Nu'Bia

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caption=Nu'Bia in Wonder Woman Annual #8, Art by John McCrea
character_name=Nu'Bia
publisher=DC Comics
debut="Wonder Woman" vol. 1 #204, January (1973) "Wonder Woman" vol. 2 Annual #8, (1999)
creators=Robert Kanigher (writer)
Don Heck (artist)
alter_ego =
species =
homeworld =
alliances =Amazons
aliases = Wonder Woman
supports=
powers = Super strength and speed, dimensional portals, cold sight

Nu'Bia is a DC Comics character from the Wonder Woman family of books, who was originally known as Nubia. Nubia was created by Robert Kanigher and Don Heck in Wonder Woman vol. 1 #204, January (1973). Nu'Bia was created by writer Doselle Young and artist John McCrea in Wonder Woman Annual vol. 2 #8 (1999).

Fictional character biography

Nubia

Formed from clay as a twin to Diana (Wonder Woman), the dark skinned Nubia was kidnapped by Mars, who raised her, controlling her mind so that she would help him bring down the Amazons. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

After a session in the Amazon Memory banks, Diana is confronted by an armored female warrior who challenges her to single combat. The two initially wrestle, then face each other with swords. Diana and the intruder seem evenly matched until the intruder knocks the sword from Diana's hands, and then hesitates to kill her, giving Diana the chance to wrestle her to a draw. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

The stranger declares "I am Nubia!", then she and Diana embrace. Queen Hippolyta wonders if this was indeed the same Nubia who was to be raised as Diana's sister.Nubia leaves the Amazons and returns to her mist concealed Floating Island (named Slaughter Island by Mars). She tells Diana that they will meet again and one of them will be proven the true Wonder Woman. She eventually does return, and reiterates her claim to the title of Wonder Woman. Hippolyta tells her, "Aye, Nubia, that is the law. Anyone may challenge my daughter's right to that title. Until then may I wish that you find favor in wise Hera's eyes as you already have in mine?"Later on she puts down a challenge to her rule by one of the male warriors of Slaughter Island, she defeats the man but lets him live, stating that "A woman doesn't destroy life, she cherishes it!" [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

The next appearance of Nubia came in Supergirl vol. 1 #9, December (1973) written by Robert Kanigher. In the story Supergirl is made an honorary Amazon. Later when it is discovered that Nubia is suffering from shark poisoning, Hippolyta sends Kara to retrieve a rare root needed to cure her. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

In Super Friends #25 October (1979), Wonder Woman is seen attempting to liberate the oppressed women of the African continent. She tells them that men still treat women as if they were possessions and it's time for women to stand up to men, with Wonder Woman as leader. But Diana is interrupted by Nubia who is temporarily under the control of the evil Overlord. Nubia tells her to back off and they fight, eventually the Overlord is defeated and they part as friends. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

Crisis on Infinite Earths

In 1985 DC Comics introduced the storyline Crisis on Infinite Earths. By this story's end the entire DC Universe was erased and restarted with a clean slate. As such Nubia as we knew her (and all other DC Comics characters) ceased to exist.

Nu'Bia

Sometime after Crisis we are introduced to a new Nubia, now called Nu'Bia, a black Themyscirian warrior. When Nu'Bia first meets Diana, she mistakenly calls Diana by the name of her former queen "Antiope". Nu'Bia is only slightly surprised to discover that Diana is Antiope's niece. The woman identifies herself to Diana as Nu'Bia and says that she was a Themysciran Amazon who won the "Tournament of Grace and Wonder" just as Diana previously had, and become the Amazons' first champion. Her assigned mission was to guard "Doom's Doorway", which is an entrance to the river Styx and the Tartarus Gate on Paradise Island. Entering Doom's Doorway she was to guard the entryway from the inside, stopping anyone from entering or any creature from escaping. As Diana was never told of Nu'Bia it is assumed that the Themyscirian Amazons assumed she perished during her mission long before Diana's birth. Sometime during her time in the underworld, Nu'bia explains she met the Zoroastrian god of light, Ahura Mazda, and became his lover. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html] She also explains that on another adventure where she aided Gorgons, she was given the ability called "Cold Sight" which allows her to transform any living being into stone as a gift of gratitude from the Gorgons. After aiding Wonder Woman with her mission Nu'Bia then returns to the underworld to see Ahura Mazda.

The next time Nu'Bia is shown, an elevator in a Las Vegas hotel suddenly manifests a golden metal lion insignia. When Diana investigates this strange occurrence, Nu'Bia steps out of the elevator. She says, "Many leagues from the kingdom of light have I traveled. Through the province of Nox and the territory of shades have I hunted the demon-king Ahriman. Finally, to track him here, to Patriarch's World... to my ancient faraway home. How passing strange it is then, Princess, that I should find you here, as well." [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

The demon Ahriman murdered Ahura-Mazda, and carved his heart from his body. Nu'Bia has come back to earth in search of Ahriman, hoping that she can retrieve the heart and revive her lover.The last we see of Nu'Bia, she has Ahriman in her possession and rides an elevator back to Hades to revive her beloved. [http://hometown.aol.com/linastrick/nubia1.html]

Powers and abilities

Pre-Crisis

*Nubia possessed a magic sword created by Mars which was the only weapon on Earth that could counteract Diana's magic lasso. She could also glide on air currents like Wonder Woman and possessed super-strength.

Post-Crisis

*Nu'Bia wears special magical armor with a raised embossed lion's head on its breastplate. She carried an unspecified magic sword and possesses super-human strength.
*In honor of an ancient pact, the Gorgons of the underworld blessed Nu'Bia with the Cold Sight, which allows her to turn anyone to stone.
*Nu'Bia can travel back and forth to Hades at will, and from there to other mythological realms. She has millennia of experience in fighting and killing demons.

Other appearances

* Actress Teresa Graves of ABC's Get Christie Love was favored by executives of ABC's then very successful Wonder Woman television series to play Nubia, but the series moved to CBS in 1977, before the character ever appeared on the show. That same year, the Mego Corporation produced a Nubia doll to tie-in with the show, modeled on a costume to be worn by Graves. The doll was decorated in a Gladiator styled armor, much like the uniform used in the character's comic book introduction sequence. The doll though was given a white streak of hair as a dramatic touch to her otherwise black hair. Reportedly, the character of Nubia was planned to be introduced on the network television show, but CBS cancelled the program before this could happen. By some accounts, a black female adventurer introduced in the Season Two episode "Knockout", was to have been played by actress Jayne Kennedy. Fact|date=July 2007

* Although Nubia never appeared in the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman series, a character with a similar background did appear shortly before in the 1974 television movie "Wonder Woman" starring Cathy Lee Crosby. In the film a fellow Amazon named Ahnjayla left Paradise Island and became a nemesis of Wonder Woman. Ahnjayla was played by actress Anitra Ford, who was one of the original Barker's Beauties on "The Price Is Right".

Bibliography

Nubia

*Wonder Woman Vol. 1 #204-206 [http://darkmark6.tripod.com/wonderind.htm]
*Supergirl #9
*Super Friends #25

Nu'Bia

*Wonder Woman Annual #8
*Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #154-155
*Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #188 (cameo)

External links

* [http://www.wonderwomanmuseum.com/referrals.html Wonder Woman Museum entry]
* [http://www.wonderland-site.com/index2.htm Wonderland Wonder Woman Comix page]
* [http://www.amazonarchives.com/index2.htm Amazon Archives]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYeDNFfgGsQ Nubia Mego Doll Commercial]