This article needs additional citations for verification .(September 2007) |
Pantheon | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Lone Star Press |
Schedule | Irregular |
Format | Ongoing series |
Genre | |
Publication date | May 1998 – May 2004 |
No. of issues | 13 |
Creative team | |
Created by | Bill Willingham |
Written by | Bill Willingham |
Artist(s) | Steve Lieber Brian Hagan Mike Leeke |
Letterer(s) | Brad Thomte |
Colorist(s) | Patric Lewandowski |
Pantheon is an American comic book series written by Bill Willingham. The series was published by independent publisher Lone Star Press and is set in its own self-contained universe.
The complete series was published in thirteen issues. The first six were published in 1998–1999. The next six were published in 2001 and the final issue was published in May 2004.
The hero Dynasty gathers her colleagues in the superhero group Freedom Machine to inform them of a new threat. Their former colleague, the massively powerful telekinetic Daedelus, has decided to take over the world. Worried about Daedelus' unparalleled power, the Freedom Machine decides to gather all the heroes they can to fight him. Meanwhile, Daedelus kills one of his former colleagues and destroys an advanced underwater civilization to keep them from interfering in his plans.
The darkness-powered superhero Shadowpax recounts to a group of young superheroes the story of the Freedom Machine's most challenging threat to date. Years ago, they had to do battle with Deathboy, a psychotic teenager protected by an impenetrable force field and with the ability to disintegrate anything he sees. The Freedom Machine battled Deathboy in a desert where he killed several superheroes before Shadowpax was able to trap him in a block of solid darkness, where he remains imprisoned in the Freedom Machine's headquarters.
In his first strike Daedalus releases several prominent supervillains in order to keep his former colleagues occupied. These include Kid Babylon a young man who has an Elder God trapped in a box, Chaos Nation a composite being who absorbs others, the gigantic canine Thunderdog, and the supernatural Doctor Meggido. As the Freedom Machine confronts these villains, the superbeing Outrider returns to Earth, seeking revenge on Dynasty. He is killed by Ivanhoe, but not before severely mutilating Dynasty.
The non-powered adventurer Johnny Venture and his group the Darkside Rangers, take possession of the Freedom Machine's headquarters under authority of the US government. They are looking for a solution to the superhuman problem. They free Deathboy from his prison of darkness and while he is unconscious they implant a bomb inside him. They use this to force Deathboy to agree to their demands. The Freedom Machine begin their assault on Daedelus' island headquarters, but he brings the fighting to an end when he threatens to destroy the Earth, a threat they believe he has the power to carry out. The Darkside Rangers send Deathboy parachuting towards the island, which he destroys. Venture then reneges on his deal and uses the bomb to kill Deathboy. It is revealed that Deathboy had not actually destroyed anyone. Instead all the people and objects he had "disintegrated" were actually transported to an alternate dimension. The Freedom Machine joyously greet their long lost colleagues. Daedelus then announces his intention to take over this new world, but he soon dies from a biological poison which he was exposed to during the fight.
The first six issues of the series have been recolored and collected in a trade paperback edition with new material.
There is also:
Seaguy is a three-volume comic book miniseries written by Grant Morrison with art by Cameron Stewart and published by the Vertigo imprint of DC Comics. The first volume of Seaguy was released in three issues beginning on May 19, 2004. The second volume, Slaves of Mickey Eye, was released in three issues beginning on April 1, 2009. The third and final volume, Seaguy Eternal, is yet to be published.
Powers is a creator-owned comic book series written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Michael Avon Oeming. The series' first volume was published by Image Comics from 2000 to 2004, the latter moving to Marvel Comics as a part of its Icon imprint. In 2018 it moved to DC Comics as part of its Jinxworld imprint. The Jinxworld imprint moved in 2021 to Dark Horse Comics. The characters and its creators appear in Crossover.
Marshal Law is an English-language superhero comic book series created by Pat Mills and Kevin O'Neill.
Doll Man is a superhero first appearing in American comic books from the Golden Age of Comics, originally published by Quality Comics and currently part of the DC Comics universe of characters. Doll Man was created by cartoonist Will Eisner and first appeared in a four-page story entitled "Meet the Doll Man" in Feature Comics #27. He was Quality's first super-powered character.
Red Bee is the name of two fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books.
Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again, also known as DK2, is a 2001–2002 DC Comics three-issue limited series comic book written and illustrated by Frank Miller and colored by Lynn Varley, featuring the fictional superhero Batman. The series is a sequel to Miller's 1986 miniseries The Dark Knight Returns. It tells the story of an aged Bruce Wayne who returns from three years in hiding, training his followers and instigating a rebellion against Lex Luthor's dictatorial rule over the United States. The series features an ensemble cast of superheroes including Catgirl, Superman, Wonder Woman, Plastic Man, Green Arrow, The Flash, and the Atom.
The Shield is the name of several superheroes created by MLJ. Appearing months before Captain America, the Shield has the distinction of being the first superhero with a costume based upon United States patriotic iconography. The character appeared in Pep Comics from issue #1 to #65.
Minute-Man is a superhero appearing in comics published Fawcett Comics and later DC Comics.
Cat-Man and Kitten are a pair of fictional superhero characters created by artists Irwin Hasen (Cat-Man) and Charles M. Quinlan (Kitten) with unknown writers. Cat-Man was first published in 1940 by various Frank Z. Temerson companies. Due to circumstances during World War II, an altered version of Cat-Man was published in Australia and reprinted in the 1950s. AC Comics later revived the characters in the 1980s.
Marvel Zombies is a five-issue limited series published from December 2005 to April 2006 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Robert Kirkman with art by Sean Phillips and covers by Arthur Suydam. It was the first series in the Marvel Zombies series of related stories. The story is set in an alternate universe where the world's superhero population has been infected with a virus which turned them into zombies. The series was spun out of events of the crossover story-arc of Ultimate Fantastic Four, where the zombie Reed Richards tricked his Ultimate counterpart into opening a portal to the zombie universe only for the latter to contain the former from ever coming to his universe.
Master Man is a fictional character created during the 1930s to 1940s period referred to as the Golden Age of Comic Books. A superhero, the character's exact creator is uncertain: his first story, in Fawcett Comics' Master Comics #1, was drawn by Newt Alfred, but that issue's cover was drawn by Harry Fiske. The leader character in the anthology Master Comics, he was described as:
"...the world's greatest hero: Master Man! Stronger than untamed horses! Swifter than raging winds! Braver than mighty lions! Wiser than wisdom, kind as Galahad is Master Man, the wonder of the world! As a boy, young Master Man was weak until a wise old doctor gave the youth a magic capsule, full of vitamins, containing every source of energy known to man! The boy becomes the strongest man on earth! Upon the highest mountain peak he built a solid castle made of solid rock! From there he sees all evil in the world and races to destroy it instantly!"
The Black Hood is the name of several fictional characters created by MLJ Comics during the period known as the "Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in Top-Notch Comics #9, October 1940 and became one of MLJ's most popular characters. He has been in four self-titled series as well as in his own radio show, Black Hood (1943–1944). In recent decades, the Black Hood has been sporadically licensed and published by DC Comics. However, the character reappeared under Archie Comics' Dark Circle Comics line in 2015.
The Comet is a character that first appeared in Pep Comics #1 in January 1940. A little over a year later, the Comet was the first superhero to be killed in the line of duty. He died in issue #17, which also introduced his brother, a brutal hero called the Hangman.
The Arrow is a fictional superhero created during the Golden Age of Comic Books. He was the first superhero published by Centaur Publications.
The Whip is the alias used by different characters in DC Comics with four of them being superheroes. The third one made his first appearance in Flash Comics #1. The fourth Whip appeared in 2005 and was created by Grant Morrison. The fifth Whip appeared in 2011 and was created by Fabian Nicieza.
The Umbrella Academy is an American comic book series created and written by Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Bá. It follows a dysfunctional family of adopted superhero siblings with bizarre powers attempting both to save the world and find their place within it. Published by Dark Horse Comics, the comic is released as limited series, typically lasting six issues. Since 2007, three volumes have been published, as have two spin-offs. The fourth volume of the main series is currently in development.
Superhero fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction examining the adventures, personalities and ethics of costumed crime fighters known as superheroes, who often possess superhuman powers and battle similarly powered criminals known as supervillains. The genre primarily falls between hard fantasy and soft science fiction in the spectrum of scientific realism. It is most commonly associated with American comic books, though it has expanded into other media through adaptations and original works.
Firefly is a superhero created by Harry Shorten and Bob Wood for MLJ Comics in 1940. He first appeared in Top-Notch Comics #8. Artist Warren King and writer Joe Blair loaned their talents to many of the Firefly's installments.
The Owl is a fictional superhero that first appeared in Dell Comics' Crackajack Funnies #25, continuing until #43.
Marvel Zombies is a comic book metaseries published by Marvel Comics. The series features zombie versions of Marvel Universe superheroes and supervillains who have been portrayed as both protagonists and antagonists through the different limited series within the metaseries.