''Underworld Unleashed'' was a multi-title American comic book crossover event released 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 their f ...

in 1995. The main theme of ''Underworld Unleashed'' involved the new ruler of Hell, a demon-lord named Neron, offering first many of the DC Universe

supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character that is commonly found in American comic books, usually possessing superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero. Supervillains are often ...

s and then a number of the DC Universe superheroes various deals in exchange for their souls.''Underworld Unleashed'' trade paperback (DC Comics, March 1998 () and hardcover ''25th Anniversary Edition'' (DC Comics, November 2020 ())

Plot

Neron dupes five of the Rogues who typically battle the Flash:

Captain Boomerang Captain Boomerang is the name of two supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, who respectively serve as enemies to both the Barry Allen and Wally West versions of the Flash. Created by writer John Broome and artis ...

Captain Cold Captain Cold (Leonard Snart) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is the leader of the Rogues (comics), Rogues, a loose criminal association, as well as the older brother of Golden Glider. An adversary of ...

Heat Wave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...

I, the

Mirror Master Mirror Master is the name of several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is a recurring foe of the Flash with considerable technical expertise and skills involving the use of mirrors. Three individuals h ...

III, and the

Weather Wizard Weather Wizard (Mark Mardon) is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Weather Wizard made his first live appearance in the television series '' The Flash'', played by actor Liam McIntyre, who played Mark Mardon. He appe ...

. He promises them a chance to go down in history as five of the greatest villains if they each engage in a specific destructive act. He does not tell them that it will cost them their lives and unleash him onto the Earth.

Lex Luthor Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Lex Luthor originally appeared in '' Action Comics'' #23 (cover dated: ...

, the Joker,

Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. She is either a daughter of the Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vast kno ...

I, Doctor Polaris I and Abra Kadabra become his Inner Council. Neron sends magical candles to many supervillains. When they are all lit, they transport the villains to Neron's underworld realm. Many villains accept his offer, but some do not. The newly empowered villains are sent back to Earth to wreak havoc while Neron turns his attention to the superheroes. Along the way, the

Trickster In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story (god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwise ...

I comes to Neron, but does not make a deal with him. Instead, he helps Neron betray his Inner Council. When the heroes come to Neron's realm looking to defeat him, they are corrupted by the influences of that realm. Trickster works out how Neron can be stopped, and instructs Captain Marvel to beat Neron at his own game by offering the demon his soul for purely selfless reasons. Unable to even touch the offer, Neron's work is reversed: breaking that one deal also broke all his others.

Collected editions

* The three-issue miniseries ''Underworld Unleashed'', together with the one-shot issue ''Underworld Unleashed: Abyss - Hell's Sentinel'' #1, was collected as a

trade paperback Trade paperback may refer to: * Trade paperback, a higher-quality softcover version of a book * Trade paperback (comics) In comics in the United States, a trade paperback (shortened: TPB or trade) is a collection of stories originally published ...

called ''Underworld Unleashed'' (DC Comics, March 1998, 158 pages, ). * In 2020, a new hardcover

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

, ''Underworld Unleashed: The 25th Anniversary Edition'', was published, containing the three-issue miniseries plus the four one-shot issues ''Underworld Unleashed: Abyss - Hell's Sentinel'' #1, ''Underworld Unleashed: Apokolips - Dark Uprising'' #1, ''Underworld Unleashed: Batman - Devil's Asylum'' #1 and ''Underworld Unleashed: Patterns of Fear'' #1 (DC Comics, November 2020, 304 pp., )).

References

External links

Underworld Unleashed
at DC wikia
Underworld Unleashed
at DCU Guide {{DC events 1995 comics debuts DC Comics limited series DC Comics titles Comics by Mark Waid