Whatever Happened to Hourman & the Challengers

The Challengers of the Unknown were a quartet of costumed crusaders, each specialists in specific disciplines, who believed they cheated death by surviving a plane crash. Motivated by this, they were the premier non-superhero team of protectors on Earth-One during the latter half of the 20th century. Hourman and the Minute-Men were a team of powered protectors who south to save innocents from various threats on Earth-Two during the middle part of the 20th century.

There came a point after all four Challengers settled down to have families when they limited their adventuring to raise their families. One of their wives, Ace’s wife June Robbins, was a long-time honorary fifth Challenger back in their younger days. While Prof Davis, Red Ryan, and Ace Morgan had sons resembling each of them, Rocky Davis had a daughter named Roxanne. Nevertheless, this girl was confident enough to join in with the boys on both of their adventures, paving the way for the next generation of the Challengers.

Chemist Rex Tyler as Hourman began recruiting local lads in Appleton City... which soon changed its name to Cosmos... in order to aid him in tracking down common crooks, mad scientists, bizarre aliens, and the like. Among the regulars were Jimmy Martin and Thorndyke Tompkins of his Minute Men of America, while other kids from across the country such as Les Sparks assisted while visiting Cosmos. Although Rex had a son who likewise followed in his footsteps, he was emotionally closer to his junior sidekicks back in the early 1940s than his teenage son in the 1970s and 1980s. The Minute-Men only lasted for a couple of years (much like Rex’s girlfriend Regina Paige Bannermain, niece of Tyler’s boss, who shared with Hourman and the Minute Men in at least three of their adventures).

With all these aspiring mystery men, Hourman allowed them to energize themselves using his experimental Miraclo Black Light Ray. This activated the Miraclo pills he previously created. Similarly, the Challengers had several temporary powers during a few cases which like Hourman included superhuman strength and physique. Likewise, the Miraclo pill and ray the Minute Men were exposed to mirrored the liquid light and Prof's chemical anecdote used by their foe Multi-Man.

Decades later, Rex met the next generation of aspiring youths, only these four sought to plunder Tyler Chemical. Their goal was  to steal Tyler’s experimental TCR-113 chemical, which they claimed would harm future generations. An Hourman, partially empowered by a deteriorating Miraclo pill, successfully defeated the quartet and recovered the TCR-113, claiming that his alter ego’s company would use this chemical only for beneficial purposes to humanity.

While these young teen teams were not as legendary as the Teen Titans and Blue Boys, nor the Forever People or Infinity, Inc., they were still notable footnotes in history.