5 Best DC Stories That Were Never Published

Comic books are a medium that is always charging forward. DC’s superhero comics, especially, are stories that always rush bravely and confidently towards telling whatever stories that they can. Hundreds of writers, artists, and all other creative geniuses have worked to craft beloved and hated stories across the decades. Unfortunately, all too often, the stars don’t align for every story to hit store shelves. Ideas are pitched, accepted, and worked on, only for them to fall short because of editorial choices or bad timing. Countless great stories should have been but never will be, and that’s a shame. Still, just because they’re gone doesn’t mean we should forget them.

Today, we’re going to give these unpublished stories their due by looking at five of the coolest DC story ideas that never reached the page. All of these stories were planned and conceptualized, but one reason or another kept them from gracing a comic book. All of these stories deserve their due, and while we can’t possibly give a shout-out to every failed story, we can definitely spotlight these five. So, without further ado, let’s dissect some of DC’s greatest almost-stories. 

5) The Original “Emerald Twilight”

Everyone knows “Emerald Twilight” as the story where Hal Jordan turned bad, destroying the Green Lantern Corps and opening the door for the rise of Kyle Rayner. However, the original advertised story was much different. In it, mysterious creatures impersonated the Guardians, with every Green Lantern but Hal turning on the originals. Sinestro would rise as the GL Corps’s new leader and turn them into an authoritarian military force. Hal still would have bathed in the Central Power Battery and gained greater power than ever. He would save the day, but leave the Corps after he learned the Guardians killed his dad to push him down his current path.

Hal would have become an independent hero without a ring, but with all the powers of a Green Lantern, calling himself the Protector. It would have perfectly set up a new Green Lantern, which meant that Kyle would have joined the gam regardless. This story definitely makes more sense than the heel turn of the original. It’s endlessly interesting to think about where Hal would be today if this story had happened, and if we might remember him as the invincible Protector instead of a Green Lantern.

4) The Uncanny X-Men and The New Teen Titans #2

The X-Men and the Teen Titans have always been some of their respective company’s biggest names, and that was especially true in the ‘80s. DC and Marvel saw the potential for greatness, and had the two legendary teams crossover in The Uncanny X-Men and the New Teen Titans #1. It was a beloved story, created by Marvel legends Chris Claremont, Walt Simonson, and Terry Austin. The Big Two planned a sequel for the next year, helmed by DC’s team of Marv Wolfman and George Pérez. Unfortunately, DC and Marvel decided to cut ties for the next twelve years, meaning this project fell through. The first issue was spectacular, and I’ll always wonder what could have been with what was sure to be one of comics’ best sequels of all.

3) The ending of Batgirl (2009)

The post-Battle for the Cowl Bat-Family is one of the most interesting points in their history. It existed for a criminally short two years before the New 52 gutted it, and Stephanie Brown was arguably this change’s biggest loser. She had risen to become a fantastic Batgirl who had so much left to give. Writer Bryan Q. Miller had giant plans for Stephanie, and in the series’s final issue, revealed them in a Black Mercy-induced dream. We saw Steph graduate, her growing friendship with Damian, Steph as a Blue Lantern, and so much more. We even saw a glimpse of Steph becoming Nightwing and Nell Little becoming Batgirl. This series had so many more awesome stories to tell, and it will always be a shame that we’ll never see them.

2) Nightwing miniseries by Art Thibert and Pamela Winesette

Nowadays, Nightwing is one of DC’s biggest names, but that wasn’t always the case. Back in the ‘90s, even with him leading the Teen Titans, a lot of people thought that Dick would never break out of Batman’s shadow. That was all set to change with his first solo series. This miniseries would have seen an alien invasion threaten the entire world, and these villains capture Starfire. Nightwing would singlehandedly defeat the aliens and save Starfire, establishing himself as a major player for DC, in-universe and out. It would have also cemented Nightwing and Starfire as an unbreakable couple, meaning that this series would have ensured Nightwing is completely different from how he is today. Nightwing eventually found his way to stardom, but this was definitely a different road.

1) “The Secret of the K-Metal”

This is, without a doubt, the story that would have impacted DC’s future the most. This unpublished Superman story was pitched by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster themselves all the way back in 1940. It introduced the proto-Kryptonite known as K-Metal, and saw Superman reveal his identity to Lois Lane and bring her in as an equal partner. This story would have changed everything. Kryptonite alone is a massive part of Superman’s lore, so iconic that it’s its own word, and it was almost completely different. Of course, the real change is Lois. The very idea of how Lois fits into Superman’s mythos and how secret identities work could have changed forever. I, for one, will always wonder what DC would look like if this story had been published.

What’s your favorite story that DC almost published? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!

Every Version of Batgirl, Ranked