'Peacemaker' introduces a mysterious agency to DCU

The organization Checkmate was created by writer Paul Kupperberg, who wrote the ‘80s Peacemaker series, and artist Steve Irwen. They first appeared in Action Comics #598, a few months before they received their own ongoing series. The precursor to Checkmate was an intelligence organization called the Agency, a branch of Task Force X under Amanda Waller. One of the main Agency operatives was Valentina Vostok, formerly of the Doom Patrol. Eventually, the Agency reorganized under the new name of Checkmate.

The name Checkmate came from the command structure of the agency, which is based on a chessboard. There’s a Black and White King and a Black and White Queen, and several Bishops, Rooks, Knights and Pawns. Various DC Comics characters have been part of Checkmate, holding high positions. Gotham City detective Harvey Bullock was a Bishop, and Amanda Waller was Queen. Billionaire Maxwell Lord was famously a Black King, and Sasha Bordeaux his Black Knight. This was during Infinite Crisis, when Max Lord revealed himself as villain, using Checkmate for his own ends. The White Knight, for a time, was Mister Terrific. Even the original Green Lantern of the 1940s, Alan Scott, was a White King once.  

Checkmate 2.0

The original DC Comics Checkmate series positioned the agency as a covert operation. However, by Checkmate volume 2 by Greg Rucka, he reimagined it as the United Nations’ chartered metahuman monitoring force. In this restructuring, Checkmate had a “Rule of Two”. Each metahuman member that has a Royal Family position must have an un-powered counterpart in a corresponding position of power. Pawns still remain as low-level field agents. Among the pawns are field agents like Peacemaker, Vigilante, and Justice Leaguers like Vixen.

The most recent version of Checkmate, by writer Michael Brian Bendis, expanded the organization to include iconic DC characters like Lois Lane, Green Arrow, Wonder Woman’s boyfriend Steve Trevor, the Question, and Talia al Ghul. It seems Checkmate will receive its own project, be it a series or a movie, and have a big role to play in the DCU. With ARGUS essentially a hostile organization now, there needs to be a counter version. One hopefully staffed with (mostly) good guys in Gunn’s DCU. And several important Checkmate characters from the comics are part of the DCU already, like Maxwell Lord and Mister Terrific.

Checkmate’s Role in the DCU

Although James Gunn has said he doesn’t plan a bad guy heel turn for Maxwell Lord, that doesn’t mean he won’t be part of the group in some form. Of course, Leota’s mother, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) has a long history with Checkmate too, and we could see her attempt a hostile takeover of her daughter’s organization. Especially since ARGUS removed her. Will Checkmate reappear as a new TV series, or in a film? We don’t know yet. But we have a feeling Gunn will reveal just what the future of Checkmate is very soon.