Challengers of the Unknown
Encyclopedia
The Challengers of the Unknown is a group of fictional character
s in comic books published by DC Comics
. Created by Jack Kirby
, or co-created with Dave Wood (sources differ), this quartet of adventurers explored science fiction
al and apparent paranormal
occurrences and faced fantastic menaces.
Scripts for the first stories are often credited to Dick and Dave Wood, two brothers who also wrote other Kirby-illustrated material, such as the "Sky Masters of the Space Force" comic strip; but others have claimed that Kirby created the Challengers himself or together with former partner Joe Simon. The stories had weird menaces, fistfights, wild vehicles and gadgets, spectacular terrain, daring escapes, and a sense of humor.
's book Seduction of the Innocent
and Congressional hearings on the subject, superhero comics had mostly vanished from about 1949 to the mid-1950s. The revival of the Flash
, seen as marking the return of the superheroes to popularity, had occurred only four months earlier, in Showcase #4. A team of larger-than-life adventurers with echoes of a World War II infantry squad were a natural fit. The group debuted in Showcase #6 (Feb. 1957).
The inspiration for the Challengers' adventures were drive-in movie fodder about skin divers, test pilots, acrobats, mountain climbers, boxers, and other adventurers. The group's name may have also derived from a 1950 Ace Magazines horror title, Challenge of the Unknown.
The Roster was Ace Morgan, Prof Haley, Rocky Davis and Red Ryan originally. Ryan was killed and briefly replaced by his kid brother Marty, a pop singer who used the anagram ID of Tino Manarry. Red Ryan returned from the dead, Tino was written out and towards the end of the original series a woman with an occult background named Corinna Stark acted like a fifth member of the team.
The series continued in Showcase for three more appearances (#7, 11, and 12) then moved to its own title, considered among Kirby's most notable from that period. After 12 issues total, Kirby moved on, although the title continued through issue #75, followed by two reprint issues. The Challengers were canceled with issue #77 in 1971. In 1973, three reprint issues were put out (#78-80).
#8-10, before getting their own title back with issue #81. During this period, they were joined by Deadman
and Swamp Thing
, and June Robbins got a uniform and official status. No explanation was given for Corinna Stark's departure, nor June's joining the team.
The title was canceled with issue #87 in 1978. Adventure Comics Digest
#493-497 (1982) featured an expanded version of the team's origin.
The Challengers returned in a limited series
, Challengers of the Unknown vol. 2 (1991), by writer Jeph Loeb
and artist Tim Sale
. It ran eight issues and was reprinted in trade paperback as Challengers of the Unknown Must Die! (2004). Loeb hoped for a monthly title, and planned at least a second limited series, to reset the Challs to youth and heroism, but neither volume materialized.
In 2000, DC published a one-shot, Silver Age
: Challengers of the Unknown, done in the style of the original Silver Age of Comic Books
Challengers.
tie-ins referred to the group of Donna Troy
, Jason Todd
, Kyle Rayner
, and "Bob", (a nefarious, renegade "purist" Monitor
), as "Challengers From Beyond". This group went on a quest through the newly formed multiverse in order to find Ray Palmer, who Bob claimed was essential to the survival of the universe. Eventually the earth heroes were betrayed by Bob, who sought to kill Ray Palmer, rather than protect him or acquire his aid. Palmer, Troy, Todd, and Rayner found themselves involved in a war between the Monitors and the forces of Monarch
. Later they traveled to Apokolips
where they teamed up with Jimmy Olsen
, Forager
, Karate Kid
and Triplicate Girl
. After returning to Earth, Troy, Rayner, Forager, and Palmer decided to team up again. They traveled to the Monitors headquarters, where they informed the shocked beings that they would be watching over them as a sort of interdimensional border guards.
series features a significant storyline involving the Challengers. In it, Destiny of the Endless reveals to Supergirl
and Lobo that his book, The Book of Destiny, a vastly ancient, omniscient, historical "Bible" of sorts containing a record of every sentient being's past, present and, most importantly, future, making it a highly sought-after and dangerous artifact to possess, has changed because there appeared to be men who existed, but were not recorded in the book, and their undocumented actions made the book unreliable. Destiny cast the book away, expecting these men to retrieve it and become the book's proper safe-keepers, but the book instead ends up on the planet Rann
, being used in a plot by the Luck Lords, seeing as how it "tells" the future, to alter the proper timeline for their own ends. The book was eventually recovered by Batman and Green Lantern with the help of the Challengers, who become the replacement holders of the book, being that, as it turns out, they were the four men who could not be tracked by the book's pages. This development was explained by Batman, who stated that the Challengers were supposed to have died in a plane crash, a crash no one should have ever walked away from. By cheating death they altered their own destinies, removing themselves from the book, and thus became responsible for minor alterations to the book over time. After this revelation, it was remarked upon by the Challs and others that they "are living on borrowed time..."
After this arc, the book remained in the Challengers' hands, who kept reading it, with a few of their members becoming obsessed with its secrets. In particular, they used it to keep track of the actions of the alchemist Megistus who had been gathering powerful transformative relics and objects; among these were the Orb of Ra, the H-Dial, the Philosopher's Stone
, the heroes Metamorpho and Firestorm, several ancient star charts, and Green Lantern's Power Battery. Upon realizing this information, they battle the Warlock of Ys in Challenger Mountain when he unexpectedly manifests through the pages of the Book of Destiny and uses it to form a hardened shell for himself and the alchemist, himself, when he finally manages to seize the battery from Edwards Air Base. In this battle, Megistus uses the body of Metamorpho, who is under their power, to duel with the Challs. June accompanies them to the Megistus' solar base, and is pivotal in thwarting the alchemist's plans to infuse Earth with the irradiated cloud of cosmic energy that created Red Kryptonite in order to shield it against the Final Crisis by mutating humanity. However, June's triumph causes her to vanish in a resulting blast. The Challs assume she's dead, until Destiny comes to reclaim his book, at which point they all beg him to let them see into the book a final time to know June's final fate. However, it is shown that the blast that supposedly killed her actually erased her presence from the Book of Destiny, as well, and although she has disappeared, she had cheated death like the Challengers and is, indeed, alive somewhere. The Challengers then begin to search for June, now convinced she's a true Challenger of the Unknown.
Leslie "Rocky" Davis appears regularly in the newest Doom Patrol
ongoing series, in which he serves as something of a counselor to the members of that team, and resides on Oolong Island. It is uncertain how this relates to the Challengers' promise to find June.
The Challengers were revamped by writer Steven Grant
in vol. 3 (1997), which had a totally new group of characters and was one of four series making up the Weirdoverse
group of titles. This ongoing ran 18 issues, through 1998.
One more revamp was done by Howard Chaykin
in a six-issue miniseries (vol. 4, 2004–2005). This series had another new group of characters. This was collected in trade paperback as Challengers of the Unknown: Stolen Moments, Borrowed Time.
Soon famous, the Challengers accept many "unknown challenges" from The Pentagon
, mad scientists, and people with a problem. Over time the "Challs" establish the hollowed-out Challengers Mountain as headquarters. Later they adopt an hourglass
logo
to symbolize time running out. They encounter genies, common and sophisticated thieves, rocs, aliens and robots good and bad. Their adventures later veer toward superheroics, and take in everything from occult menaces to Bermuda Triangle
mysteries. The Challengers travel through space, time, and other dimensions. They encounter the likes of the Doom Patrol
, Deadman
, Swamp Thing
, Jonny Double
, and the Sea Devils
, with whom they fight the criminal group Scorpio
. June Robbins, a computer genius and archaeologist, joined the Challengers for many adventures as an "honorary" or "girl" Challenger.
When Red is killed, a teen rock star/engineering genius immediately wages a vendetta against the three-man team. "Tino Mannaray" turns out to be Martin Ryan, Red's kid brother, who blames the team for his death. Red eventually returns; though blown up, he had been dosed with shape-changing Liquid Light and rendered amnesiac, but still nearly conquered the Pacific as a Tiki
god.
As the team's challenges become more occult, Red's brother Tino is blinded. Red donates an eye to his brother and dons an eye patch. Eventually Red receives an eye transplant. Prof becomes possessed by an evil spirit and is shot by a villain. While he recovers, Corinna Stark, a mysterious blond with mystical knowledge, invites herself onto the team. The Challengers fight occult alien-monsters in backwoods villages and dark dreams, and Rocky and Red fight for Corinna's affection.
The Challs are later semi-retired, their mountain a theme park, and their adventures disregarded as cooked-up articles in a tabloid, The Tattletale. The nearby town has renamed itself Challengerville, managing to thrive on the team's name. A cosmic entity, which prides itself as "the personification of all evil", influences the entity Multi-Man
to blow up the mountain. The town is destroyed. Hundreds die, including, seemingly, Prof and June. The surviving Challengers are placed on trial, but eventually freed with the testimony of Superman. They are, however, ordered to disband.
A tabloid reporter, Moffet, becomes involved with the group after several unexplained incidents. Moffet begins to piece together many seemingly unrelated massacres. Red became a violent, vigilante mercenary. Ace becomes an addled mystic, losing new-found friends due to inattention and incompetence. Rocky becomes lost in a life of luxury and ends up in an insane asylum.
Eventually the three reunite, and with Moffet's aid, find a strange portal near what was once Challengerville. They discover Prof and June, pregnant, "alive" in a strange "phantom zone". The dark demon confronts them and the final battle comes down to Moffet and a neutron bomb. The decision to attack is literally taken out of his hands by Multi-Man, who sacrifices himself to destroy the demon.
"The New Challengers of the Unknown", including ghostly Prof and June, were poised to take on menaces in the dark corners of the world.
Later, four new Challengers pursue X-Files-like horrors. They are Clay Brody, NASCAR
driver; Brenda Ruskin, physicist; Kenn Kawa, radical games designer; and Marlon Corbet, commercial pilot, who also miraculously survived a plane crash. They stopped sacrificial wackos, drug-juiced zombies, vengeful ghosts, Amazon
cults, H. P. Lovecraft
ian monsters, mass suicides, humming buildings, and other oddities. They were advised by Rocky Davis, older and grayer and alone. It was eventually revealed the original Challengers were dematerialized by a mad scientist's ray-weapon. The same ray caused both plane crashes, as well as others. Soon the original Challs reappeared, helped the young Challs defeat the madman, then walked back into oblivion (minus a wounded Rocky) to shut down a runaway Tesla field. The young Challengers vowed to fight on.
Superboy
discovers the missing Challengers - Ace, Red, Prof, and June - in Hypertime
. The team was waging guerrilla war against Black Zero (a Superboy variant). With Black Zero defeated, the team returns to Earth, but loses Red along the way. Reunited with Rocky in Metropolis
, hosted by Rip Hunter
, the original Challengers vow to explore Hypertime, "the greatest unknown", to find Red.
Two Challengers partake in Infinite Crisis
. Rocky Davis and Prof Haley help stem the escape of prisoners from Blackgate Prison,. Rocky fights in the Battle of Metropolis. He is one of dozens of heroes fighting the opposing army of the Secret Society of Supervillains. The Society is ultimately defeated.
Later, on a world without superheroes, a blog
ger, a hip hop
artist, an eco-terrorist, and two others discovers they'd been genetically enhanced and chip-programmed to be soldier-pawns by the Hegemony, a cabal of billionaires who secretly run that world. Made slaves on a Moon base, three Challengers blow up the base, escape to Earth, and declare war on the Hegemony until (like the obliquely mentioned earlier Challengers) their "borrowed time" runs out.
miniseries Conjurers, set in an alternate DCU where magic is a part of mainstream society. These are the "Volume 3" Challengers, but given the nicknames of the originals: Kenn is "Prof", Clay is "Rocky", Brenda is "Red" and Marlon is "Ace". (Since Kenn was always shown as the most "mystical" of the new Challs, it makes sense that he would be "Prof" in a magical universe, rather than Brenda, the team's scientist.)
During Superboy's trip through Hypertime, referenced above, he briefly visits an Elseworld in which the Challengers were himself, Ace, Guardian
and Dubbilex
. The June who arrives in the DCU at the end of that story is also an Elseworlds version, coming from a universe where she was a full Challenger from the beginning. She was apparently exchanged with the June of the main timeline when she was struck by Hypertime energies.
The Challengers also made brief appearances in JLA: Another Nail
(when all time periods meld together) and Adventures of Superman Annual #7 (as part of a strikeforce of non-powered heroes).
They were prominently featured in Darwyn Cooke
's DC: The New Frontier
miniseries (2003–2004). Various members were essential in many battles against various menaces that arose throughout the series.
In the 1996 crossover series Amalgam Comics
, the Challengers were merged with the Fantastic Four
to become Challengers of The Fantastic.
penned the novel Challengers of the Unknown as part of a DC experiment in new venues. The original four and June Robbins trekked to South America to investigate Zarpa the lake monster. While on the case they encounter young men with old Nazi tattoos, ancient alien cults, a castle in the desert, a robotic dog, and a bomb in a piano crate. (Dell Books, ISBN 0-440-11337-7)
:
The Loeb-Sale mini was reprinted as a trade paperback, Challengers of the Unknown Must Die! (December 2004, ISBN 1-4012-0374-4), as was the Chaykin mini-series (March 2006, ISBN 1-4012-0941-6).
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
s in comic books published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. Created by Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
, or co-created with Dave Wood (sources differ), this quartet of adventurers explored science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
al and apparent paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
occurrences and faced fantastic menaces.
Scripts for the first stories are often credited to Dick and Dave Wood, two brothers who also wrote other Kirby-illustrated material, such as the "Sky Masters of the Space Force" comic strip; but others have claimed that Kirby created the Challengers himself or together with former partner Joe Simon. The stories had weird menaces, fistfights, wild vehicles and gadgets, spectacular terrain, daring escapes, and a sense of humor.
Publication history
In 1957, comic books had a crying need for content. Due to factors including Fredric WerthamFredric Wertham
Fredric Wertham was a Jewish German-American psychiatrist and crusading author who protested the purportedly harmful effects of violent imagery in mass media and comic books on the development of children. His best-known book was Seduction of the Innocent , which purported that comic books are...
's book Seduction of the Innocent
Seduction of the Innocent
Seduction of the Innocent is a book by German-American psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, published in 1954, that warned that comic books were a negative form of popular literature and a serious cause of juvenile delinquency. The book was a minor bestseller that created alarm in parents and galvanized...
and Congressional hearings on the subject, superhero comics had mostly vanished from about 1949 to the mid-1950s. The revival of the Flash
Flash (comics)
The Flash is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 ....
, seen as marking the return of the superheroes to popularity, had occurred only four months earlier, in Showcase #4. A team of larger-than-life adventurers with echoes of a World War II infantry squad were a natural fit. The group debuted in Showcase #6 (Feb. 1957).
The inspiration for the Challengers' adventures were drive-in movie fodder about skin divers, test pilots, acrobats, mountain climbers, boxers, and other adventurers. The group's name may have also derived from a 1950 Ace Magazines horror title, Challenge of the Unknown.
The Roster was Ace Morgan, Prof Haley, Rocky Davis and Red Ryan originally. Ryan was killed and briefly replaced by his kid brother Marty, a pop singer who used the anagram ID of Tino Manarry. Red Ryan returned from the dead, Tino was written out and towards the end of the original series a woman with an occult background named Corinna Stark acted like a fifth member of the team.
The series continued in Showcase for three more appearances (#7, 11, and 12) then moved to its own title, considered among Kirby's most notable from that period. After 12 issues total, Kirby moved on, although the title continued through issue #75, followed by two reprint issues. The Challengers were canceled with issue #77 in 1971. In 1973, three reprint issues were put out (#78-80).
Various revivals
In a short-lived 1977 revival, the Challengers were again a four-man, one-woman team. They first came back in Super-Team FamilySuper-Team Family
Super-Team Family is an comic book anthology series published by DC Comics in the 1970s that lasted for fifteen issues. The series published a mix of original and reprinted stories.- Publication history :...
#8-10, before getting their own title back with issue #81. During this period, they were joined by Deadman
Deadman
Deadman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in Strange Adventures #205 , and was created by Arnold Drake and Carmine Infantino.-Publication history:...
and Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
, and June Robbins got a uniform and official status. No explanation was given for Corinna Stark's departure, nor June's joining the team.
The title was canceled with issue #87 in 1978. Adventure Comics Digest
Adventure Comics
Adventure Comics was a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1935 to 1983 and then revamped from 2009 to 2011. In its first era, the series ran for 503 issues , making it the fifth-longest-running DC series, behind Detective Comics, Action Comics, Superman, and Batman...
#493-497 (1982) featured an expanded version of the team's origin.
The Challengers returned in a limited series
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
, Challengers of the Unknown vol. 2 (1991), by writer Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
and artist Tim Sale
Tim Sale (artist)
Tim Sale is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist. He is primarily known for his collaborations with writer Jeph Loeb.-Early life:...
. It ran eight issues and was reprinted in trade paperback as Challengers of the Unknown Must Die! (2004). Loeb hoped for a monthly title, and planned at least a second limited series, to reset the Challs to youth and heroism, but neither volume materialized.
In 2000, DC published a one-shot, Silver Age
Silver Age (DC Comics Title)
"Silver Age" was a twelve part storyline that ran through a series of one shot comic books published by DC Comics in 2000.Each of the 12 issues were a one-shot , however they formed a larger story-arc in which The Justice League of America fights the Injustice League formed by villain Agamemno.The...
: Challengers of the Unknown, done in the style of the original Silver Age of Comic Books
Silver Age of Comic Books
The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
Challengers.
Countdown
Prepublication solicitations for various CountdownCountdown to Final Crisis
Countdown, known as Countdown to Final Crisis for its last 24 issues based on the cover, was a comic book limited series published by DC Comics. It debuted on May 9, 2007, directly following the conclusion of the last issue of 52...
tie-ins referred to the group of Donna Troy
Donna Troy
Donna Troy is a comic book superheroine published by DC Comics. She first appeared in The Brave and the Bold vol. 1 #60 , and was created by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani...
, Jason Todd
Jason Todd
Jason Peter Todd is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Jason first appeared in Batman #357 and became the second Robin, sidekick to the superhero Batman, when the previous Robin went on to star in The New Teen Titans under the moniker of Nightwing.Though...
, Kyle Rayner
Kyle Rayner
Kyle Rayner is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in books published by DC Comics, usually in those starring the Green Lantern Corps, an extraterrestrial police force of which Rayner is a member. Created by writer Ron Marz and artist Darryl Banks, Rayner first appeared in Green Lantern vol...
, and "Bob", (a nefarious, renegade "purist" Monitor
Monitors (comics)
The Monitors are a group of fictional comic book characters, who appear in books published by DC Comics.They are based on The Monitor, a character created by comic book writer Marv Wolfman and comic artist George Pérez as one of the main characters of DC Comics' Crisis on Infinite Earths limited...
), as "Challengers From Beyond". This group went on a quest through the newly formed multiverse in order to find Ray Palmer, who Bob claimed was essential to the survival of the universe. Eventually the earth heroes were betrayed by Bob, who sought to kill Ray Palmer, rather than protect him or acquire his aid. Palmer, Troy, Todd, and Rayner found themselves involved in a war between the Monitors and the forces of Monarch
Monarch (comics)
Monarch is the name of three fictional DC Comics supervillains. The first Monarch is Hank Hall, formerly Hawk, who later renames himself Extant for the Zero Hour crossover. The second Monarch is Nathaniel Adam, a U.S. Army Captain. The third Monarch is Captain Atom, a former superhero...
. Later they traveled to Apokolips
Apokolips
In the DC Comics fictional shared Universe, Apokolips is the planet ruled by Darkseid, established in Jack Kirby's Fourth World series. It is also integral to many DC Comics stories. The planet is considered the opposite of New Genesis....
where they teamed up with Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character who appears mainly in DC Comics’ Superman stories. Olsen is a young photojournalist working for the Daily Planet. He is close friends with Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Superman and Perry White...
, Forager
Forager
A forager is one who forages, i.e. looks for forage.Forager may refer to:*A hunter-gatherer*Forager , a fictional superhero published by DC Comics*Foraging theory, a branch of behavioral ecology...
, Karate Kid
Karate Kid (comics)
Karate Kid is a fictional character, a superhero in the future of the DC Comics universe, and a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. He is a master of every form of martial arts to have been developed by the 31st century...
and Triplicate Girl
Triplicate Girl
Triplicate Girl is a fictional character, a superhero in the 30th and 31st centuries of the and a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. She has also used the aliases Duo Damsel, Triad, Una and Duplicate Damsel....
. After returning to Earth, Troy, Rayner, Forager, and Palmer decided to team up again. They traveled to the Monitors headquarters, where they informed the shocked beings that they would be watching over them as a sort of interdimensional border guards.
The Brave and the Bold
The 2007 revival of The Brave and the BoldThe Brave and the Bold
The Brave and the Bold is the title shared by many comic book series published by DC Comics. The first of these was published as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983...
series features a significant storyline involving the Challengers. In it, Destiny of the Endless reveals to Supergirl
Supergirl
Supergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
and Lobo that his book, The Book of Destiny, a vastly ancient, omniscient, historical "Bible" of sorts containing a record of every sentient being's past, present and, most importantly, future, making it a highly sought-after and dangerous artifact to possess, has changed because there appeared to be men who existed, but were not recorded in the book, and their undocumented actions made the book unreliable. Destiny cast the book away, expecting these men to retrieve it and become the book's proper safe-keepers, but the book instead ends up on the planet Rann
Rann
Rann is a fictional planet in the Polaris star system of the whose capitol city is Ranagar. Rann is most famous for being the adopted planet of the Earth explorer and hero Adam Strange and for their teleportation device called the Zeta Beam...
, being used in a plot by the Luck Lords, seeing as how it "tells" the future, to alter the proper timeline for their own ends. The book was eventually recovered by Batman and Green Lantern with the help of the Challengers, who become the replacement holders of the book, being that, as it turns out, they were the four men who could not be tracked by the book's pages. This development was explained by Batman, who stated that the Challengers were supposed to have died in a plane crash, a crash no one should have ever walked away from. By cheating death they altered their own destinies, removing themselves from the book, and thus became responsible for minor alterations to the book over time. After this revelation, it was remarked upon by the Challs and others that they "are living on borrowed time..."
After this arc, the book remained in the Challengers' hands, who kept reading it, with a few of their members becoming obsessed with its secrets. In particular, they used it to keep track of the actions of the alchemist Megistus who had been gathering powerful transformative relics and objects; among these were the Orb of Ra, the H-Dial, the Philosopher's Stone
Philosopher's stone
The philosopher's stone is a legendary alchemical substance said to be capable of turning base metals into gold or silver. It was also sometimes believed to be an elixir of life, useful for rejuvenation and possibly for achieving immortality. For many centuries, it was the most sought-after goal...
, the heroes Metamorpho and Firestorm, several ancient star charts, and Green Lantern's Power Battery. Upon realizing this information, they battle the Warlock of Ys in Challenger Mountain when he unexpectedly manifests through the pages of the Book of Destiny and uses it to form a hardened shell for himself and the alchemist, himself, when he finally manages to seize the battery from Edwards Air Base. In this battle, Megistus uses the body of Metamorpho, who is under their power, to duel with the Challs. June accompanies them to the Megistus' solar base, and is pivotal in thwarting the alchemist's plans to infuse Earth with the irradiated cloud of cosmic energy that created Red Kryptonite in order to shield it against the Final Crisis by mutating humanity. However, June's triumph causes her to vanish in a resulting blast. The Challs assume she's dead, until Destiny comes to reclaim his book, at which point they all beg him to let them see into the book a final time to know June's final fate. However, it is shown that the blast that supposedly killed her actually erased her presence from the Book of Destiny, as well, and although she has disappeared, she had cheated death like the Challengers and is, indeed, alive somewhere. The Challengers then begin to search for June, now convinced she's a true Challenger of the Unknown.
Leslie "Rocky" Davis appears regularly in the newest Doom Patrol
Doom Patrol
The Doom Patrol is a superhero team appearing in publications from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in My Greatest Adventure #80...
ongoing series, in which he serves as something of a counselor to the members of that team, and resides on Oolong Island. It is uncertain how this relates to the Challengers' promise to find June.
Alternative versions
DC published two other series, also titled Challengers of the Unknown, featuring the original Challengers' concept combined with a new set of characters.The Challengers were revamped by writer Steven Grant
Steven Grant
Steven Grant is an American comic-book writer best known for his 1985-1986 Marvel Comics mini-series Punisher, with artist Mike Zeck and for his creator-owned character Whisper.-Biography:...
in vol. 3 (1997), which had a totally new group of characters and was one of four series making up the Weirdoverse
Weirdoverse
The Weirdoverse is a name that refers to a group of semi-related comic book series published from late 1996 to 1998 by DC Comics. The idea of Dan Thorsland , the Weirdoverse titles were connected by the fact that they all fell into the mystery/occult genre...
group of titles. This ongoing ran 18 issues, through 1998.
One more revamp was done by Howard Chaykin
Howard Chaykin
Howard Victor Chaykin is an American comic book writer and artist famous for his innovative storytelling and sometimes controversial material...
in a six-issue miniseries (vol. 4, 2004–2005). This series had another new group of characters. This was collected in trade paperback as Challengers of the Unknown: Stolen Moments, Borrowed Time.
Fictional character biographies
When acquaintances miraculously survive a plane crash unscathed, they conclude that since they are "living on borrowed time" they should band together for hazardous adventures. The four — pilot Kyle "Ace" Morgan, daredevil Matthew "Red" Ryan, strong and slow-witted Leslie "Rocky" Davis, and scientist Walter Mark "Prof" Haley — became the Challengers of the Unknown.Soon famous, the Challengers accept many "unknown challenges" from The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
, mad scientists, and people with a problem. Over time the "Challs" establish the hollowed-out Challengers Mountain as headquarters. Later they adopt an hourglass
Hourglass
An hourglass measures the passage of a few minutes or an hour of time. It has two connected vertical glass bulbs allowing a regulated trickle of material from the top to the bottom. Once the top bulb is empty, it can be inverted to begin timing again. The name hourglass comes from historically...
logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
to symbolize time running out. They encounter genies, common and sophisticated thieves, rocs, aliens and robots good and bad. Their adventures later veer toward superheroics, and take in everything from occult menaces to Bermuda Triangle
Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is a region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and surface vessels allegedly disappeared under mysterious circumstances....
mysteries. The Challengers travel through space, time, and other dimensions. They encounter the likes of the Doom Patrol
Doom Patrol
The Doom Patrol is a superhero team appearing in publications from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in My Greatest Adventure #80...
, Deadman
Deadman
Deadman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in Strange Adventures #205 , and was created by Arnold Drake and Carmine Infantino.-Publication history:...
, Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing
Swamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
, Jonny Double
Jonny Double
Jonathan Sebastian "Jonny" Double is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. Created by Len Wein and Marv Wolfman, he first appeared in Showcase #78 .-Publication history:...
, and the Sea Devils
Sea Devils (comics)
The Sea Devils are a team of characters in comics published by DC Comics. They are a team of conventional adventurers, in undersea adventures. They were created by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Russ Heath ....
, with whom they fight the criminal group Scorpio
Scorpio (DC Comics)
Scorpio is a fictional DC Comics terrorist organization introduced in 1965's Challengers of the Unknown issue #47.-History:A mercenary group of terrorists-for-hire...
. June Robbins, a computer genius and archaeologist, joined the Challengers for many adventures as an "honorary" or "girl" Challenger.
When Red is killed, a teen rock star/engineering genius immediately wages a vendetta against the three-man team. "Tino Mannaray" turns out to be Martin Ryan, Red's kid brother, who blames the team for his death. Red eventually returns; though blown up, he had been dosed with shape-changing Liquid Light and rendered amnesiac, but still nearly conquered the Pacific as a Tiki
Tiki
Tiki refers to large wood and stone carvings of humanoid forms in Central Eastern Polynesian cultures of the Pacific Ocean. The term is also used in Māori mythology where Tiki is the first man, created by either Tūmatauenga or Tāne. He found the first woman, Marikoriko, in a pond – she seduced him...
god.
As the team's challenges become more occult, Red's brother Tino is blinded. Red donates an eye to his brother and dons an eye patch. Eventually Red receives an eye transplant. Prof becomes possessed by an evil spirit and is shot by a villain. While he recovers, Corinna Stark, a mysterious blond with mystical knowledge, invites herself onto the team. The Challengers fight occult alien-monsters in backwoods villages and dark dreams, and Rocky and Red fight for Corinna's affection.
The Challs are later semi-retired, their mountain a theme park, and their adventures disregarded as cooked-up articles in a tabloid, The Tattletale. The nearby town has renamed itself Challengerville, managing to thrive on the team's name. A cosmic entity, which prides itself as "the personification of all evil", influences the entity Multi-Man
Multi-Man
Multi-Man is a fictional character that has been both a superhero and a supervillain in DC Comics comic books.-Fictional character biography:...
to blow up the mountain. The town is destroyed. Hundreds die, including, seemingly, Prof and June. The surviving Challengers are placed on trial, but eventually freed with the testimony of Superman. They are, however, ordered to disband.
A tabloid reporter, Moffet, becomes involved with the group after several unexplained incidents. Moffet begins to piece together many seemingly unrelated massacres. Red became a violent, vigilante mercenary. Ace becomes an addled mystic, losing new-found friends due to inattention and incompetence. Rocky becomes lost in a life of luxury and ends up in an insane asylum.
Eventually the three reunite, and with Moffet's aid, find a strange portal near what was once Challengerville. They discover Prof and June, pregnant, "alive" in a strange "phantom zone". The dark demon confronts them and the final battle comes down to Moffet and a neutron bomb. The decision to attack is literally taken out of his hands by Multi-Man, who sacrifices himself to destroy the demon.
"The New Challengers of the Unknown", including ghostly Prof and June, were poised to take on menaces in the dark corners of the world.
Later, four new Challengers pursue X-Files-like horrors. They are Clay Brody, NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
driver; Brenda Ruskin, physicist; Kenn Kawa, radical games designer; and Marlon Corbet, commercial pilot, who also miraculously survived a plane crash. They stopped sacrificial wackos, drug-juiced zombies, vengeful ghosts, Amazon
Amazons
The Amazons are a nation of all-female warriors in Greek mythology and Classical antiquity. Herodotus placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia...
cults, H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
ian monsters, mass suicides, humming buildings, and other oddities. They were advised by Rocky Davis, older and grayer and alone. It was eventually revealed the original Challengers were dematerialized by a mad scientist's ray-weapon. The same ray caused both plane crashes, as well as others. Soon the original Challs reappeared, helped the young Challs defeat the madman, then walked back into oblivion (minus a wounded Rocky) to shut down a runaway Tesla field. The young Challengers vowed to fight on.
Superboy
Superboy
Superboy is the name of several fictional characters that have been published by DC Comics, most of them youthful incarnations of Superman. These characters have also been the main characters of four ongoing Superboy comic book series published by DC....
discovers the missing Challengers - Ace, Red, Prof, and June - in Hypertime
Hypertime
Hypertime is a fictional concept presented in the 1999 DC comic book series The Kingdom, both a catch-all explanation for any continuity discrepancies in DC Universe stories and a variation or superset of the Multiverse that existed before Crisis on Infinite Earths.- The Kingdom :The basic premise...
. The team was waging guerrilla war against Black Zero (a Superboy variant). With Black Zero defeated, the team returns to Earth, but loses Red along the way. Reunited with Rocky in Metropolis
Metropolis (comics)
Metropolis is a fictional city that appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and is the home of Superman. Metropolis first appeared by name in Action Comics #16 ....
, hosted by Rip Hunter
Rip Hunter
Rip Hunter is a DC Comics character who first appeared in Showcase #20 . Following three more appearances in Showcase , Rip Hunter was given his own series, which ran for 29 issues . He later starred in the six-issue Time Masters series , written by Bob Wayne and Lewis Shiner...
, the original Challengers vow to explore Hypertime, "the greatest unknown", to find Red.
Two Challengers partake in Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis is a 2005 - 2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books...
. Rocky Davis and Prof Haley help stem the escape of prisoners from Blackgate Prison,. Rocky fights in the Battle of Metropolis. He is one of dozens of heroes fighting the opposing army of the Secret Society of Supervillains. The Society is ultimately defeated.
Later, on a world without superheroes, a blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
ger, a hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
artist, an eco-terrorist, and two others discovers they'd been genetically enhanced and chip-programmed to be soldier-pawns by the Hegemony, a cabal of billionaires who secretly run that world. Made slaves on a Moon base, three Challengers blow up the base, escape to Earth, and declare war on the Hegemony until (like the obliquely mentioned earlier Challengers) their "borrowed time" runs out.
Other versions
The Challengers make a brief appearance in the ElseworldsElseworlds
Elseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
miniseries Conjurers, set in an alternate DCU where magic is a part of mainstream society. These are the "Volume 3" Challengers, but given the nicknames of the originals: Kenn is "Prof", Clay is "Rocky", Brenda is "Red" and Marlon is "Ace". (Since Kenn was always shown as the most "mystical" of the new Challs, it makes sense that he would be "Prof" in a magical universe, rather than Brenda, the team's scientist.)
During Superboy's trip through Hypertime, referenced above, he briefly visits an Elseworld in which the Challengers were himself, Ace, Guardian
Guardian (DC Comics)
Guardian is a comic book fictional character, a DC Comics superhero, created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon. He first appeared in Star Spangled Comics #7...
and Dubbilex
Dubbilex
Dubbilex is a fictional comic book character published by DC Comics. He debuted in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #136, , and was created by Jack Kirby. His name is a play on the XX chromosome. -Pre-Crisis:...
. The June who arrives in the DCU at the end of that story is also an Elseworlds version, coming from a universe where she was a full Challenger from the beginning. She was apparently exchanged with the June of the main timeline when she was struck by Hypertime energies.
The Challengers also made brief appearances in JLA: Another Nail
JLA: Another Nail
JLA: Another Nail is a comic book mini-series published in the United States by DC Comics, a continuation of events seen in the original three-part mini-series JLA: The Nail. As with its predecessor, Another Nail occurs outside of the official DC Universe continuity, belonging to the Elseworlds...
(when all time periods meld together) and Adventures of Superman Annual #7 (as part of a strikeforce of non-powered heroes).
They were prominently featured in Darwyn Cooke
Darwyn Cooke
Darwyn Cooke is an Eisner Award-winning comic book writer, artist, cartoonist and animator, best known for his work on the comic books Catwoman, DC: The New Frontier, The Spirit and Richard Stark's Parker: The Hunter.-Career:...
's DC: The New Frontier
DC: The New Frontier
DC: The New Frontier is an Eisner, Harvey, and Shuster Award-winning six-issue comic book limited series written and drawn by Darwyn Cooke, published by DC Comics in 2003-2004. It was then collected into two trade paperback volumes from 2004–2005 and then an Absolute Edition in 2006...
miniseries (2003–2004). Various members were essential in many battles against various menaces that arose throughout the series.
In the 1996 crossover series Amalgam Comics
Amalgam Comics
Amalgam Comics was a publishing imprint shared by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, in which the two comic book publishers merged their characters into new ones . These characters first appeared in a series of twelve comic books which were published in 1996, between issues 3 and 4 of the Marvel vs...
, the Challengers were merged with the Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
to become Challengers of The Fantastic.
Villains
The Challengers of the Unknown have faced an array of villains:- Albom -
- Amenothoth - An ancient Egyptian villain.
- Burt Langdon - A criminal who competed against the Challengers of the Unknown to obtain a wizard's deadly device.
- Chang - An Asian mastermind.
- Chopper -
- Dakyab - An alien tyrant.
- Dane Cary - A criminal that was sabotaging the filming of Connie Baylor's latest movie.
- Darius Tiko - A scientist who discovers a time cube that lets him travel to the past and future.
- Dekkar - A villain who once used a machine to steal the memories of the Challengers of the Unknown.
- Dimension-Man -
- Iron Dictator -
- Dr. Edward Gruner - A scientist who created artificial clones of Volcano Man.
- Dr. Fenton - A scientist who once kidnapped June Robbins.
- Dr. Heathcliff Monroe - A scientist who worshipped M'nagalah.
- Dr. Heller - A Neo-Fascist who the Challengers of the Unknown encounter on a deserted island.
- Col. Takawa - Dr. Heller's henchman.
- Dr. Manning - A scientist who ends up turned into a giant, super-strong, rampaging caveman.
- FX-1 - A robot that goes independent and ends up going on a rampage when struck by lightning.
- Gargoyle - "Gary Doyle" is a roof-climbing villain who meets a blind girl and planned to pay for her surgery through whatever way he can.
- Gas Master -
- General Tolek - A Tyran who led his kind to evade Earth.
- Gurk - A criminal collector that once hired Multi-Man to help him find three pieces of a golden turtle statuette.
- Halanka -
- Hillary Mycroft - A criminal who sought to reassemble a sorcerer's apparatus.
- J'Kal -
- Jacquard - A criminal that once challenged the Challengers of the Unknown.
- Karnak - A criminal who used potions to create monsters.
- Kleeg -
- Korba - A "man without a country" who enslaves people on an island to build his "world."
- Krager -
- Kubagy - An alien criminal who came to Earth to steal it's chlorine in order to power his robot.
- League of Challenge-Haters - A group of enemies that each fought the Challengers of the Unknown before joining together as this group.
- Brainex -
- Drabny - A villain who steals inventions from the future in order to take over the present. He was later a member of the League of Challenge-Haters.
- Kra - A tyrant robot who enslaved the planet Zuna. He was later a member of the League of Challenge-Haters.
- Multi-ManMulti-ManMulti-Man is a fictional character that has been both a superhero and a supervillain in DC Comics comic books.-Fictional character biography:...
- A supervillain who gains a different form every time he dies. He was later a member of the League of Challenge-Haters. - Multi-Woman - A giant robot created by Multi-Man. A second version of her later appeared as a member of the League of Challenge-Haters.
- Villo - The "world's wickedest criminal."
- Volcano Man - A lava monster. He was later a member of the League of Challenge-Haters.
- Legion of the Weird -
- Count Karnak -
- Hordred -
- Kaftu -
- Madoga -
- Vera Wycker -
- Malvolio - A criminal who possesses an ancient genie named Ahmed.
- Manfredo -
- Mastermind - An alien criminal who tricks Cosmo into thinking that the Challengers of the Unknown are his enemies.
- Morlean - A sorcerer who was the first villain the Challengers of the Unknown encountered.
- Mr. Dimension - A vagrant who stumbled upon a dimensional weapon that was dropped from a timeship.
- Mr. Murlin - An alchemist that unleashed a plague that turns ordinary humans into violent zombies.
- Mr. Tic-Tac-Toe - Dr. Bradford is a criminal who uses traps with a tic-tac-toe motif.
- Neutro - Starrett is an element-transmuting villain.
- Olan Tagorian - A criminal scientist whose machine can teleport monsters from other dimensions.
- Ooze - Killer Stark was accidentally changed into the Ooze during his encounter with the Challengers of the Unknown.
- Power Man - An energy-absorbing villain.
- Quadruple Man -
- Raymond - A robot that was given to the Challengers of the Unknown as a gift, by had ulterior motives.
- Roc - A criminal who obtained a mind-over-matter machine.
- Roney - A criminal who obtained a stone that enables him to control two creatures.
- Seekeenakee - An incarnate stone "god" whose worshippers want to take over the world. This was actually Red Ryan's transformed appearance.
- Seth Gross - A wicked magician.
- Sir Rodford - A criminal who lives in a world within a mirage.
- Suboku - An alien who tricks the Challengers of the Unknown into doing things that would help him in his invasion.
- Tartan - An alien ringmaster who once captured the Challengers of the Unknown for his intergalactic circus.
- Torbert - A criminal who stole a "life liquid" from an ages-old pharaoh.
- Tukamenon - An ancient mummy that fought the Challengers of Evil on behalf of the Legion of the Weird.
- Ultivac - A giant computer robot that was built by an ex-Nazi scientist.
- Wizard Welles - A criminal that once enlarged Rocky's cranium
- Zardok - A criminal mystic who gained mind-over-matter powers from a meteorite.
- Zarxes - A dimensional villain who plotted to conquer Earth.
- Zog - An alien criminal.
Television
- The outfits worn by the watchtower workers in Justice League UnlimitedJustice League UnlimitedJustice League Unlimited is an American animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and specifically based on the Justice League superhero team, it is a direct sequel to the...
are very similar to the team's classic uniforms. - The Challengers of the Unknown appear in the Batman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain...
episode "Revenge of the Reach" with Walter Mark "Prof" Haley voiced by Armin ShimermanArmin ShimermanArmin Shimerman is an American actor. Shimerman is best known for playing the Ferengi bartender Quark in the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Principal Snyder in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Kramer's caddy Stan on Seinfeld, voicing Dr. Nefarious in the Ratchet & Clank series, and Andrew...
, Matthew "Red" Ryan voiced by Ioan GruffuddIoan GruffuddIoan Gruffudd is a Welsh actor.Trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he started off in Welsh language film productions, then came to international attention as Fifth Officer Harold Lowe in the film Titanic , and as Lt. John Beales in Black Hawk Down...
, Kyle "Ace" Morgan voiced by J.K. SimmonsJ. K. SimmonsJonathan Kimble "J. K." Simmons is an American actor. He is best known for his roles on television as Dr. Emil Skoda in NBC's Law & Order , Assistant Police Chief Will Pope in TNT's The Closer, neo-Nazi Vernon Schillinger in the HBO prison drama Oz, on film as J...
, and Leslie "Rocky" Davis voiced by James Arnold TaylorJames Arnold TaylorJames Arnold Taylor is an American voice actor, Impressionist, and Announcer. He is the current voice provider for Fred Flintstone as well as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and also the movie Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Johnny Test in Johnny Test...
. All four go to Dinosaur Island to investigate a meteorite that fell there. Batman helps them fight a giant spider on Dinosaur IslandDinosaur IslandDinosaur Island is an island that has appeared in various comic book series published by DC Comics. The island is not the same "Dinosaur Island" that appeared in Batman #35...
. They are later attacked by a group of StarroStarroStarro is a fictional supervillain that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Brave and the Bold #28 , and was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky....
s after he leaves. In "The Siege of Starro" Pt. 1, the Challengers of the Unknown are among the superheroes that are under the control of the Starros when they helped in the Starro Invasion.
Film
- The Challengers of the Unknown appeared in the animated film Justice League: The New Frontier. Ace Morgan (voiced by John Heard) in particular is spotlighted. He's sort of a mentor to Hal JordanHal JordanHarold "Hal" Jordan is a DC Comics superhero known as Green Lantern, the first human shown to join the Green Lantern Corps and a founding member of the Justice League of America. Jordan is the second DC Comics character to adopt the Green Lantern moniker...
. Professor Haley is also in a cameo in the meeting of him, Agent FaradayKing FaradayKing Faraday is a fictional secret agent featured in DC Comics. Faraday first appeared in Danger Trail #1 , and was created by Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino.-Fictional character biography:...
, Ace Morgan, and Dr. Will MagnusWill MagnusDoctor Will Magnus is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in Showcase #37 alongside his creations, the Metal Men; he was created by Robert Kanigher and Ross Andru.-Fictional character biography:...
. "Red" Ryan, Dr. June Robbins, and "Rocky" Davis are also present during the battle and in the end.
Novel
In 1977, author Ron GoulartRon Goulart
Ron Goulart is an American popular culture historian and mystery, fantasy and science fiction author.The prolific Goulart wrote many novelizations and other routine work under various pseudonyms: Kenneth Robeson , Con Steffanson , Chad Calhoun, R.T...
penned the novel Challengers of the Unknown as part of a DC experiment in new venues. The original four and June Robbins trekked to South America to investigate Zarpa the lake monster. While on the case they encounter young men with old Nazi tattoos, ancient alien cults, a castle in the desert, a robotic dog, and a bomb in a piano crate. (Dell Books, ISBN 0-440-11337-7)
Awards
The 1950-60s series won the 1967 Alley Awards for Best Non-Super-Powered Group Title and Best Normal Adventure Group.Collected editions
DC has reprinted The early Challenger stories, including Kirby's run, in two hardcover DC Archives and paperback, black and white Showcase PresentsShowcase presents
Showcase Presents is a line of black-and-white paperback books published by DC Comics at an average rate of two per month. Created to effectively be DC's version of Marvel Comics' Essential Marvel volumes, each book includes over 500 pages of reprints, primarily from the Silver Age...
:
- Challengers of the Unknown Archive #1 (collects Showcase #6-7, 11-12, Challengers #1-2, 157 pages, August 2003, ISBN 1-56389-997-3)
- Challengers of the Unknown Archive #2 (collects Challengers #3-8, 168 pages, November 2004, ISBN 1-4012-0153-9)
- Showcase Presents Challengers of the Unknown Volume 1 (collects Showcase #6-7, 11-12, Challengers #1-17, 540 pages, September 2006, ISBN 1-4012-1087-2)
- Showcase Presents Challengers of the Unknown: Volume 2 (collects Challengers #18-37, 528 pages, May 2008, ISBN 1-4012-1725-7)
The Loeb-Sale mini was reprinted as a trade paperback, Challengers of the Unknown Must Die! (December 2004, ISBN 1-4012-0374-4), as was the Chaykin mini-series (March 2006, ISBN 1-4012-0941-6).