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Cheetah (comics)
The Cheetah is a fictional character, created by William Moulton Marston, and appearing in DC Comics publications and related media,
commonly as a major adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman. There have been four different incarnations of the Cheetah
since the character's debut: Priscilla Rich, Deborah Domaine, Barbara Ann Minerva, and Sebastian Ballesteros. In 2009,
The Cheetah was ranked as IGN's 69th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.
 Golden Age, Silver Age, and Post-Crisis comics history 
Prior to the 12-issue DC Comics series Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985, there were two women who donned spotted cat costumes
to fight Wonder Woman as the Cheetah: socialite Priscilla Rich and her niece Deborah Domaine.
While modern incarnations of the Cheetah possess superhuman powers, Rich and Domaine do not.
There are two post-Crisis Cheetahs: Barbara Ann Minerva and Sebastian Ballesteros, Minerva being the more prominent of the two.
While the pre-Crisis Cheetahs are simply women in costumes, the post-Crisis Cheetahs have taken on a more mystical note,
being champions of a god much as Wonder Woman is to her patrons; actually morphing into powerfully ferocious humanoid were-cheetahs
with great strength, agility, and deadly claws and fangs which make them challenging opponents to Wonder Woman and other powerful heroes in battle.
Priscilla Rich
 [^]  The first woman to become the Cheetah, in Wonder Woman, is Priscilla Rich, a 1940s-era blonde Washington,
D.C. debutante of aristocratic upbringing who also has an overwhelming inferiority complex and suffers from a split personality and self-importance.
After being eclipsed by Wonder Woman at a charity event and failing to kill her during an escapology act, Priscilla retreats to her room
and collapses before her makeup mirror. There she sees an image of a woman dressed like a cheetah. "Horrors!" she cries, as she gazes
at her evil inner-self for the first time. "Don't you know me?" replies the reflection. "I am the REAL you—the Cheetah—a treacherous,
relentless huntress!" The image commands her to fashion a Cheetah costume from a cheetah-skin rug. "From now on," intones the reflection,
"when I command you, you shall go forth dressed like your TRUE self and do as I command you." The Cheetah frames Wonder Woman for a robbery
by hiding the money in her apartment and tipping off the police, then sets fire to a warehouse Wonder Woman is in, although Wonder Woman escapes.
She is presumed dead, but survives thanks to her fireproof costume. She later kidnaps a young ESPer named Gail and uses the girl's powers
to learn U.S. military secrets, which she gives to the Japanese. Wonder Woman manages to thwart the plot and rescue Gail,
with Cheetah warning Wonder Woman to stay out of her affairs. She soon returns
when an American military official organizes an athletic competition between female athletes from America
and a group of women trained on Paradise Island. Priscilla ties up and gags an Olympic high hurdler named Kay Carlton, and impersonates her
by donning her clothes. Disguised as Kay, Priscilla infiltrates the contest and manages to kidnap Queen Hippolyta and steal her magical girdle.
With Hippolyta as her hostage and her own abilities boosted by the girdle, Cheetah battles Wonder Woman for control of Paradise Island.
She is defeated when the Amazon manages to pull the girdle off her. Temporarily freed from the Cheetah's influence, Priscilla asks
to remain on Paradise Island until she can learn to control her split personality. Priscilla's attempt at reformation apparently failed,
as she is later seen as a member of Villainy Inc., a criminal association between several of Wonder Woman's female foes.
Priscilla has several run-ins with Wonder Woman before retiring to her North Shore Maryland mansion. In Wonder Woman 74,
the villain Kobra attempts to recruit the villainess for his organization. His operative finds the reclusive Priscilla an invalid.
Priscilla's niece Deborah Domaine had come at her bidding, and the operative stays to observe.
Before Priscilla can unburden her alter ego as the Cheetah, she dies. DC later relaunched its continuity
with the 1985 series Crisis on Infinite Earths, introducing a new Cheetah for the Modern Age, Barbara Minerva. The original Cheetah,
Priscilla Rich, is established as still existing post-Crisis when Queen Hippolyta becomes the Golden Age Wonder Woman. In the present,
she is seen as an elderly woman when she is murdered by Minerva. It is also established that she never became an invalid post-Crisis,
as Minerva mentions how Priscilla had written books condemning her when she became the Cheetah. Rich is murdered in her home by Minerva,
under the urging of Zoom. Zoom theorizes that if Minerva kills Rich, she would solidify herself as the one true Cheetah
and thus be a better villain. Following DC's 2011 relaunch, Rich is retconned from continuity.
Priscilla Rich is one of the many aliases Barbara Minerva uses to commit crimes as Cheetah.
Deborah Domaine
 [^]  Deborah 'Debbie' Domaine was introduced as the niece of Priscilla Rich. A beautiful young debutante, Debbie feels remorse
for her wealthy upbringing and decides to become an ecology activist, meeting Wonder Woman and striking up a friendship with her.
Later that same day, Debbie is summoned to her Aunt Priscilla's mansion and finds her there, succumbing to illness. After Priscilla Rich dies,
Kobra's operatives capture Deborah and bring her and the Cheetah costume to Kobra's headquarters, where he questions her:
"You didn't know about your aunt's secret life, did you? Well, you'll learn—Since we couldn't have the original, we decided to make do
with a recreation. You shall be that recreation, Ms. Domaine." Kobra tortures and brainwashes Debbie and provides her
with an updated version of the Cheetah costume. The original suit included a cat-eared cowl and clawed, flat-soled boots.
Debbie's version has a V-neck, slit to the sternum, a headband with cat-ears, and heeled boots.
Both costumes include razor-sharp chrome steel nails, painted bright red. "You are my servant, and I, your master. You are the Cheetah!" he cries,
"And you will fill the world with terror!" Debbie has several conflicts with Wonder Woman
and also serves as a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains in a conflict with both the Justice League of America
and the Justice Society of America, before her role as the Cheetah is retconned out of existence due
to the history-altering aftereffects of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Debbie still exists post-Crisis, as referenced
by a photo in Priscilla Rich's mansion inscribed to "Aunt Priscilla, Love Debbie." Following DC's 2011 relaunch, Deborah Domaine is retconned
from continuity, and her name is merely one of the many aliases Barbara Minerva uses to commit crimes as Cheetah.
Barbara Ann Minerva
 [^]  The third Cheetah is British archaeologist Dr. Barbara Ann Minerva,
born as the heiress of a vast fortune in the ancient family site in Nottinghamshire. Ambitious, selfish, and severely neurotic,
Barbara develops a passion for archaeology that eventually led her to search out a tribe in Africa who utilizes a female guardian
with the powers of a cheetah. A band of marauders kill the guardian and most of what remained of her original expedition party. Barbara,
with the aid of the priest, Chuma, the caretaker of the ancient plant god Urzkartaga,
takes her place after being told that she would gain immortality. Her powers are conferred to her by ingesting a combination of human blood
and the berries or leaves of Urzkartaga. Unfortunately for Minerva, the host of the Cheetah persona is intended to be a virgin. Minerva is not,
however, so her transformations were part curse and part blessing, as she experiences severe pain and physical disability while in her human form
and bloodthirsty euphoria while in her cat form. This Cheetah was active before Wonder Woman's post-Crisis appearance,
and confronts Catwoman in Rome during the events of Batman: Dark Victory and Catwoman: When in Rome.
This version of the Cheetah comes into Wonder Woman's world when Barbara discovers that Diana possesses the Lasso of Truth. As an archaeologist,
Barbara covets the lasso hoping to add it to her collection of historical items. She first attempts to do so through trickery,
claiming that there is a matching ancient Golden Girdle of Gaea of the same kind from which the lasso was fashioned. Unfortunately,
although the scheme proceeds far enough for Minerva to hold the lasso, its magical power to make people tell the truth forces her
to confess her true intentions. Diana, profoundly distraught that she would be so treacherous, takes back the lasso and returns home in tears.
With the subtle approach having failed, Minerva resorts to attacking the Amazon as the Cheetah in order to rob her of the lasso.
Their initial battle ends with inconclusive results, as Diana's friend, Julia Kapatelis, shoots the Cheetah and forces her to retreat.
Over the years, Barbara's interest in the lasso wanes and she becomes more interested in besting Diana in battle due to her bruised ego.
The rivalry between the Cheetah and Wonder Woman fluctuates, though. Wonder Woman saves the Cheetah's life
during an adventure in the Balkan country of Pan Balgravia. The country's dictator Baron Von Nastraed, for unknown reasons, chooses
to aid a demon named Drax by capturing a powerful metahuman woman. The captive woman's body would be used
to house Drax's alternate dimension bride Barremargux. When the Baron captures the Cheetah for this purpose, Wonder Woman travels to the country
to save her. At the last moment, when Barremargux is about to enter Earth-One, Barbara closes the gateway before the crossing could be completed
by jumping into the gateway instead.
Barbara is trapped in this demonic dimension until the Boston mob boss Julianna Sazia has scientists open the dimensional gateway
to retrieve Barbara to serve her own ends. Barbara double-crosses Julianna, choosing to aid Wonder Woman
when she is caught in the mob war between Paulie Longo and Julianna Sazia in Boston. Seeing her debt to Wonder Woman paid for attempting
to rescue her in Pan Balgravia, the Cheetah continues her quest to defeat Wonder Woman when it is convenient to her. For a brief period of time,
Minerva loses her powers to the businessman Sebastian Ballesteros, who convinces Urzkartaga that he could be a more effective Cheetah than she was.
Minerva later kills Ballesteros and regains her powers. The relationship Minerva has with Urzkartaga is strained at times
for all of Minerva's intense devotion and loyalty. At one point, the god punishes her by leaving one of Minerva's hands human looking
and untransformed even while she is in her Cheetah form, though it appears to still be fully empowered as the rest of her body
and equally as deadly. With help from Zoom, Minerva attains a level of super-speed even greater than she previously possessed. She accomplishes this
by murdering Priscilla Rich, who previously went by the codename Cheetah. They later join the latest Secret Society of Super Villains, and seem
to be engaged in a sexual relationship, though Zoom considers himself to still be married to his former wife. In the "One Year Later" storyline,
the witch Circe places a spell on Minerva that allows her to change her appearance from human to Cheetah at will,
even though she still remains in her Cheetah form in either guise. She controls three actual cheetahs and still possesses her super-speed,
which is demonstrated by her ability to steal the golden lasso away from Donna Troy several times in battle.
She is later seen in the Justice League of America Wedding Special, forming a new Injustice League alongside Lex Luthor and the Joker.
She also appears in Salvation Run. Later still, in Final Crisis: Resist, she joins forces with Checkmate to rebel against Darkseid,
and enjoys a brief relationship with Snapper Carr. In the pages of Wonder Woman, she is revealed as the power behind the Secret Society, responsible
for the creation of Genocide. She arranges
to have her ally Doctor Psycho take the place of Sarge Steel as director of the Department of Metahuman Affairs which,
in the middle of Genocide's onslaught, she targets for destruction.
 The New 52 
In 2011, DC relaunched its comic books, and rebooted its continuity in an initiative called The New 52. The character was re-made
to be a corrupt image and antecedent to Wonder Woman. Barbara Ann Minerva is reintroduced as Cheetah. As part of her new backstory,
Minerva is referred to as an accomplice to Wonder Woman and an expert in dangerous relics,
and having previously grown up in an all-woman commune called "Amazonia". In the possession of a dagger once belonging to a lost tribe of Amazons,
she cut herself on it. She was possessed by the Goddess of the Hunt, transforming her into a human/cheetah hybrid.
Her claws can also turn Superman into a cheetah-like being. The origin of the Cheetah is dated back to the San Tribe, who
for centuries had hunted alongside the cheetahs and every generation one of their members is chosen
to become the host of the Goddess of the Hunt until one day a hunter killed the current host; the knife used
to kill her was cursed until it fell in the hands of Minerva. Cheetah is subdued by the Justice League and placed in Belle Reve. However,
once there, she makes contact with someone telling him she is where he requested, implying her capture was staged as a part of a bigger plan.
During the Forever Evil storyline, Cheetah is among the supervillains recruited by the Crime Syndicate
to join the Secret Society of Super-Villains. A vision that Psi shows to Steve Trevor is that Cheetah is in possession of Wonder Woman's lasso
and is hiding out in Central Park. When Steve Trevor and Killer Frost arrived in Central Park to look for Cheetah, they end up ambushed by Cheetah
and her Menagerie. Cheetah manhandles Trevor using Wonder Woman’s lasso. Steve Trevor manages to overcome the lasso
and explains that only Diana could use it as she was herself truthful and pure. As Cheetah is not that, Trevor manages to get the lasso off
and onto Cheetah. While Killer Frost escapes and freezes Cheetah’s Menagerie, Steve Trevor knocks Cheetah out.
 DC Rebirth 
After the events of DC Rebirth, Cheetah's origin is altered. As a young girl, Barbara Ann Cavendish enjoyed mythology and showed an affinity
for language. Her father disparaged her interest in myth, deriding it as childish. In defiance of her father, her passion for myth
and legend remained and as an adult she took her late mother's maiden name of Minerva. By age 26, she had mastered 7 languages
and earned 2 PhD's in archaeology. On a dig in the Ukraine, she discovered proof of the existence of the Amazons, but the dig site collapsed.
Minerva was able to take photos before the collapse and followed her findings to the Black Sea, only to find what she believed was an empty island.
After Princess Diana of the Amazons returned US Navy SEAL Steve Trevor to the United States, the Navy called Dr Minerva
to translate Diana's language. Minerva became close friends with Diana and Lt. Etta Candy and taught Diana English as well as other languages.
After Ares attacks the naval base and several of the Olympian Gods assist Diana in Ares' defeat, Minerva became even more obsessed with the divine.
Seeking out proof of other deities, Barbara Ann learns of Urzkartaga and obtains funding for an expedition
to the fictional African nation of Bwunda from Veronica Cale. Unbeknownst to Minerva, Cale was acting on behalf of the sons of Ares, Deimos
and Phobos, who believed that by turning Minerva into a demigod, she would be able to locate Themyscira for them. In case of emergency,
Diana provided Barbara Ann with a Wayne Enterprises GPS signaling device, which Dr Cyber remotely disabled. As a result, Wonder Woman was unable
to prevent Barbara Ann from being wed to Urzkartaga and becoming the Cheetah. Blaming Diana for her forced transformation
and the cannibalistic urges that came with it, Cheetah joined Cale's Godwatch group. Years later, Wonder Woman travels
to Bwunda in search of Cheetah. She is met with aggression from the Cult of Urzkartaga, a pack of were-hyenas, and ultimately Cheetah herself.
The battle continues until Wonder Woman reveals to Cheetah that she is unable to locate Themyscira and needs her enemy's help. In exchange
for Minerva's help in finding Themyscira, Wonder Woman agrees to kill the god Urzkartaga and end Minerva's curse.
The pair battle their way through Urzkartaga's Bouda minions, the Bouda, and defeat Andres Cadulo, a worshiper of Urzkartaga that planned
to sacrifice Steve Trevor to the plant god..Barbara was revealed to have been turned into the Cheetah not, because she was not a virgin,
and that Urzkartaga lied to her – Cheetah and the women before her were actually his wardens, charged with keeping the evil plant god imprisoned.
Cheetah used the Lasso of Truth to bind the plant god back into a harmless plant form. Once reverted to her human form, Minerva agreed
to help Wonder Woman find her way back to Paradise Island. Shortly thereafter, Barbara Ann and Etta Candy were attacked by Godwatch.
After reuniting with Steve Trevor, Godwatch attacked again and Barbara Ann surrendered to them, hoping to reason with Cale. Cale,
having taken possession of the Urzkartaga plant, threatened to have Etta and Steve killed unless Minerva agreed to become the Cheetah again.
Cale then flew them and her daughter Isadore to the island in the Black Sea that Barbara Ann had mistaken for Themyscira. Wonder Woman
and Trevor arrived and fought Cheetah and Cale until Diana's blood opened a gateway to Ares' prison. Diana, Cale
and Isadore went through the gateway leaving Cheetah and Trevor behind. By the time they returned, Cheetah had gone into hiding, only coming out
when everyone had left. Approaching the gate to Ares' prison, she begged to be let in, but was rebuffed. Enraged by the gods rejection,
Cheetah swore revenge against them and the Amazons. She then went to Cale's home and stating she now embraces being the Cheetah, attacks Cale.
Diana intervenes and subdues her, but Cheetah escapes custody shortly thereafter.
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