''Whom Gods Destroy'' is a 1996 four-issue

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

mini-series, written by Chris Claremont, with artwork by Dusty Abell and Drew Geraci, under the Elseworlds imprint of

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 ...

. In a world where Superman has not aged a day since the Nazis won

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Clark Kent infiltrates Axis dominated Europe in pursuit of

Lana Lang Lana Lang is a fictional supporting character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. She has appeared in other media adaptations of Superman, typically as a teenager. These portrayals include the ''Superboy (TV series), Advent ...

, who has fallen prey to the enchantress

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 ...

, while

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning journalist for ...

finds herself transformed by the power of the ancient gods into a

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 ...

Plot

In this alternate world, Superman remains youthful due to his superhuman physiology. The

Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

never fell, and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

is kept under

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

rule. Lois Lane has visions of Superman gleefully killing people, including Lana Lang and herself. Meanwhile, the search for Lana—previously abducted—takes Lois and Superman into German soil, where Lana is being held. In flight Lois and Clark get attacked by trolls and harpies, causing the plane to crash land in Germany. Lois soon discovers that the Reich is ruled by the god

Adonis In Greek mythology, Adonis, ; derived from the Canaanite word ''ʼadōn'', meaning "lord". R. S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, p. 23. was the mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite. One day, Adonis was gored by ...

while

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...

and

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretism, syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded ...

oppose him. Wonder Woman has betrayed Paradise Island and is now part of the Reich. It is also revealed that the Greek pantheon is in league with the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

, allowing them to employ mythological

monsters A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

to fight superheroes for world domination. A fight ensues between the German army and the Greek heroines. The sacrifice of the goddess Athena endows Lois with powers, transforming her into a new Wonder Woman. Superman is transformed into an evil centaur by

. Lana gifted with the power of the Oracle of Delphi persuades the centaur Superman into realizing his true identity. Superman is transformed into a woman (because his crimes as leader of the

Maenads In Greek mythology, maenads (; grc, μαινάδες ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of the Thiasus, the god's retinue. Their name literally translates as "raving ones". Maenads were known as Bassarids, ...

were against women, and therefore, he must take their place). The female Superman then infiltrates the Great Hall of the Reich, which is guarded by the Minotaur. She succeeds in her task due to Lana's magical knowledge. Lois, as the new Wonder Woman, defeats the Nazi Wonder Woman and ties her up with her magic lasso. Finally, it is revealed that

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...

and Hera were playing a chess game, using the world as their chess pieces. Adonis is sent to be taken care of by Hades. Superman, Lois (now the new Wonder Woman) and Lana all live together on Superman fortress on the moon in polyamorous love.

Publication

* ''Whom Gods Destroy'' #1 (52 page, October 1996) * ''Whom Gods Destroy'' #2 (52 page, November 1996) * ''Whom Gods Destroy'' #3 (52 page, December 1996) * ''Whom Gods Destroy'' #4 (52 page, January 1997)

References

* * {{Superman publications 1996 comics debuts Comics by Chris Claremont

Plot

Publication

See also

References