Elektra – Root of Evil (1995)

Created by Frank Miller, Elektra first appeared in Daredevil #168 (January 1981). Miller originally intended this issue, which was essentially a filler story, to be Elektra’s only appearance, but she instead became a frequently appearing villain in Daredevil until her death in issue #181 (April 1982). She was resurrected shortly after, but the story contained a narrative note which indicated that Daredevil would never encounter her again.

After over a decade’s absence, she reappeared in Daredevil #324-327 (January–April 1994), and went on to a brief stint as a supporting character in Wolverine (in #100-106). Daredevil writer D. G. Chichester recounted that he and editor Ralph Macchio had

bandied about the idea [of bringing back Elektra] in a casual fashion now and again, but neither of us wanted to do it as a gimmick. On the rare occasion I thought I had a legitimate angle to use her, Ralph was cool to the idea. But as we geared up for what would become Fall From Grace, Ralph out of the blue said, “What about bringing back Elektra?” — and it was really the missing piece that clicked together all the loose pieces of the story in my head, and became the nexus for everything tying together as well as it did. In my mind, it’s always been her to whom the title refers.

This upset Frank Miller, who claimed that Marvel had previously promised him that the character would not be used in any publication. She has since appeared in two eponymous ongoing series and several mini-series.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1993)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a four-issue Topps comic book adaptation of Columbia Pictures’ (Sony Pictures Entertainment) 1992 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola which starred a young Keanu Reeves as Jonathan Harker, Winona Ryder as Mina Murray, Anthony Hopkins as Professor Abraham Van Helsing and Gary Oldman as Dracula. Topps Comics released a 120-page adaptation in 1993, written by Roy Thomas and drawn by Mike Mignola, one of the last projects before launching Hellboy.

 

Green Lantern V3 (1990’s)

Green Lantern would know a number of revivals and cancellations. Its title would change to Green Lantern Corps at one point as the popularity rose and waned. During a time there were two regular titles, each with a Green Lantern, and a third member in the Justice League. A new character, Kyle Rayner, was created to become the feature while Hal Jordan first became the villain Parallax, then died and came back as the Spectre.

The Swamp Thing (2021)

Swamp Thing returns in a new series that stars Levi Kamei as the next Guardian of the Green. Unable to control his transformation into the monstrous Swamp Thing, Levi is thrust into the harsh, unforgiving mystery of grisly murders committed by a supernatural desert legend. Levi must revisit past events in his homeland of India and face the deadly reality of a ravenous new villain in order to comprehend what he is truly, and horrifyingly, becoming.

Tomb of Dracula V4 (2004)

Every thousand years, Dracula enters a chrysalis state for four days, leaving him in a vulnerable state. During this time the most powerful vampires from around the world gather in Transylvania to protect him. Now they are about to be joined by an eclectic team of vampire slayers that have gathered to take down the legendary Vampire King – including the best and most dangerous slayer of them all – Blade!

Batman (1980’s)

Frank Miller‘s limited series The Dark Knight Returns (February–June 1986), which tells the story of a 55-year old Batman coming out of retirement in a possible future, reinvigorated the character. The Dark Knight Returns was a financial success and has since become one of the medium’s most noted touchstones. The series also sparked a major resurgence in the character’s popularity.

That year Dennis O’Neil took over as editor of the Batman titles and set the template for the portrayal of Batman following DC’s status quo-altering miniseries Crisis on Infinite Earths. O’Neil operated under the assumption that he was hired to revamp the character and as a result tried to instill a different tone in the books than had gone before. One outcome of this new approach was the “Year One” storyline in Batman #404–407 (February–May 1987), in which Frank Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli redefined the character’s origins. Writer Alan Moore and artist Brian Bolland continued this dark trend with 1988’s 48-page one-shot Batman: The Killing Joke, in which the Joker, attempting to drive Commissioner Gordon insane, cripples Gordon’s daughter Barbara, and then kidnaps and tortures the commissioner, physically and psychologically.

The Batman comics garnered major attention in 1988 when DC Comics created a 900 number for readers to call to vote on whether Jason Todd, the second Robin, lived or died. Voters decided in favor of Jason’s death by a narrow margin of 28 votes (see Batman: A Death in the Family). The following year saw the release of Tim Burton‘s Batman feature film, which firmly brought the character back to the public’s attention, grossing millions of dollars at the box office, and millions more in merchandising.

Blade Runner (1982)

Blade Runner is a comic book adaptation of the film Blade Runner, published by Marvel Comics in 1982. It was written by Archie Goodwin with art by Al Williamson, Carlos Garzon with Dan Green and Ralph Reese.

This film adaptation includes one possible explanation of the title’s significance in story context: the narrative line, “Blade runner. You’re always movin’ on the edge.”

This was a reprint of issue 22 of the Marvel Comics Super Special series of titles, which by this time only printed Marvel’s movie adaptations, but without the feature content contained in the special.

Adventure Comics (1970’s)

In the late 70’s conventional superheroes returned to the book, beginning behind the Spectre, first a three-issue run of Aquaman (issues #435–437, an early assignment for Mike Grell) and then a newly drawn 1940s Seven Soldiers of Victory script (issues #438–443). Aquaman was promoted to lead (issues #441–452), and backing him up were three-part story arcs featuring the Creeper (#445–447), the Martian Manhunter (#449–451), bracketed by issue-length Aquaman leads. He was awarded his own title and Superboy (#453–458) took over Adventure with Aqualad (#453–455) and Eclipso (#457–458) backups. Following this was a run as a Dollar Comic format giant-sized book (issues #459–466), including such features as the resolution of Return of the New Gods (cancelled in July–August 1978), “Deadman“, and the “Justice Society of America“.

Moon Knight V9 (2021)

In 2021, the series Moon Knight vol. 10 launched under writer Jed MacKay, and artists Alessandro Capuccio and Rachelle Rosenberg. The new series has Marc Spector not only acting as the crimefighter Moon Knight but also (despite his Jewish background) adopting the role of high priest of “the Midnight Mission,” a congregation dedicated to Khonshu. In discussing his connection to Khonshu, Marc Spector now describes his four aspects as “the traveler”, “the pathfinder”, “the embracer”, “the defender of those who travel at night.” Once again, Marc Spector is depicted as being in regular therapy with a psychologist in order to help manage his psychological issues. The series also offers that Marc Spector may be immortal, as he has now been literally resurrected on multiple occasions and could be resurrected again in the future.

Heroes in Crisis (2018)

Heroes in Crisis primarily deals with the emotional cost of being a superhero and explores “what violence does to a society”, a common theme in King’s work. King, a former CIA counterterrorism officer, believed this was an important subject that needed to be discussed. King described this creative decision: “Comic books, throughout the whole history of the medium, have been reflective of history. In World War II, there were comics about fighting in World War II. In the seventies, the comics were about psychedelic escape. Today, our moment right now is a moment of violence and living with violence and our comics have to address that”.