The Death of Darkseid May Have Just Unleashed the Darkness at the Heart of Superman

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A classic team of adventurers is about to uncover the darkness at the heart of DC’s Man of Steel.

Challengers of the Unknown #1 finds the eponymous team traversing the world and stars alike in search of answers regarding the spate of high-priority anomalies that have cropped up in the wake of Darkseid’s apparent destruction. At the heart of these anomalies is a new substance, a dark, metallic substance that is nearly indestructible even for the likes of Superman. Unfortunately, this substance is more than capable of eliciting terrifying hallucinations in those who stare too deeply into its inky surface, and while the anomalies have been relegated to individual locations, both the Challenger’s own Ace Morgan and the Man of Steel are already feeling those effects.

Written by CHRISTOPHER CANTWELL

Art by SEAN IZAAKSE

Colors by ROMULO FAJARDO JR.

Letters by HASSAN OTSMANE-ELHAOU

Main cover art by MIKE DEODATO JR. & JÃO CANOLA

Variant covers by TAURIN CLARKE, DANNY EARLS & TRISH MULVIHILL, DAN MORA, GLEB MELNIKOV, SEAN IZAAKSE & ROMULO FAJARDO JR., and FICO OSSIO

The Challengers of the Unknown have been a part of the overarching DC mythos since they made their debut in the pages of 1957’s Showcase #6 by Dave Wood and Jack Kirby. Consisting of pilot extraordinaire Ace Morgan, circus daredevil Red Ryan, master diver Prof Haley, and Olympic wrestler Rocky Davis, the team came together after its individual members survived a disastrous plane crash alongside one another. In the aftermath of that horrific event, the Challengers of the Unknown became one of the world’s premiere teams of adventurers, taking on all manner of mysteries and threats in the decades that followed.

The current iteration of the Challengers of the Unknown still includes the four core members of the team, as well as genius engineer and resident roboticist June Robbins. While June is a formidable force in her own right, she is also just one of several additions to the roster that have been made over the team’s nearly seventy-year existence. On top of the official members of the team, the Challengers of the Unknown have formed brief partnerships with a whole host of other classic DC heroes, including Swamp Thing, Superboy, and even the infamous Doom Patrol

The Challengers’ latest set of mysteries all revolve around what happened to Darkseid after the villain’s defeat at the hands of the Justice League Unlimited. After forcefully bonding to the Spectre and launching an attack on the Justice League’s Watchtower, Darkseid was seemingly obliterated entirely. While this put a stop to the immediate threat, it allowed Darkseid’s consciousness to worm its way into the reality now known as the Absolute Universe, merging with its very essence and altering the course of its history across every single corner of its expansive cosmos.

Challengers of the Unknown #1 is on sale now from DC Comics.

Source: DC Comics

“}]] DC’s Challengers of the Unknown have just stared into a whole new kind of abyss, and it is already bringing out the worst in the Man of Steel.  Read More