Sasha Bordeaux
Encyclopedia
Sasha Bordeaux is a fictional character
in the DC Universe
. She was at first primarily associated with Batman
, and has subsequently evolved an association with Checkmate
in two of its incarnations. She was created by Greg Rucka
and Shawn Martinbrough, and first appeared in Detective Comics
#751.
by WayneCorp's second in command, Lucius Fox
, albeit against Wayne's wishes. Wayne at first tried to avoid her, but she kept on doing her job.
She eventually became suspicious of his constant late-night disappearances and did some searching, and was shocked to find that Bruce Wayne was secretly Batman. Knowing he couldn't legally fire her for knowing of his secret identity
, Batman began training her to become his apprentice. After weeks of hard work, she became fit enough to go out with him on patrol in a suit, though he still treated her as a total stranger both as Batman and as Bruce Wayne. During this time, she fell in love with him, even as he insisted on having her around while he dated other women.
, and Sasha refused to exonerate herself by giving up Wayne's secret. They were both arraigned and held without bail while awaiting trial. After a while, Batman escaped to leave his alter ego behind, leaving Bordeaux inside Blackgate prison. Batman eventually confronted those who framed him, and Wayne and Sasha were cleared of all charges.
not given her medical treatment. They faked her death and offered to give her a new name and identity (complete with plastic surgery
) if she would work for them. With no other options, she agreed.
Batman tirelessly searched for Sasha, not believing she had died in prison. To facilitate this, he disrupted all of Checkmate's operations in Gotham City
. The group eventually organized a meeting between the two, where Wayne confessed that he loved her. Sasha, though feeling the same way, realized that her new life would prevent them from being together and told him to let her go.
Over time, Bordeaux rose through the ranks of Checkmate to become right hand to Maxwell Lord
, the group's leader. Lord later hijacked the Brother I satellite
that Batman had created to monitor all superhuman activity. Brother I itself had recently become sentient due to the actions of Alexander Luthor, Jr.
as a part of his plans for the Infinite Crisis
. He also created an army of cyborg
s known as OMACs
(who are originally human, transformed when needed by a virus
) programmed to hunt and kill all superhumans and/or specific targets. During his rule, Lord killed all who opposed him, assisted by Brother I who monitors for rebellion. Sasha feigns loyalty to stay alive, but breaks this when Lord kills his former ally Blue Beetle
, and orders Sasha to dispose of his corpse. Filled with hatred for herself and Lord, she sent Kord's trademark goggles to Batman as part of a message detailing Lord's madness.
When Brother I revealed Sasha's betrayal, he sent out an OMAC squad who found Sasha and Batman in an abandoned warehouse just after they share a kiss. The OMACs' goal of killing Batman and taking Sasha only partly succeeds as Batman escapes. Lord, realizing he cannot get any information out of Sasha, imprisons her and brainwashes Superman
in an attempt to kill Batman. To stop this, Wonder Woman
snaps Lord's neck, killing him instantly.
; unlike the other OMACs, she was not under Brother I's control.
With Lord's death, Brother I rechristened itself "Brother Eye" and activated all the remaining OMACs to kill Earth's superhumans. Bordeaux contacted the other various factions of Checkmate who had left when Lord took over, apologizing for Lord and asking them to rejoin.
She then created a computer virus
and hooked herself up to the Brother Eye satellite; the virus, along with a massive electromagnetic pulse blast created by the various superheroes, disabled the majority of the OMACs. Brother I escaped with 200,000 OMACS.
She later reunited with Batman, who comforts her when she tells him she was now a machine.
#5 and #6). The attack sent Brother Eye crashing to Earth, but the satellite's central memory remained intact. With the various superheroes needed elsewhere, Batman tasked Bordeaux with destroying Brother Eye once and for all. Sasha resists the machine's brainwashing long enough to blow it up. She survives the blast, albeit at the cost of the majority of her OMAC shell.
, Bordeaux became the "Black Queen" of the Checkmate organization. In the first issue of the new Checkmate comic series, she leads a group of operatives into a Kobra
stronghold. As the new series began, Bordeaux was depicted as a cold-blooded killer; it remains to be seen whether this is an after-effect of her conversion to cyborg or due to events of the previous year
. Her "the ends justify the means" attitude towards the success of Checkmate missions has put her into conflict with Alan Scott
. She is also in conflict with several of her Checkmate colleagues, particularly Fire and Mister Terrific
, with whom she is romantically involved. As the series progressed, this aspect of her personality was rarely referred to again. In a 2007 story arc involving The Outsiders
, Bordeaux suffered extreme torture at the hands of Chang Tzu who wished to learn more about her cybernetic implants. Although she survived this encounter (barely), subsequent issues have had her fighting to regain her confidence, especially when the healing process results in even more of her body becoming cybernetic.
In Manhunter
(#27, January 2007), Sasha intervenes in the trial of Wonder Woman
(for murdering Maxwell Lord
) by secretly delivering exonerating evidence to Wonder Woman's lawyer, Kate Spencer.
", Sasha forms a small resistance team that includes Snapper Carr
, her current romantic interest Mister Terrific
, an artificial intelligence and later, the villain Cheetah. They cause much damage against the conquering forces of Darkseid
, mainly utilizing Snapper's teleportation power. When Sasha is infected by the Anti-Life Formula, the OMAC nanites in her body put her in a coma to prevent the spread of the infection. After Snapper's powers are neutralized, Mister Terrific realizes they must re-activate all OMACS that are left. The only way to do this is to revive Sasha and retrieve the OMAC codes from her nanites. The activation of the OMACs is successful, but the revival causes Sasha's biological processes to shut down.
When Sasha was captured by Chang Tzu and studied, he discovered that she had the following abilities:
Sasha also has the ability to turn her nanorobotic components on and off at will, and they also help her to regenerate from damage she sustains, particularly to those non-biological parts of her body.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the DC Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
. She was at first primarily associated with Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
, and has subsequently evolved an association with Checkmate
Checkmate (comics)
Checkmate, a division of Task Force X, is a fictional covert operations agency within the DC Comics universe. It first appeared in Action Comics #598 and proceeded to have its own ongoing title in Checkmate!...
in two of its incarnations. She was created by Greg Rucka
Greg Rucka
Gregory "Greg" Rucka is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.-Career:Rucka's writing career...
and Shawn Martinbrough, and first appeared in Detective Comics
Detective Comics
Detective Comics is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman in Detective Comics #27 . It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and...
#751.
Bodyguard, superhero
Sasha Bordeaux first appeared as an attractive young martial artist who was hired as Bruce Wayne's bodyguardBodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
by WayneCorp's second in command, Lucius Fox
Lucius Fox
Lucius Fox is a fictional character appearing in Batman comic books by DC Comics. He was created by Len Wein and John Calnan, and first appeared in Batman #307 . As a supporting character, he acts as Bruce Wayne's business manager who supposedly unknowingly runs the business interests that supply...
, albeit against Wayne's wishes. Wayne at first tried to avoid her, but she kept on doing her job.
She eventually became suspicious of his constant late-night disappearances and did some searching, and was shocked to find that Bruce Wayne was secretly Batman. Knowing he couldn't legally fire her for knowing of his secret identity
Secret identity
A secret identity is an element of fiction wherein a character develops a separate persona , while keeping their true identity hidden. The character also may wear a disguise...
, Batman began training her to become his apprentice. After weeks of hard work, she became fit enough to go out with him on patrol in a suit, though he still treated her as a total stranger both as Batman and as Bruce Wayne. During this time, she fell in love with him, even as he insisted on having her around while he dated other women.
Framed
One night while Batman and Bordeaux were out on patrol, the assassin David Cain lured Wayne's ex-girlfriend Vesper Fairchild to Wayne Manor and killed, framing Wayne in the process. Both Wayne and Bordeaux were charged with murderMurder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, and Sasha refused to exonerate herself by giving up Wayne's secret. They were both arraigned and held without bail while awaiting trial. After a while, Batman escaped to leave his alter ego behind, leaving Bordeaux inside Blackgate prison. Batman eventually confronted those who framed him, and Wayne and Sasha were cleared of all charges.
Checkmate
While in prison custody, Sasha was severely wounded by another prisoner and would have died had the government agency CheckmateCheckmate (comics)
Checkmate, a division of Task Force X, is a fictional covert operations agency within the DC Comics universe. It first appeared in Action Comics #598 and proceeded to have its own ongoing title in Checkmate!...
not given her medical treatment. They faked her death and offered to give her a new name and identity (complete with plastic surgery
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
) if she would work for them. With no other options, she agreed.
Batman tirelessly searched for Sasha, not believing she had died in prison. To facilitate this, he disrupted all of Checkmate's operations in Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
. The group eventually organized a meeting between the two, where Wayne confessed that he loved her. Sasha, though feeling the same way, realized that her new life would prevent them from being together and told him to let her go.
Over time, Bordeaux rose through the ranks of Checkmate to become right hand to Maxwell Lord
Maxwell Lord
Maxwell Lord IV is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a shrewd and powerful businessman who was very influential in the formation of the Justice League International in DC Comics.-Before the League:...
, the group's leader. Lord later hijacked the Brother I satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
that Batman had created to monitor all superhuman activity. Brother I itself had recently become sentient due to the actions of Alexander Luthor, Jr.
Alexander Luthor, Jr.
Alexander Luthor Jr. is a DC Comics character who turned from a hero to a villain. Created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, Alexander has a prominent role in the DC Universe storylines Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis....
as a part of his plans for the Infinite Crisis
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, and a number of tie-in books...
. He also created an army of cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
s known as OMACs
OMACs
The OMACs are a fictional type of powerful cyborg that exist in the DC Comics universe...
(who are originally human, transformed when needed by a virus
Virus
A virus is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea...
) programmed to hunt and kill all superhumans and/or specific targets. During his rule, Lord killed all who opposed him, assisted by Brother I who monitors for rebellion. Sasha feigns loyalty to stay alive, but breaks this when Lord kills his former ally Blue Beetle
Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
Blue Beetle is the second Blue Beetle, a superhero who was originally published by Charlton Comics and later picked up by DC Comics...
, and orders Sasha to dispose of his corpse. Filled with hatred for herself and Lord, she sent Kord's trademark goggles to Batman as part of a message detailing Lord's madness.
When Brother I revealed Sasha's betrayal, he sent out an OMAC squad who found Sasha and Batman in an abandoned warehouse just after they share a kiss. The OMACs' goal of killing Batman and taking Sasha only partly succeeds as Batman escapes. Lord, realizing he cannot get any information out of Sasha, imprisons her and brainwashes Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
in an attempt to kill Batman. To stop this, Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
snaps Lord's neck, killing him instantly.
Cyborg
With the help of another imprisoned agent, Jessica Midnight (who had attempted to assassinate Lord earlier), Bordeaux escaped and set out to kill Lord, unaware he was already dead. As they were on their way out, an OMAC attacked the two and impaled Bordeaux. This attack somehow activated her latent inner programming, turning her into an OMAC cyborg. However, she retained most of her human features, although her skin now resembles a metallic coating and one of her eye sockets is empty. She also found that she retained her free willWill (philosophy)
Will, in philosophical discussions, consonant with a common English usage, refers to a property of the mind, and an attribute of acts intentionally performed. Actions made according to a person's will are called "willing" or "voluntary" and sometimes pejoratively "willful"...
; unlike the other OMACs, she was not under Brother I's control.
With Lord's death, Brother I rechristened itself "Brother Eye" and activated all the remaining OMACs to kill Earth's superhumans. Bordeaux contacted the other various factions of Checkmate who had left when Lord took over, apologizing for Lord and asking them to rejoin.
She then created a computer virus
Computer virus
A computer virus is a computer program that can replicate itself and spread from one computer to another. The term "virus" is also commonly but erroneously used to refer to other types of malware, including but not limited to adware and spyware programs that do not have the reproductive ability...
and hooked herself up to the Brother Eye satellite; the virus, along with a massive electromagnetic pulse blast created by the various superheroes, disabled the majority of the OMACs. Brother I escaped with 200,000 OMACS.
She later reunited with Batman, who comforts her when she tells him she was now a machine.
Infinite Crisis
Eventually, with the aid of the new Blue Beetle, Batman located Brother Eye. He then gathered a team of heroes, including Bordeaux, to attempt to destroy it (Infinite CrisisInfinite 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, and a number of tie-in books...
#5 and #6). The attack sent Brother Eye crashing to Earth, but the satellite's central memory remained intact. With the various superheroes needed elsewhere, Batman tasked Bordeaux with destroying Brother Eye once and for all. Sasha resists the machine's brainwashing long enough to blow it up. She survives the blast, albeit at the cost of the majority of her OMAC shell.
One year later
One year after Infinite CrisisOne Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
, Bordeaux became the "Black Queen" of the Checkmate organization. In the first issue of the new Checkmate comic series, she leads a group of operatives into a Kobra
Kobra (comics)
Kobra is the name used by two fictional supervillains published by DC Comics. The Jeffrey Burr Kobra first appeared in Kobra #1 , and was created by Martin Pasko, Steve Sherman, Jack Kirby, and Pablo Marcos...
stronghold. As the new series began, Bordeaux was depicted as a cold-blooded killer; it remains to be seen whether this is an after-effect of her conversion to cyborg or due to events of the previous year
52 (comics)
52 was a weekly American comic book limited series published by DC Comics that debuted on May 10, 2006, one week after the conclusion of the seven-issue Infinite Crisis. The series was written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid with layouts by Keith Giffen...
. Her "the ends justify the means" attitude towards the success of Checkmate missions has put her into conflict with Alan Scott
Alan Scott
Alan Scott is a fictional character, a superhero in the and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern.-Publication history:The original Green Lantern was created by young struggling artist Martin Nodell, who was inspired by the sight of a New York Subway employee waving a red lantern to...
. She is also in conflict with several of her Checkmate colleagues, particularly Fire and Mister Terrific
Mister Terrific (Michael Holt)
Michael Holt is a fictional character, a comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics. First appearing in Spectre #54 , he is the second character to take up the Mister Terrific mantle....
, with whom she is romantically involved. As the series progressed, this aspect of her personality was rarely referred to again. In a 2007 story arc involving The Outsiders
Outsiders (comics)
The Outsiders are a fictional DC Comics superhero team. As its name suggests, the team consists of superheroes who allegedly do not fit the norms of the mainstream superhero community, namely the Justice League....
, Bordeaux suffered extreme torture at the hands of Chang Tzu who wished to learn more about her cybernetic implants. Although she survived this encounter (barely), subsequent issues have had her fighting to regain her confidence, especially when the healing process results in even more of her body becoming cybernetic.
In Manhunter
Manhunter (comics)
-Golden Age:The first of DC's Manhunters was a non-costumed independent investigator, Paul Kirk, who helped police solve crimes during the early 1940s. Though the series was titled "Paul Kirk, Manhunter", Kirk didn't use the Manhunter name as an alias...
(#27, January 2007), Sasha intervenes in the trial of Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
(for murdering Maxwell Lord
Maxwell Lord
Maxwell Lord IV is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a shrewd and powerful businessman who was very influential in the formation of the Justice League International in DC Comics.-Before the League:...
) by secretly delivering exonerating evidence to Wonder Woman's lawyer, Kate Spencer.
Final Crisis
During the events of "Final CrisisFinal Crisis
Final Crisis is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and...
", Sasha forms a small resistance team that includes Snapper Carr
Snapper Carr
Lucas "Snapper" Carr is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe, most famous as a supporting character to the superhero team the Justice League of America . He has often been referred to as the team's mascot...
, her current romantic interest Mister Terrific
Mister Terrific (Michael Holt)
Michael Holt is a fictional character, a comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics. First appearing in Spectre #54 , he is the second character to take up the Mister Terrific mantle....
, an artificial intelligence and later, the villain Cheetah. They cause much damage against the conquering forces of Darkseid
Darkseid
Darkseid is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 and was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby....
, mainly utilizing Snapper's teleportation power. When Sasha is infected by the Anti-Life Formula, the OMAC nanites in her body put her in a coma to prevent the spread of the infection. After Snapper's powers are neutralized, Mister Terrific realizes they must re-activate all OMACS that are left. The only way to do this is to revive Sasha and retrieve the OMAC codes from her nanites. The activation of the OMACs is successful, but the revival causes Sasha's biological processes to shut down.
JSA vs. Kobra
In the 2009 miniseries "JSA Vs. Kobra", Mr. Terrific, along with Dr. Mid-Nite, are keeping a comatose Sasha alive via life support, with the hope that they will be able to cure her. By the end of the series, Sasha is restored to life and passionately kisses Mr. Terrific. This is the last appearance of Sasha, and her current whereabouts are unknown.Powers and abilities
Even before her transformation, Sasha was a skilled hand-to-hand combatant and marksman. She was skilled enough that Batman allowed her to serve as a sidekick of sorts.When Sasha was captured by Chang Tzu and studied, he discovered that she had the following abilities:
- "A rough ten-to-twenty percent enhancement over even an Olympic level athlete across the board--in strength, stamina, endurance, speed, dexterity...". During the procedure, she also demonstrated a rapidly increasing tolerance to the sedatives being used to keep her unconscious.
- "(Via Sasha's) ocular implant, the whole of the visual spectrum and more, revealed to you". Earlier in the same storyline, Sasha demonstrated the ability to see in the infrared spectrum.
- "Optimized targeting optics...you must make a terrifyingly accurate sniper..."
- "Body parts encased in the OMAC composite shell...nanobot scabs covering your weaker flesh."
Sasha also has the ability to turn her nanorobotic components on and off at will, and they also help her to regenerate from damage she sustains, particularly to those non-biological parts of her body.