''DC Special Series'' was an

umbrella title An umbrella title is a formal or informal name connecting a number of individual items with a common theme. It is most often used in lieu of listing the separate components or providing a convenient "label" for a collection of disciplines. Uses of ...

for one-shots and special issues published by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

between 1977 and 1981. Each issue featured a different character and was often in a different format than the issue before it. ''DC Special Series'' was published in four different formats:

Dollar Comics Dollar Comics was a line of DC Comics comic book publications issued from 1977 to 1983 and revived in 2019. The 1977-1983 line included the titles ''The Superman Family'', ''House of Mystery'', ''G.I. Combat'', ''World's Finest Comics'', '' Batman F ...

, 48 page giants,

digests Digest may refer to: Biology *Digestion of food *Restriction digest Literature and publications *'' The Digest'', formerly the English and Empire Digest *Digest size magazine format * ''Digest'' (Roman law), also known as ''Pandects'', a digest ...

, and treasury editions. Neither the umbrella title nor the numbering system appear on the cover; the title "DC Special Series" appeared only on the first page in the indicia. Most issues featured new material, but eight issues were reprints of previously published material.

Publication history

''DC Special Series'' was preceded by the theme-based reprint title ''

DC Special ''DC Special'' was a comic book anthology series published by DC Comics originally from 1968 to 1971; it resumed publication from 1975 to 1977. For the most part, ''DC Special'' was a theme-based reprint title, mostly focusing on stories from DC ...

'', which ceased publication the month before ''DC Special Series'' debuted. The first issue included "The Dead on Arrival Conspiracy", a

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

vs. Kobra story by

Martin Pasko Martin Joseph "Marty" Pasko (born Jean-Claude Rochefort; August 4, 1954– May 10, 2020) was a Canadian comic book writer and television screenwriter. Pasko worked for many comics publishers, but is best known for his superhero stories for DC Com ...

, Michael Netzer (Nasser), and

Joe Rubinstein Josef "Joe" Rubinstein (born 4 June 1958) is a comic book artist and inker, most associated with inking Marvel Comics' ''The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' and the 1982 four-issue ''Wolverine'' miniseries by Chris Claremont and Frank ...

originally scheduled for the unpublished ''Kobra'' #8. ''DC Special Series'' #1 also included the story, "How to Prevent a Flash", which introduces

Patty Spivot Patricia "Patty" Spivot is a fictional character who appears in various DC Comics publications and was created by writer Cary Bates and artist Irv Novick. She is a friend and partner of the second Flash, Barry Allen. She first appeared in "Five ...

. That character would later appear in

season two Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album) * ''2econd Season ''2econd Season'' is the second and most recent album by Atlanta-based rapper Unk. Release It was released on November 4, 2008. Guest Performers The album features gu ...

of ''

The Flash The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...

'' TV series, portrayed by actress

Shantel VanSanten Shantel VanSanten (born July 25, 1985) is an American actress and model. As a model, she has been featured in the magazines ''Teen Vogue'' and ''Seventeen (American magazine), Seventeen''. On television, she played the role of Quinn James in the ...

. ''DC Special Series'' started out as a biweekly title in 1977 until Spring 1978, when it became quarterly. The series went on hiatus after the Fall 1978 issue and was revived in Summer 1979. Two stories originally scheduled to appear in ''DC Special Series'' were split apart and published in other titles due to the

DC Implosion The "DC Explosion" and "DC Implosion" were two events in 1978 – the first an official marketing campaign, the second a sardonic reference to it – in which DC Comics expanded their roster of publications, then abruptly cut it back. The DC Explos ...

. The final three issues were in the oversized treasury format. Issue #25 was a tie-in to the ''

Superman II ''Superman II'' is a 1980 superhero film directed by Richard Lester and written by Mario Puzo and David and Leslie Newman from a story by Puzo based on the DC Comics character Superman. It is the second installment in the ''Superman'' film seri ...

'' film and #26 featured "Secrets of Superman's Fortress" by

Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor, who was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibl ...

Ross Andru Ross Andru (; born Rostislav Androuchkevitch, June 15, 1927 – November 9, 1993) Part 1: Animation: We Leave the Army", p. 21. In 1948, Andru's first professional work as a comic strip illustrator was drawing layouts for the ''Tarzan (comics), T ...

, and

Romeo Tanghal Romeo Tanghal (born July 24, 1947) is a Filipino comics artist who has worked primarily as an inker. He became well known in the industry in the 1980s for his work on DC Comics' '' The New Teen Titans''. Career Romeo Tanghal was born and raised ...

. The last issue was a DC-Marvel crossover between Batman and the

Hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk' ...

The issues

Collected editions

* ''The Greatest Flash Stories Ever Told'' includes "How to Prevent a Flash" from ''DC Special Series'' #1, 288 pages, February 1991, * ''Kobra: Resurrection'' includes "The Dead on Arrival Conspiracy" from ''DC Special Series'' #1, 144 pages, February 2010, * ''Secret Society of Super Villains'' Vol. 2 includes ''DC Special Series'' #6, 328 pages, May 2012, * ''Deadman Book Four'' includes ''DC Special Series'' #8, 168 pages, January 2014, * ''Deadman Omnibus'' includes ''DC Special Series'' #8, 944 pages, December 2020, * ''The Flash: The Greatest Stories Ever Told'' includes "Beyond the Super-Speed Barrier" from ''DC Special Series'' #11, 208 pages, August 2007, * ''Legends of the Dark Knight: Marshall Rogers'' includes "Death Strikes at Midnight and Three" from ''DC Special Series'' #15, 496 pages, November 2011, * ''Batman Arkham: Ra’s Al Ghul'' includes “I Now Pronounce You Batman and Wife!” from ''DC Special Series'' #15, 232 pages, March 2019, * ''Legends of the Dark Knight: Michael Golden'' includes “I Now Pronounce You Batman and Wife!” from ''DC Special Series'' #15, 248 pages, June 2019, * ''The Complete Frank Miller Batman'' includes "Wanted: Santa Claus -- Dead or Alive!" from ''DC Special Series'' #21, 312 pages, December 1989, Longmeadow Press, * ''Superman: The Secrets of the Fortress of Solitude'' includes ''DC Special Series'' #26, 200 pages, May 2012, * ''The Marvel/DC Collection: Crossover Classics'' Volume 1 includes ''DC Special Series'' #27, 320 pages, June 1997,

References

External links

* ''Daily Planet'', volume 77, #23 house advertisement fo
''5 Star Super-Hero Spectacular''
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics * ''Daily Planet'', volume 77, #30 house advertisement fo
''Superman Spectacular''
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics * ''Daily Planet'', volume 78, #29 house advertisement fo
''Batman Spectacular''
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics * ''Daily Planet'', volume 79, #47 house advertisement fo
''Super-Star Holiday Special''
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics *
''DC Special Series''
at the DC Database
''DC Special Series''
at Mike's Amazing World of DC Comics * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dc Special Series 1977 comics debuts 1981 comics endings Comic book digests Comics anthologies Comics by Arnold Drake Comics by Bob Haney Comics by Carl Wessler Comics by Dennis O'Neil Comics by George Kashdan Comics by Gerry Conway Comics by Len Wein Comics by Michael Fleisher Comics by Paul Kupperberg Comics by Paul Levitz Comics by Robert Kanigher Comics by Roy Thomas DC Comics one-shots DC Comics titles Defunct American comics

Publication history

The issues

Collected editions

See also

References

External links