Template:Short description Template:Mergeto Challengers of the Unknown is the title of a comic book series used on various occasions by DC Comics. Most of these series dealt with the original Challengers of the Unknown. The concept behind this team was a group of individuals surviving a disaster (a plane crash with the original group) and deciding to collectively do something with the "borrowed time" they had left.
On two occasions DC used the name and concept, with a new set of characters, as the basis for a new series. The first of these two, an ongoing series that was part of the Weirdoverse line, was published from late 1996 to mid-1998. The second was a six-issue limited series published in 2004.
1996 series (volume 3)
Template:Infobox comic book title Started as a part of DC's Weirdoverse group of titles, the 1996 series was published for a total of eighteen issues, cover dated February 1997 to July 1998. The characters were a mix of races and were, like the original group, the only survivors of a plane crash:
- Kenn Kawa: A man of Japanese heritage and originally a game designer.
- Clay Brody: A white male, originally a race car driver.
- Brenda Ruskin: A white woman, originally a physicist.
- Marlon Corbet: An African American man, originally the pilot of the plane that crashed.
The 1996 series was originally conceived as the basis for a television series that never came about, as writer Steven Grant revealed in 2000:
This team investigated paranormal disturbances across America as they were hunted by Saxon, a mystical being who also survived the plane crash that led to the team’s formation. Though the series was generally unrelated to superhero conventions and the broader DC Universe, the group participated in the Superman storyline Millennium Giants and later have original Challengers member Rocky Davis as a mentor. After the comic was canceled, the characters did not appear in any comics until 2011’s New 52 event that rebooted all DC Comics titles. When the Challengers appear in this new comic universe, it includes characters from the original and 1990s versions.
2004 series (volume 4)
Template:Infobox comic book title The 2004 series was a six-issue limited series, written and drawn by Howard Chaykin. Unlike the other two versions, this group didn't originate in a plane crash. Instead, it was made up of survivors of a large scale terrorist attack in Long Beach, California:
- Zach Dyamond
- Tessa Crowne
- Rydell Starr
- Kendra Harte
- Holden Crosse
Collected editions
| Title | Material collected | Published date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Challengers of the Unknown: Stolen Moments, Borrowed Time | Challengers of the Unknown (vol. 4) #1–6 | March 2006 | Template:ISBNT |