I can't believe DC finally brought back its most underrated 90s hero

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I can't believe DC finally brought back its most underrated 90s hero

Warning: Contains spoilers for Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Special 30th Anniversary!

I can't believe DC Brought back one of the most underrated cult heroes of the 1990s. The legacy of comics in the 1990s is a complicated one, full of excesses that nearly destroyed the industry. But at the same time, it has seen some breakthrough characters and titles debut, and One of DC's best cult heroes of all time has returned to the Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Special 30th Anniversary.

The Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Special 30th Anniversary is written by Dan Jurgens and drawn by a list of artists. Kyle Rayner Green Lantern, is pulled to a mysterious land where Superman stayed dead and Batman's back never healed. The world is slowly being destroyed, and some of its biggest heroes are called to save it. Among the assembled heroes are Ray, Azrael, Connor Hawke Green Arrow, Guy Gardner (in his Warrior incarnation), And Jack Knight, who was once Starman.

The heroes join forces to save their world.

Starman's DC Comics origins, explained

Jack Knight was very much a reluctant hero


Jack Knight Starman charging into battle

The original Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Saw massive changes sweeping the DC Universe. Existing heroes have seen their backstories tweaked and legacy heroes, including members of the legendary Justice Society of America, step down. During the five issue miniseries, the villain extant accelerated the aging of the Society members. Some, such as Hourman, were killed, while Jay Garrick (Flash) and Ted Grant (Wildcat) retired. Also caught in the wave of aging was Ted Knight, the first Starman. in Zero hours #1, Ted gave his costume and equipment to his son David, while David's brother Jack looked on, almost in disgust.

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But fate had other ideas for the Starman legacy. David is killed on his first day on the job, as part of a coordinated revenge campaign against his father by one of his oldest adversaries: the Garbage. Mist's family has sworn to kill every member of the Knight clan, including Jack. The Mist sent his son Kyle to kill Jack, but Jack was successful in escaping. Jack, now forced to fight, uses his father's equipment, including the trademark cosmic wheel, to protect his family. And then, DC struck gold.

Starman was DC's best title of the 1990s

Jack Knight was unlike other DC heroes at the time


Jack Knight Starman held his hands up

StarmanWritten by James Robinson and drawn in its early and formative issues by Tony Harris, is perhaps DC's premier cult title of the 1990s. It was unlike anything else DC was putting out at the time. Starman himself did not wear a garish outfit, instead opting for a low-key black leather jacket and glasses. Jack Knight was not a scientist or a police officer - he ran an antique shop. Jack Knight was also a geek at a time before geek culture was mainstream, as issues were regularly peppered with obscure pop culture and literary references.

James Robinson's other works include the acclaimed Leave it to chance. Tony Harris is also known for ex machine, which he co-created with Brian K. Vaughn.

Starman Did something different, something special and something that hasn't been duplicated since. While Jack Knight may be the best known Starman, there have been several others throughout the history of the DC Universe. Just a few years before Jack Knight's first appearance, DC published stories of another Starman, named Will Peyton. Before that, Steve Ditko created Prince Gavin, who also gave the name Starman, and before him was Michael Thomas, a blue-skinned foreigner, whose appearance and gimmick was influenced by David Bowie.

DC S Starman Title created a legacy where none had previously existed

The story of Jack Knight came to a beautiful, poignant end

Robinson and Harris took these seemingly disparate characters and fashioned them into a solid and cohesive legacy.

Oddly enough, none of the Starmen have any connection to the others - all were seemingly independent characters, but under the direction of Robinson and Harris, that all changed. Every character that has ever had the name Starman appeared in the series, received development they never received before. Robinson and Harris took these seemingly disparate characters and fashioned them into a solid and cohesive legacy. Robinson and Harris Starman Also gave DC one of its best anti-heroes: The Shadow, a Golden Age villain they repurposed into a morally ambiguous character who has a great interest in Jack Knight.

A guide to the Starman legacy

Alias

First appearance

Notes

Ted Knight

Adventure comics #61

The first Starman, inventor of the Gravity Rod

Charles McNider, David Knight

Detective Comics #247

The "Starman of 1951," subject to several reviews

Mikaal Tomas

First issue special #12

Alien Starman, last seen in Danger Street

Prince Gavin

Adventure comics #467

Created by Paul Levitz and Steve Ditko, died in Crisis on Infinite Earths

Will Payton

Starman #1

Later revealed to be a reincarnation of Prince Gavin

David Knight

Starman #26

Brother of Jack Knight, killed in Starman #0

Jack Knight

Starman (Volume 1) #0

Tom Callor

Adventure comics #282

Member of both the Legion of Super-Heroes and the Justice Society

Farris Knight

JLA #23

The starman of the 853rd century

Jack Knight is currently MIA from the DC Universe, as all his appearances must be approved by his creators. His story came to an end in 2001, when he retired from the superhero business and moved to San Francisco with his family to be a painter. For years, Robinson and Harris have teased a return for Jack Knight, stating there is "one more" story to be told. Whether it happens or not remains to be seen, but DC has revived Jack Knight, albeit temporarily, for these Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Special 30th Anniversary.

Jack Knight must return to the DC Universe

Jack Knight is too cool a character to go to waste


A close-up of Jack Knight and the Shadow on a 1994 Starman comic

Jack Knight left a huge impression on comic readers. There is at least one active fan group on Facebook, and Starman continues to find new readers, 30 years after its debut. At a time when comics were gritty and "extreme," Starman was a breath of fresh air, a dark and strange respite from the big gun and big bag. Jack Knight is DC's best cult hero of the 1990s, and arguably any decade. I can't believe DC brought him back. I also hope that James Robinson and Tony Harris can also revive him.

Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Special 30th Anniversary Now on sale from DC Comics!