Who's This? Heroes living on borrowed time.
The facts: Jack Kirby's team of adventures, all survivors of some accident that should have killed them, first saw the light of day in Showcase #6 (Feb 1957), graduating to their own title in May 1858 after a couple more appearances in the anthology. Kirby did the first 8 issues before moving on... and ultimately co-creating another jumpsuit foursome, the Fantastic Four, launching the Marvel Age. Ace, Rocky, Red and Prof (and later, June) didn't have any powers, but it wouldn't have taken much to acquire such given their dangerous life styles. The series continued without the King of Comics through the 60s, then had a brief revival in the late 70s, amounting to 87 issues in all. A deconstructionist mini-series in '91 by Loeb and Sale could have been a contender for early Vertigo. The '97 series starred a different team, as did the 2004 mini-series. Relegated to IP status, it seems, the real group did make appearances in each decade, in Countdown and the revived Brave and the Bold, to name two examples.
How you could have heard of them: In 2018, the New52 continuity launched some New Challengers, but the originals appeared as supporting players and went into the Dark Multiverse. That same year, they made a cameo in Teen Titans Go! To the Movies. Music fans may be interested to know the team is paid tribute in The New Pornographers' song Challengers (as it was featured on Chuck, I've listened to it quite a bit).
Example story: Challengers of the Unknown #3 (August-September 1958) "Menace of the Invincible Challenger" by Jack Kirby, Marvin Stein and Roz Kirby
Here's one that REALLY highlights the similarities with Kirby's later Fantastic Four. The set-up: A meteor comes down to Earth without burning up in the slightest. Inside is a tube of chemicals that give a test monkey the ability to walk through fire as if it were nothing. Scientists surmise this solution is what space aliens use to survive ANY environment they might want to explore. They don't think they're ready to test it on humans though. But here's the thing, when you've almost died once, you don't care if there's a chance of dying ever again. At least for the Challengers!
Screw peer review, we're just gonna draw straws and Rocky is the winner! I love how the scientist is raising his finger to object, but there's no stopping the Challs. Now, Rocky could just down the meds and put his hand through fire to see if it works, but that would be too simple, even reasonable. No. Instead, he's gonna shoot himself into the stratosphere with a rocket to see if he survives reentry.
If you thought Reed Richards was cutting corners... But once he's up, the scientists find their monkey is in a coma. Ooops! Guys, what was the urgency?! So even if Rocky survives the trip, how long will he last? And he DOES survive the trip, except he's not in his right mind... or body!
Combination Human Torch and Iceman, two Jack Kirby co-creations? Now the Challs have to capture one of their own before he hurts someone. I don't know that their netting can capture a man who throws fire around, but what if he has other powers?
As June says: "Rocky is as dangerous as any menace we've encountered from the Unknown!" He's not easy to find either, because he also has... invisibility powers!
Cut to some crooks laying low in a cabin in those same woods, worried the search parties will uncover their hideout. Rocky stumbled upon them, but in his daze, lets them feed him and give him a place to sleep. They hope to build loyalty and send the super-powered amnesiac to commit some crimes for them. But when the Challs show up, they use the power of friendship to make him snap out of it.
Red throws himself at the goons, but Rocky gets grazed by a bullet in the confusion. (They don't care. That borrowed time's gonna catch up to them SOMEtime.) He'll be fine and as the chemical wears off, his memory returns and his powers evaporate. Conclusion: Powers are fun and all, but this wasn't meant for human use! No further tests! No attempts at modifying the formula! Hide the chemical where no one can ever find it! Maybe we can put our funding into cosmic rays instead!
So yeah... Feels like Stan Lee didn't create nearly as much of the Fantastic Four concept as people think.
Who's Next? A shape-changing Legionnaire.
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