steve Erwin, first appearing in Action Comics #598 in 1988. The precursor to this fictional organization was known as the Agency, first appearing in Vigilante #36. Harry Stein was appointed Valentina Vostok's replacement in The Agency's command position by Amanda Waller. Stein later sought out the most stable personnel available from the American and international intelligence and law enforcement communities to form Checkmate. His agency would field only the best-trained and well-equipped of agents, working under the strictest rules of secrecy. For the organizational structure of the re-organized Agency, Stein chose the game of chess as his working model.^[2]

Stein brought in Gary Washington (Knight One) and Black Thorn as Checkmate operatives, both of whom were his friends, and both of whom were introduced during his run on Vigilante.

Checkmate! was at various times involved with the other government agencies in the DC Comics universe, primarily the Suicide Squad, which resulted in the crossover "The Janus Directive". Checkmate! was canceled after 33 issues but the organization continued to appear, mostly in titles related to either the government or Batman.

After the events of the mini-series The OMAC Project, a precursor to the Infinite Crisis limited series, the Checkmate organization was re-organized and its title was revived with Checkmate (vol. 2). This volume is scheduled to end after publication of its 31st issue dated December 2008.^[3]

After the cancellation of the second volume, the team return in the Final Crisis one-shot tie-in "Resist" by Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann.^[4]

Checkmate! (vol. 1)

Biography

Organization and designation

The name Checkmate is taken from the winning move in chess, and its hierarchy is modelled after the various pieces of a chess game; one King, one Queen and several Bishops, Rooks and Pawns. The Bishops oversaw the Rooks behind the scenes while the Rooks planned missions and supervised the field agents, or Knights, and the Knight's support, Pawns.

Known employed operatives

List of operatives during first series.

History

The Agency is first set up by Amanda Waller to serve as a small branch of Task Force X under the command of Colonel Valentina Vostok (formerly Negative Woman of the Doom Patrol) to perform operations worldwide considered vital to the security of American interests. She relinquishes command to Harry Stein, who recreates The Agency into a new image and organization, dubbed Checkmate, in relation to its chess-inspired organizatory scheme.

"The Janus Directive"

Russian Checkmate Knight, artist Gabriel Morrissette

"The Janus Directive" is a crossover storyline that involves an inter-agency war between Checkmate, the Suicide Squad, and Project Atom, who are manipulated by Kobra in order to distract the United States intelligence community from his activities. Checkmate loses at least 38 Knight agents^[5]^[6] (tallying to more than two thirds of Checkmate's Knight force^[7]^[6]) and its headquarters (as well as its cover, Konig Industries) in Shelby, Virginia in the incident. In the aftermath, Sarge Steel takes Waller's place as head of Checkmate, and Checkmate relocates to a new NORAD base in Colorado.

Russian Checkmate

A Russian version of Checkmate is introduced in the last issues of the original series run. They are admittedly underfunded, but wear armor similar to their U.S. counterparts.

In between volumes

Biography

Organization and designation

Checkmate's hierarchy is remodelled in a manner similar to that of Marvel Comics' Hellfire Club. The chess-motif remains, but there are sets of Kings and Queens, as well as Bishops, Rooks, Knights and Pawns, divided between a Black and White set. Their functions remain the same. Neither Rooks or Pawns were seen however. The structure of Checkmate with two halves, Black (ops) and White (intel), may also be inspired by the CIA's original two separate halves, the Directorate of Operations and Directorate of Intelligence.

Known employed operatives

List of operatives between series.

History

Deathstroke, the Terminator

Sarge Steel reactivates Checkmate in Deathstroke, the Terminator #17, in order to find the comatose body of Deathstroke (Slade Wilson). Phil Kramer is promoted to King and Kalia Campbell to Queen. Harry Stein's said to be on indefinite leave of absence after his son was shot and to be spending more time with his family. Gary Washington and two other Knights appear in the story as well (one of them might be Winston O'Donnel, who appears in Deathstroke, the Terminator #19). Checkmate Knights invade the lair of supervillainess Cheshire in Deathstroke, the Terminator #18, but most are killed by her operatives and a revived Slade Wilson. Just as two Checkmate agents are about to defeat Deathstroke, Roy Harper (at that time also known as Speedy) knocks them down, revealing to be helping Cheshire as a double agent in both Checkmate and the Brotherhood of Evil. The Russian outfit of Checkmate appears when Deathstroke, Cheshire, Speedy and others try to steal a group of nuclear warheads in Russia. It is revealed that Harper called in Checkmate and that he was working on their side all along. Ultimately, Deathstroke is also revealed to be working for the CIA, and joins up with the American and Russian Checkmate that invade Cheshire's base later on after she's threatened the world (unleashing a nuclear warhead on the country of Qurac as leverage). They are able to defeat Cheshire, and the warheads are destroyed.

"Knight Moves"

A man called David Said has taken over the role of King within the organization, and in the "Knight Moves" storyline^[8] Checkmate invades the Batcave, in order to recruit the Huntress in the process. On Batman's word, she agrees to temporarily assume the mantle of Queen, using this position to relay information to Batman on at least one occasion.^[9]

Bruce Wayne - Murderer?

After the events of Bruce Wayne: Murderer? and Bruce Wayne: Fugitive, his bodyguard and partner Sasha Bordeaux is framed for the murder of Vesper Fairchild. She is recruited as a Checkmate operative by Jessica Midnight, as the two fake her death and Sasha undergoes plastic surgery.

The OMAC Project

It is revealed that Maxwell Lord has assumed the position of Black King within the Checkmate organization with the intent of manipulating the agency to kill all of the metahumans present on Earth. While DC did not explain how or when Lord came to power (or had seemingly gone from supporting metahuman involvement in the protection of the planet to this personality), it has been implied that Checkmate may have been the victim of Superboy-Prime, who warped the very fabric of reality by punching the walls of his prison outside this dimension. As a result of Superboy-Prime's actions, the hierarchy of Checkmate was changed and a changed Maxwell Lord suddenly in charge of the organization.

In order to hide his activities, which included hijacking and reprogramming to his own purposes the super-spy satellite Brother I that Batman originally built to monitor all metahumans, Lord murdered former ally Ted Kord. He also mind-controlled Superman, sending the hero after other former allies such as Batman and Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman then proceeded to kill Lord in order to break his control on Superman's mind, which left Checkmate dismantled as an organization.

52

In 52 Week 24, Martian Manhunter reveals that he has spent months undercover undermining the remnants of Checkmate to convince the President of the U.S. to disband the organization. Within days, however, it is reconstituted as a United Nations agency. In Week 25, Alan Scott reveals to Mister Terrific that he will lead the agency as White King, and asks him to join as well.

Checkmate (vol. 2)

Greg Rucka about Checkmate (vol. 2)

Rucka was quoted regarding the new series: "Take a big chunk of The OMAC Project, take the concept of "Who Watches the Watchmen?" and throw in some James Bond and you've got Checkmate." Rucka's stated plans in several interviews^[10] include depicting the repurposing of Checkmate as a United Nations-affiliated intelligence/intervention force with a specific purpose of maintaining "balance" between Earth's human and metahuman communities in the wake of events in The OMAC Project and Infinite Crisis.^[1]

Biography

Organization and designation

Pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1696, Checkmate is reorganized as the UN?s Chartered Metahuman Monitoring Force. The organization was restructured utilizing the ?Rule of Two?. Each super-powered or otherwise enhanced member in the ?Royal Family? must have an un-powered counterpart in a corresponding position of power. Pawns still remain as low-level field agents. The Rooks make their first appearance in issue #25 as Checkmates highly powerful black ops squad. Specifically they include four operatives of different specialties one being Cinnamon, the second Gravedigger, Sebastian Faust, and a new incarnation of the G.I. Robot. They are further augmented with DNA from Starr the Conqueror which links them telepathically allowing instantaneous communication. The android member however cannot take a dose of the DNA but is still able to communicate telepathically with the group. One of the androids other functions is to monitor his teammates to make sure they do not lose control. If that situation were to arise, he is supposed to kill them, or as the Black Queen puts it "terminate the link."

The organization's headquarters is a castle in the Swiss Alps known only as "The Castle".

Known employed operatives

See list of operatives during the second series.

In addition, Checkmate has the authority to temporarily "deputize" anyone else they see fit. Checkmate currently uses the Blackhawk organization for most of its mission transportation.

History

In A Game of Kings (issues #1-4), the United Nations Security Council votes on whether to charter Checkmate as a permanent organization, sparked by a Checkmate attack on a Kobra facility that results in some 50 deaths. While the Royal Family believes France will veto the resolution to cover up the fact that Kobra is obtaining weapons from a French source, the actual source, and veto, come from China. Checkmate agents infiltrate a Chinese weapons base, discovering a super-human facility and entering a confrontation with the Great Ten. White King Alan Scott intervenes, locating the Kobra mole and allowing China to save face in return for removing its veto. The resolution to allow Checkmate's continued existence passes, but the United States, angry that Alan Scott prevented them from publicly embarrassing China, removes him from the organization.
In Selection (#5), Black Queen Sasha Bordeaux tests Checkmate agents to select her new Knight (the previous one having died in the first arc). The outgoing White King taps his Bishop, Mister Terrific, as his successor.
In Rogue Squad (#6-7), a new Suicide Squad goes into Myanmar to hunt down its new power source (an imprisoned young metahuman) after the Security Council prevents Amanda Waller from taking action. Despite heavy losses and a traitor on the team, the Squad frees the metahuman and are rescued by former Squad team leaders Bronze Tiger and Rick Flag (recently freed from a Quraci prison) under Waller's direction. Meanwhile, the other royals can only suspect Waller's hand in the operation.
In Pawn 502 (#8-10), the Department of Metahuman Affairs arrests a terrorist cell attempting to join Kobra, unaware one of the members is a covert Checkmate agent. Checkmate deputizes the Shadowpact to help orchestrate the agent's escape and to get him through Kobra's mystical screening process.
In Corvalho (#11-12), Waller uses the Suicide Squad to rig an election in Santa Prisca to prevent Bane from winning, but one of the Squad members, Colonel Computron, defects and offers Checkmate proof of the falsification if they protect him from Bane. While Tommy Jagger defeats Bane in combat, but lets him go (despite Bane's murder of Jagger's father, the Judomaster), Fire kills Computron at Waller's behest. The other royals learn Waller is blackmailing Fire, a one-time assassin, with knowledge of her father, Ramon Corvalho's participation in war crimes decades earlier, and convince her to testify against him to avoid a court martial. The Black King confronts Waller with the fact that she is still covertly directing ops missions.
In Checkout (#13-15, crossover with Outsiders, alternating with Outsiders #47-49, starting in Checkmate #13^[11] and ending in Outsiders #49^[12]), Checkmate abducts all members of the Outsiders except Nightwing. Nightwing is allowed to infiltrate Checkmate headquarters in order to offer the Outsiders a deal: they won't be shut down over their actions in Africa in exchange for infiltrating Oolong Island on behalf of Checkmate. Sasha, Nightwing and Captain Boomerang are captured and taken to North Korea where they are experimented on by Chang Tzu, before being rescued by the mission team with Batman's assistance.
In Past Perfect (#16) Sasha is examined by Doctor Mid-Nite after being tortured, Fire is reunited with the recently resurrected Ice and August General in Iron becomes the new Black King's Bishop.
In Firewall (#17) former villain Carl Draper defends The Castle against a series of assaults and is appointed Castellan, The Castle's chief of security.
In Fall of the Wall (#18-20) the other Royals continue to gather evidence that Waller is secretly conducting her own covert operations. With the assistance of Martian Manhunter they learn about Operation: Salvation Run and succeed in forcing Waller to resign.
La Vie en Sang (#21-22) explores the history of Mademoiselle Marie and how it connects to the title's current holder, the Black Queen's Knight.