Editing Inferior Five (section)

==Publication history==
=== First series ===
After appearing in ''Showcase'' #62, 63, and 65 (1966), they got their own title which lasted 12 issues. The first 10 had new material and were published from 1967 to 1968.<ref name=Chron/>

Issues #11 and 12 were published in 1972, and titled ''Inferior 5'' (using the number 5 rather than spelling out the word) and were all reprints, except for the covers. Nothing changed with the alteration of the title.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Markstein |first1=Don |website=Don Markstein's Toonopedia |access-date=2 April 2020  |url=http://www.toonopedia.com/inferior.htm |title=The Inferior Five}}</ref>

=== Pre-Crisis ===
The team has appeared only sporadically after their series was canceled, with ''Showcase'' #100 being their only new appearance during the [[Bronze Age of Comic Books]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Eury|first=Michael|date=July 2013|title=Back Seat Driver|journal=[[Back Issue!]]|issue=#65| page=2|publisher=[[TwoMorrows Publishing]]}}</ref> Other appearances include a cameo appearance in ''[[Crisis on Infinite Earths]]'', ''[[Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew!|Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in The Oz–Wonderland War]]'' #3 (March 1986), and the [[Grant Morrison]]-written ''[[Animal Man (comic book)|Animal Man]]'' series. They appear in one panel in ''[[JLA: Another Nail]]'' as Flash and the Atom take a trip through many dimensions.

Although the Inferior Five's original stories made frequent references to other prominent DC heroes, ''Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! in The Oz–Wonderland War'' #3 revealed their adventures to have occurred on "Earth-Twelve", which had its own doppelgangers of the JLA, the Teen Titans, etc., meaning that any such references were out of continuity in relation to the heroes of DC's primary Earth-One.

=== Post-Crisis ===
Following ''[[Crisis on Infinite Earths]]'', where the Five were seen in background cameos, the team's sole "continuity" appearance as a team was in the 1991 ''[[Angel and the Ape]]'' miniseries, where it was revealed that Angel and Dumb Bunny are half-sisters. Members of the [[Justice League|Justice League of America]] had cameos in the series, indicating that the Inferior Five now existed on the Post-''Crisis'' Earth.

The Inferior Five appear in issue #17 of the ''[[Batman: The Brave and the Bold (comics)|Batman: The Brave and the Bold]]'' comics. The Inferior Five team up with the [[Legion of Substitute Heroes]] in ''The Brave and The Bold'' #35 and with [[Bat-Mite]] in ''Bat-Mite'' #5 (Dec. 2015).

[[Steve Gerber]] proposed a [[Vertigo Comics|Vertigo]] version of the Inferior Five as a send-up of the "dark 'n' gritty" comics of the period, but this was rejected.<ref>''[[Nevada (comics)|Nevada]]'' #1 text page</ref> Gerber later claimed that DC refused to publish anything with the title on the grounds that it would make them look "inferior" for publishing it.{{fact|date=March 2021}}

=== 2019 mini-series ===
In September 2019, a 12-issue maxi-series by [[Keith Giffen]] was initiated. It was a reinvention of the team, as the protagonists are now children in the small town of Dangerfield, Arizona. It revolves around a mystery regarding their parents, and they are the only ones that notice something strange is going on. It takes place in 1988, where the [[Invasion! (DC Comics)|invasion]] was successful on the town of Dangerfield. The aliens are in hiding, still experimenting with the metagene, and keeping a focus on the five kids. The book later reveals that the Invasion is metafictional.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Johnston |first1=Rich |title=Keith Giffen Revives Inferior Five for DC Comics in September – What to Do With Woody Allen? |url=https://www.bleedingcool.com/2019/06/14/keith-giffen-revives-inferior-five-dc-comics-september-woody-allen/ |website=Bleeding Cool |date=14 June 2019 |access-date=31 October 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Stone |first1=Sam |title=Inferior Five Enter DC's Rebirth Era Thanks To Keith Giffen, Jeff Lemire |url=https://www.cbr.com/inferior-five-dc-rebirth-keith-giffen-jeff-lemire/ |website=CBR |date=15 June 2019 |access-date=31 October 2019}}</ref> The series also contains a backup feature starring [[Peacemaker (character)|Peacemaker]]. The number of issues was soon reduced from 12 to 6.<ref>{{cite web |title=GCD::Series::Inferior Five |url=https://www.comics.org/series/150373/ |website=Grand Comics Database |access-date=6 October 2020}}</ref> There was a fifteen-month publishing hiatus between issues #4 (December 2019) and #5 (March 2021), with the last two issues released digitally.