History ComicBook / StrangeAdventures2020

## [[spoiler:The Pykkts losing the battle for Rann, despite having a solid past track record of similar conquests. Reviewing the campaign, Terrific found several flaws in their actions compared to their past successes, most notably not killing Adam when they had managed to kidnap him. Compounded, these mistakes lead Terrific to the conclusion that the Pykkts deliberately lost the war for Rann]].
## [[spoiler:The destruction of Phoenix, Arizona by the Pykkts. Terrific examined Batman's defense plan and the Pykkt's movements during the fighting carefully, and found that the weakness they used to slip by wasn't predictable or open enough for them to have been able to take advantage of it in such a short time, suggesting that they had inside information]].
## The dedication to their daughter in Adam's autobiography, specifically the Bible quote "My life is spent with grief". [[spoiler:Though it might sound like it at a first glance, the passage is actually not about loss or mourning, but about feeling disgusted by what you have become after being hurt by one's enemies; as a renowned archaeologist, Adam would know this]].

* SymbolSwearing: Applied liberally in the series. [[spoiler:Subverted when Alanna gives her speech regarding the Pykkts' ruthlessness in issue 5.]]

* AssholeVictim: A guy screams at Adam for his actions on Rann...and gets his head blown away.

* DeathOfAChild: Adam and Alanna's daughter, Aleea. Issue 2 reveals that Adam's book is dedicated to her memory. [[spoiler:Except Mister Terrific begs to differ. Issue 10 confirms it was faked and Issue 11 reveals she's in a Pykkt attack cruiser orbiting Mars.]]

* ComicBookFantasyCasting: As Mitch Gerads draws him, Sardath bears a ''serious'' resemblance to Sir Creator/PatrickStewart.

** Tom King has went on the record saying the African-American woman who gets her copy of Adam's book signed is the same one who [[ComicBook/MisterMiracle2017 asked Mister Miracle and Big Barda for a selfie]].

* BoomHeadshot: The guy that yells at Adam gets his head blown clean off his neck, complete with a large amount of blood on the floor.

* DarkerAndEdgier: It's a much darker story not just for ComicBook/AdamStrange in general, but even in the sense that ''Strange Adventures'' is the SpiritualSuccessor to ''ComicBook/MisterMiracle2017'' (which given how dark ''that'' series is relative to [[ComicBook/NewGods its source material]], says quite a bit). Adam is played as dealing with [[{{Deconstruction}} the fallout of his spacefaring adventures and the narratives he's leaving behind]], and half of the story is played more like a war drama or political thriller than a zany [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] SpaceOpera. King's ''Mister Miracle'' series had an ultimately idealistic slant and a pronounced sense of quirky humor, but ''Strange Adventures'' is much lighter on comic relief, and is more critical with its deconstructive drama. [[https://ew.com/books/best-of-2020-behind-the-scenes-strange-adventures/ King himself describes]] ''Strange Adventures'' as a much "angrier", "more caustic" book about not merely ''surviving'' mundane evils, but ''fighting'' it.

* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: The series goes all over the place with this, but generally leans towards cynical, described by King as ''ComicBook/MisterMiracle2017'''s "angrier" SpiritualSuccessor. Strange's adventures on Rann and his conflicts on Earth initially begin as separate stories, but the zany Silver Age romanticism [[{{Deconstruction}} gets repeatedly challenged by harsh reality]], with only the hope that [[IDidWhatIHadToDo Strange does what he needs to do to save the world]] being the sole glimmer of idealism. [[spoiler:Despite unveiling just how far Adam had really fallen, the series does still end on [[BittersweetEnding a bittersweet note]] -- characters have lost much from [[WarIsHell circumstance]] as much as lies pushed onto them, but while they're undoubtedly wounded, there's just enough victory and solace in the tank [[AndTheAdventureContinues to keep moving forward]].]]
* SpiritualSuccessor: To Tom King and Mitch Gerads' earlier series, ''ComicBook/MisterMiracle2017''. Both stories are extended re-evaluations of daring DC heroes, juxtaposed with [[MunDanger the conflicts of mundanity]] and the need to reconcile with [[{{Deconstruction}} the inherent darkness of their past and present]], but while ''Mister Miracle'' is ultimately a story about [[MentalHealthRecoveryArc healing]] and [[{{Determinator}} surviving adversity]], ''Strange Adventures'' is a much more critical tale about how one reacts to evil and confronting it head-on. Even the signature 9-panel grid format of ''Mister Miracle'' is evolved with ''Strange Adventures'', which generally features 3 panel rows per page.

* LeaveNoSurvivors: [[spoiler:During the war on Rann against the Pykkts, [[PayEvilUntoEvil Adam and Alanna were increasingly inclined to doing this]] once the war started turning in their favor. Granted, the Pykkts were evidently not the type to go out peacefully, but we get several scenes (and mentions of offscreen activity) [[WarCrimeSubvertsHeroism showing them executing prisoners of war and non-combatants]]. By the time they reached the last Pykkt outpost on the planet, it's only two soldiers who walk out hands-up in surrender, [[SurrenderBackfire and they get torn to shreds for their troubles]].]]

* PrecisionFStrike: Like most of Creator/TomKing's work, characters swear, but they're almost always censored as per personal preference (SymbolSwearing is so ingrained in the medium of superhero comics for him that averting it would feel wrong). However, we get a very pointed exception during issue #5: as the Justice League make their statement to Washington regarding the Pykkt's burgeoning invasion on Earth, a chairman expresses comfort towards the likelihood that their heroes will be able to find them off. Alanna -- having seen firsthand just how devastating the Pykkts actually are [[WeHaveBecomeComplacent and knowing just how bad it's going to get for Earth]] -- calls him out succinctly:

* SeriesFauxnale: ''Strange Adventures'' is presented as a non-canon finale to Adam Strange's story, built around a conflict surrounding [[RetiredBadass his and Alanna's retirement]] before a culmination of Adam's past actions on Rann start catching up to him. [[spoiler:It also ends with [[KilledOffForReal Adam's death]], something that definitely marks finality for this individual series, but is very unlikely be integrated into the DCU any time soon.]]

* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: [[DiscussedTrope In-universe, the big source of conflict is Adam seemingly applying this to himself]], retroactively questioning whether his feats of heroism on Rann really were as pure as he desired it to be. [[spoiler:Even when the comic officially answers [[ObligatoryWarCrimeScene with a resounding "no"]], there's still plenty of rumination on the need to revise history for the greater good -- after [[TheHeroDies Adam's accidental death]], Alanna and Michael agree to cover up his moral failings and claim [[DrivenToSuicide he died in a tragic suicide]], hoping to preserve what's left of the hero that history will remember him to be as they approach a greatly uncertain future without him]].

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: [[spoiler:Issue 9 shows a flashback of Adam attacking a Pykkt base. He commits two war crimes: using a chemical weapon, and then killing any Pykkts that tried to flee the base after it was detonated (no quarter). It's also confirmed that wasn't the only incident.]]

** [[spoiler:The Pykkt's invasion on Earth ends up being a genuine, if indirect case of this. Their attacks are initially quite successful even despite the combined forces of the Justice League, but this was in large part due to Adam Strange secretly collaborating with them and sabotaging Earth's plans to leave it vulnerable. Once Adam accidentally dies, this suddenly means the Pykkts no longer have their ace in the hole, and once Alanna and Michael rescue Aleea, they don't have Adam's leverage either. This ends up meaning that [[HereWeGoAgain Alanna and the planet of Rann are back on the Pykkts' hitlist once again]], but this does force the Pykkts to back off from Earth.]]

* EasilyThwartedAlienInvasion: [[DownplayedTrope "Easily" is an extremely relative term]] considering [[WarIsHell it was still hard-fought and left a massive body count]], but some of the people of Earth express uncertainty towards the idea of Adam Strange and the forces of Rann successfully repelling the Pykkts, a warmongering race that has claimed ''thousands'' of planets in the past. [[spoiler:This concern ends up being brought to a head when the Pykkts invade Earth and start winning despite Earth being armed with [[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica some of the most powerful superheroes in the universe]]. Michael puts the pieces together and deduces that [[FailureGambit the Pykkts willingly threw their invasion of Rann]] once they broke Adam into selling out all of Earth instead.]]

* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: [[spoiler:Michael correctly deduces that the reason the Pykkts decided to capture and torture him rather than simply kill him on the spot was because they wanted to make a deal with him. Killing Adam would've realistically ensured their victory over Rann [[DecapitatedArmy as his leadership was what was keeping the planet together]], so the fact they kept him around at all suggested they had prospects of an even bigger fish to fry: Earth.]]

* GoodIsNotSoft: Adam ''is'' a hero in the sense that he fights to protect Rann and his family, but the series also makes it clear he's got a brutal side. At one point as he travels Rann to rally its races against the Pykkts, he's put in [[GladiatorGames a gladitorial duel]] with the Hellotaats' champion to prove he's worthy of their alliance, which he secures [[PragmaticHero by blindsiding his Hellotaat challenger after he "wins" and beating his head into a bloody pulp]]. [[spoiler:With the endgame reveal that he secretly and willingly sold out Earth to the Pykkts and used his daughter as a bargaining chip, he ends an UnscrupulousHero at best]].

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: Issue 9 shows a flashback of Adam attacking a Pykkt base. He commits two war crimes: using a chemical weapon, and then killing any Pykkts that tried to flee the base after it was detonated (no quarter). It's also confirmed that wasn't the only incident.

Adam has recently retired to Earth with his beloved wife Alanna, where he has written a memoir of his escapades on Rann and is on tour to promote it while signing copies. But the good times come to a screeching halt when a man angrily confronts Adam over what happened on Rann. To make matters worse, that same man was later found murdered not long after by a space gun.

* {{Postmodernism}}: The series dips into this, with the most obvious giveaway being that the memoir of Adam's tales that provokes the discussion on Adam's past influencing his present [[RecursiveCanon is]] ''[[RecursiveCanon Strange Adventures]]'' [[RecursiveCanon itself]]. Much like the in-universe book, this series is meant to [[{{Deconstruction}} raise questions on the nature of Adam Strange as a character]] while contextualized within various of his stories, juxtaposing the glamorous side of his SpaceOpera plights to the darker reality they don't generally want audiences to know about or question.