Nanaue, more commonly known asKing Shark, is an interesting DC characteroften associated with the Suicide Squad. However, his background used to be rather murky, so he’s made a ton of appearances in different ways. Now, withThe Suicide Squadmovie out andSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leaguereleasing in 2022, it’s easy to see how the two takes on the one character have interpreted his background and made him their own.
With the release of the movie and the officialSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leaguetrailer, the differences between the two stand more than ever. That obviously comes with the caveat that the movie is out and the full game is not, but there’s quite a few easily notable differences in terms of physical and personality.PLEASE NOTE: The following hasSPOILERSfor the newly-release movie.
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In thenew James Gunn movie, King Shark is perhaps best described as a loveable oaf with a twinge of sadness, serving more often than not as comical relief. He demonstrates his lack of intellect several times by pretending to read a book upside down, when he tries to eat Ratcatcher-2, and by his general lack of vocabulary, but as Amanda Waller puts it, he’s the strongest member on the team. His strength is great, and the combination allows King Shark to play off Ratcatcher, Bloodsport, and others quite well. It’s even quite sad when his “friends” betray and attack him in the water tank explosion, as well as when members of the Suicide Squad have to leave him behind because he’s a shark.
Physically, he demonstrates his strength time and time again throughout the movie, but many may be surprised about his overall shape. It’s clear thatKing Shark has a dad bod, as well as silly demeanor overall. It’s more of a youthful expression of the character, one surprised to be in a meeting and shocked to learn what friends are. The dad bod has been explained as giving King Shark a lack of more humanoid and mammalian traits, wanting this version of King Shark to be based on a Great White.
And all of this stands out in stark contrast toSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice League’sKing Shark. Rocksteady’s take on the characteris the complete opposite of the above. He is not a loveable oaf; he’s a son of the Shark God not to trifled with. There’s been no indication of sadness, and while his scene in the trailer is quite comical, it’s no more so than the general premise of Suicide Squad. King Shark is not the source of comedy; they are. Meanwhile, whereas James Gunn’s King Shark rocks the dad bod, Rocksteady’s looks like a very physically fit humanoid, perhaps leaning into theories of him being a Shark-oriented mutant (though comics do confirm he is the son of the Shark God).
Further comparison will have to wait untilSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leaguereleases, but it stands to reason that, other than a lightly alluded to but otherwise murky past, the two are nothing alike. With the differences in medium, it only makes sense, as one King Shark is designed to entertain while the other is designed to play. It’ll be interesting how they eventually stand toe to toe in comparison, but the difference gap is likely only going to widen from here on.
Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leaguereleases in 2022 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X.
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