Wonder Woman '77 Special #2

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE CAT CAME BACK To increase publicity and revenue, Washington D.C.'s Madisonian Institute holds an exhibition for Wonder Woman's many adventures and accomplishments. This infuriates Dr. Barbara Minerva, a curator whose painstakingly-assembled collection of African artifacts is ordered dismantled to make room for the exhibit.  While Wonder Woman foils a pair of art thieves, Dr. Minerva bitterly dismantles her collection, a task that lasts into midnight. As she finishes, she accidentally scratches herself with a ceremonial knife, which transmits a magic spell into her body. The spell transforms her into a bipedal cat creature, who styles herself "Cheetah" - after one of Wonder Woman's oldest foes.   The following night, the Cheetah invades the Wonder Woman exhibition and shoots several guests with a blow-gun; the blow-gun's darts, similarly enchanted, transform the guests into mindless cat-creatures that obey the Cheetah's every command. Unwilling to endanger innocent lives, Wonder Woman flees the museum and into a nearby zoo, where the Cheetah and her new "army" follow.   For additional help, the Cheetah releases several of the zoo's big cats, but this tactic backfires; Wonder Woman, having superhuman Animal Empathy, instead convinces the big cats to hold Cheetah's army at bay. The two women then brawl with one another, until Wonder Woman manages to destroy the Cheetah's knife, breaking the enchantment and returning all of the cat creatures to human form.   Dr. Minerva is subsequently sent to a mental institution, though her grudge against Wonder Woman still burns strong. Worse, traces of the cheetah enchantment may yet remain inside her... CELSIA 451 Positron Power Industries CEO Aiden Roberts is killed by a mysterious woman named Celsia, who can generate vast amounts of both heat and cold at will. Roberts' death is investigated by the IADC, who draw a connection to a recent meltdown at one of Positron's power plants. Though the meltdown had contaminated an entire town, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission had cleared Positron of any wrongdoing.   From this information, Diana and Steve determine that Celsia's next victim will probably be Senator Jason Fletcher, the commissioner with the closest ties to Positron. True to their predictions, Celsia attacks Fletcher at a fundraising party, and carries the Senator off to a toxic waste dump. In pursuit are Wonder Woman, fellow commissioner Donald DeKirk, and the Atomic Knights, a trio in high-tech armor who serve as DeKirk's private security team.   After finding the dump and carrying Fletcher to safety, Wonder Woman tries to reason with Celsia, whom she senses little malice in. This displeases DeKirk, who orders the Atomic Knights to kill both women; two of the Knights obey, but the third, an admirer of Wonder Woman, refuses. While DeKirk angrily dismisses the renegade, Wonder Woman easily subdues the other two.   Seeing her foes distracted, Celsia renews her attack on Fletcher, but is once again intercepted by Wonder Woman. With her lasso, Wonder Woman reveals the truth behind Celsia: she was a victim of the Positron meltdown, mutated into her current state by the plant's radiation. The same radiation had killed most of her family and friends, driving her to exact revenge on the men responsible.   Wonder Woman then turns her lasso on Fletcher, who admits he and his fellow commissioners had been paid to relax safety standards for Positron. The renegade Knight records the entire admission with his armor's built-in camera; though it is not valid evidence in itself, it does open a Federal investigation that ultimately convicts all the men responsible for the meltdown. Concurrently, Celsia peacefully resigns herself to prison, confident that justice has been served at last. WISDOM OF SOLOMON While preparing for a Halloween fair with her abusive boyfriend Thom, a woman named Sarah accidentally spills her blood on an old family locket. The blood triggers a spell inside the locket, resurrecting Sarah's ancestor Solomon Grundy as an enormous zombie. Grundy has only one objective: protect his descendant at all costs.   The fair is also attended by Wonder Woman and Steve, who soon encounter Grundy as he pursues Thom. As the other fairgoers panic, Wonder Woman battles Grundy, but finds his strength a match for her own. As the two square off, Sarah steps in and explains that Grundy is only trying to protect her from Thom's abuse. Thom denies this, but Wonder Woman's lasso quickly confirms Sarah's accusations.   Seeing Wonder Woman's concern for Sarah, Grundy declares his descendant safe, and vanishes into the nearby woods. Thom is turned over to the police, while Sarah - cautioned by Wonder Woman to not accept Thom's abuse - is sent to a local women's shelter.