Veronica Cale
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Veronica Cale is a fictional character appearing in
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 ...
publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superhero
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 ...
. A genius pharmaceutical tycoon and ruthless criminal mastermind, she was created by comic book writer
Greg Rucka Gregory Rucka (born November 29, 1969) is an American writer known for the series of novels starring his character Atticus Kodiak, the creator-owned comic book series '' Whiteout'', ''Queen & Country'', '' Stumptown'' and '' Lazarus'', as well as ...
and first appeared in 2003's '' Wonder Woman'' (volume 2) #196. Cale is depicted as a brilliant scientist, as well as a brilliant capitalist, who uses the vastness of her intelligence and wealth for both philanthropy and personal gain. She has been consistently written as a character motivated by an envious resentment for Wonder Woman, whom she believes undeserving of esteem as a paragon of
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
.


Publication history

Veronica Cale first appeared in ''Wonder Woman'' (vol 2) #196 (November 2003) and was created by
Greg Rucka Gregory Rucka (born November 29, 1969) is an American writer known for the series of novels starring his character Atticus Kodiak, the creator-owned comic book series '' Whiteout'', ''Queen & Country'', '' Stumptown'' and '' Lazarus'', as well as ...
and Drew Johnson. Rucka stated his intent was to create a "
Lex Luthor Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Lex Luthor originally appeared in ''Action Comics'' #23 (cover dated: April ...
for Diana". She deeply resents Wonder Woman, whom she believes does not deserve society's high esteem as a paragon of
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
. Underpinning this acrimony is a deep-seated envy of her enemy's power and stature; Cale wishes in vain that she too could be a "Wonder Woman". After the DC Comics' 2016 continuity-reboot known as ''
Rebirth Rebirth may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Film * ''Rebirth'' (2011 film), a 2011 Japanese drama film * ''Rebirth'' (2016 film), a 2016 American thriller film * ''Rebirth'', a documentary film produced by Project Rebirth * ''The Re ...
'', Veronica Cale has featured prominently in the reformulated origins of several of Wonder Woman's foes, including the Silver Swan and
Doctor Cyber Doctor Cyber is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman. She first appeared late in the Silver Age of Comics in 1968's ''Wonder Woman'' (volume 1 ...
. Her plots against Wonder Woman have also brought her into league (and conflict) with several other members of the hero's rogues gallery, such as the
Cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
,
Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. She is either a daughter of the Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vas ...
,
Doctor Psycho Doctor Psycho is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman. First appearing in ''Wonder Woman'', issue #5 (1943), written by Wonder Woman creator W ...
, and Deimos and Phobos. She maintains an ongoing association with Colonel Marina Maru, the post-Rebirth
Doctor Poison Doctor Poison is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superheroine Wonder Woman. A sadistic bioterrorist with a ghoulish face, she first appeared in 1942’s ''Sensat ...
, who serves as one of her chief criminal operatives.


Fictional character biography

Dr. Veronica Cale is a founding partner (with her friend Leslie Anderson) in Cale-Anderson Pharmaceuticals. Having grown up in poverty-ridden
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
. Her mother encouraged her to read and towards education before dying of cancer. Veronica decided to confront her father, now a wealthy man living in Houston. He was coerced out of a sizable amount of money, but his marriage, career and reputation were not tarnished. Veronica used the money to enter
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
at the age of sixteen. When she was 21, she had three PhDs in medical sciences. Three years later, she made the foundation of her fortune. Having worked hard to get to this position, she resents Wonder Woman for finding acceptance in Man's World so easily—much like
Lex Luthor Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Lex Luthor originally appeared in ''Action Comics'' #23 (cover dated: April ...
's resentment of Superman's status in Metropolis—and finds her message of peace simplistic, reasoning that it is easy to preach an end to conflict if you are a superstrong demi-goddess. When Diana writes ''Reflections'', a study of Amazon philosophy, Cale uses selected quotations from the book to spin the media against her. When the book's most outspoken critic loses a debate, she arranges to have him killed at a demonstration, making it look like the book's proponents are responsible. She also uses
Doctor Psycho Doctor Psycho is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman. First appearing in ''Wonder Woman'', issue #5 (1943), written by Wonder Woman creator W ...
to inflame both crowds.''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 2) #199 Cale is subsequently bound, gagged, and locked in a closet by Psycho, who impersonates her for a brief period, before she is rescued by Wonder Woman. This does not change her opinion of the superheroine, but does have an influence on Dr. Anderson which Cale finds worrying.''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 2) #202 She is later coerced by
Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. She is either a daughter of the Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vas ...
and the gorgon
Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...
into aiding in their vendetta against Wonder Woman and applying for legal guardianship of Circe's daughter Lyta as a way of removing Lyta from the Amazon island of Themyscira. The process is stopped midway through once Ares kidnaps Lyta from the island, leaving Circe to abandon her scheme with Cale.''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 2) #206''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 2) #211 This story plot was to have a larger part in the Wonder Woman comic, but was dropped due to the ''
Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...
'' storyline. Cale's reaction to the media furor surrounding Wonder Woman's killing of
Maxwell Lord Maxwell Lord IV is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in '' Justice League'' #1 (May 1987) and was created by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire. Maxwell Lord was ...
and its consequences have not been recorded. Cale also played a role in the creation of the third Silver Swan,
Vanessa Kapatelis Julia Kapatelis and her daughter Vanessa "Nessie" Kapatelis are fictional characters created by writer/artist George Pérez for the ''Wonder Woman'' ongoing series published by DC Comics. Debuting in 1987, the Kapatelises would serve as recurring ...
, by buying her from Sebastian Ballesteros, the then-current Cheetah, and turning her into a cyborg to fight Wonder Woman (although Anderson was then hired to "cure" Kapatelis by extracting the cybernetic components).


''52''

Cale resurfaces in Week 26 of '' 52'' as one of the abducted scientists on Oolong Island (and the only female among the group) and suffers a breakdown after unleashing the Four Horsemen upon the Black Marvel family. When
Black Adam Black Adam, real name Teth/Theo-Adam, is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics' ''The Marvel Family'' comi ...
starts his worldwide crusade for vengeance, her conflicting feelings cause her to seduce the mentally unstable
Will Magnus Doctor Will Magnus is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Publication history He first appeared in ''Showcase'' #37 alongside his creations, the Metal Men and was created by Robert Kanigher and Ross A ...
. When Black Adam actually arrives on the shores of Oolong Island, she attempts to take the blame for it, walking out to confront the maddened Adam. She is subsequently entirely ignored. According to author notes in the fourth volume of the collected ''52'' editions, Cale was supposed to originally die at this point, casually slain by Black Adam. Further discussion changed her fate - subsequently, Cale leads the remaining mad scientists to form an independent collective. Their first problem is the return of the Four Horsemen of
Apokolips Apokolips is a fictional planet that appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The planet is ruled by Darkseid, established in Jack Kirby's Fourth World series, and is integral to many stories in the DC Universe. Apokolips is co ...
. Cale ingests a semi-organic containment unit and uses it to absorb the Horsemen's essences. She is later seen undergoing an operation to remove the unit. She is later seen in the pages of ''
Doom Patrol Doom Patrol is a superhero team from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in ''My Greatest Adventure'' #80 (June 1963), and was created by writers Arnold Drake and Bob Haney, along with artist Bruno Premiani. Doom Patrol has appe ...
'', being assisted by
I.Q. An intelligence quotient (IQ) is a total score derived from a set of standardized tests or subtests designed to assess human intelligence. The abbreviation "IQ" was coined by the psychologist William Stern for the German term ''Intelligenzq ...


DC Rebirth

Veronica Cale is reintroduced in the ''
DC Rebirth DC Rebirth is a 2016 relaunch by the American comic book publisher DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic book titles. Using the end of The New 52 initiative in May 2016 as its launching point, DC Rebirth restored the DC ...
'' universe as leader of the mysterious organization called Godwatch. In this timeline, Cale remains the radically successful corporation head who built her multi-million dollar business with her best friend Adrianna Anderson. This time around, she was more than willing to ignore the exploits of one she disregarded as "that bubble-busted supermodel" whose edicts of peace through love Cale wrote off as a lie, thinking affection only made things worse instead of the other way around. Later on she finds the soul of her daughter Isadore had been stolen by Deimos and Phobos, twin sons of Ares. The Gods promise to restore her to normalcy only if Cale obtains knowledge of Themyscira's location. As part of the Rebirth reboot, Wonder Woman realizes she does not know the location of Themyscira; it was taken from her precisely to prevent minions of Ares from learning it to either free their master or kill him and take his station. Cale spends several years attempting to manipulate Wonder Woman into remembering where to find it. In her first attempt, Adrianna Anderson; her best and closest associate is killed, and Cale creates an artificial intelligence based on her brain patterns which renames itself Dr. Cyber.''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 5) #18 (2016) Cale is also indirectly responsible for Barbara Ann Minerva's cursed betrothal to the misogynistic plant deity; Urzkartaga. She provided the archaeologist with funding and encouragement for her expedition at the behest of her own cruel patrons while Cyber engineered localized catastrophes to prevent Wonder Woman from learning when her friend was in danger, needing the power of another deity's avatar to breach the barrier cordoning paradise from the rest of the world; thus giving birth to the Cheetah. Realizing that Ares's sons would not keep their end of the bargain, Cale struck a pact with the ancient witch
Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. She is either a daughter of the Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse or the goddess Hecate and Aeëtes. Circe was renowned for her vas ...
to bind the two and make them subservient to her, first tricking Wonder Woman into a false flag operation, so the enchantress could siphon enough power to cast said terror gods into the forms of two
Doberman Pinschers The Dobermann (; ), or Doberman Pinscher in the United States and Canada, is a medium-large dog breed, breed of domestic dog that was originally developed around 1890 by Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann, Louis Dobermann, a tax collector fro ...
. Unfortunately for Cale, Ares himself had taken her daughter's soul from them and Cale would still need to find him and free him to get her back. It was at this point Cale created the group Godwatch, consisting of herself, Dr. Cyber, Cheetah and a PMC (Private Military Company) lead by
Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...
. After Wonder Woman frees Dr. Minerva from the Cheetah's curse, Cale has Sasha Bordeaux replaced with a bionic clone to procure the sealed form of Cheetah's lord and then forces her to become the Cheetah once more to save the lives of Steve Trevor, Etta Candy and Ferdinand the Kythotaur (as Ferdinand hails from Kythira, not Minos). Ultimately, Cale and Wonder Woman locate Ares's prison and Deimos and Phobos are defeated, but Isadore could not return to the normal world with her soul intact due to Ares having freed her from his sons. The only way for her to remain whole was to go to Themyscira, which is mystically linked with Ares's prison. Heartbroken and bitter, Cale returns home knowing she will never see her daughter again and finds she is under FBI investigation for Godwatch's activities. A vengeful Cheetah then attacks Cale, but Wonder Woman intervenes. Dr. Cyber ensures the investigation yields no results and Wonder Woman confronts Cale asking her to help remove the Cheetah's curse, but Cale refuses. Still nursing a grudge against the champion of the gods, Cale would secretly fund a menagerie of new supervillainesses coming out of the woodwork while remaining clean of their larceny. As her nemesis came to her in search of answers, Veronica simply replied that she enjoyed the joust, in spite of this Wonder Woman knew full well that these attacks across Washington were all a covert means of shoring lucrative defense contracts while also pursuing a personal vendetta against the Amazon. The latter connecting the ties said rogues have to the company mogul based on many of their facilities were supported by re-purposed/stolen xeno-technology provided by the amoral corporate executive. Later on, as malefic gods from the
Dark Multiverse Dark Nights: Metal is a 2017 - 2018 monthly crossover comic book storyline published by DC Comics, which consisted of a core eponymous miniseries, and a number of other tie-in books. Premiering in June 2017 and lasting until April 2018, the plot ...
would make their presence known across the planet, Cale would be contacted by the A.I. of her former friend Dr. Cyber about the disappearance of Barbara Minerva; the Cheetah. Veronica was somewhat surprised by the return of her digital contemporary after she did everything to keep her out of Cale-Anderson Pharmaceuticals mainframe, but was more intrigued by the prospect of having Cheetah back as a research subject after she nearly killed Veronica the last time they met.''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 5) #64 (2019) It was when the evil deities' presence could be felt by the more religious or supremacy-sensitive individuals in the world that Cheetah would escape her confinement by Cale's technical specialists, while seeking to destroy her would-be owner, but was saved by Wonder Woman at the last second just before Veronica could be thrown from her own office building. After the cataclysm caused by the War God, Ares had enraptured the mythical plane, while Veronica found herself employing the Greek deity of vengeance
Nemesis In ancient Greek religion, Nemesis, also called Rhamnousia or Rhamnusia ( grc, Ῥαμνουσία, Rhamnousía, the goddess of Rhamnous), was the goddess who personifies retribution, a central concept in the Greek world view. Etymology The n ...
, using her both as an employee of Empire Industries and a new means of discrediting Wonder Woman by filing lawsuit for superpowers to be registered as typical citizens working 9 to 5 citizenship. It was not until later that the relationship between man and god was revealed to be inverse, that Nemesis was using Cale for her own ends, ends that Wonder Woman put to a close by embracing the vindictive scientist using empathy and not her fists. She realized that her adversary was acting out of fear and despair when realizing that Themyscira and the portion of the Sphere of the Gods which it gravitated around had vanished recently; Cale feared the worst as it meant that her daughter had disappeared alongside it. Diana reaffirmed her oath that no harm would come to Isadore while living amongst the Amazons by actively seeking out her homeland. Which, now that the mysticism barring her from return was no-more, allowed for mass transit too and from paradise again assuming it can be found. As good as to her word, and at risk of revealing her birthplace to her archenemy, Veronica was reunited with her beloved scion, albeit a bit surprised at how much she had grown since last she saw her. The Rebirth version of Veronica Cale is a far more competent character than her pre- Flashpoint counterpart, manipulating Wonder Woman and her allies for years, finding ways of triumphing over gods and better at mixing business with criminal endeavor. She is also far more complex. While still holding Diana in contempt for much the same reasons as she did in prior continua, Cale was content to ignore her until Deimos and Phobos put Cale and Diana at odds. She hates the Olympians for the loss of her daughter and her best friend, blaming the Amazon for bringing her religious insanity into their lives, yet, by the same token, was truly heartbroken at the loss of her business partner and initially felt remorse for her role in Dr. Minerva's transformation into the Cheetah. Her progressive characterization would grow more callous and vindictive, using both her resources and intellect to further personal gain by arming potential adversaries to the demigoddess in order to secure even greater profit at her hated enemy's expense, both financially and in a misotheistic sense.


Powers and abilities

Veronica Cale is the average non-meta standard of a typical homo sapiens who does not engage in regular exercise. While not intellectually on par with the likes of Niles Caulder or
Brainiac Brainiac is a colloquial adjective used to describe exceptionally intelligent people. It may also refer to: Culture Fictional entities * Brainiac (character), a fictional supervillain in DC Comics, and an enemy of Superman * Brainiac (story arc), ...
, Cale is an able-bodied scientist and historian who earned more than 3 PhD's in her youth while attending
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
. Even before proper schooling her mother had long realized Cale held a high intellect, one she broadened with various intellectual facilities that expanded her perspicuity horizons. Cale would eventually put such intellect to exceptional use by rediscovering the location of her deadbeat father after he had moved out of country, only to blackmail him for a generous sum to maintain her silence. Cale would then move onto specialize in various medical, synthesis, electronics and community sciences in the pursuit of founding her own company. Having created a couple of subsidiaries with which to bankroll her sizable fortune invested in selling software to Wayne Tech, showing credible business sense (being one of the wealthiest people in the world) and sociology (having an avid understanding of personal mindset in order to manipulate the masses, not to mention having ties and connections to various political, correspondent, military and criminal spheres of influence). Whilst having no formal combat training she is efficient with ballistics and firearms, Her company also profits from various defense contracts, indicating she is also apt at weapons design.


Other versions

In a pastiche of
Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...
stories printed as a back-up strip in ''Wonder Woman'' (vol. 2) #200, Cale is reinvented as a perfume manufacturer called Veronica Callow. When Wonder Woman refuses to promote her new perfume, Callow tries to discredit Wonder Woman by creating a robot duplicate named Superba who commits crimes.


In other media

* Actress
Elizabeth Hurley Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965) is an English actress and model. As an actress, her best-known film roles have been as Vanessa Kensington in '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'' (1997) and as the Devil in '' Bedazzled'' (2 ...
was to play Cale in
David E. Kelley David Edward Kelley (born April 4, 1956) is an American television writer, producer, and former attorney, known as the creator of '' Doogie Howser, M.D.'', '' Picket Fences'', ''Chicago Hope'', ''The Practice'', '' Ally McBeal'', ''Boston Publi ...
's television revival of ''Wonder Woman'' for
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
. Anticipating the privatization of the military, she developed a super-soldier serum that she tested on kids from the ghetto and people abducted from third world countries. At a brawl with her employees, Cale and her operation was brought down by Wonder Woman and Cale was arrested. The series was not picked up by the network. * Veronica Cale appears in ''
DC Universe Online ''DC Universe Online'' (''DCUO'') is a free-to-play action combat massively multiplayer online game set in the fictional universe of DC Comics. Developed by Dimensional Ink Games and co-published by Daybreak Game Company and WB Games, the game w ...
'', voiced by Debra Cole. Her voice is heard on the intercom during the Oolong Island alert telling her workers to get back to work. Cale herself is located on the second floor balcony of the central building in Oolong Island's first area. * Cale-Anderson can be read on a billboard in the 2013 video game '' Batman: Arkham Origins''. * Veronica Cale appears in the animated film '' Wonder Woman: Bloodlines'', voiced by
Constance Zimmer Constance Zimmer (born October 11, 1970) is an American actress. She rose to prominence for playing Dana Gordon in the television series '' Entourage'' (2005–2011) and Claire Simms in the television series ''Boston Legal'' (2006–2007). Sh ...
. Veronica is the business tycoon of Cale Pharmaceuticals and secretly the true mastermind behind Villainy Inc., through whom she intended to invade Themyscira and steal the Amazon's advanced technology for personal gain. In the mid-credit scene, it was revealed that Veronica was responsible for killing Julia Kapatelis at the warehouse while Diana and Steve were occupied, preventing her from finding out she was funding Doctors Poison and Cyber to keep her involvement a secret, unaware to Vanessa. Her intentions were to motivate Diana by turning Vanessa against her, having provided Villains Incorporated with the resources and equipment that transformed the former into her weapon, so as to enable Wonder Woman to retrace her footsteps back to Themyscira. The heroine pierces Cale's desk with her sword, on the grounds that Cale will need a weapon if she threatens her friends again. As she leaves, Veronica warns Diana that she is coming for her as she struggles to pull her blade out of her desk.


See also

*
List of Wonder Woman enemies This is a list of fictional characters from DC Comics who are or have been enemies of Wonder Woman. Central rogues gallery In alphabetical order (with issue and date of first appearance and when or if they were involved in Villainy Incorporated ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cale, Veronica Wonder Woman characters Characters created by Greg Rucka DC Comics female supervillains DC Comics scientists Fictional chemical engineers Fictional female businesspeople Fictional female engineers Fictional female scientists Comics characters introduced in 2003 Fictional Harvard University people Fictional characters from Texas