Universal War One

The Purgatory Squadron is composed of members who face Court Martial for various infractions ranging from rape, to insubordination (Resulting in Death) and assault. Each member is assigned (or sentenced) to the squadron as a last chance to prove themselves effective officers of the UEF (United Earth Forces). The ranks of some of the characters is not stated in the series.

• Captain June Williamson: Williamson is the commander of Purgatory Squadron, and is one-half of the only two members not currently facing a Court Martial for previous actions.[1] Universal War One begins with Williamson protecting a group of civilians, mostly women and children, some of whom are family members of striking miners on the moon Titan, from being massacred by her commanding officer.[1] Williamson firmly believes that the goals of the Purgatory Squadron can "save" its members, by proving they have the capacity to be useful officers of the United Earth Forces.
• Lieutenant Kate Von Richtburg: Richtburg is the Second-in-Command of Purgatory Squadron, and is the other half of the only two members not currently facing a Court Martial for previous actions.[1] She gratefully accepted the position as second-in-command of Purgatory Squadron, as she has a great respect for her for not firing on herself and her mother while they tried to escape the mining riots on Titan. She has proven herself to be an able officer, and, like Capt.[1] June Williamson, firmly believes that the members of Purgatory Squadron has what it takes to be capable officers.

Members of Purgatory Squadron:

• Lieutenant Paulo "Mario" Del Gado: A self-professed coward, Mario is ashamed of his actions which led to the destruction of three supply ships and the deaths of their pilots. Mario was a Navigation Technician in charge of guiding six ships through an asteroid field, but he panicked and three supply ships were destroyed.[1] It was decided to partner him with Balti in an effort to keep him from deserting.
• John "Balti" Baltimore : All you need to know about Balti is that he wants to be a hero. With this goal as his only guide, he disobeyed orders not to intervene in the rescue operation of a transport ship that had caught fire. Unknown to him, a rescue shuttle had already been dispatched, which he collided with just before it could dock to save the ship.[1] Twelve crew members were killed on the transport, and three others in the rescue ship were severely injured. Balti can be best described as someone whose heart is in the best place, but whose willingness to become a hero makes him a brash and unpredictable officer. Balti is killed at the end of Universal War One #3 as a direct result of the time dilation and time travel effects.[2]
• Amina El Moudden: a native of the Middle East, Amina joined the EUF on her 18th birthday to escape her father's sexual abuse.[3] Sometime after a Colonel in the EUF attempted to rape her, though somehow this failed, subsequently, to get her revenge, she castrated him with a welding torch, and as of Universal War One #1 he was in critical condition. Amina accidentally injures Milorad, incorrectly believing that he is her father coming to sexually assault her during an injury-induced hallucination after crashing her fighter.[2]
• Lt. Colonel Edward "Ed" Kalish: Kalish is a genius who was formerly the head of the EUF 3rd Fleet's Space Physics Research Division.[1] He was sentenced to the Purgatory Squadron after beating twelve people senseless in a bar-fight, three of which were critically wounded, as well as wrecking the bar.[1] Williamson stated that his genius caused him to be so arrogant and superior that he felt he could "impose his will on others - with his fists if necessary", owing in part to his arrogance and the other to his rough upbringing and history of violence.[1] Kalish discovered Milorad attempting to rape Amina, and nearly beat him to death, proving that he too was not making use of his second chance. Kalish is also the individual responsible for discovering the nature and effect of the wall.[2]
• Milorad Racunicsa: Milorad was sentenced to the Purgatory Squadron after raping a nurse, an offence which he attempted to repeat on Amina in the first issue of Universal War One. It was this rape attempt that prompted Captain Williamson to inform each member of the squadron of all of their collective crimes. It was this event which prompted Balti to risk his life by entering the mysterious black "wall".

• Admiral Von Richtburg: Commanding Officer of UEF 3rd Fleet, and father to Lieutenant Kate Von Richtburg. Admiral Richtburg is the reason why Purgatory Squadron was formed in the first place; he prevented Captain Williamson from being Court Martial, as her insubordination saved the life of his wife and daughter Kate who were trying to escape the mining riots on Titan.[1] He is the officer who uncovered the betrayal of the CIC (Colonization Industrial Companies).[1] He is a firm, uncompromising military officer and respected leader who has a deep love for his daughter.
• Colonel Edward: Little is known about this EUF officer, just that it is clear he hates the Purgatory Squadron and is unnecessarily rude and who would like nothing better than to see the squadron fail.[1]

The two series have been collected into individual volumes:

• Universal War One (144 pages, Marvel Comics, hardcover, January 2009, ISBN 0-7851-3238-4)
• Universal War One: Revelations (144 pages, Marvel Comics, hardcover, August 2009, ISBN 0-7851-3239-2)

In October 2015 Titan Comics released the hardcover collected edition of Universal War One (288 pages, Titan Comics, hardcover, October 2015, ISBN 1-7827-6238-8) [4]