Everyone knows about The Big Bang. It was supposed to be the gang war to end all gang wars. The police showed up using some experimental tear gas which caused a reaction with the quantum juice at the docks. This led to most of the gang members being killed, and those surviving being given super powers. One of those surviving members was a man named Rolando Texador, better known by his street name Tech-9, his favorite gun.
After the fight he decided that it was best he use his new powers to do some good for the world. He assembled some surviving members of the Paris Island Bloods and The Force Syndicate. He named this gang The Blood Syndicate. The new gang took over a factory as their base of operations. They started by conducting raids on local drug houses. There they would kill the dealers, destroy the drugs and keep the money for themselves. At one point Holocaust attempted to take leadership of the gang but was defeated due to arrogance.
The gang go on to do a lot more good, but make no mistake they were still a gang. After Tech's death Wise Son became their leader. A devout Muslim, with a drinking problem, he tried to lead the gang to become a bigger positive force but faced feedback. Eventually the gang broke apart before returning to claim their name from Holocaust.
The thing about the Blood Syndicate is that they shouldn't be heroes. They kill people, I'm not talking about Jason Todd killing, but full Punisher murders. The gang all have their own problems with addiction, homophobia and everything else. They area gang in every sense of the word. Yet, they're defaulted to heroes because they're doing it to other bad guys. They harass gangs and scientist that experiment on bang babies. If they did this to anyone else they would be criminals.
That's the amazing thing about them. They're not good. They've all made mistakes and done some evil things before, but at least they're trying. You get to see characters turn their lives around and play for the other team for once. It's a unique twist on the super gang idea.
In America, there's this idea that everyone in a gang or prison is the worst humanity has to offer. I'm a fan of the saying not all crimes are equal. The woman in jail for shoplifting diapers is not the same as the right wing terrorist. People who have been to prison or been in gangs, are just bad people. That's the prevailing thought in America.
It's also the reason The Blood Syndicate is so refreshing. They didn't sound like heroes to me the first time I head the name. Killing people doesn't exactly sound heroic, nor does the idea of being in a gang. Yet, here we are a team with Icon's seal of approval made up of gang members. Everything says they should be the villains. These should be the people taking on Static. Yet, time and time again they put their lives on the line, sometimes even dying repeatedly for the cause.
This is another reason Milestone is so great. They take people society looks down upon and makes them into heroes. Gangs and criminals aren't the people we tell children to look up to. Yet Milestone puts them out front and uses them as an example of what we should be. They have their problems and their pasts, but they still strive to be better people every day. They aren't the heroes we deserve, but they are the heroes we need.
You should buy Darrell's Book, watch him on the Blerds Online YouTube Channel or The CP Time and Powerbomb Jutsu podcasts. 
