In the late Sixties a fireball struck the town of Pederson, Illnois granting fantastic powers to the 113 children who were in utero at the time of impact. They grew up as the world watched. Labeled the Specials by the Media, their powers were monitored and catalogued by the United States Government. Public perception of them changed often. Were they the future of mankind? A scourge? A random occurrence? Heroes? Villains? Role models or simply caricatures? What would be their impact on culture and society? They were a waried as kids and adults ever are; some were more powerful, some less. As adults they became many things: a policeman, a corporate symbol, a singer, an assassin, a writer, a painter, a thief, a preacher. Some found celebrity, some notoriety, while others simply went to work and raised families like everyone else. But they all carried inside them a seed of something great. Something special. Something that made them stars. As their epic stories unfolded, there were other stories as well...of their lives and the lives of those around them. This book is about those stories. Collected here are the short stories about the Specials, a bit about their beginnings, a bit about their middles and just a little bit about their end.

    But this was exactly the cover of darkness Bruce needed. Patrolling Gotham's streets in a series of disguises, he began a career as a faceless vigilante. From the #1 New York Times best-selling creative team of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo!The Riddler has plunged Gotham City into darkness. How will a young Dark Knight bring his beloved hometown from the brink of chaos and madness and back into the light? Batman: Zero Year: The Complete Collection presents an astonishing new vision of the Dark Knight's origin--and his first encounters with the Riddler, the Red Hood and more!Collects issues #21-27 and #29-33.

    In the previously published and Harvey and Eisner Award-winning MAD LOVE, we learn for the first time how the manipulative machinations of the Joker turn his naive and harmless psychiatrist into his deadly and homicidal sidekick, Harley Quinn. Then, in the following incredible tales, Batman must find a way to stop the threat of Poison Ivy and thwart the insanity of Ra's al Ghul.

    Years ago, Jean Grey died and the X-Men mourned her. Since then, the world has changed, her teammates have lived without her and died without her. And now, when strange events start happening all over the world, those teammates can only come to one conclusion – the one true Jean Grey is back!

    The biggest story in DC history ties into literally every DC story ever told – and it all begins here. Kingdom Come, Red Son, Wild West Justice League, Captain Carrot and the Zoo Crew – all the worlds you remember can still be found on Telos. Everything matters. Every story matters.

    When a tsunami and an enormous dragon devastate San Francisco, folks connected to the supernatural are blamed for causing the catastrophe and soon have restrictions placed on them in the name of safety. Buffy must choose sides, find a way for herself and her friends to survive, determine how the disaster happened, and not lose who she is in the process. But that’s only the beginning of their problems as a shocking conspiracy is revealed that threatens all supernatural creatures...and may lead straight to the highest ranks of the US government! Writer Christos Gage (Amazing Spider-Man), along with artists Rebeckah Isaacs, Georges Jeanty, & Megan Levens, present the next chapter in the official continuation Joss Whedon’s award-winning television series. Collects Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season 11 #1-12, along with bonus material.

    Amid an East Los Angeles neighborhood running wild with gang violence and drug trafficking, a war brews in the criminal underworld! With four on the floor, Marvel's newest GHOST RIDER puts vengeance in overdrive!!!

    Adele Burkhart, a controversial scientist privy to pivotal secrets that could spell doom for America! It's up to G.I. Joe to infiltrate Cobra's island base and rescue Dr. Burkhart before it is too late. Will they make it in time or will Cobra succeed? Find out in the issue that started it all!

    In most of Norton's works, alienated outsiders undertake a journey through which they realize their full potential. Many planets in the books are Earth-like places, where humans can live without special protection, and have extensive flora and fauna which are described in considerable detail and often have substantial bearing on the plot.On February 20, 2005, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, which had earlier honored her with its Grand Master Award in 1983, announced the creation of the Andre Norton Award, to be given each year for an outstanding work of fantasy or science fiction for the young adult literature market, beginning in 2006. Nobody today is telling better stories of straight-forward interstellar adventure.Included in this volume:Book One: Storm Over Warlock - Stranded on the alien world of Warlock, Shann Lantree's expedition camp has been wiped out by the Throgs, beings so alien that humans have yet to communicate with them. Lantree must quickly learn how to survive under harsh conditions while being chased by the Throgs -- and how to distinguish the real from the dreamed when he meets the mysterious Wyverns. A satisfying and mature novel which readers will seize upon if they want to enjoy a good adventure story...Book Two: Star Born - When the oppressive global dictatorship of Pax took over Earth they put a stop to space exploration. Still, a few rebels escaped in the sleeper ships to found free new colonies -- or perish in the attempt. Those few colonists that reached inhabitable worlds were cut off for centuries, and in that isolation and freedom they developed the mysterious mental powers that "civilization" had all but destroyed...Book Three: Star Hunter - Somewhere on the jungle world of Jumala, there was a man in hiding--a man whose mind had been reconditioned with another's brain pattern and for whom there was a fabulous reward. Star Hunter is a thrill-packed account of that other-worldly game of hide-and-seek between a man who did not know all his own powers and an interstellar safari that sought something no man had a right to find...Book Four: Plague Ship - A fast-moving suspense tale, full of unusual detail and unexpected turns. Several highlights make the book really shine: the sunset gorp hunt on the reefs of an oily sea; a raid on an asteroid's emergency station; and a landing in the Big Burn, resulting in an encounter with the mutant life-forms that reside there...Book Five: Voodoo Planet - Dane Thorson of the space-trader 'Solar Queen' found himself embroiled in a desperate battle of minds between the rational science of the spaceways and the hypnotic witchcraft of the mental wizard that ruled the Voodoo Planet...Book Six: The Gifts of Asti - Varta, the last priestess of Asti, lives alone with Lur, a telepath of the lizardfolk, in Asti's isolated mountain retreat. Decadent Memphir has long since drifted away from the austere paths of Asti, and now the barbarians of Klem are sacking the city, and the smoke of its burning drifts up to the temple...Book Seven: The People of the Crater - "Send the Black Throne to dust; conquer the Black Ones, and bring the Daughter from the Caves of Darkness." These were the tasks Garin must perform to fulfill the prophecy of the Ancient Ones--and establish his own destiny in this hidden land!This are the original and unabridged versions of these tales.

    A family gunned down for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is a familiar sounding story to Frank Castle, and a series of events that will give rise to a foe that will challenge The Punisher as never before.

    Who is Talon? What does he want with the young Earthman that '90s comic junkies know as Chris Powell? What is the shocking truth that connects the hero called Darkhawk not only to the Shi'Ar, but to the larger cosmos? This title collects War of Kings: Ascension, numbered 1-4, and War of Kings: Darkhawk, numbered 1-2.

    But now, a relentless and surgical strike team from the farthest reaches of space - sworn to exterminate the armor and all like it - have found their final target. The Armor Hunters are coming. They will hunt. They will trap. They will kill. And they will rid the universe of the X-O Manowar armor's incalculable destructive power...even if it means taking the Earth with it.Collecting: Armor Hunters 1-4, Armor Hunters: Aftermath 1, Armor Hunters: Bloodshot 1-3, Armor Hunters: Harbinger 1-3, Unity 8-11, & X-O Manowar 23-29

    Now, from a forgotten corner of the ocean emerges the Trench! A broken race of creatures that should not exist, an unspeakable need driving them, the Trench will be the most talked-about new characters in the DC Universe!

    They're the best trackers and killers the X-Men have to offer: Wolverine, X-23, Warpath, Wolfsbane, Archangel and more. They're X-Force. When the Purifiers resurrect some of the most heinous mutant-murderers in history, X-Force launch into battle with claws out and teeth bared. But can they rescue a teammate and put an end to Bastion's machinations? And when the lethal Legacy virus is stolen, X-Force must take on the Marauders while Warpath hunts down the Demon Bear! But can the team save their friends from the Leper Queen before they run out of time...literally? Plus: Wolverine takes on Hydra solo!COLLECTING: X-FORCE 1-13, X-FORCE SPECIAL: AIN'T NO DOG, & Material from X-FORCE ANNUAL 1

    The story features a world where magic has overwhelmed science. Starring the Phantom Stranger, Deadman, The Challengers Of The Unknown, The Blue Beetle and Klarion The Witch Boy.