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Winged Victory (comics)
Encyclopedia
Winged Victory is a fictional character
in the comic book
series Astro City
. Created by writer Kurt Busiek
and artists Brent Anderson
and Alex Ross
, Winged Victory is a prominent superheroine of Astro City, motivated by a powerful desire for social justice and self-sufficiency for women.
most prominent and important superhero
es. To date, neither Winged Victory’s original identity nor the name of her patron has been revealed. Her first name has been established as "Kristen." Her superheroic persona might suggest the goddess Nike
(Victory) for the role of the patron.
Winged Victory is an independent heroine, eschewing membership in such high-profile superhero teams as Honor Guard as incompatible with her mission. She has, however, worked with other heroes and hero groups in the course of various cases, natural disasters, and other crises, and has even been romantically linked with Samaritan
, Astro City’s greatest superhero. She has gone up against a colorful assortment of antagonists. In a sense she has actively participated in the formation of her personal rogues’ gallery by seeking out villains who prey on women as her opponents. Such recurring foes have included Fever and Goldenboy.
.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series Astro City
Astro City
Kurt Busiek's Astro City is a comic book series centered on a fictional American city of that name. Written by Kurt Busiek, the series is co-created and illustrated by Brent Anderson with character designs and painted covers by Alex Ross...
. Created by writer Kurt Busiek
Kurt Busiek
Kurt Busiek is an American comic book writer notable for his work on the Marvels limited series, his own title Astro City, and his four-year run on Avengers.-Early life:...
and artists Brent Anderson
Brent Anderson
Brent Anderson is an American comic book artist known for his work on X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills and the comic book series Astro City.- Early life :...
and Alex Ross
Alex Ross
Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross is an American comic book painter, illustrator, and plotter. He is praised for his realistic, human depictions of classic comic book characters. Since the 1990s he has done work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an...
, Winged Victory is a prominent superheroine of Astro City, motivated by a powerful desire for social justice and self-sufficiency for women.
Overview
Winged Victory was an ordinary and apparently undistinguished woman who was granted super powers and her mission of protecting and empowering women by a deity or other supernatural power. She has become one of Astro City’sAstro City
Kurt Busiek's Astro City is a comic book series centered on a fictional American city of that name. Written by Kurt Busiek, the series is co-created and illustrated by Brent Anderson with character designs and painted covers by Alex Ross...
most prominent and important superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
es. To date, neither Winged Victory’s original identity nor the name of her patron has been revealed. Her first name has been established as "Kristen." Her superheroic persona might suggest the goddess Nike
Nike (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Nike was a goddess who personified victory, also known as the Winged Goddess of Victory. The Roman equivalent was Victoria. Depending upon the time of various myths, she was described as the daughter of Pallas and Styx and the sister of Kratos , Bia , and Zelus...
(Victory) for the role of the patron.
Winged Victory is an independent heroine, eschewing membership in such high-profile superhero teams as Honor Guard as incompatible with her mission. She has, however, worked with other heroes and hero groups in the course of various cases, natural disasters, and other crises, and has even been romantically linked with Samaritan
Samaritan (comics)
Samaritan is a fictional character in the comic book series Astro City. Created by writer Kurt Busiek and artists Brent Anderson and Alex Ross, Samaritan is the premier superhero of the world, much in the vein of Superman and Captain Marvel...
, Astro City’s greatest superhero. She has gone up against a colorful assortment of antagonists. In a sense she has actively participated in the formation of her personal rogues’ gallery by seeking out villains who prey on women as her opponents. Such recurring foes have included Fever and Goldenboy.
Controversy
In her god-given role as a champion of women’s rights, Winged Victory has attracted controversy. Feeling a keen sense of mission, she is a vocal and passionate spokeswoman for the political, legal and social emancipation of women. In token of this, she is not an equal-opportunity heroine; when forced to choose among persons in a crowd to save first, her conscious decision is to save the females. She has established and maintained a number of women’s centers (originally shelters) and clinics, for which she has been stigmatized as a “cult leader” promoting ideological indoctrination of those served by them.Abilities
Winged Victory is a woman in peak physical condition, possessed of super-strength, the power of flight, and a formidable intellect and presence. She is outfitted and armed in the style of the Greco-Roman period, and seemingly an expert in the use of antique weaponry. Her civilian and heroic forms are markedly different; as a civilian she is physically unremarkable and of average height; as Winged Victory, she is striking, powerful, of imposing height, and possessed of large wings. A talisman around her neck allows her to transform between her two forms.Enemies
- Fever - a villain who targets women.
- Gnomicron - a mystically powered mechanical warrior created by the Mountain Gnomes.
- Goldenboy - a pretty-boyBishonenis a Japanese term literally meaning "beautiful youth ". The equivalent English concept is a "pretty boy".The term describes an aesthetic that can be found in disparate areas in East Asia: a young man whose beauty transcends the boundary of gender or sexual orientation...
villain with metallic golden skin and hair who targets women; he leads a cult who worships him as a god-king. He apparently has some sort of mind control or pheremone effect that only applies to women.
Influences
Busiek has noted that his character was patterned after the famous Hellenistic sculpture the Winged Victory of SamothraceWinged Victory of Samothrace
The Winged Victory of Samothrace, also called the Nike of Samothrace, is a 2nd century BC marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike . Since 1884, it has been prominently displayed at the Louvre and is one of the most celebrated sculptures in the world.-Description:The Nike of Samothrace,...
.
See also
- Astro CityAstro CityKurt Busiek's Astro City is a comic book series centered on a fictional American city of that name. Written by Kurt Busiek, the series is co-created and illustrated by Brent Anderson with character designs and painted covers by Alex Ross...
- List of Astro City characters