One of the characters that picked up the most attention from The Suicide Squad trailer was King Shark. What made him so interesting was that he seems to be comic relief, a villain with limited intelligence that seemed like a punch line for the other members of the Squad.
In DC Comics, the character, voiced by Sylvester Stallone in the movie, is nowhere near as ridiculous as the trailers made him. In fact, King Shark is indeed a King and he is both a villain of superheroes like Superboy, a member of Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad team and an ally of the ocean's most powerful warrior, Aquaman.
Superboy Vol. 4 #0
It might seem hard to believe since he is an underwater villain, but King Shark made his first appearance in a Superboy comic book. In Superboy Vol. 4 #0 by Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett, King Shark showed up for his first appearance ever.
Not a lot happened here, but it is important to read this story to see where he came from and why he was so dangerous. A group called the Silicon Dragons showed up and broke Nanaue out of prison and he rewarded them by killing both men. The legend of King Shark began here.
Superboy Vol. 4 #13-15
King Shark was initially a villain for Superboy. This was the Conner Kent version of Superboy, the one who first appeared after the Death of Superman storyline as one of his possible replacements. His first main villain was King Shark when Superboy relocated to Hawaii.
In Superboy Vol. 4 #13-15 by Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett, Superboy was feuding with the Silicon Dragons and found the Suicide Squad was fighting the villains as well. King Shark had joined the Squad at this time and ends up reluctantly teaming with Superboy in this battle.
Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #40-53
King Shark's relationship with Aquaman played out in the series Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis in 2006. The two worked together from issues #40 to #53 by Kurt Busick and Jackson Guice. This storyline starts with King Shark, one of Aquaman's main comic book villains, helping an amnesiac Arthur at the behest of the Dweller in the Depths.
While King Shark was not happy about it, he worked with and helped Aquaman as he fought to save Atlantis and retake his throne. The relationship was rocky through it all, the two, both fighting each other and beside each other through this 13-issue story.
Secret Six Vol. 3 #30-36
King Shark is best known as a member of the Suicide Squad, but he was also a member of the Secret Six, which included Suicide Squad member Deadshot. King Shark officially joined the team in Secret Six Vol. 3 #30 by Gail Simone and Jim Calafiore and was a member through the 36th issue.
Originally, Secret Six was blackmailed into working together before it became a team of villains working together. In his short time with the group, they fought Doom Patrol, went to Hell, and then ended it all by fighting just about every hero in the DC Universe.
Suicide Squad Vol. 4
King Shark was back in 2011 as one of the strongest members of the Suicide Squad in the New 52. This was Suicide Squad Vol. 4 by Adam Glass and Federico Dallocchio, and it was a new book that was Rated T+ for Teen. This Suicide Squad looked very similar to the first Suicide Squad movie in the DCEU.
Harley Quinn, Deadshot, and El Diablo were all on the team, joined by King Shark and a few others. This series started with the members all tortured before the escape and reveal they are Task Force X, the new Suicide Squad, and set out on missions for Amanda Waller.
Birds Of Prey Vol. 3 #32-34
The Suicide Squad popped up in lots of other comics since their reintroduction in the New 52. This included showing up in Birds of Prey Vol. 3 #32-34, as Amanda Waller sent them to capture a doctor under the Birds of Prey's protection.
This led to a three-issue battle between the Suicide Squad and the Birds of Prey. This version saw Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, and King Shark representing the group. This battle ended up shattering the Birds of Prey and ending that series.
Aquaman Vol. 8 #30-40
In 2018, King Shark was back in the pages of Aquaman. This storyline played out in Aquaman Vol. 8 #30-40 by Dan Abnett and Stjepan Sejic and saw Atlantis in danger once again, meaning that Aquaman needed to stop out of his comfort zone to find help from reluctant allies like King Shark.
King Shark had built a criminal empire under the seas, but when Corum Rath took control of Atlantis and closed it off from entry, he ended up pledging allegiance to Aquaman's cause and joined him in the fight and helped him save Atlantis, proving to be one of The Suicide Squad's most heroic characters.
Justice League Of America's Vibe #4-5
Vibe gained a lot of popularity after appearing on The CW series The Flash. As a result, DC Comics took the one-time B-grade character and gave him his own series. In Justice League of America's Vibe #4-5 by Sterling Gates, Manuel Garcia, and Fabiano Neves, Vibe faced the Suicide Squad.
The Squad was after Gypsie and Vibe swore to protect her, putting him at odds with King Shark, Deadshot, and Harley Quinn. It all ended, once again, with the Squad winning and Vibe locked up by Amanda Waller.
Resurrection Man Vol. 2 #8-9
While Resurrection Man is not a popular hero or series, it was something fresh and new when it hit in 2012 as part of the DC New 52. Resurrection Man is a duplicate of a government agent with the power to die and then resurrect with a unique power that had something to do with how he died.
King Shark was back again with the Suicide Squad, as they killed Resurrection Man in issue #8 by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, and Fernando Dagnino. They were sent to kill Resurrection Man and tried to find a way to keep him from returning, but failed. However, the goal was to get a piece of his body to learn about his powers, and in that area, Amanda Waller succeeded.
Teen Titans Vol. 6 #6-7
The most recent enemies of the Suicide Squad had a personal problem with the black ops government group. They have become some of the most powerful Teen Titans villains since Amanda Waller forced their friend Superboy to join them. This is interesting since Superboy and King Shark were villains in the start.
Now, they are teammates. In Teen Titans Vol. 6 #6-7, King Shark was on his own as he battled the Teen Titans, which included Jackson Hyde's Aqualad. Soon, King Shark was joined by N.E.M.O., a group that wanted to control the world through the oceans. This was Jackson's entry point to the Titans and it was thanks to his battle with King Shark.