Challengers of the Unknown - Ready for Tomorrow

A COMPLETE and EXHAUSTIVE History

of the Challengers of the Unknown

Challengers of Tomorrow

Issues 7 - 9, Superboy

Issues

History

Somewhere in Hypertime

Inside the erupting Tesla field, the original Challs somehow shut down the field. (Not recorded.)

Doing so, they're hurled onto yet another alien planet somewhere in Hypertime. The planet is ruled by Black Zero, an alternate adult-Superboy. This villain becomes obsessed with the idea of other worlds, and begins to conquer them one by one. The Challengers escape Black Zero's dungeon.

Months pass as the Challengers dog Black Zero from world to world, waging a guerrilla war.

Dogging Black Zero, the Challengers meet Superboy and Knockout. Together they defeat Black Zero (Superboy 60 - 65).

Aided by Metron of the New Gods, the Challs devise a hypership to fly across Hypertime back to their own Earth. But Black Zero sabotages the ship. Red and June are sucked into the maelstrom. Superboy grabs June by misses Red, who vanishes.

All this time, Rocky's been at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts, discussing Tesla fields with some of Brenda's colleagues. (He leaves right after the LA statue dedication in COTU V3 11). He gets a call to come to the Planet Krypton restaurant in Metropolis. Someone (Rip Hunter, who can see the future) says a surprise will be waiting for him (mentioned in Superboy 65). Rocky heads for the airport.

The hypershuttle crashes into the Planet Krypton restaurant in Metropolis. Ace, Prof, and June are reunited with Rocky. Where's Red? Lost in Hypertime. They must rescue him, though they've no idea how to being. But since when has that stopped them? Let's go! Just one glitch. June has no idea what they're talking about. Hunh? She just shared the adventure! Not true. Her name is June Walker, not Robbins! (Superboy 60 - 65.) The restaurant owner, Rip Hunter, offers the Challengers the sub-basement as a "Hypertime Headquarters".

Which brings the original Challengers to the present, where more challenges await...

Other Challenger teams continue their adventures across various Hypertime worlds. Two teams are glimpsed during Superboy's Hypertime adventure (Superboy 60 - 65). Will we ever see more of these teams? Anything's possible...

Meanwhile, Back Home

In Seattle, Marlon rescues a church full of hostages and his fiancee' from an Irish thug on the run from a "The Keening" (COTU V3 13) of a banshee. But Marlon's fiancee' can't take the stress and says goodbye.

On an oil rig far out in the Pacific, in "Dark Waters" (COTU V3 14), Kenn and Brenda foil a feminist cult trying to loose an elder god upon the Earth.

At the turn of the century, the world must "Behold! The Millenium Giants!" Three giants threaten to destroy this world and start over. The Challengers steer one giant away from London, then zip from Mexico to Metropolis to Australia. They team with every hero in the DCU to save the Earth (COTU V3 15 and other books).

Rocky Davis hangs in a bar, drinking ginger ale and entertaining women with tales of the Iron Dictator and Tyrannosaurus X. Clay Brody, listening in, doesn't believe them. So Rocky relates an old-time tale of how the Challengers saved the space race, "Today Is a Long Time Coming" (COTU V3 16). Rocky then leaves with his date, Sarah Hargate!

Kids fooling with black magic try to summon a demon, but instead pull Saxon back into this world (COTU V3 18). Saxon is dragged to a cult of the Aristos, the Dark Eye of the Flame, to be their agent. He machine-guns the lot and leaves. But the Dark Flame has "chosen" him to wipe out the Challengers and burn down the world. His Shadow peels itself off the wall and sets out in pursuit.