Human Target

Last updated
The Human Target
Human Target (Christopher Chance).png
Christopher Chance, as he appeared on the cover of Human Target #6 (November 2021). Art by Greg Smallwood.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance (Fred Venable)
Detective Comics #201 (November 1953)
(Christopher Chance)
Action Comics #419 (December 1972)
Created by(Fred Venable)
Edmond Hamilton
Sheldon Moldoff
(Christopher Chance)
Len Wein
Carmine Infantino
In-story information
Alter egoFred Venable
Christopher Chance
Notable aliasesNumerous identities
Impersonates his clients to protect them
Abilities
  • Master impersonator
  • Exceptional athlete
  • Skilled detective, marksman, and martial artist

The Human Target is the name of two fictional characters in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first is Fred Venable, while the second is private investigator and bodyguard Christopher Chance who assumes the identities of clients targeted by assassins and other dangerous criminals. [1] Chance has appeared in numerous books published throughout the decades and has appeared in television adaptations.

Contents

Chance has appeared in two self-titled TV series in 1992 and 2010, portrayed by Rick Springfield and Mark Valley respectively, and made guest appearances in the Arrowverse TV series Arrow , portrayed by Wil Traval.

Publication history

The first character to use the "Human Target" title (Fred Venable) appeared in Detective Comics #201 (November 1953), and was created by Edmond Hamilton and Sheldon Moldoff. [2]

The second character to use the "Human Target" title (Christopher Chance) first appeared in Action Comics #419 (December 1972) and was created by Len Wein and Carmine Infantino. [3] Later, the feature appeared in Batman titles such as The Brave and the Bold and Detective Comics. [4] He starred in a limited series, a one-shot, and then an ongoing series written by Peter Milligan and published under DC's Vertigo imprint. In 2021, Tom King and Greg Smallwood began a 12-issue limited series for DC's Black Label imprint.

Comic listing

Comic book appearances [5]
DateIssueTitle
1953 NovemberDetective Comics #201"The Human Target"
1958 JanuaryGangbusters #61"The Human Target"
1972 DecemberAction Comics #419"The Assassin-Express Contract"
1973 JanuaryAction Comics #420"The King of the Jungle Contract"
1973 MarchAction Comics #422"The Shadows-of-Yesterday Contract"
1973 AprilAction Comics #423"The Deadly Dancer Contract"
1973 JulyAction Comics #425"The Short-Walk-to-Disaster Contract -- Clause 1: I Have a Cousin in the Business"
1973 AugustAction Comics #426"The Short-Walk-to-Disaster Contract -- Clause 2: The Shortest Distance Between Two Points"
1973 NovemberAction Comics #429"The Rodeo Riddle Contract"
1974 FebruaryAction Comics #432"The Million Dollar Methuselah Contract"
1978 September–OctoberDC The Brave and the Bold #143"The Cat and the Canary Contract"
1978 October–NovemberDC The Brave and the Bold #144"The Symphony For The Devil Contract"
1979 April–MayDetective Comics #483"The Lights! Camera! Murder! Contract"
1979 June–JulyDetective Comics #484"The Who Is Floyd Fenderman Anyway? Contract"
1979 October–NovemberDetective Comics #486"The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea Contract"
1980 AugustDetective Comics #493"The 18-Wheel War Contract"
1981 MarchDetective Comics #500"The 'Too Many Crooks...' Caper"
1982 JuneDetective Comics #515"College for Killers"
1982 JulyBatman #349"Blood Sport"
1982 SeptemberBatman #351"What Stalks the Gotham Night?"
1982 SeptemberDetective Comics #518"The Millionaire Contract"
1982 OctoberBatman #352"The Killer Sky"
1982 NovemberDC The Best of Blue Ribbon Digest #30"The Assassin-Express Contract" (reprint)
1989 MarchAction Comics #641"The Pow! Wap! Zam! Contract"
1991 NovemberHuman Target Special #1"The Human Target: The Mack Attack Contract"
Vertigo Comics
1999 AprilHuman Target (1999) #1"Human Target, Part 1"
1999 MayHuman Target (1999) #2"Human Target, Part 2"
1999 JuneHuman Target (1999) #3"Human Target, Part 3"
1999 JulyHuman Target (1999) #4"Human Target, Part 4"
2002 MayHuman Target (2002) OGN"Final Cut"
2003 OctoberHuman Target (2003) #1'"To Be Frank"
2003 NovemberHuman Target (2003) #2"The Unshredded Man, Part 1: Ground Zero"
2003 DecemberHuman Target (2003) #3"The Unshredded Man, Part 2: Ready to Die"
2004 JanuaryHuman Target (2003) #4"Take Me Out To The Ballgame, Part One: The Set-Up Man"
2004 FebruaryHuman Target (2003) #5"Take Me Out To The Ballgame, Part Two: The Strike Zone"
2004 MarchHuman Target (2003) #6"For I Have Sinned"
2004 AprilHuman Target (2003) #7"Which Way The Wind Blows, Part One: Living In Amerika"
2004 MayHuman Target (2003) #8"Which Way The Wind Blows, Part Two: American Terrorists"
2004 JuneHuman Target (2003) #9"Which Way The Wind Blows, Part Three: Bringing It All Back Home"
2004 JulyHuman Target (2003) #10"Five Days Grace"
2004 AugustHuman Target (2003) #11"Games of Chance"
2004 SeptemberHuman Target (2003) #12"Crossing The Border, Part One: Suffer the Children"
2004 OctoberHuman Target (2003) #13"Crossing The Border, Part Two: Hey, Jude"
2004 NovemberHuman Target (2003) #14"The Second Coming, Part One: In the Name of the Father"
2004 DecemberHuman Target (2003) #15"The Second Coming, Part Two: The Temptation of Christopher Chance"
2005 JanuaryHuman Target (2003) #16"The Second Coming, Conclusion: Pieces of Lead"
2005 FebruaryHuman Target (2003) #17"You Made Me Love You"
2005 MarchHuman Target (2003) #18"Letters From the Front Line"
2005 AprilHuman Target (2003) #19"The Stealer, Part One"
2005 MayHuman Target (2003) #20"The Stealer, Part Two"
2005 JuneHuman Target (2003) #21"The Stealer, Part Three"
2010 JuneHuman Target Special Edition #1"Human Target, Part 1" (1999/reprint)
Human Target (2010) tie-in
2010 AprilHuman Target (2010) #1"Human Target #1"
2010 MayHuman Target (2010) #2"Human Target #2"
2010 JuneHuman Target (2010) #3"Human Target #3"
2010 JulyHuman Target (2010) #4"Human Target #4"
2010 AugustHuman Target (2010) #5"Human Target #5"
2010 SeptemberHuman Target (2010) #6"Human Target #6"
DC Black Label
2021 NovemberThe Human Target (2021) #1"When We Are Born"
2021 NovemberThe Human Target (2021) #2"We Cry"
2021 DecemberThe Human Target (2021) #3"That We Are Come"
2022 JanuaryThe Human Target (2021) #4"To This Great Stage of Fools!"
2022 FebruaryThe Human Target (2021) #5"This is a Good Block"
2022 MarchThe Human Target (2021) #6"It Were a Delicate Stratagem"
2022 AugustTales of the Human Target #1"Oh, Here He Is"
2022 SeptemberThe Human Target (2021) #7"To Shoe a Troop of Horse with Felt"
2022 OctoberThe Human Target (2021) #8
2022 NovemberThe Human Target (2021) #9"And When I Have Stol'n Upon These Sons-In-Law"
2023 JanuaryThe Human Target (2021) #10"Then Kill"
2023 JanuaryThe Human Target (2021) #11"Kill Kill Kill Kill"
2023 FebruaryThe Human Target (2021) #12"Kill"

Vertigo

Writer Peter Milligan and Edvin Biukovic revived Christopher Chance in 1999, moving the character to DC Comics' Vertigo imprint for a four-issue limited series. The mini-series was followed by the graphic novel Human Target: Final Cut, as well as a series lasting 21 issues until its cancellation in 2005.

Reception

The Human Target story "The Unshredded Man" was analyzed as an example of depictions of the September 11 attacks in American popular culture. [6]

In other media

References

  1. McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1970s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. p. 153. ISBN   978-0-7566-6742-9. Starting as a back-up feature in the pages of Action Comics, scribe Len Wein and artist Carmine Infantino introduced Christopher Chance, a master of disguise who would turn himself into a human target - provided you could meet his price.{{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "Detective Comics Vol 1 #201". Human Target Online. humantargetonline.com. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  3. 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. 145. ISBN   978-1-4654-5357-0.
  4. Greenberger, Robert (2008). The Essential Batman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 183. ISBN   9780345501066.
  5. humantargetonline.com
  6. Paul, J. (2007). Ashes in the Gutter: 9/11 and the Serialization of Memory in DC Comics' Human Target. American Periodicals, 17(2), 208-227. Retrieved August 31, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20770986
  7. ABC Series. "Humantargetonline: About: ABC Series". humantargetonline.com. Archived from the original on 2010-06-24. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  8. Goldman, Eric (2009-04-22). "IGN: Flash Forward, Human Target Among Hot Pilots". Tv.ign.com. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  9. "Fox press release reveals official synopsis of Human Target". Humantargetonline.com. 2009-05-21. Archived from the original on 2012-07-14. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  10. "Human Target Television Series Pilot". Target419. Archived from the original on May 21, 2009. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  11. "TV Networks 'Upfront' About Their 2009-10 'Genre' Plans". Newsarama.com. 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  12. Ausiello, Michael (August 18, 2016). "Arrow Takes Aim at Jessica Jones Cop Wil Traval for Human Target Role". TV Line. Archived from the original on August 19, 2016. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
  13. Francisco, Eric (May 4, 2018). "'Arrow' Has a Rare Comics Easter Egg in Tommy's Return Episode". Inverse .