Green Lantern/Green Arrow! Metamorpho! Challengers of the Unknown!
What year is it? Judging from DC’s latest solicitations — and if you squint hard enough — you might think it’s 1964. Or 1956. Or 1971.
Because the publisher has on tap three new projects starring some very retro characters and concepts — a new, ongoing Metamorpho series, a Challengers of the Unknown miniseries, and a Green Lantern/Green Arrow one-off.
Dig the solicitation info released Friday:
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METAMORPHO: THE ELEMENT MAN #1
Main cover by Steve Lieber
Written by AL EWING
Art and cover by STEVE LIEBER
Variant covers by ERICA HENDERSON and IAN BERTRAM, 1:25 variant cover by STEVE BEACH
$3.99 US | 32 pages | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 12/25/24
To know him is to love him — that fab freak who can change himself into any element in the human body! He’s the one and only Rex Mason, alias Metamorpho… but can even he win out against Cy.C.L.O.P.S., the hairy eyeball of crime that gazes from the top of the pop charts to the lowest depths of evil — and even into the far-off, far-out Ra-Realm? To find out, the Element Man must survive a hand-picked assassin who can match him change for change… and that’s just the first issue!
Join us for this covalent bond of friends and foes in the brand new ongoing series from superstar team Al Ewing and Steve Lieber!
Erica Henderson variant
Ian Bertram variant
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GREEN LANTERN/GREEN ARROW: WORLD’S FINEST SPECIAL #1
Main cover by Dan Mora
Written by JEREMY ADAMS
Art by LUCAS MEYER and TRAVIS MERCER
Cover by DAN MORA
Variant covers by HOWARD PORTER and V. KEN MARION, 1:25 variant cover by CRYSTAL KUNG
$5.99 US | 48 pages | Variant $6.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 12/18/24
Everyone’s favorite hard-travelin’ heroes are back and brought to you through the iconic lens of World’s Finest! In the not-too-distant past, Oliver Queen and Hal Jordan find themselves at a crossroads…and only teaming up together once more will save them from the scope of the mysterious bounty hunter known in whispered tones throughout the underworld as Deathstroke the Terminator. Plus, writer Jeremy Adams returns to the world of the Flash to weave a twisted tale of Barry Allen on the road to crisis—it’s a World’s Finest adventure you cannot miss in this special, oversize one-shot spectacular!
Howard Porter variant
V. Ken Marion variant
Crystal Kung variant
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CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN #1 (OF 5)
Main cover by Mike Deodato Jr.
Written by CHRISTOPHER CANTWELL
Art by SEAN IZAAKSE
Cover by MIKE DEODATO JR.
Variant covers by TAURIN CLARKE and DANNY EARLS
Foil variant cover by GLEB MELNIKOV
Design variant cover by DAN MORA
$3.99 US | 32 pages | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 12/18/24
Spinning out of Absolute Power and the DC All In Special, the terror of the Darkseid shockwave has cascaded across the DC Universe…tearing open the very fabric of time and space itself! Only one band of super-scientists have the right stuff to challenge the fate of a universe…enter: THE CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN. Alongside the Justice League—where the Challengers run day-to-day operations for the massive Watchtower base in orbit above Earth—Ace Morgan, June Robbins, Prof Haley, Red Ryan, and Rocky Davis must team with Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the rest of the League to seal the rifts that threaten the galaxy. But a mysterious foe from the Challengers’ past lurks in the shadows, and its connection to the godshock will put the DCU on borrowed time!
Taurin Clarke variant
Gleb Melnikov variant
Sean Izaakse 1:25 variant, not listed but released by DC
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Several thoughts:
— Hey, have you noticed that Batman/Superman: World’s Finest, written by Mark Waid, is becoming a latter-day version of Showcase? Metamorpho and Challengers have each gotten the spotlight in the book, for example, and here we are. There’ve been other spinoffs too, like Teen Titans. Only Green Lantern/Green Arrow is labeled World’s Finest here (WF largely takes place in the past) but Metamorpho and Challengers certainly give off that same vibe.
— So with Eclipso the focus of the new WF arc, can we hope for a new Eclipso book? I’d read that!
— Old-school fans may moan that Challengers dragged in Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and the League, but it’s a shrewd move to get more people into a group that only has a cult following.
— By the way, I admit I have not been following the Absolute Power storyline and am not fully versed in DC All In, but I don’t think it matters. The Challengers book looks like a real kick.
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MORE
— DC Sets Dates for Three FACSIMILE EDITIONS in December. Click here.
— A Major Update on the 1982 DC COMICS STYLE GUIDE Hardcover. Click here.
