Jump to content

Cheetah (character)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Cheetah" redirects here. For other uses, see Cheetah (disambiguation).
Cheetah
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah as depicted in Wonder Woman #750 (January 2020). Art by Nicola Scott.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearance
  • Rich:
    Wonder Woman #6 (Autumn 1943)
  • Domaine:
    Wonder Woman #274 (December 1980)
  • Minerva:
    Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #7 (August 1987)
  • Ballesteros:
    Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #170 (July 2001)
Created by
In-story information
Alter ego
  • Priscilla Rich
  • Deborah Domaine
  • Dr. Barbara Ann Minerva
  • Sebastian Ballesteros
SpeciesHuman (Priscilla Rich and Deborah Domaine)
Metahuman (Barbara Ann Minerva and Sebastian Ballesteros)
Team affiliations
Abilities
Priscilla Rich
  • Skilled actor
  • Expert martial artist, acrobat, and stuntwoman

Deborah Domaine

  • Master gymnast, aerialist, and hand-to-hand combatant
  • Costume equipped with claws

Barbara Ann Minerva and Sebastian Ballesteros

  • Spell from Urzkartaga grants:
  • Superhuman strength, speed, stamina, durability, agility, and reflexes
  • Acute senses
  • Skilled hand-to-hand combatant
  • Powerful claws and teeth

The Cheetah is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, most commonly as a major adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman.[1] Like her nemesis, she was created by William Moulton Marston and H. G. Peter, debuting in the autumn of 1943 in Wonder Woman #6.

There have been four incarnations of Cheetah: Priscilla Rich (Golden and Silver Age), Deborah Domaine (Bronze Age), Barbara Ann Minerva (post-Crisis and current), and Sebastian Ballesteros, a male usurper who briefly assumed the role in 2001.

The Cheetah character has been adapted in various forms of media outside of comics, including animated series, films, and video games. Kristen Wiig portrayed the Barbara Minerva version of the character in the 2020 DC Extended Universe film Wonder Woman 1984, marking the character's live-action debut.[2]

Publication history

[edit]
Name First appearance Date of first appearance Created by
Priscilla Rich Wonder Woman #6 (autumn 1943) and Sensation Comics #22 (October 1943)1 October 1943 William Moulton Marston and H. G. Peter
Deborah Domaine Wonder Woman #274 December 1980 Gerry Conway and José Delbo
Barbara Ann Minerva Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #7[3] August 1987 Len Wein and George Pérez
Sebastian Ballestreros Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #170 July 2001 Phil Jimenez and Joe Kelly

Fictional character biography

[edit]

Priscilla Rich

[edit]
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah as depicted in Wonder Woman #6 (1943). Art by H. G. Peter.

The first woman to become the Cheetah is Priscilla Rich, a 1940s-era Washington, D.C., debutante and aristocrat.[4] She has a split personality that compels her to commit crimes dressed as a cheetah.[5] Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths reboot, Rich is killed by successor Barbara Minerva.[6][7]

The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah as depicted in Wonder Woman #230 (1977); art by Vince Colletta and Ernie Chan.

Deborah Domaine

[edit]
Deborah Domaine as the Cheetah in Justice League of America #197 (1981); art by George Pérez and Keith Pollard.

Deborah Domaine is Priscilla Rich's niece, who was kidnapped by Kobra and forced to become Cheetah.[8] Domaine has also been a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains.[9] She has not appeared since Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Barbara Minerva

[edit]
Barbara Minerva debuts as the Cheetah in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #9 (1987); art by George Pérez and Bruce D. Patterson.

The third Cheetah is British archaeologist Barbara Minerva, the heiress to a vast fortune in her ancient family seat in Nottinghamshire. Minerva finances an expedition to find a tribe in Africa, which is said to be protected by a female guardian with the powers of a cheetah. Minerva agrees to become the tribe's new guardian after being told that she would gain immortality. Minerva ingests a potion made from human blood and the berries and leaves of the plant god Urzkartaga, which gives her a cheetah-like appearance and abilities.[10][11]

In The New 52 continuity reboot, Minerva is depicted as gaining her powers after accidentally cutting herself with a cursed dagger and being possessed by the Goddess of the Hunt.[12][13] The DC Rebirth relaunch restores her origin of being empowered by Urzkartaga.[14]

The Cheetah in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #118 (1996); art by John Byrne.

Sebastian Ballesteros

[edit]
Sebastian Ballesteros as the fourth Cheetah from Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #171 (August 2001), art by Phil Jimenez.

Argentine business tycoon Sebastian Ballesteros becomes the fourth Cheetah, as well as the only male Cheetah. He is an agent of the Amazon's enemy, Circe, as well as her lover. He seeks Urzkartaga to become a new version of Cheetah, a supernatural cat-creature like Barbara Minerva. Minerva battles Ballesteros for control of the Cheetah's power by becoming the temporary host of Tisiphone. Minerva kills Ballesteros, regains her powers, and gives Ballesteros's blood to Urzkartaga as a sacrifice.[15]

Powers and abilities

[edit]

The Barbara Minerva and Sebastian Ballesteros incarnations of Cheetah exhibit similar abilities. Their basic attributes consist of enhanced strength and speed on par with Wonder Woman, as well as heightened senses of smell and hearing for hunts and night vision for stealth. Their reflexes and agility are similarly augmented, allowing them superior gymnastic abilities for inhuman mobility. These superhuman traits allow them to challenge Wonder Woman in physical battles. Additionally, their fangs and claws are preternaturally sharp and strong. While the two more modern incarnations of Cheetah possess superhuman powers, the earlier versions of Priscilla Rich and Deborah Domaine do not.

Originally only able to change during a full moon and remaining weak and frail in her human body, Barbara Minerva was chemically enhanced by the sorceress Circe to remain in her Cheetah body indefinitely and change at will. This also gave her dominion over all species of felines. In The New 52 continuity, Minerva is shown to pierce Superman's invulnerable skin with her fangs just as easily as if he were human. Additionally, her bite transfers some of her powers into her victims, turning them into feline hybrids under her control.

Other versions

[edit]
  • An unidentified alternate universe variant of Cheetah appears in JLA/Avengers as a minion of Krona.
  • An unidentified alternate universe variant of Cheetah appears in Wonder Woman: The Blue Amazon.
  • An alternate universe variant of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah makes a cameo appearance in DC: The New Frontier.
  • An alternate universe variant of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah appears in Wednesday Comics. This version is an young archaeologist from a wealthy Baltimore family whose abilities are derived from enchanted artifacts.
  • An alternate universe variant of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah appears in Justice. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.
  • An unidentified alternate universe variant of Cheetah appears in the Odyssey storyline. This version was created from the corpse of a murdered Amazon after it is lowered into a mystical restoration pit and infused with the spirit of Magaera.[16][17]
  • An unidentified alternate universe variant of Cheetah appears in Flashpoint. This version is a member of Wonder Woman's Furies before being killed by Etrigan.[18][19]
  • An unidentified incarnation of Cheetah appears in Scooby-Doo Team-Up. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.[20]
  • An unidentified incarnation of Cheetah appears in Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman.[21][22][23]
  • An alternate universe variant of Priscilla Rich appears in The Legend of Wonder Woman. This version is an ally of and financial backer for the Nazi Party.[24]
  • An alternate universe variant of Barbara Minerva appears in Superman: American Alien.[25]
  • An alternate universe variant of Barbara Minerva appears in Wonder Woman: Dead Earth.[26]

In other media

[edit]

Television

[edit]
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the Super Friends franchise, voiced by Marlene Aragon. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in series set in the DC Animated Universe (DCAU), voiced by Sheryl Lee Ralph.[27] This version is a former scientist who was involved in valuable genetic research and eventually resorted to experimenting on herself due to lacking funding and test subjects, causing her to mutate into a human-cat hybrid. Shunned by the scientific community for her recklessness and ostracized by humanity as a freak, she turned to crime to fund further research to undo the change. In Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, Minerva respectively joins Lex Luthor's Injustice Gang and Gorilla Grodd's Secret Society.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Morena Baccarin.[27]
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in the Super Best Friends Forever short "Name Game".[27]
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the title sequence of the "DC Super Pets" segment of DC Nation Shorts.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in DC Super Hero Girls (2015) and its tie-in films, voiced by Ashley Eckstein.[27] This version is a student at Super Hero High with an antagonistic attitude towards Wonder Woman and her classmates.
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in DC Super Friends, voiced by Blaze Berdahl.[27]
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah makes a non-speaking appearance in the Justice League Action short "Quality Time".[27]
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in DC Super Hero Girls (2019), voiced by Tara Strong.[27] This version is a wealthy teenage high school student who uses the civilian nickname "Barbi", can control her transformations at will, and does not speak while transformed. Additionally, she gained her abilities after accidentally cursing herself with a cat idol while attempting to use it on Diana Prince after becoming jealous of her popularity.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah makes non-speaking cameo appearances in Harley Quinn as a member of the Legion of Doom.[28]

Film

[edit]
Kristen Wiig portrays Barbara Minerva / Cheetah in Wonder Woman 1984.

Video games

[edit]
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character in Justice League Task Force.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in DC Universe Online, voiced by Adriene Mishler.[27] In the hero campaign, she serves as a boss. In the villain campaign, she is a vendor in the Hall of Doom's magic wing.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a boss and mini-boss in Justice League: Injustice for All.
  • The Barbara Minerva, Priscilla Rich, and Sebastian Ballesteros incarnations of Cheetah appear as character summons in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure, with Minerva additionally appearing as a boss.[35]
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah, based on her New 52 appearance, appears as an unlockable costume in LittleBigPlanet 2 via the "DC Comics Premium Level Pack" DLC.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character in DC Legends.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character in DC Unchained.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah, based on her New 52 counterpart, appears as a playable character in Injustice 2, voiced again by Erica Luttrell.[36][37] This version is a member of Gorilla Grodd's "Society".
  • The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains,[38] voiced again by Erica Luttrell.[39] This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.

Books

[edit]
  • An unidentified incarnation of Cheetah appears in Attack of the Cheetah and The Fastest Pet on Earth, both by Jane B. Mason and published by Capstone as part of their DC Super Heroes line of illustrated children's books.[40][41] Similarly to the Priscilla Rich incarnation, this version has a pet cheetah named Chauncey.
  • An unidentified incarnation of Cheetah appears in the Capstone children's book, Cheetah and the Purrfect Crime, by Laurie S. Sutton.[42]

Miscellaneous

[edit]
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the first two issues of the non-canonical Super Friends comic book series. She along with the Penguin, Toyman, Poison Ivy, and the Human Flying Fish mentor junior criminals, with Rich being partnered with a teenage girl named Kitten.
  • The Deborah Domaine incarnation of Cheetah appears in the 1982 Wonder Woman audiobook story "Cheetah on the Prowl", voiced by Sonia Manzano.
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in a flashback in Teen Titans Go! #54.
  • The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold tie-in comic book series.
  • The Injustice incarnation of Barbara Minerva / Cheetah makes a minor appearance in the Injustice: Gods Among Us prequel comic.
  • The Priscilla Rich and Barbara Minerva incarnations of Cheetah both appear in Wonder Woman '77. The former appears in issue #6 as an illusion created by Doctor Psycho,[43] while the latter makes recurring appearances later in the series after being empowered by Mafdet.[44][45][46][47]

Cultural impact and legacy

[edit]

Every since her first appearance, Cheetah has been referred as the most iconic Wonder Woman villain. Abraham Josephine Riesman of The Vulture referred to her as an Big Deal stating "she’s one of the all-time most iconic Wonder Woman foes. She’s ubiquitous and colorful enough to possibly be defined as Diana’s Joker. Case in point: When the legendary Challenge of the Super Friends DC cartoon aired back in the day, WW’s counterpart on the Legion of Doom was Cheetah, confirming her archnemesis status".[48] Sarah Moran of Screen Rant stated "Ares isn't Diana's most iconic villain, he isn't her Joker or Lex Luthor. That would be Cheetah,[49] Rachel Leishman of The Mary Sue wrote, "Minerva is a fun villain in general because she often connects with people like Lex Luthor or the Joker to come after our heroes, and while neither of them are in 1984, it could set up future connections between the Superman and Batman villains and Cheetah as DC’s interconnected movie universe finds its path forward. The more I look at Wiig as Cheetah, though, the more I’m concerned that I’m going to end up really loving her as the villain".[50]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; McAvennie, Michael; Wallace, Daniel (2019). DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle. DK Publishing. p. 41. ISBN 978-1-4654-8578-6.
  2. ^ Betancourt, David (March 9, 2018). "Kristen Wiig will star in 'Wonder Woman' sequel as the Cheetah, Patty Jenkins confirms". The Washington Post.
  3. ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 67. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
  4. ^ Jimenez, Phil; Wells, John (2010). The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. pp. 83–85. ISBN 978-0345501073.
  5. ^ Wonder Woman #6 (October 1943). DC Comics.
  6. ^ Wonder Woman: Our Worlds at War #1 (September 2001). DC Comics.
  7. ^ The Flash #219 (April 2005). DC Comics.
  8. ^ Wonder Woman #274. (Dec. 1980). DC Comics.
  9. ^ Justice League of America #195. DC Comics.
  10. ^ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p. 56. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
  11. ^ Greenberger, Robert (2008), "Cheetah II", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The DC Comics Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, p. 80, ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1, OCLC 213309017
  12. ^ Johns, Geoff (w), Lee, Jim (p), Williams, Scott (i). Justice League (vol. 2) #13 (December 2012). DC Comics.
  13. ^ Forever Evil: A.R.G.U.S. #5. DC Comics.
  14. ^ Wonder Woman (vol. 5) #18 (May 2017). DC Comics.
  15. ^ Greenberger, Robert (2008), "Cheetah III", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The DC Comics Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, p. 80, ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1, OCLC 213309017
  16. ^ Wonder Woman #606 (February 2011) DC Comics
  17. ^ Wonder Woman #607 (March 2011). DC Comics.
  18. ^ Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies #2 (July 2011). DC Comics.
  19. ^ Flashpoint: Lois Lane and the Resistance #2 (July 2011). DC Comics.
  20. ^ Scooby-Doo Team-Up #11-12 (2014). DC Comics.
  21. ^ Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman #2. DC Comics.
  22. ^ Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman #9. DC Comics.
  23. ^ Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman #17. DC Comics.
  24. ^ The Legend of Wonder Woman #19 (March 2016). DC Comics.
  25. ^ Superman: American Alien #3. DC Comics.
  26. ^ "WONDER WOMAN: DEAD EARTH #1". DC. 2019-11-27. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Cheetah Voices (Wonder Woman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved December 14, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  28. ^ HARLEY QUINN Comic-Con® 2019 Video: First-Look Preview #WBSDCC (Video). Warner Bros. July 20, 2019. Retrieved July 23, 2019.[dead YouTube link]
  29. ^ Vejvoda, Jim (28 May 2015). "LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes – Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom! Trailer Debut".
  30. ^ "WATCH: Legion of Doom Attacks in Exclusive "Justice League vs Teen Titans" Clip". 2016-03-29. Archived from the original on 2016-03-30. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  31. ^ "Wonder Woman Bloodlines Gets Synopsis, Art, Voice Cast". comicbookresources. July 29, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2019.
  32. ^ Christi Carras (June 27, 2018). "'Wonder Woman 1984' Shares First Look at Kristen Wiig's Cheetah".
  33. ^ Couch, Aaron (August 17, 2021). "'Catwoman: Hunted' Sets Voice Cast (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
  34. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (May 7, 2024). "WB Details Next DC Animated Chapter 'Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Three'". Animation Magazine. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
  35. ^ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
  36. ^ Makuch, Eddie (14 February 2017). "New Injustice 2 Trailer Shows Off The Female Fighters". Gamespot.
  37. ^ @shukrani (April 1, 2017). ""I long for Amazon blood..." #Cheetah #injustice2 @InjusticeGame #May16" (Tweet). Retrieved April 3, 2017 – via Twitter.
  38. ^ McWhertor, Michael (May 30, 2018). "New Lego game lets you team up with Joker, Harley Quinn and other DC bad guys". Polygon. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  39. ^ "Media". Archived from the original on 2018-06-09. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  40. ^ "Attack of the Cheetah". Capstone.
  41. ^ "The Fastest Pet on Earth". Capstone.
  42. ^ "Cheetah and the Purrfect Crime". Capstone.
  43. ^ Wonder Woman '77 #6 (April 2015). DC Comics.
  44. ^ Wonder Woman '77 #7 (August 2015). DC Comics.
  45. ^ Wonder Woman '77 #9 (September 2015). DC Comics.
  46. ^ Wonder Woman '77 #14 (February 2016). DC Comics.
  47. ^ Batman '66 Meets Wonder Woman '77 #1 (2017). DC Comics.
  48. ^ "Kristen Wiig's Wonder Woman 2 Character, the Cheetah, Explained". The Vulture. 9 March 2018. Retrieved Feb 2, 2024.
  49. ^ "ow A Wonder Woman Sequel Could Introduce Cheetah". Screen Rant. 13 June 2017. Retrieved Feb 2, 2024.
  50. ^ "We Finally Have a Look at Kristen Wiig as Cheetah in Wonder Woman 1984". The Mary Sue. 10 July 2020. Retrieved Feb 2, 2024.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cheetah_(character)&oldid=1284139682"