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The Unexpected(1968 comic book)

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The Unexpectedis afantasy-horrorcomics anthologyseries, a continuation ofTales of the Unexpected,published byDC Comics.The Unexpectedran 118 issues, from #105 (February–March 1968) to #222 (May 1982).[1][2]As a result of the so-calledDC Implosionof late 1978, beginning in 1979The Unexpectedabsorbed the other DC horror titlesHouse of Secrets,The Witching Hour,andDoorway to Nightmareinto its pages.Horror hostsfeatured inThe UnexpectedincludedThe Mad Mod Witch,Judge Gallows,Abel,and the Witches Three.

The Unexpected
Cover toThe Unexpected#105 (March 1968), art byBob Brown.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
ScheduleMonthly
FormatOngoing series
GenreFantasy
Horror
Publication dateFebruary/March 1968 – May 1982
No.of issues118
Main character(s)
Creative team
Written by
List
Penciller(s)
List
Inker(s)
List
Editor(s)
List

This title is not to be confused withThe Unexpectedpublished by DC Comics in 2018.

Publication history

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Unlike the predecessor series,The Unexpectedwas a fantasy anthology at first, then turned into a weird/horror anthology in the style ofHouse of SecretsandHouse of Mystery.

The series was published in the100 Page Super Spectacularformat from #157 (May–June 1974) to #162 (March–April 1975).[1][3]

The Unexpected Specialwas published in 1977 as an issue ofDC Special Series.[4]

With issue #189 (January–February 1979),The Unexpectedconverted to theDollar Comicsformat[5]and incorporated the previously cancelled titlesHouse of Secrets,The Witching Hour,andDoorway to Nightmare.[6]

With issue #196 (March 1980), the series was restored to standard size, and rather than three complete issues in one, there was one story each per issue.The House of Secretscontent continued through issue #208;The Witching Hourcontent continued to appear until issue #209 (April 1981), which incorporated the science fiction seriesTime Warp.The final issue of the series was #222 (May 1982) which included early artwork byMarc Silvestri.[7]

2018 series

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DC again revived the title in 2018, in the wake of theDark Nights: Metalevent, this time as a mystical superhero team featuring revised versions ofNeon the UnknownandFirebrand.[8]It was cancelled after eight issues.

Regular features

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The series' first "host"was the Mad Mod Witch, who first appeared in issue #108, the fourth issue of the revived series. The Mad Mod Witch — later known as" Fashion Thing "inNeil Gaiman'sThe Sandman— acted as host in issues #108–112, 114–116, 140, and 162; while Judge Gallows filled that role in issues #113, 118, 121, 125, and 133. Judge Gallows would also appear years later, alongsideAbeland the Witches Three, in issues #203 and 205. The Judge Gallows character would later appear in the final story arc ofThe Dreaming.

Nick Cardywas the cover artist forThe Unexpectedfor issues #111, 116–117, 119–120, 123, 125–139, and 141–162.[9]

Each "Unexpected" story would always include the word "unexpected" in the last panel. After the series merger withHouse of SecretsandThe Witching Hour,this was only true of theUnexpectedsection; there would then be complete, advertisement-free issues ofThe Witching Hour,hosted by its witches, andThe House of Secrets,hosted byAbel.The Witching Hourfeature was alternated withDoorway to NightmarestarringMadame Xanadu,who appeared in issues #190, 192, 194, and 195.

Johnny Peril

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The series' only continuing feature at any point was "Johnny Peril", which ran from issues #106 to 117.[10]For issues #111 on, the titular protagonist was billed as an "adventurer of the weird". Johnny Peril returned in issues #200 and 205–213.

Johnny Peril's roots, prior to his first appearance inThe Unexpected,came in the one-off story "Just a Story" inAll-American Comics'Comic Cavalcade#19 (July 1946), by writer–artistHoward Purcell.[11]

With issue #22 (Sept. 1947), the "Just a Story" anthology series gained newspaper-reporter Johnny Peril, who often acted as witness or narrator rather than as an integral part of the narrative. With this issue, the series title became "Johnny Peril Tells Just a Story", eventually changed to "Johnny Peril's Surprise Story" as Johnny became the series' two-fisted hero until the series ended with issue #29 (Nov. 1948). According toJess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes,"he's an adventurer who tangles with nearly every sort of enemy in nearly every sort of background, from the jungles of the Congo to the concrete jungles of New York to the moon".[12]

By then the character was appearing in his own backup feature inAll-Star Comics,beginning #42 (Sept. 1948). Purcell remained for the first fewAll-Starstories, with artistsJoe Kubert,Gil Kane,Carmine Infantinoand others later working on the feature through #57 (March 1951). Johnny went on to star in the fifth and final issue ofDanger Trail(April 1951). His last appearances before hisSilver Agereturn in 1968 came inSensation Comics#107-116 (Feb. 1952 - Aug. 1953; retitledSensation Mystery#110-116) where artists includedAlex TothandFrank Giacoia.[11]

2011 one-shot

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Aone-shotspecial ofThe Unexpectedwas published byVertigoin 2011.[13][14]

Collected editions

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  • The Steve Ditko OmnibusVolume 1 includesThe Unexpected#189: "Dead Man's Eyes" byJack OleckandSteve DitkoandThe Unexpected#221: "EM the Energy Monster" by Ditko, 480 pages, September 2011 (ISBN1-4012-3111-X).

References

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  1. ^abThe Unexpectedat theGrand Comics Database
  2. ^Overstreet, Robert M. (2019).Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide(49th ed.). Timonium, Maryland:Gemstone Publishing.p. 1121.ISBN978-1603602334.
  3. ^Eury, Michael(July 2015). "A Look at DC's Super Specs".Back Issue!(#81). Raleigh, North Carolina:TwoMorrows Publishing:28–29.
  4. ^"DC Special Series#4 ".Grand Comics Database.
  5. ^Romero, Max (July 2012). "I'll Buy That For a Dollar! DC Comics' Dollar Comics".Back Issue!(#57). Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing: 39–41.
  6. ^Wells, John (October 24, 1997), "'Lost' DC: The DC Implosion ",Comics Buyer's Guide,no. #1249, Iola, Wisconsin, p. 134,Following #85,The Witching Hourwas merged withHouse of SecretsandDoorway to NightmareinThe Unexpected,beginning with #189.
  7. ^Pasko, Martin(w),Silvestri, Marc(p),Celardo, John(i). "Act of Contrition"The Unexpected,no. 222 (May 1982).
  8. ^Orlando, Steve(w),Sook, Ryan;Nord, Cary(p), Gray, Mick;von Grawbadger, Wade(i). "Call of the Unknown, Part One: Punch First"The Unexpected,vol. 2, no. 1 (August 2018).
  9. ^Coates, John (1999). "Art Index".The Art of Nick Cardy.Coates Publishing. pp. 169–170.ISBN1-887591-22-2.
  10. ^Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016).The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe.DK Publishing.p. 352.ISBN978-1-4654-5357-0.
  11. ^abMarkstein, Don (2010)."Johnny Peril".Don Markstein's Toonopedia.Archivedfrom the original on April 4, 2015.
  12. ^Nevins, Jess (2013).Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes.High Rock Press. p. 204.ISBN978-1-61318-023-5.
  13. ^The Unexpectedone-shotat theGrand Comics Database
  14. ^"The Unexpected#1 ".Vertigo.October 12, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on October 31, 2014.RetrievedNovember 4,2012.
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