Wildcat (DC Comics)
Wildcat is the name of several fictional characters, all DC Comics superheroes, the first and most famous being Theodore "Ted" Grant, a long-time member of the Justice Society of America (JSA).[1] A world-class heavyweight boxer, Grant became entangled inadvertently in the criminal underworld and developed a costumed identity to clear his name.
| Wildcat | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Sensation Comics #1 (January 1942) |
| Created by | Bill Finger Irwin Hasen |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Theodore "Ted" Grant Yolanda Montez Tom Bronson |
| Team affiliations | Justice Society of America Suicide Squad All-Star Squadron Justice League of America |
| Abilities | World champion boxer Peak physical condition Nine lives at any given time |
Other characters have taken Grant's name and identity, including his goddaughter Yolanda Montez, who served as a temporary replacement for him, and his son Thomas "Tom" Bronson, a metahuman werecat who is tutored by him as a second Wildcat and a JSA member in late-2000s stories.
Grant’s Wildcat was a recurring character on the third season of Arrow played by J.R. Ramirez. He was a retired vigilante who was training Laurel Lance to become one. Wildcat also appears on the DC Universe streaming service show Stargirl, played by Brian Stapf.
Fictional character biography
Theodore "Ted" Grant
The Ted Grant version of Wildcat first appeared in Sensation Comics #1 and was created by writer Bill Finger, and designed by illustrator Irwin Hasen.[2]
Yolanda Montez
Born with metahuman powers due to the machinations of the villainous Doctor Benjamin Love, Yolanda Montez was the goddaughter of Ted Grant, who was a good friend of her father "Mauler" Montez. As a result of the prenatal treatments given to her mother, Yolanda was born with retractable claws on her fingers and toes and cat-like agility. Initially, she concealed her abilities and lived a normal life. She later became a journalist working for "Rock Stars Magazine". When Ted was injured in the Crisis, Yolanda used her powers to become the new Wildcat.[3] She then joined Infinity Inc. afterwards. She and her Infinity Inc. team mate Beth Chapel were later killed by Eclipso,[4] who would later possess her cousin Alex.[5]
Hector Ramirez
Hector Ramirez first appeared in Batman/Wildcat # 1 (April 1997) and was created by Chuck Dixon, Beau Smith, and Sergio Cariello. He was a boxing protégé of Ted Grant. After learning that Ted used to be Wildcat, Hector aspired to be his successor, something Ted refused. Hector then took one of Ted's old costumes and went out as Wildcat in Gotham City. In an attempt to break up a secret fight club where caged villains fought to the death, Ramirez was himself caught and later killed by Killer Croc in the ring. The operators Lock-Up and Ernie Chubb were eventually apprehended by Ted and Batman.[6]
Tom Bronson
Thomas "Tom" Bronson is Ted Grant's youngest son.[7] Tom's mother Marilyn had a one-night stand with Ted, and never told him of Tom's existence. Despite the fact that his father was not involved in his life, Tom is not bitter towards Ted. However, he did tell Ted that he had no intentions of becoming the next Wildcat as he was not a fighter himself.
It was revealed that Tom is a Metahuman that can change into a were-panther at will, similar to the Wildcat featured in Kingdom Come.[8] When Ted was attacked by Vandal Savage, Tom changed into his were-panther form and managed to fight against Savage until help arrived.
In Justice Society of America 80 Page Giant Sized (2010), it was revealed that Tom's mother had the same powers as her son, but would change involuntarily every month. After a minor battle involving Ted, Marilyn, and the first Huntress, Ted took Marilyn to see Doctor Mid-Nite who cured her of the involuntary aspect of her power, allowing her to change at will instead. While she is unconscious, Ted told Doctor Mid-Nite to "fix her and send her on her way" to protect her from his dangerous walk of life. However, Doctor Mid-Nite discovered that she was pregnant and revealed this to his now conscious patient. She ultimately decided to withhold this information from Ted, but her motivations were unclear. She then raised Tom herself.[9]
Over time, Tom slowly forms a bond with Ted and eventually, after some initial reluctance, agrees to share the Wildcat title with his father. At this point he is introduced and inducted into the Justice Society.[10]
In a team-up with the Justice League, he talks to Vixen and indicates the presence of enhanced senses.
Later, Tom, now calling himself Tomcat, parted ways with Ted and joined the All-Stars, an offshoot team created by the younger members of the JSA.
Other versions
Tangent Comics
In Tangent: Superman's Reign #3, the Wildcat of Earth-9 is revealed to be a large, humanoid, cat creature, a member of the Nightwing organization's Covert Ops team.
In other media
Television
Live-action
- Ted Grant appears briefly in the Smallville episode "Absolute Justice" in a photograph played by actor Roger Hasket.
- Ted Grant appeared as a recurring character in Arrow's third season, portrayed by actor J.R. Ramirez, while Grant's youngest son from the comics, Tom Bronson, was stated as being one of his students.
- Both the Ted Grant and Yolanda Montez iterations of Wildcat appear in the DC Universe series Stargirl, portrayed by Brian Stapf and Yvette Monreal respectively.[11] Montez took up the mantle after Grant fell in battle against the Injustice Society.
Animation
- In Justice League episode "Legends", a character named Catman voiced by Stephen Root is based on Wildcat. The Catman, real name T. Blake (not to be confused with Thomas Blake, another character with the same name of DC Comics), was an alternate-Earth superhero and a member of the Justice Guild of America (based in Justice Society of America). In the 1950s, he was a member of the legendary team of superheroes known as The Justice Guild Of America. He was often paired up with Black Siren during field missions. He had a Cat-Cycle that he would ride as well and has retractable claws and a grappling hook. He was also quite athletic and was quite a skilled martial artist as well. He fought crime alongside his teammates until he was killed in a nuclear war. The Cat Man encountered by the Justice League was a projection of the mind of a mutated child named Ray Thompson.
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- In Justice League's sequel show, Justice League Unlimited, the actual Ted Grant iteration of Wildcat appears, voiced by Dennis Farina. He had a prominent role alongside Black Canary and Green Arrow in the episode "The Cat and the Canary" where he was competing in Roulette's Meta-Brawl after he became less involved in missions, leaving him time to train the other heroes on the Watchtower. He defeated Sportsmaster, but his match with the Atomic Skull was interrupted by Green Arrow and Black Canary. Black Canary made a deal with Roulette to let her to fight her mentor; if Black Canary won, Roulette would ban Wildcat from MetaBrawl forever, but if she lost, Black Canary would never get involved with his life there again. Green Arrow used a knockout gas arrow on Black Canary, and fought Wildcat instead and faked his own death via an unseen stunner that put the archer in metabolic stasis. This helped Wildcat see the horror of the match and quit; Wildcat is seen later in therapy with Martian Manhunter. In subsequent episodes, Wildcat appears among the League's front-line fighters.
- Wildcat appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Golden Globe-nominee R. Lee Ermey.[12] He was previously Batman's mentor as he was seen training with him yet he does not want to give up fighting crime. In the episode "Enter the Outsiders!", he helps the Dark Knight fight the Outsiders, Black Lightning, Katana, and Metamorpho, working for Slug. They later found Slug's hideout, but ended up captured and were about to be fed to the giant turtles. Wildcat was released because of his trash talking, but Slug left Batman for the giant turtles. Wildcat fought and defeated Slug, and threw him in the polluted river. Wildcat persuaded the Outsiders not to consider themselves freaks. Slug emerged from the polluted river, Black Lightning and Metamorpho reactivated Wildcat's heart. Wildcat later trained the Outsiders to box. He appeared again in the sub-plot of "Menace of the Conqueror Caveman!" to help Batman against Bane. At first, he thought Bane was a pushover because he was extremely frail and scrawny without Venom. He was unsure whether to punch Bane, or feed him a protein shake, but after seeing Bane enhanced with Venom, he began to think twice. Wildcat used one of Batman's batarangs to cut Bane's Venom-strengthening tubes. This was done on a set of train tracks, shocking Bane once the tube's liquid poured out onto the tracks. Wildcat appears as a member of the JSA in the episode "The Golden Age of Justice!". Black Canary, in a bid to help the others see that she is an adult, helps him face his greatest regret: not being able to help the original Black Canary. He and Black Canary help the rest of the JSA and Batman in the fight against Per Degaton. Wildcat appears again as a member of the JSA in the episode "Crisis 22,300 Miles Above Earth!" where he is invited, with the rest of his team, up to Justice League International's satellite, and ends up getting into fisticuffs with them. The two teams later join together to help Batman take down Ra's al Ghul. Additionally, Ted appears in a non-speaking cameo in the two parts of "The Siege of Starro!", first among the heroes possessed by Starro, and later as one of the heroes that have already broken free of the mind control and battle against Starro's titan form. The Crime Syndicate counterpart of Wildcat appears in episode "Deep Cover for Batman" in flashbacks.
- Wildcat also appears briefly in the Young Justice cartoon series. In the episode "Humanity", he appears during a flashback scene taking place in the 1930s, among other well known members of the Justice Society of America, such as Jay Garrick and Alan Scott.
- Wildcat appears as a gym teacher at Super Hero High in DC Super Hero Girls, voiced by John DiMaggio.
Film
- The character appears both in and out of costume in the animated film Justice League: The New Frontier. He is seen in costume in the opening credits and later out of costume fighting in a boxing match with a man named Cooke. In this film, he is a former member of the now retired Justice Society of America, which had disbanded after the death of Hourman.
- An alternate version of Wildcat from a parallel Earth appears briefly in the animated film Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. He is among the underlings of the Crime Syndicate known as the Made Men.
- Wildcat makes a brief appearance in Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.
Video games
- Wildcat appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold video game, voiced again by R. Lee Ermey.
- Wildcat appears in DC Universe Online, voiced by Ken Webster.
- In Injustice: Gods Among Us, the Wildcat costume is featured in a display case in the background of the Hall of Justice Stage.
- In Batman: Arkham Knight, there are posters for a cancelled boxing match featuring Ted "The Wildcat" Grant vs. Albert "The Goliath" King appearing on many places of Gotham City.
- Wildcat is mentioned in Injustice 2 by Batman when fighting Black Canary. If Batman depletes Black Canary's first health-bar, one of the random dialogues that he may say is: "What has Wildcat been teaching you?".
Toys
Wildcat was the first figure released in the ninth wave of the DC Universe Classics line and was available in his black and blue costumes.
Parodies
Wildcat briefly appears in Robot Chicken DC Comics Special, voiced by Matthew Senreich. He is seen seen fighting alongside the Justice League against the Legion of Doom, and being confused over his fight against Darkseid before being disintegrated by the villain.
Reception
IGN listed Ted Grant as Wildcat as the 71st greatest comic book character of all time stating that, due to his age as a superhero, he is almost more mystifying than the Spectre.[13]
References
- Markstein, Don. "Wildcat". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
- Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 327. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
- Crisis on Infinite Earths #6 (September 1985). DC Comics.
- Eclipso #13 (November 1993). DC Comics.
- JSA #46–51 Princes of Darkness (May–October 2003)
- Batman/Wildcat #1. DC Comics.
- Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #2 (March 2007)
- Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #3 (April 2007). DC Comics.
- Justice Society of America 80 Page Giant Sized #1. DC Comics.
- Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #4 (May 2007). DC Comics.
- Holbrook, Damian (December 17, 2018). "DC Universe's 'Stargirl' Casts Brian Stapf as Wildcat". TVInsider. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
- "Interview". Collider.com. 2008-08-18. Retrieved 2011-01-30.
- "Wildcat is number 71". IGN. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
External links
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