Wonder Woman: Encyclopedia of Villains

First Appearance: (Helen Alexandros) Wonder Woman 288 (1982)
Creators: Roy Thomas and Gene Colan
Abilities: Flight, super strength, and a powerful sonic voice that can be used both to destroy or to create a protective shield.


Backstory: Of the three women to bear the name Silver Swan, Helen Alexandros is not just the first, but the only to be created through divine magic, and while the others have suffered their own physical disabilities, Helen is a classic ugly duckling, and would begin a theme of rejection and discontent that has been a part of the character ever since.

Often treated cruelly, Helen wasn’t considered beautiful enough to achieve any success no matter how well she performed as a dancer, and grew resentful of constantly being overlooked or ridiculed because of her homely appearance. One day, believing her future was doomed to failure, she called out to the heavens for vengeance on man…and the God of War answered. He transformed Helen into a beautiful, super powered Silver Swan with a “swan song” capable of devastating a small area of land with its force. And of course, the deal came with a catch! Ares would only make the change permanent if she agreed to kill his enemy, Wonder Woman.

Helen accepts the terms, and infiltrates Wonder Woman’s life as the Silver Swan. With the help of Captain Wonder (a mind controlled Steve Trevor courtesy of Dr. Psycho), the Silver Swan defeats Wonder Woman. Falling in love at first sight, she and Captain Wonder then decide they should murder the now captive Amazon in front of the President of the United States. Ares appears and demands that they also murder the president while they’re at it—Helen’s powers still at stake should she fail. Ultimately, Steve would break free from the spell and Diana would engage the Swan in combat once more.

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First Appearance: Wonder Woman 169 (1967)
Creators: Robert Kanigher and Ross Andru
Abilities: On top of the multiple limbs, he is divinely empowered with super human strength, agility and speed.


Backstory: Originally created by the God of War, this bizarre creature would later return in a more frightening form as a military weapon, but during the Silver and Bronze ages he was a literal bug man, endowed with god-like powers that made him a formidable opponent for the Amazon Champion.

Aphrodite and Ares (known as Mars during this era) have a long-standing rivalry for the fate of Earth. Diana has proven herself as an unstoppable force for justice and peace on Aphrodite’s behalf, so this time around Ares creates the Crimson Centipede in an attempt to destroy Diana once and for all.

Spreading fear and chaos wherever it roamed, and defeating Diana in their first two encounters, it seemed Ares might finally have victory with his monstrous new proxy; But in their final battle, the Centipede managed to remove Diana’s Bracelets of Submission, thinking it would leave her unprotected against his hail of bullets. What he didn’t know was that those bracelets weren’t just a fashion statement or to block attacks. By removing her bracelets, meant to bring balance, he would unleash ALL of the mighty Amazon’s furious strength, and bring about his own demise- her menacing fury only restricted when her bracelets are returned to her wrists.

The Crimson Centipede would later reappear during Rebirth as a beast created by S.T.A.R. Labs, for “military applications." A group of subversive “meninists" break into the biotech firm hoping to steal a compound believed to make women subservient, when they encounter a terrifying giant centipede with fangs.

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First Appearance: Wonder Woman 39 (2010)
Creators: Gail Simone and Bernard Chang
Abilities: The spawn of Ares (and various Amazons), Adder, Goat, Rat, Scorpion, and Spider have enhanced endurance and a supernatural ability to influence the thoughts of others.


Backstory: Born during a civil war on Themyscira, these five deviant juveniles are a result of the spiteful supernatural pregnancies of five different Amazons. As a result of their lineage, they have an unnatural level of endurance and pain tolerance, and are intellectually sharper than most adults. They may seem like articulate and well-mannered kids, but being faithful sons to their father Ares, they use that false perception to savagely manipulate people to arouse hatred and carnage, and set out to turn the world against Wonder Woman.

Only a few months old, they have grown quickly, and upon arriving in Washington DC, Diana’s home at the time, they need only use their words and innocent childlike appearances to cause destruction and riots. Their speech has a hypnotizing effect, seeding contempt, envy, and violence—so much that their victims, unable to reconcile the words of the Crow Children vs. reality, will even experience hallucinations, perceiving a normally trusted ally as a vicious enemy. Not only do they attempt to convince Etta Candy and Steve Trevor to kill each other, but when these half-Amazon ‘little monsters’ focus they can take more direct command and manage to mind-control Power Girl.

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@Jurisdiction You mean Mavis the slave to Paula von Gunther, right? I’m pretty sure Mavis Trent is an anthropologist… :eyes: don’t quote me on that tho.

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Yep!

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Name: The Great Talbot
First Appearance: Sensation Comics #93 (1949)
Creators: Robert Kanigher and H.G Peter
Abilities: The ability to read the minds of others. Gun haver.


Backstory: Formerly a small time stage magician who made a living performing a mind reading show which was carefully orchestrated thanks to his assistant using coded phrases to let him in on things going on in the crowd.

By chance a freak head injury would cause Talbot to develop the very mind reading ability he pretended to have as part of his everyday profession. Realizing the great potential this had for a live of crimes, Talbot decided to use his powers for evil.

Thus he would wander the streets to listen in on the thoughts of important individuals to glean their secrets. Discovering individuals carrying great sums of money and expensive valuables to steal for himself.

All the while also using these newly developed powers for his stage act which became ALOT more elaborate with him picking out random people out of the crowd and repeating their thoughts allowed which caused even greater crowds to turn out for his show.

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Name: Celestris Damon
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #218 (1975)
Creators: Martin Pasko and Kurt Schaffenberger
Abilities: Ability to create a machine which can take the psychic energy of willpower from one target to implant into another. Professional con artist.


Backstory: Phony big name astrologer who believes his own career to be utter bunk with no basis in any sort of reality. Celestris Damon instead focused his mind on the scientific study of psychic power, trying to harness the incredible powers of the mind to make himself rich.

Developing a machine which latches onto the powerful psychic energy known as willpower, he was able to beam it into the minds of his subjects, imbuing them with the drive to succeed and willingness to push themselves to do their best.

Thus Celestris Damon would garner the support of the rich and famous. Earning the ear of the powerful who believing his fake astrological charts predicting their success was to credit for their good fortunes when in reality it was psychic energy to credit for his great fortune.

However the source of this great wellspring of mental fortitude was unknown to Celestris Damon who shared an apartment building with Diana Prince. Nor did he care, so long as he continued to amass wealth, power, and influence.

However whenever Wonder Woman was sighted in the area be it flying her invisible plane or battling nare do wells, his machine would suddenly explode from an exess of willpower being drawn in which was far to much for it to handle.

After a dozen of such mishaps, Celestris Damon concluded Wonder Woman was to blame for his woes and setting his machine to fire a ‘will not power’ ray, he would make an effort to destroy Wonder Woman. Certain that his scheme would only succeed if he ended her life. Not realizing that she was the very source of willpower his machine was drawing from to begin with.

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Name: Changling
First Appearance: #268 (1980)
Creators: Gerry Conway and Jose Delbo
Abilities: Duel wielding gun haver. Can change his form to assume any identity with their face, voice, and mannerisms.


Backstory: Highly experienced freelance assassin who had been operating across Europe for a number of years. Changling was a mysterious figure whose true identity is an unknown. The murderer recognized only for the steel mask he often wears and the uncanny abilities he possesses.

For the Changlings name came from his ability to assume the appearance of others. Allowing him to take on the identity of any individual to get up close to his target and take them out. Copying their appearance and build, their height and voice, he was somehow able to completely alter his appearance in mere moments.

Identified by the Cartel as a useful asset, Changling would be offered the chance to join their organization, recognized as the greatest assassin in all of Europe. With the villains life on the line should he refuse. An offer which Changling pragmatically accepted.

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Name: Red Fang
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #268 (1980)
Creators: Gerry Conway and Jose Delbo
Abilities: Possesses silver arm blades and silver spike studded sandals. The ‘deadliest martial artist in the world’


Backstory: A Mongolian who for unrevealed crimes was exiled from his nomadic tribe. Red Fang would for reasons further unknown catch the attention of the Cartel who having trouble obtaining an assassin to join their group from the Asian continent, took him in.

Training him for years in the use of various martial arts and providing him with weapons in the form of silver arm blades and silver spiked sandals, they declared Red Fang to be the deadliest assassin in all of Asia, adding him to the Cartels stable of deadly assassins from around the world.

Boasting a 100% success rate and a presumably striking fear into werewolves everywhere.

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Name: Hypnota
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #11 (1944)
Creators: William Marston and H.G Peter
Abilities: The power to utterly butcher a terrible french accent. Quick change artist capable of swapping outfits in only a few seconds. Master of stagecraft. Eyes can project the ‘blue rays of dominance’ which allow him to


Backstory: One half of a pair of twins who never set foot outside of the United States. Hypnota was a stage magician who donned an abyssmal French accent and claimed to be an ‘oriental hypnotist’ performing various stage tricks such as hypnotizing people, doing vanishing acts, and pretending to survive being shot.

However when a stage show went wrong and Hypnota wound up being shot in the head by his own identical twin sister, Hypnota would be rushed to the hospital wherin an operation would lead to an emergency brain operation upon ‘the emotion centers of the brain’

This operation would lead to Hypnota developing ‘the blue rays of dominance’ which allows him to command any whom Hypnota gazes upon. Bitter with the betrayal at the hands of his own sister, Hypnota lost all faith in humanity and decided to think of only himself and his greed at the expense of others.

Thus Hypnota would become an agent of Saturn. Using his powers to enslave other Earthlings so that they may be sold off to slavery by the empire of that alien planet.

Later, Hypnota would join Villainy Inc. A group of Wonder Womans greatest foes led by the Saturnian villain Eviless in destroying the Amazons once and for all.

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Name: Hypnotic Woman
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #180 (2002)
Creators: Phil Jiminez and Roy Allan Martinez
Abilities: Can command the minds of others. Flight. Can change how she is percieved by others. Unexplained ability to burst through walls.


Backstory: Introduced in the post crisis era, Hypnotic Woman would in the modern era, Hypnotic Woman was a villainous magician with mental powers who was active during World War 2. Serving under Queen Clea, Hypnota aided the Atlantean queens efforts in conquering first Venturia and then the world.


In the Rebirth era, Hynotic Woman was shown existing in the modern era. Possessing mental powers to control the minds of others and even alter how others perceive her. Her origins and goals are unexplained, however she professes a desire to become like Wonder Woman.

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Name: Mayfly
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #78 (1993)
Creators: William Messner-Loebs and Lee Moder
Abilities: Expert with firearms. Skilled sniper. Possesses long range rifle armed with rocket propelled bullets. Possesses super speed, allowing her to move at incredible speeds. Can imbue her super speed into the bullets she fires.


Backstory: A hemophiliac assassin whose moniker of Mayfly is because she lives every day as though it were her last. Moon Robinson grew up in a neglectful home to parents who did not want her until their death in a car accident, leading to her winding up in an orphanage and then the streets.

Learning to fight, to kill in order to survive. Moon would get her hands on the deadly drug ‘Velocity 9’ which grants superspeed to those who take it at the cost of a rapidly diminished lifespan.

When the alien Dominators invaded the Earth and unleashed the gene bomb which granted many Earthlings superpowers unlocked from within their power inclined DNA, Moon Robinson was one of the lucky few who gained metahuman abilities from the incident. Granted increased powers of speed which enhanced what Velocity 9 had done for her while overwhelming any negative effects that it was having upon her body.

Becoming an assassin in order to live, Mayfly would use her powers to terrible ends. Slaughtering hundreds for millions of dollars. Taking contracts from the most seedy of politicians. The cruelest of dictators. And the most heartless of businessmen. All for the sake of proving herself to be stronger and keep anyone from looking down upon her.

Over the years purchasing properties across the world and a libraries worth of aliases and false identities, Mayfly was a dangerous foe whose incredible speed and skill with a gun ensured that few would ever see her coming.

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Name: Queen Helen
First Appearance: Sensation Comics #102 (1951)
Creators: Robert Kanigher and H.G Peter
Abilities: Commands an army of angry trojans and a fleet of ships of various types collected over millenia. PTSD induced rage against any and all wooden equines.


Backstory: Modern day direct descendant of Helen of Troy. Queen Helen is the latest in a long line of Trojans who fleeing into the southern seas between Africa and South America, stewed and plotted for thousands of years for revenge against the ancient Greeks and their horse building ways. Not advancing or changing their culture in the slightest over the course of millennia and still relying upon swords and shields as their primary method of offense and defense. Somehow due to them not having any contact with the outside world in that span of time.

When the secluded island which they dwelled upon fell across a modern shipping lane, the modern day Trojans would somehow cease ships, slay the crews, and claim those vessels as their own be they shipping freighters or military battleships.

With this, Queen Helen plotted to invade Greece and burn down the city states, taking revenge for the fall of Troy after these thousands of years~

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Name: Doctor Thiago Solano
First Appearance: Wonder Woman (TV series) Episode 201 (1977)
Portrayed by: Fritz Weaver
Abilities: Genius mad scientist with an expertise in multiple fields including chemistry and robotics. World champion fencer. Vast wealth and control of the nation of the latin American nation of Guanaray. Ability to create super advanced nuclear powered mechanical doubles. Commands a vast spy network.


Backstory: Megalomanical mad genius with an interest in world domination. Doctor Thiago Solano was born with a high level intellect which he believed was a sign that he should become ruler of the world itself!

Using his genius mind, Doctor Solano would developed advanced technologies in the central American nation of Guanaray, turning it into a world power within the region as it had advanced sciences which were unlike anything else in the world.

Commiting a series of thefts across the world and funneling the laundered money into Guanarays economy, Doctor Solano would be recognized as the wealthiest man in the nation which he ruled from the shadows. The nations president obeying his every whim.

Using a vast and well equipped spy network to spy upon and influence other nations, Solano would cause havoc and destabilize the other nations in Central America, foiling attempts by larger nations to provide aid and restore order. All with the intent of having the country of Guanaray begin gobbling up the others to expand as the country grew more and more influential.

Building a nuclear power plant to supply his nation with energy which he planned to use as a cover for the creation of nuclear weapons. Weapons such as the robot duplicate of Doctor Solano himself. Programmed with the intellect of a chess grandmaster, fencing skills to rival his own. The Robot of Doctor Solano had nuclear enhanced strength and a mastery of disguise, able to take on the voice and appearance of a target flawlessly. Capable of free will and action, the robot was programmed to also obey any order made by Doctor Solano but otherwise operate independently.


The comic continuation of events from the television series would establish Doctor Solano to have survived what had seemingly been certain death in an explosion caused by his own self destructing automaton, only to become paralyzed by the experience. But with no loss to his ambitions for world domination.

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Name: Chocolate Baron
First Appearance:
Creators:
Abilities: Immunity to Hostess Fruit Pies. Possesses gun wielding henchmen. Has a private island with a chocolate castle.


Backstory: Proclaiming himself the ruler of all things chocolate, the Chocolate Baron is a fiend whose obsession with chocolate has led to them trying to monopolize that chocolatey goodness for himself alone.

Gaining minions who would aid him in his efforts to steal the worlds chocolate in exchange for sharing in the spoils, the Chocolate Baron would operate on a private island within his chocolate castle where he could enjoy his hoard in peace.

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Name: Cooky La Moo
First Appearance:
Creators:
Abilities: Being 60 feet tall. The proportionate strength of someone who is 60 feet tall.


Backstory: Originally naught more than a simple electric billboard advertisement featuring famed actress ‘Cooky La Moo’, a freak electrical accident would somehow cause the advertisement to come to life with Cooky walking out of the sign, a sixty foot tall woman complete with the mannerisms of a hollywood diva.

Declaring a desire to become a big star to go with her big ego, Cooky would kidnap Steve Trevor, declaring him to be her agent. All with the intention of using her size and strength to bully her way to stardom~

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Name: The Borrower
First Appearance:
Creators:
Abilities: Ability to borrow things without returning them. Somehow getting away with borrowing millions of dollars and expensive jewelery without anyone batting an eye.


Backstory: Criminal nare do well with a history of borrowing things without returning them which he has done since his childhood and has seemingly not stopped since due to seemingly nobody ever actually calling him out for it.

Making a living out of grabbing whatever he wants and walking off with it, even taking out loans without any intention of ever paying them. Borrower was a thief who always left I.O.Us at the site of his crimes.

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Name: Robot Master
First Appearance:
Creators:
Abilities: Capable of creating robot duplicates of himself which can mimic his voice and mannerisms.


Backstory: Skilled roboticist who can create robotic duplicates of himself. Robot Master was a villain whose goal was nothing less than to commit the undefined crime of the century for which only the existence of multiple robotic doubles would make a reality.

His robots needing neither food nor sleep, they could keep going indefinitely unlike their creator. Not lured by things such as confectionery lures.

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Name: Orlich Hoffman
First Appearance: Wonder Woman (TV series) Episode 212 (1977)
Portrayed by: Frank Gorshin
Abilities: Genius toymaker. Robotics engineer. Access to listening devices spanning the globe. Toy army. Possesses an evil robotic double of Wonder Woman.


Backstory: Orlich was a talented toymaker who so loved his creations that he worked to develop his talents to the point that he could make them fully autonomous and answer to his bidding.

Setting up a toy store, he would sell toys out of it which were secretly his minions. Allowing him to put hundreds of spies across the city to reveal to him its secrets through the use of charities wherin he would donate toys to children from the toy shop he operated out of.

Having been discovered by the military for his genius but unaware of his villainous intent, he was hired to create deadly weapons for them off the books which would have the appearance of harmless toys to be passed off by their spies heading into other countries.

Orlichs efforts with the government being erased to hide any of his efforts, the brilliant scientist would freely work for any nation. Just as easily turning his talents towards opposing America as aiding it. For as far as he was concerned it didn’t matter who he worked for, as irregardless, it all furthered his eventual efforts towards world domination.

The most impressive of his technical abilities however was his ability to create life-like duplicates of anyone, but possessing the inhuman strength of an automaton. Robots so powerful that they could rival Wonder Woman in strength. So realistic that he could replace people and leave their closest compatriots unaware of the switch.

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Name: Henry Cobb Armbuster
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #15 (1988)
Creators: George Perez and Len Wein
Abilities: Vast wealth. Advanced cybernetic technologies. Loyal minions who would kill and die by his command.


Backstory: Multi millionaire industrialist and kingpin of the criminal underworld. Henry Cobb Armbuster was the owner of Armbuster Industries and numerous subsideries such as Toi-Choi Industries.

Using his wealth to push for a monopoly into technological sectors, Armbuster would finance research into highly advanced technologies to further his stranglehold on the industry. Arming his own private army with the armaments created by his own company to further grow his empire by carving out a niche in the criminal underworld through weapon sales and the drug trade.

Branching out into cybernetics to create powerful cyborgs. On top of state of the art geneticists who have cracked the secrets of the metahuman gene, with which he could unlock and manipulate the powers of anyone he wished.

Leaving the details to his lackey/steward/butler/millionaire minion Choi, Henry Armbuster looked only at the bigger picture. Wishing to amass wealth and power with no concern for anyones life but his own.

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Name: Human Fireworks
First Appearance: Wonder Woman #141 (1963)
Creators: Robert Kanigher and Ross Andru
Abilities: Flight. Speed of a rocket. Nature of being a living explosion capable of reforming and reshaping. Exploding on command or upon coming in contact with something, to instantly reform.


Backstory: A worker at a fireworks factory who would experiment with the concoctions they would create until an explosion caused him to become a Fireworks man. The Human Fireworks was a living explosion. A ticking time bomb of explosive force which was essentially invulnerable and unkillable.

Possessing the power of flight, this perpetual explosion in human form could detonate on the spot. Its every punch having the explosive force of dynamite for he could detonate and reform.

Desiring fame and fortune, The Human Fireworks had no grand goals or lofty ambitions to motivate his villainy. He simply wanted to make a big name for himself and roll in wealth. A simple and straight forward goal for a villain such as him.

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