Comic books don't tend to trade in subtlety. At least, superhero comics don't; best to leave the nuance and understatement to those artsy-fartsy indie types. For the superhero, it's stories of melodrama and unabashed soap opera, where the personal lives of the people behind the masks are as broadly drawn and histrionic as the multi-page action sequences where they knock seven shades of stuff out of their arch enemies. Superhero comics even rely on that most soap operatic of narrative hooks, the cliffhanger ending: who killed such-and-such? Who is this mysterious villain who seems to know so much about our hero? Tune in next time/buy the next issue to find out! Since the beginning, DC and Marvel - the "Big Two" of mainstream comic - have relied on these shocking twists to boost sales in times of trouble, to draw in new readers, or to gain some of the publicity they so desperately crave from new outlets that don't have "comic" in their name and exist on network television. There are no ends to the "shocking revelations" promised in solicitations for new issues, designed to catch your eye with teases of major character deaths, betrayals, or costume changes. It's quite easy to become jaded by the constant assurances that what you read within the pages of a funnybook will shake you to your very core. Which is why it's such a big deal when a single issue, storyline, or some behind-the-scenes shenanigans in comic books actually does manage to surprise you, for better or for worse. It reminds you that there is still something new under the sun, and that Ecclesiastes guy had no idea what he was talking about. Here are ten of the most shocking new stories that shook not only fanboys, but the world as a whole.