List of comics that were never published

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This list will include stories, issues of limited/ongoing series, or even entire series which were proposed, promoted, or even advertised and solicited for release but for whatever reason never saw the light of day. Some of these stories have been reprinted elsewhere or were published in different forms.

Action Comics Annual #3 - The original story for this annual (written by Chris Claremont) was meant to be published in 1990 and was even advertised in DC Comics but for unknown reasons never came out. The annual was eventually released in 1991 as part of the Armageddon 2001 crossover event, but contained a different story.
Batman #428 - Two versions of this issue (Part 3 of the storyline A Death in the Family) were created, based on the outcome of a phone-in vote where callers had to choose whether Robin (Jason Todd) would live or die. The result was for Robin to die, so that version of the story was published. The version where Robin lives has not been published, though one panel of that story (with Batman exclaiming that Robin is alive) has been printed in the book DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes.
Big Numbers #3-12 - This Alan Moore/Bill Sienkiewicz limited series only saw two issues published before it ended.
Cancelled Comic Cavalcade - During the "DC Implosion", several DC Comics titles were abruptly cancelled, even though a number of the series had issues already completed and ready to be published. Eventually, DC Comics reprinted the stories to secure their copyright, under the title Cancelled Comic Cavalcade. A few of the stories were also published in other DC comics titles, though some were re-edited prior to publication.
CrossGen Comics - The company's bankruptcy led to a number of titles being cancelled before completion. Several trade paperback collections were also cancelled due to the bankruptcy.
Elseworlds 80-Page Giant #1 - This book was already printed and ready to be released, but controversy over the story Letitia Lerner, Superman's Babysitter led to the run being destroyed. However, around 2000 copies of the book survived and are now a collector's item.
Emerald Twilight (Green Lantern (vol. 3) #48-50) - The original storyline for Emerald Twilight (involving a civil war within the Green Lantern Corps), though advertised and even solicited, was replaced with the story that eventually saw print (with Hal Jordan becoming Parallax).^[1]
Exiles #5: the entire cast of Exiles was killed or maimed in a catastrophic explosion at the end of #4; to preserve the shock value, #5 was falsely solicited months in advance.
Hellblazer 141 - Shoot. by Warren Ellis and Phil Jimmenez was planned to deal with high school teenagers killing each other with fireams in school ground. After Columbine High Massacre, it was canceled by DC Comics.
JLA/Avengers - The original Gerry Conway/George Pérez story from the early 1980s was never published because of editorial disputes between DC Comics and Marvel Comics. It wasn't until 2003 that a crossover between the two teams was published, albeit in a completely different story by Pérez and Kurt Busiek. Several pages of the original story's pencilled art have since been reprinted.
JLA: Kid Amazo - Originally supposed to be released as a hardcover in 2004, the book was cancelled, possibly because of low sales orders; the story was eventually printed in the series JLA: Classified.
Miracleman #25-34 and Miracleman: Triumphant - Because of the bankruptcy of Eclipse Comics, the last published issue of Miracleman was #24. Issues #25-28, which would have completed the storyline The Silver Age, weren't printed. The followup storyline, The Dark Age (projected for Miracleman #29-34), and a spinoff series, Miracleman: Triumphant, were also never published. Pages from issue #25 and Miracleman: Triumphant #1 have been reprinted in Kimota! The Miracleman Companion by TwoMorrows Publishing.^[2]
The New Teen Titans: Games - Originally meant to be published in the late 1980s/early 1990s, this graphic novel project was revived in the 2000s but has been postponed again.
1963 Annual #1 - A followup to the Image Comics series 1963, by Alan Moore and Jim Lee. Various issues with Moore, Lee, and Image itself led to the Annual being unfinished.
Nuclear - An unpublished Golden Age Wonder Woman story introduced the villain Nuclear. Even though it wasn't published, a later story from Wonder Woman (vol. 1) #43 (Nuclear Returns!) refers to it. Years later, Roy Thomas came up with his own introduction story for Nuclear in the pages of All-Star Squadron. Since then, original artwork from the first story has surfaced. ^[3]
Pandora Pann - Most of the preview story for this series (scheduled to be printed in Saga of the Swamp Thing #5) was pencilled, but for unknown reasons the series never materialized. ^[4]
Quantum and Woody #22-31 - this series was canceled by Acclaim Comics after #17, and uncanceled fifteen months later; as a promotional gimmick, #32 was published to show how the story would have developed if the comic had never been canceled in the first place. The next month, the series resumed regular numbering, picking up where it left off. Issues #18-21 were published on a monthly basis before Acclaim filed for bankruptcy.
Sonic Disruptors #8-12 - This 12-issue limited series by DC Comics was cancelled after issue #7 due to poor sales.
Starman (vol. 1) #46 - Solicited as the last issue of the first Starman series, the title was cancelled after issue #45 instead.^[5]
Stormwatch: Team Achilles #24 - the series' cancellation was announced for #24; however, writer Micah Wright had recently become very controversial, and #23 was the last issue published. The script for #24 is available on Wright's site.
Swamp Thing #88-91 - Rick Veitch's original story for issue #88 (where Swamp Thing meets Jesus during a time-travel story arc) was cancelled by DC Comics; this caused Veitch to quit the title before finishing the storyline (set to run through issue #91). Another writer had to complete the story but went in a different direction than Veitch had planned.
The Teen Titans Swingin' Elseworlds Special - This book was postponed and ultimately never released; DC Comics finally released the story in January, 2008 as Teen Titans: The Lost Annual.
The Uncensored Mouse #3 - A third issue of this series (which reprinted classic Mickey Mouse comic strips) was ready to go to press until a lawsuit filed by The Walt Disney Company put a stop to it. ^[6]
Unity 2000 #4-6 - Only three issues of this 6-issue limited series were published before financial and administrative problems led to its cancellation.
The Will of William Wilson - An unpublished Justice Society of America story from the 1940s. A good amount of artwork from this story survived and has been reprinted in various publications from TwoMorrows Publishing.^[7]