DC Comics has been giving audiences a lot of surprises for more than 70 years. False deaths, deceit, treason. See if you’re favoring superhero/superhero.
All good stories are turning, and since DC has told the stories for 75 years, over decades, we’ve seen quite a few turns. Some were decent, some were evil, and the only thing left was for us to reverse the page to make sure it was genuine.
Today we shall look at some of the most surprising surprises in the history of DC Comics, which have similar impressions like Vertigo for our purposes. So get prepared to be surprised by these twisting DC-Universe turns.
TERRA IS A TRAITOR?!
The young Teen Titans from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez introduced a few new squad members over the years. Still, none left a scar as large as Tara Markov / Terra, who was with Batman in the Outsiders from his brother Geo-Force works. Terra soon found her place in the team and even started a connection before the twist with Garfield Logan/Beast Boy.
In the Judas contract, it became clear that Terra simply works as a spy for the Titans with Deathstroke the Terminator. Fans were shocked not only by the abrupt change but also by the revelation that Slade Wilson and the teenager Tara Markov had a disturbing friendship.
ALEC HOLLAND IS DEAD?!
Though Alan Moore no longer likes the band, his work with some DC personalities in the 1980s remains well-known as he had a couple of twists over the years. Moore’s work on Saga of the Swamp Thing surprised readers and altered the concept of his character.
Before Moore took part in the series, Alec Holland was a chemist who, after an accident, with his bio-restorative formula was turned into the elemental Swamp Thing. “The Anatomy Lesson” showed that Holland had simply died and his memories and personalities absorbed into the swamp. Swamp Thing was just a plant that tried its best
HE DID IT THIRTY-FIVE MINUTES AGO?!
With his and Dave Gibbons’ major graphical novel Watchmen, Moore left another significant mark in comics. It is well regarded as one of the greatest comic works in history. Vertigo published Watchmen based on the characters of DC Charlton Comic. For years, it has had a significant impact on comic culture, with a film adaptation and an HBO revival.
The comic features one of the most surprising twisting effects ever seen in the comics. A hero-turned CEO describes his master scheme to unite the planet in murdering a common alien invasion. When he discovers that thirty-five minutes before the struggle with his former allies begins, he has already done his strategy.
BARBARA GORDON IS ORACLE?!
The squad of villains under Rick Flag Jr. and Amanda Waller’s surveillance was stocked up on a governmental taskforce X by John Ostrander, Kim Yale, and Luke McDonnell’s post-crisis suicide team. Eventually, an enigmatic intelligence broker named Oracle helped the team.
Fans were surprised when Oracle turned out to be Barbara Gordon, a former Batgirl. She hadn’t appeared for a couple of years in comics. Although her role as Oracle was surprising, it was because she was paralyzed by the shocked fans. After all, Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke became canonical and will be very influential in Batman’s titles.
HAWK IS MONARCH?!
DC’s Armageddon case of 2001 was based on the idea that in the year 2001, a DC hero will hit their allies, wipe them out, and lead them to the dystopian realm of the despotic Monarch.
The initial twist was to expose the perverted hero of Captain Atom. Because of a leak, though, the DC changed its plans to transform Hank Hall/Hawk(from Hawk & Dove) into Monarch’s mask’s actual face at the last minute. At the last minute update, fans were surprised, which was contrary to earlier hints.
SHE Murdered SUE DIBNY?!
The crisis of Identity started with the enigmatic assassination of Elongated Man’s wife, Sue Dibny, and the long-time ally of the League, Mark Meltzer and Rags Morales. Throughout the series, her murderer’s mystery played the series and then revealed some of the Justice League’s hidden secrets.
The JLA mysteriously changed the mind of Light after the previous raping of Dibny by Dr. Light. Then Batman’s memory was wiped out. But Ray Palmer/ Atom revealed Dibny’s killer’s real Identity: his ex-wife Jean Loring. The main twist in the plot was. She killed Dibny inadvertently and then caused more deaths while attempting to hide the murder.
JASON TODD IS ALIVE?!
Batman’s life was full of tragedy from his parents’ death, who started his lifetime quest and the loss in his war on his closest partners’ crime. Jason Todd/Robin II was the first couple to fight. He was defeated by Joker and left in an explosive building afterward. It was one of the unfortunate defeats of Batman that leaving the Dark Knight in a dark position.
Thus when the Hush story used a grown-up Jason Todd to get under Batman’s skin, readers and writers thought about it. As the latest Red Hood character emerged, the twist had been re-examined, and the man under the hood Jason Todd was found to be. Then we learned that the Hush version is Todd, and his former girlfriend was tinged before his comeback.
BARRY ALLEN IS ALIVE?!
One of the comics’ longest deaths had occurred in the 1985 Infinite Earth crisis when Barry Allen/Flash, who had still been in a position to alert allies in the past, lost their lives during a fight with the Anti-Monitor.
But one of the significant turns towards the end of the DC crises was when Barry Allen seemed to run out of Speed Forces, pursuing the bullet that was fired over time to shoot Orion of the New Gods. Barry’s return would trigger a number of reborn titles, which later would inspire DC Universe’s newest rewriting of the new 52.
THERE ARE THREE JOKERS?!
The DC Universe was rebooted with a bang from the “Darkseid War” storyline to DC Rebirth. Again, it rewrote the DCU to correct the egregious mistakes of the last restart. DC Universe had a lot of reboots.
One of the most significant turns was when Batman took his seat and achieved omnipotence on Metron’s Mobius Chair. He asked the Joker’s real name before he was separated from the chair, and he replied that “There are three.” It’s been a big twist for the fans to wait. Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok’s Batman: Three Jokers are approaching the finish.
JOR-EL IS ALIVE?!
Superman may have the most confounding New 52 reboot/rebirth return since the New 52 character versions technically expired and are replaced by the character’s pre-Flasphpoint iteration. Even though it’s just the New 52 reboot memories, I’ve been cross-eyed with a son now, and oh no.
After he was ‘reborn,’ Superman has nevertheless been compelled to deal with the deception and the crimes of a strange being called Mr. Oz. Lastly, Mr. Oz was Jor-El, the father of Superman, supposedly dying along with all of Krypton. Mr. Oz’s surprised followers revealed a changed history for years with all the effects yet to be achieved.
