''Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer'' is a special-edition "humanitarian comic book" featuring Superman and

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

that promotes "

landmine A land mine is an explosive weapon, explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically d ...

awareness" among children, particularly from countries where there are active landmines after war. The free comic book was published from 1993 through 1999 by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

, the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national sec ...

, the Mine Action Center (MAC), the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), and participating non-governmental organizations (NGOs). In the comic book, Superman and Wonder Woman are featured as educators who are teaching children about the dangers of landmines.

Description

The Spanish version of the comic book has 32-pages and has a text on the back portion of the cover that says "Superman and Wonder Woman have come to help the children of Central America! But even when they cannot be here, you can keep yourself safe from landmines." 24 pages of the comic book were devoted to the illustrated narrative, while the remaining 8 were allotted for activities for eight- to fifteen-year-old children.

Storyline development

The storyline for ''Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer'' was recommended to DC Comics by American soldiers belonging to the 1st PSYOP Airborne Battalion from Fort Bragg,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

in the United States. The same soldiers first conducted minefield assessments while in Costa Rica, Honduras, and Nicaragua.

Plot

''Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer'' is about two brothers and a sister, named Miguel, Diego, and Gabriela respectively. Superman and Wonder Woman rescues one of the brothers from a minefield. Gabriela is saved from a landmine by Wonder Woman. Superman and Wonder Woman teaches the children about the dangers of landmines through signs, posters, and by introducing them to a child who had been a victim of a landmine explosion.
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Languages

''Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer'' was published in English (90,000 copies) and Spanish (560,000 copies). The Spanish-language – also known as the Central American or Latin American version – were disseminated for Spanish-speaking countries, including Costa Rica, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The title of the comic book in Spanish is ''Superman y la Mujer Maravilla – El Asesino Escondido''. There were plans of translating the comic book into Portuguese for dissemination in countries such as Angola and Mozambique.

Launch and distribution

The Spanish version of ''Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer'' was released on 11 June 1998 in New York City at the UNICEF House building. It was launched by Brian Sheridan, a representative of the United States Department of Defense.

References