8 Smartest Decisions In DC Villain History

2. Having A Double Agent On The Team - Judas Contract

The Judas Contract is a seminal comics storyline that put the Teen Titans - and Deathstroke - on the map. It was well executed in terms of just how devastating at was, and its centre lied the conceit that the Titans newest member, Terra, was actually a double-agent working for Deathstroke, their arch nemesis.

If any comic were to cement Slade as a relentless operator, then it would be Marv Wolfman and George Perez's. Terra was introduced as a new member for the team but the intention was always to have her revealed as a villain, and for her to die shortly thereafter, but it wasn't her scheme. In many ways, she was just like the rest of the Titans - a victim of Deathstroke's machinations.

Make no mistake, Deathstroke abused this girl to get what he wanted - and it nearly paid off. Using intel gathered by Terra, Slade struck at each of the Titans when they were most vulnerable, using their secret identities against them to gain the upper-hand. One by one, he catches all of them, bringing them to H.I.V.E., the Terminator's employers.

Introducing a double agent into the equation isn't exactly the most inventive idea, but it was deployed to great effect in the Titans' seminal outing. Deathstroke only fails due to the intervention of his wife and son, while Terra suffers a full-blown breakdown and kills herself with her own powers.