1993′s “Strangers” was among titles that launched Malibu Ultraverse

Strangers #1

Steve Englehart and Rick Hoberg were the creative team of “The Strangers,” one of the debut titles of the Ultraverse, Malibu’s superhero comic book line that debuted in 1993.

Strangers #1
By Steve Englehart and Rick Hoberg
One of the debut books of Malibu’s “Ultraverse” line of comics, The Strangers features a group of literal strangers, given superpowers when a bolt from above struck their cable car.  Six of the passengers unite as a superhero team, with the thought that others who gained powers might not be so altruistic.  As a concept, “The Strangers” has some similarities to “Heroes” and “Rising Stars,” both of which came later.  The book, which came out in 1993, has excellent production values for the time.   In the initial issue, the characters — a Latina businesswoman, two All-American art students, a baker, and a inner-city teen — discover their powers.  We also discover one of the people on the car wasn’t a person exactly – but she seems to have developed powers as well.  These six come in conflict with a flying princess, with whom they can’t immediately communicate.  Quite a bit happening for one issue, including the introduction of a character, Johnny Domino, injured in the cable car accident, who will become later important to the Ultraverse.
The issue is a lot of fun. If you don’t want something classically super-heroish, you probably won’t like this — “Strangers” wears its comic-book style fully on its sleeve — but a fun start to what became a very successful line.