Rich: Skilled acrobat and combatant. Outfitted with razor claws strong enough to cut through steel.
Minerva:
Granted Cheetah-like physiology, allowing for superhuman strength, agility, speed, and razor sharp claws. Magic bite can also transform others to Cheetah-like humanoids.
Highly-intelligent archaeologist and fluent in many different languages.
The original Cheetah isPriscilla Rich, a socialite with mental complications who gained a strong disdain forWonder Woman. Within the Golden and Silver Age, she battle Diana and eventually is sentenced toArkham Asylum. Following Crisis on Infinite Earths, her history is instead attributed toHipployta's tenure as Wonder Woman until being murdered by successor Minerva, whom she had previously condemned.[2]
The most well-known version isDr.Barbara Ann Minerva, famedarchaeologist whose interests inGreek mythology and reputation for gathering artifacts regardless of the risks leads to a encounter with Urzkartaga, a plant god who transforms her by imbuing her with the spirit of theCheetah, making her a demigod, the plant god's bride, and the third woman to take the Cheetah codename.[3][4] Once an ally and close friend ofWonder Woman when she first leftThemyscira, the pair's adversarial relationship originates from Minerva's fierce blame for Diana's inability to save her while the latter seeks to save her from Urzkartaga's cruse.[3][5]
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 2020DC Extended Universe filmWonder Woman 1984, marking the character's live-action debut.[6]
The first Cheetah is Priscilla Rich, adebutante who has an inferiority complex and suffers from a split personality.[7] After being eclipsed by Wonder Woman at a charity event and failing to kill her during anescapology act, Priscilla retreats to her room and collapses before her makeup mirror. There, she sees an image of a woman dressed like a cheetah who commands her to fashion a costume from a cheetah-skin rug.
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 the heroine escapes. She is presumed dead, but survives thanks to her fireproof costume. The Cheetah kidnaps a young psychic girl named Gail and uses her powers to learn U.S. military secrets, which she gives to the Japanese. Wonder Woman thwarts the plot and rescues Gail, although the Cheetah warns Wonder Woman to stay out of her affairs.
Cheetah returns when an American military official organizes an athletic competition between female athletes from America and a group of women trained onParadise Island. Priscilla ties up and gags an Olympichigh hurdler named Kay Carlton, and impersonates her by donning her clothes. Priscilla infiltrates the contest, kidnaps QueenHippolyta, and steals her magicalgirdle. With Hippolyta as her hostage and her abilities boosted by the girdle, the 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 for treatment.[8]
Priscilla's attempt at reformation apparently failed, as she is later seen as a member ofVillainy Inc., a criminal association between several of Wonder Woman's female foes.[9]
Priscilla has several further run-ins with Wonder Woman before giving up her criminal identity and retiring to her North ShoreMaryland mansion.Kobra attempts to recruit Rich for his organization, only to find that she has become a recluse and invalid. Before Priscilla can unburden herself of having hidden her past as the Cheetah, she dies.[10]
DC relaunched its continuity with the 1985 seriesCrisis on Infinite Earths, introducing a new Cheetah for the Modern Age: Barbara Ann Minerva. Priscilla Rich is established as still existing post-Crisis whenQueen Hippolyta becomes the Golden Age Wonder Woman.[11] In the present, she is seen as an elderly woman murdered in her home by Minerva at the urging of her allyZoom. It is also established that Rich never became an invalid post-Crisis, as Minerva mentions how Priscilla had written books condemning her when she became the Cheetah. Zoom theorized that if Minerva killed Rich, she would solidify herself as the one true Cheetah and thus be a better supervillain.[12]
The third Cheetah is Barbara Ann Minerva, a British archaeologist and the heiress to a vast fortune in her ancient family seat inNottinghamshire. Ambitious, selfish, and severely neurotic, Barbara finances an expedition to find a tribe in Africa, which is said to be protected by a female guardian with the powers of acheetah. A band of marauders kill the guardian and most of the expedition party. Barbara, with the aid of a tribal priest named Chuma, the caretaker of the ancient plant god Urzkartaga, agrees to become the tribe's new guardian after being told that she will be given immortality. Her powers are conferred to her by ingesting a potion made from human blood and the berries and leaves of Urzkartaga, transforming her into a humanoid cheetah.[13] Unfortunately for Minerva, the host of the Cheetah persona is intended to be a virgin. Minerva is not, so her transformations were part curse and part blessing, as she experiences severe pain and physical disability while in her human form and bloodthirstyeuphoria while in her cheetah form.[14]
In the "One Year Later" storyline, the witchCirce places a spell on Minerva that allows her to change her appearance from human to the Cheetah at will, even though she still remains in her Cheetah form in either guise. She also gains control over three actual cheetahs and still possesses her superhuman speed. She is later seen in theJustice League of America Wedding Special, forming a newInjustice League alongsideLex Luthor and theJoker. She also appears inSalvation Run. Later still, inFinal Crisis, she joins forces withCheckmate to rebel againstDarkseid, and has a brief relationship withSnapper Carr. In the pages ofWonder Woman, she is revealed as the power behind theSecret Society, having taken responsibility for the creation ofGenocide. She arranges to have her allyDoctor Psycho take the place ofSarge Steel as director of theDepartment of Metahuman Affairs which, in the middle of Genocide's onslaught, she targets for destruction.[15]
In 2011, DC relaunched its comic books and rebooted its continuity in an initiative calledThe New 52. This version of Minerva previously grew up in an all-woman commune called "Amazonia". In the possession of a dagger once belonging to a lost tribe of Amazons, she accidentally cut herself on it. This caused her to become possessed by the "Goddess of the Hunt", transforming her into a human-cheetah hybrid. The origin of the Cheetah is dated back to the Sun Tribe, who for centuries had hunted alongside the cheetahs. 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 into the hands of Minerva.[16]
After the events ofDC Rebirth, Cheetah's origin was altered once more. As a young girl, Barbara Ann Cavendish enjoyed mythology and showed an affinity for languages. Her father disparaged her interest in mythology, deriding it as childish. In defiance of her father, her passion for myth and legend remained and as an adult, she changed her surname to Minerva in honor of her late mother. On a dig inUkraine, she discovers proof of the existence of the Amazons, but the dig site collapses and is abandoned. Minerva is able to take photos before the collapse and continues her investigation until she finds herself at a dead end when she reached a deserted island in theBlack Sea.[17] AfterAres attacks the naval base where Diana is staying and several of the Olympian gods assist Diana in defeating him, Minerva becomes even more obsessed with the divine.[18] Seeking out proof of other deities, Minerva learns of Urzkartaga and obtains funding for an expedition to Africa from industrialistVeronica Cale. Unbeknownst to Minerva, Cale is acting on behalf of the sons of Ares,Deimos and Phobos, who intend to turn Minerva into ademigod like Diana so she can help them locateThemyscira. Diana provides Minerva with aWayne Enterprises GPS signaling device in case she needed help, whichDoctor Cyber, a secret ally of Ares, remotely disabled. As a result, Wonder Woman is unable to prevent Minerva from being "wed" to Urzkartaga and undergoing a ritual to become the Cheetah.[19] Blaming Diana for letting her be transformed into a beast, the Cheetah joins Cale'sGodwatch group.
While possessing no super-powers, Priscilla is a Olympic-level athlete and a skilled hand-to-hand combatant known for having cat-like grace, acrobatics, and ferocity akin to her namesake. She is also outfitted with razor-sharp capable of cutting through solid steel.[20][21]
Imbued with the spirit of the Cheetah, Minerva is granted superhuman strength and agility.[21][5] She also possess superhuman speed,[5] considered among the fastest characters in theDC Universe and potentially limitless in that aspect due to the mystical nature of her powers and able to compete with those with theSpeed Force (i.eThe Flash).[2][22] She also possess razor-sharp claws strong enough to cut throughKryptonian invulnerability and able to transform others into Cheetah-like beings with her bite.[21][23] However, the cursed nature of her powers grants her both bloodlust and a appetite for human flesh.[5] Without her powers, Minerva is considered highly intelligent, holding twoPhDs and knowledgeable in 15 different languages (eight in which she is fluent in).[21][24]
Deborah "Debbie" Domaine was introduced as the niece of Priscilla Rich. She is a debutante like Rich, but feels remorse for her wealthy upbringing and decides to become anenvironmental activist, meeting Wonder Woman and striking up a friendship with her. Later that same day, Debbie is summoned to her aunt's mansion and finds her there, succumbing to illness before she can reveal her past to Deborah. Kobra's operatives capture Debbie and bring her and Rich's Cheetah costume to Kobra's headquarters. Revealing Rich's past as Cheetah to Debbie, the Kobra operatives torture and brainwash Debbie into becoming the second Cheetah, Rich's replacement.[10] Debbie also appears as a member of theSecret Society of Super Villains in a conflict with both theJustice League of America and theJustice Society of America.[25] The character does not appear followingCrisis on Infinite Earths andThe New 52, which both rebooted DC's continuity.
Argentine business tycoon Sebastian Ballestros becomes the fourth and the only male Cheetah. He is an agent of the Amazon's enemy,Circe, as well as her lover. He seeks the plant god Urzkartaga to become a new version of the Cheetah, a supernaturalwerecat like Barbara Minerva. Appealing to Urzkartaga's ego, Ballesteros makes the case that the previous Cheetahs have failed in their actions and that a male Cheetah could be superior. Once Urzkartaga is convinced, Minerva's access to the Cheetah's power is cut off and Ballesteros is given the power in her place. Later, Ballesteros proves responsible for turning Wonder Woman's old friend,Vanessa Kapatelis, into the thirdSilver Swan. Angered at the loss of her powers, Minerva eventually battles Ballesteros for control of the power of the Cheetah by becoming the temporary host ofTisiphone, one of theErinyes. Minerva accesses this new power by stealing it from the Furies' former host, Helena Kosmatos, the Golden AgeFury. This does not assist her in regaining the right to become the Cheetah. Minerva kills Ballesteros in his human form, regaining her Cheetah form as a result.[26][27]
An unidentified alternate universe version of Cheetah appears inJLA/Avengers as a minion ofKrona.
An unidentified alternate universe version of Cheetah appears inWonder Woman: The Blue Amazon.
An alternate universe version of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah makes a cameo appearance inDC: The New Frontier.
An alternate universe version of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah appears inWednesday Comics. This version is an young archaeologist from a wealthy Baltimore family whose abilities are derived from enchanted artifacts.
An alternate universe version of Priscilla Rich / Cheetah appears inJustice. This version is a member of theLegion of Doom.
An unidentified alternate universe version of Cheetah appears in theOdyssey 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.[28][29]
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in theSuper Friends franchise, voiced by Marlene Aragon. This version is a member of theLegion of Doom.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears in series set in theDC Animated Universe (DCAU), voiced bySheryl Lee Ralph.[37] 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. InJustice League andJustice League Unlimited, Minerva respectively joinsLex Luthor'sInjustice Gang andGorilla Grodd'sSecret Society.
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the title sequence of the "DC Super Pets" segment ofDC Nation Shorts.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears inDC Super Hero Girls (2015) and its tie-in films, voiced byAshley Eckstein.[37] This version is a student at Super Hero High with an antagonistic attitude towards Wonder Woman and her classmates.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah makes a non-speaking appearance in theJustice League Action short "Quality Time".[37]
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears inDC Super Hero Girls (2019), voiced byTara Strong.[37] 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 inHarley Quinn as a member of the Legion of Doom.[38]
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears inInjustice.[37]
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears inWonder Woman 1984, portrayed byKristen Wiig.[42] Similar to herDC Rebirth backstory, this version is initially a friend and colleague ofDiana Prince who is ignored and shunned for her unattractive appearance and poor social skills. After wishing to be just like Prince while holding a magical artifact called the "Dreamstone", Minerva develops a more confident personality, her appearance becomes more conventionally attractive, and she develops superhuman physical abilities. However, she also becomes more mean-spirited and arrogant, which leads to her turning on Prince. Impressed,Maxwell Lord offers her more power. Wishing to become an "apex predator", he bestows upon her a cheetah-like appearance and superhuman abilities with the bloodlust and rage to match. However, Prince eventually defeats Minerva before confronting Lord. After convincing him to renounce his wish, Minerva loses her powers and reverts to her human form.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character inJustice League Task Force.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears inDC Universe Online, voiced byAdriene Mishler.[37] In the hero campaign, she serves as aboss. In the villain campaign, she is a vendor in the Hall of Doom's magic wing.
The Barbara Minerva, Priscilla Rich, and Sebastian Ballesteros incarnations of Cheetah appear as character summons inScribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure, with Minerva additionally appearing as a boss.[45]
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah, based on herNew 52 appearance, appears as an unlockable costume inLittleBigPlanet 2 via the "DC Comics Premium Level Pack"DLC.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character inDC Legends.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character inDC Unchained.
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah, based on herNew 52 counterpart, appears as a playable character inInjustice 2, voiced again by Erica Luttrell.[46][47] This version is a member ofGorilla Grodd's "Society".
The Barbara Minerva incarnation of Cheetah appears as a playable character inLego DC Super-Villains,[48] voiced again by Erica Luttrell.[49] This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.
An unidentified incarnation of Cheetah appears inAttack of the Cheetah andThe Fastest Pet on Earth, both by Jane B. Mason and published by Capstone as part of theirDC Super Heroes line of illustrated children's books.[50][51] 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.[52]
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in the first two issues of the non-canonicalSuper Friends comic book series. She along with thePenguin,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 1982Wonder Womanaudiobook story "Cheetah on the Prowl", voiced bySonia Manzano.
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears in a flashback inTeen Titans Go! #54.
TheInjustice incarnation of Barbara Minerva / Cheetah makes a minor appearance in theInjustice: Gods Among Us prequel comic.
The Priscilla Rich and Barbara Minerva incarnations of Cheetah both appear inWonder Woman '77. The former appears in issue #6 as an illusion created byDoctor Psycho,[53] while the latter makes recurring appearances later in the series after being empowered byMafdet.[54][55][56][57]
The Priscilla Rich incarnation of Cheetah appears inLego's DC Super Heroes minifigure theme.[58]
Ever since her first appearance, Cheetah has been referred as the most iconic Wonder Woman villain. Abraham Josephine Riesman ofThe Vulture referred to her as a 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".[59] Sarah Moran ofScreen Rant stated "Ares isn't Diana's most iconic villain, he isn't her Joker or Lex Luthor. That would be Cheetah,[60] Rachel Leishman ofThe 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".[61]
^abcdefghijklmnopqrs"Cheetah Voices (Wonder Woman)". Behind The Voice Actors. RetrievedDecember 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.
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