Golden Girl

Golden Girl is the name of two fictional characters, superheroines in the Marvel Comics universe who were active during the 1940s.

Golden Girl (Betsy Ross)

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caption=
comic_color=background:#ff8080
character_name=Golden Girl
real_name=Betsy Ross
publisher=Marvel Comics
debut="Captain America Comics" #1
creators=
alliance_color=background:#cccccc
alliances=
aliases=
powers=

Publication history

Marvel Comics' first Golden Girl, Elizabeth Ross, first appeared, without yet a superhero identity, as Betty Ross in "Captain America Comics" #1 (March 1941). A supporting character who appeared in occasional stories, she succeeded Bucky as Captain America's sidekick in issue #66 (Dec. 1947), in the 12-page story "Golden Girl", by an unconfirmed writer and by penciller Syd Shores. Except for issue #71, Golden Girl appeared in Captain America stories through issue #74 (Oct. 1949). She also appeared in the Captain America stories in "Marvel Mystery Comics" #87-88 and #92 (Aug. & Oct. 1948, June 1949).

Ross is unrelated to the later Marvel character Betty Ross, who has appeared in modern-day stories beginning in "The Incredible Hulk" vol. 1, #1 (May 1962). She was not specified as related to Col. Ross, an Army officer, in the Captain America story "The Wound No Man Could See" in "Marvel Mystery Comics" #88.

Fictional character biography

Immediately before and during World War II, Betty Ross was a member of the U.S. Army's Women's Auxiliary Army Corps, and later worked as an FBI agent. She became a friend and later girlfriend of Army Private Steve Rogers, unaware of his dual identity as Captain America. She had adapted her name slightly to Betsy Ross — the name of the U.S. colonial-era woman to whom disputed and unproven legend ascribes the sewing the first American flag — by the time that Captain America's sidekick, the second Bucky (Fred Davis) was shot and wounded. This third Captain America — Jeffrey Mace, who'd succeeded the M.I.A. Rogers and the killed-in-action William Naslund — revealed his civilian identity to Ross and trained her as his new partner, the costumed crime-fighter Golden Girl. After a handful of adventures, culminating in a battle with the Red Skull in Hell, ["Captain America Comics" #74 (Oct. 1949)] Ross and Mace retired, and were married by 1953. ["The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe" vol. 2, #5 (April 1986).]

Golden Girl (Gwenny Lou Sabuki)

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caption=
comic_color=background:#ff8080
character_name=Golden Girl
real_name=Gwenny Lou Sabuki
publisher=Marvel Comics
debut="The Invaders" #26 (March 1978)
creators=Roy Thomas
Frank Robbins
alliance_color=background:#cccccc
alliances=Invaders V-Battalion Penance Council
aliases=Golden Woman ["Citizen V and the V Battalion" #2]
powers=|

Publication history

Gwendolyne "Gwenny" Lou Sabuki was the second Golden Girl introduced by Marvel, making her first appearance in 1978, but her World War II-era character predates the post-war, Betsy Ross, Golden Girl (see above). Created by writer Roy Thomas and penciller Frank Robbins in the flashback series "The Invaders" vol. 1, #26 (March 1978), she had appeared, sans power, as Gwenny Lou, gaining her powers in the following issue, #27 (April 1978). She went on to appear as Golden Girl in #28 (May 1978) and #38 (March 1979).

Fictional character biography

During World War II, teenaged Gwenny Lou Sabuki, the daughter of Japanese-American scientist Dr. Sam Sabuki, was present at a stateside battle in which sidekicks Bucky (Bucky Barnes) and Toro (Thomas Raymond) of the superhero team the Invaders fought the supervillain Agent Axis. There one of Dr. Sabuki's inventions accidentally gave Gwenny Lou and her friend David "Davey" Mitchell superhuman powers. Gwenny Lou gained the power to generate light and energy and project golden force beams from her hands, while Mitchell gained the ability to spin at superhuman speeds; she became Golden Girl, he the Human Top. The four youthful heroes defeated Agent Axis, and later formed the Kid Commandos, who were allied with the adult Invaders.

Gwenny Sue later helped found the post-war version of the British superhero team the V-Battalion. Gwenny eventually changed her superhero name to Golden Woman, before she died in 1961. Her daughter and her granddaughter became, respectively, the superheroines Golden Sun, who died when Goldfire was only five-years old ["Citizen V and the V Battalion" #2] and Goldfire.

References

* [http://www.comics.org Grand Comics Database]
*"All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z: Update 2 - Adam II to Zodiac" (May 2007)
* [http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/g/goldengirl.htm International Catalogue of Superheroes: Golden Girl]