Related
Summary
DC has few heroes more iconic thanWonder Woman , and yet thanks to a decennium - former bicker , a submarine sandwich of that name also technically exists within the Marvel Universe . hard-core comic rooter experience that many famous superheroes have major lawsuits in their past tense ( few more than DC ’s Captain Marvel / Shazam ) , but Marvel ’s attitude to Wonder Woman is definitely the funniest example .
In 1964 , Simon Williams ' Wonder Man strike shelf , debut in Stan Lee and Don Heck’sThe Avengers # 9 . However , while the character would later be pivotal to Marvel traditional knowledge , he was shortly killed off and forget . While fans at the time might have seen Wonder Man ’s destruction as a poignant ending to his news report , the truth is thatMarvel was getting pressure from DC Comics , which was n’t happy that its main competitor was using a hero with ' Wonder ' in their name .
DC had actually debut its own Wonder Man years earlier - a one - time contender of Superman - but ( according to Lee ) also had concerns about protect Wonder Woman ’s brand . Lee concur to cast off Simon Williams , and so he was particularly irritated when - a tenner later - DC set about publishingthe adventures of Power Girl . Lee conceive that this character posture the same problem to Marvel ’s Power Man ( aka Luke Cage ) as Wonder Man had to Wonder Woman . In a speech at James Madison University transcribed byThe Comics Journal , Lee said :
You know , year ago we land out Wonder Man , and they sued us because they had Wonder Woman , and me , being a gentleman [ laugh ] , I said okay , I ’ll discontinue Wonder Man . And all of a sudden they ’ve nonplus Power Girl . Oh male child . How unfair .
Stan Lee admitted in an one-time interview that Marvel Comics used to go out of their way to uproariously troll their giving rivals , DC .
Stan Lee Resented DC’s Power Girl
Marvel Even Brought Back Wonder Man to Spite DC
I asked Jim Shooter ( editor and co - writer of the proceeds in inquiry ) if the issue of Wonder Man was because of the founding of Power Girl , and he said , " Yes . "
Marvel Introduced Its Own Wonder Woman
The Joke Version of Wonder Man Got Genius Revenge on DC
However , Marvel ’s fun did n’t stop there . In 1982’sWhat If ? # 34 , Mark Gruenwald and Brett Breeding published a series of individual - venire comics posing jokey hypothetical questions . One such comedian asks"What if Wonder Man were a cleaning lady – and Power Man were a girl?“Without technically using the names ' Wonder Woman ' or ' Power Girl , ' this allowed Marvel to debut its own heroes using DC ’s de jure protected names , with each being a gender - swop version of its own heroes . The panel evenincludes a letter from Marvel’s"Distinguished Competitor"threatening effectual action .
Stan Lee Eventually Introduced His Own Official ‘Wonder Woman’ at DC
Lee’s Bad Blood with DC Didn’t Stop Later Collaboration
Lee seems to have eventually been slaked by the issue , especially sincehe laterintroduced his own version of Wonder Womanfor DC alongside Jim Lee- part of hisJust Imagine … serial publication which reimagined popularJustice Leaguecharacters . chronicle of funny lawsuits tend to be put off , full of mirthful creators who do n’t get the money or citation they were entitled to . However , Marvel and DC ’s back - and - forth shots over Power Man and Wonder Womanare entertaining thanks to being a mostly editorial tussle - one that end up yield fans some great lineament , and the noesis that somewhere out there in the vast Marvel Multiverse , Marvel’sWonder Womanis fighting the effective conflict - even if the publishing company can never in reality key out her by name .
informant : Brian Cronin , CBR ; Jim Dawson , The Comics Journal
Custom Image by Robert Wood (from Brett Breeding)
