Strangest non-event-driven change in direction/chacterization in a title

[Tzigone]

You know how it sometimes goes - you're reading a story or relationship build-up and then "wham" all of the sudden everything is in a different place (sometimes literally moving the hero to another locale). Might be because of a new writer or editorial mandate or lackluster sales numbers - whatever. Sometimes those are built up slowly, but sometimes they are abrupt. '90s Superboy comes to mind in some respects, but then, of course, you have the JLA shift to the satellite league and the general tonal shift - but back then, they didn't have the same type of on-going/multi-issue stories to be interrupted.

I'm excluding changes driven by events because they've interrupted the flow of so many comics.

So I'm curious as to which of these seems most extreme or oddest to you (and it would also help to know if you were reading real-time when it was published or later, since I'm curious if real-time reading makes it more or less obvious).

[CaptCleghorn]

This is an obvious example.

[marhawkman]

Obsidian Age. Seriously... short, yes, but... O-o;'

And yes... this was the caveman Justice League arc... so many... temporal paradoxes....

[Riv86672]

Grant Morrison taking over Doom Patrol is one of THE biggest changes in direction and characterization I can think of (and one of the best).

[K7P5V]

Obsidian Age. Seriously... short, yes, but... O-o;'

And yes... this was the caveman Justice League arc... so many... temporal paradoxes....

I know, right?! Without a doubt, All-Time Favorite

[j9ac9k]

Wonder Woman's martial arts phase was a big departure. I don't know how it happened though and how jarring it was at the time - did it just come out of nowhere?

Green Lantern: Hard Traveling Heroes. It's a classic now, but having the space-faring Green Lantern suddenly teaming up with Green Arrow to travel around the country and tackle social issues must've been a strange change of pace at the time.

[LifeIsILL]

Green Arrow New 52 run? Only example I can think of off the top of my head.

[marhawkman]

[center]I know, right?! Without a doubt, All-Time Favorite

One of the weirdest bits is that after this event... Plastic Man is now over 3 thousand years old!

[Babylon23]

Grant Morrison taking over Doom Patrol is one of THE biggest changes in direction and characterization I can think of (and one of the best).

This was my first thought, although you could argue that Morrison's run spun out of the decimation of the team in Invasion.

Another Morrison example would be Animal Man.

[Jon Clark]

Post Five Year Gap Legion.

[j9ac9k]

Post Five Year Gap Legion.

I thought about it, but that was the relaunch of a title though ... would that qualify for this thread? Titles frequently change up when there's a new #1.

[Riv86672]

Wonder Woman's martial arts phase

the space-faring Green Lantern suddenly teaming up with Green Arrow to travel around the country and tackle social issues

^^^Good ones!

Plastic Man is now over 3 thousand years old!

^^^And still looks great!

This was my first thought, although you could argue that Morrison's run spun out of the decimation of the team in Invasion.

^^^I wouldn’t argue that, but Morrison going in the direction he did still came out of left field.

[Aahz]

The Loren Jupiter Phase or the Original Teen Titans

Justice League Detroit

Nightwing becoming a mob enforcer (I don't think that was event driven)

Artemis and Bizarro getting sucked into another universe in RHatO

[Tzigone]

The Loren Jupiter Phase or the Original Teen Titans

Yes, that one was decidedly odd. It has it's fans, but I've never cared for the Jupiter era, and particularly don't care for the concept of Jupiter and his role.

[Triniking1234]

Yes, that one was decidedly odd. It has it's fans, but I've never cared for the Jupiter era, and particularly don't care for the concept of Jupiter and his role.

Honestly when I got to that point I stopped reading. I honestly don't know how Lilith/Omen caught on but it can't be for that arc.