Alejandra Cortez is Culebra, the sarcastic, quip-firing powerhouse of the Suicide Squad, armed with strength and durability enhancing cybernetics.
History
Alejandra was raised by her beloved mother, who only ever asked her to be good in return. She was nearly killed after taking a fatal snake bite to protect her mother, who was approached by Spyral agents that promised to save her life as long as they were allowed to experiment on her.
The treatments and cybernetic replacement saved her life and gave her superhuman strength, which Spyral forced her to use to commit crimes on their behalf. Eventually, she was incarcerated in Belle Reve Penitentiary. Amanda Waller "recruited" her into Task Force X, the "Suicide Squad", claiming that her family would be protected from Spyral as long as she participated.[1]
Suicide Squad
Alejandra made the best of her time on the Squad by cooperating with orders and lightening the mood with jokes. She eventually found a companion in William Cobb, the Talon, in her assigned task to ensure his insanity did not compromise missions. During a mission to Hell to trap the souls of deceased squad members and force them to rejoin using a magical artifact, Culebra was killed by Mad Dog when she took a knife to the neck meant for Bloodsport. Angered by her death, Talon avenged her by incapacitating Mad Dog and was shocked to see her soul appear before him. The artifact trapped her soul along with the targets upon mission completion.[2]
The death devastated Culebra, as her soul being sent to Hell seemingly confirmed that she became a "bad" person who failed her mother. Talon came to comfort her and insisted that she wasn't actually bad, speaking normally for the first time. He revealed that he was not actually insane; in truth, he was conspiring with defected Squad leader Rick Flag to destroy the operation, and was putting on a ruse to avoid suspicion. He asked for her help in the plan, and the two cooperated with a disillusioned Task Force scientist.[3]
Waller intentionally let Culebra go without the Lazarus Resin needed to keep her soul within her body on Oa, worrying Talon as she went into withdrawal. This allowed her to sneak through a Green Lantern prison and release Black Hand to Waller's custody.[4] After the incident, Talon promised her that Waller would never abuse her "deaths" again. Sometime later, Flag's Squad finally began their assault on Waller's hideout after Culebra and her team were sent to Earth 8. After Waller narrowly avoided a confrontation with Flag's team, she had Talon and select members of her squad teleported to accompany her to Earth 3, abandoning Culebra there with the remainder.[5]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Cybernetic Enhancement
- Zombie Physiology
- Astral Projection: Since she is technically dead Culebra can make her soul leave her body whenever she wants.
- Flight
- Intangibility
- Phasing
- Possession: Culebra's soul can enter other people's bodies and take control of them.[6]
- Astral Projection: Since she is technically dead Culebra can make her soul leave her body whenever she wants.
Abilities
- Multilingualism: Culebra speaks English and Spanish.
- Hand-to-Hand Combat (Basic): Experienced hand-to-hand combatant.
- Charisma
Trivia
- Culebra is the Spanish word for "snake", the animal that changed the course of her life.
- Culebra has expressed an attraction to Match[7] and Green Lantern Jo Mullein.[3]
Recommended Reading
Related
- 21 Appearances of Alejandra Cortez (Prime Earth)
- 15 Images featuring Alejandra Cortez (Prime Earth)
- 2 Quotations by or about Alejandra Cortez (Prime Earth)
- Character Gallery: Alejandra Cortez (Prime Earth)
Footnotes
  Suicide Squad member |