Suicide Squad

The Suicide Squad, also known as Task Force X (the name of a closely related but independent supervisory organization), is a name for two fictional organizations appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version debuted in The Brave and the Bold #25 (1959), and the second version, created by John Ostrander, debuted in Legends #3 (1987).

The modern Suicide Squad is an antihero "strike team" of incarcerated, death row supervillains. Acting as deniable, covert assets of the United States government, it undertakes high-risk, black-ops missions in exchange for commuted prison sentences. The group operates out of Belle Reve Penitentiary under the directorship of Amanda Waller.

The Suicide Squad functions as an unorthodox, work-release program, which explains why many of the DC Universe's supervillains remain perpetually on the loose – regardless how many occasions they're apprehended and incarcerated for their latest crimes.

Various incarnations of the Suicide Squad have existed throughout DC Universe canon, as depicted in several self-titled comic book series, from its origins in the Silver Age, to its modern-day post-Crisis reimagining, to the current version that was introduced in the wake of DC's 2011 New 52 continuity reboot.

Mr. Bean

Mr. Bean is a British sitcom created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, and starring Atkinson in the title role. Atkinson co-wrote all fifteen episodes with either Curtis, Robin Driscoll, or both, with Ben Elton co-writing the pilot. Thirteen of the episodes were broadcast on ITV, from the pilot on 1 January 1990, until "Goodnight Mr. Bean" on 31 October 1995. A clip show, "The Best Bits of Mr. Bean", was broadcast on 15 December 1995, and one episode, "Hair by Mr. Bean of London", was not broadcast until 2006 on Nickelodeon.

Based on a character originally developed by Atkinson while he was studying for his master's degree at Oxford University, the series follows the exploits of Mr. Bean, described by Atkinson as "a child in a grown man's body", in solving various problems presented by everyday tasks and often causing disruption in the process. Bean rarely speaks, and the largely physical humour of the series is derived from his interactions with other people and his unusual solutions to situations. The series was influenced by physical performers such as Jacques Tati and comic actors from silent films.

Harley Quinn

Harley Quinn (Dr. Harleen Frances Quinzel, M.D.) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm, and first appeared on Batman: The Animated Series in September 1992. She later appeared in DC Comics' Batman comic books, with her first comic book appearance in The Batman Adventures #12 (Sept. 1993). Harley Quinn is depicted as having a very pronounced New York accent.

The character is a frequent accomplice and lover of the Joker, and ally to the supervillain Poison Ivy from whom she gained an immunity to poisons and toxins. Harley Quinn's origin story relates that she met the Joker while working as a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum, where the Joker was a patient. Her name is a play on the name "Harlequin", a character which originated in the commedia dell'arte.

Harley Quinn was originally voiced by Arleen Sorkin in various tie-ins to the DC animated universe, and has also been voiced by Hynden Walch and Tara Strong in either DC Animated Showcases or in various video games. In the Birds of Prey television series, she was portrayed by actress Mia Sara. The character will be making her live-action cinematic debut in the upcoming 2016 film Suicide Squad portrayed by Australian actress Margot Robbie.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong (香港; "Fragrant Harbour"), officially Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, is an autonomous territory on the southern coast of China at the Pearl River Estuary and the South China Sea. Hong Kong is known for its skyline and deep natural harbour. It has a land area of 1104 km² and shares its northern border with Guangdong Province of Mainland China. With around 7.2 million inhabitants of various nationalities, Hong Kong is one of the world's most densely populated metropolises.

After the First Opium War (1839–42), Hong Kong became a British colony with the perpetual cession of Hong Kong Island, followed by Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and a 99-year lease of the New Territories from 1898. Hong Kong remained under British control for about a century until the Second World War, when Japan occupied the colony from December 1941 to August 1945. After the Surrender of Japan, the British resumed control. In the 1980s, negotiations between the United Kingdom and the China resulted in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, which provided for the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong on 30 June 1997. The territory became a special administrative region of China with a high degree of autonomy on 1 July 1997 under the principle of one country, two systems. Disputes over the perceived misapplication of this principle have contributed to popular protests, including the 2014 Umbrella Revolution.

Qin Shi Huang

Qin Shi Huang (Chinese:  秦始皇, 260 – 10 September 210 BC), born Ying Zheng (嬴政) and also known as King Zheng of Qin (秦王政), was the king of the state of Qin (r. 246–221 BC) who conquered all other Warring States and eventually unified China in 221 BC. Rather than maintain the title of "king" borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor (始皇帝) of the Qin dynasty from 220 to 210 BC. His self-invented title "emperor" (皇帝,  huángdì) would continue to be borne by Chinese rulers for the next two millennia.

During his reign, his generals greatly expanded the size of the Chinese state: campaigns south of Chu permanently added the Yue lands of Hunan and Guangdong to the Chinese cultural orbit; campaigns in Central Asia conquered the Ordos Loop from the nomad Xiongnu, although eventually causing their confederation under Modu Chanyu. Qin Shi Huang also worked with his minister Li Si to enact major economic and politic reforms aimed at the standardization of the diverse practices of the earlier Chinese states, traditionally said to have led to the banning and burning of many books and the execution of recalcitrant scholars. His public works projects included the unification of diverse state walls into a single Great Wall of China and a massive new national road system, as well as the city-sized mausoleum guarded by the life-sized Terracotta Army. He ruled until his death in 210 BC after a futile search for an elixir of immortality.