.gif)
Wildcats (comics)
Encyclopedia
Wildcats, sometimes rendered WildCats or WildC.A.T.s, is a fictional superhero
team created by the American
comic book artist
Jim Lee
and writer Brandon Choi
.
in the first issue of their eponymous comic book WildC.A.T.s: Covert Action Teams, published by Image Comics
. It was Image founding partner Jim Lee's first work published by the newly-launched company, and his first creator owned project. The Wildcats were the starting point for Lee's menagerie of interconnected superhero creations which became the foundation of the Wildstorm Universe
. The Wildcats comics, launched at the apex of a speculator-fuelled comics sales boom, was wildly popular at its inception, with wholesale sales to comic book stores above one million copies for early issues. This first series ran for 50 issues, and in addition to Lee featured work by such prominent comics creators as Travis Charest
, Chris Claremont
, James Robinson
and Alan Moore
. This popularity saw the property expand into other media, with an animated adaptation of the comic debuting on CBS
in 1994 and a toyline from Playmates Toys
.
In 1998
, ownership of the Wildcats concepts and characters were sold to DC Comics
, a subsidiary of Time Warner
, as part of DC's acquisition of Lee's company Wildstorm Productions
. A new incarnation of the team was soon launched, under the simplified title Wildcats, focusing on the former members of the now-disbanded team and emphasizing a grittier tone during its 28-issue run. The third series, Wildcats Version 3.0, revolved around the HALO Corporation, its CEO Jack Marlowe (an amalgamation of original team members Spartan
& Void
), Grifter and a gallery of new characters subverting corporation politics to their cause of creating a better world. This incarnation lasted 24 issues and was followed by a nine-issue limited series titled Wildcats: Nemesis, which returned to a more superheroic style reminiscent of the first series. In late 2006, a fourth ongoing series was launched as a part of the Worldstorm publishing initiative. The series saw the return of Jim Lee as regular penciller for the first time since its first volume while Grant Morrison
took over writing duties. Only one issue was ever published, with future issues placed on hold. In mid-2008 a fifth volume of Wildcats was launched, tying into the World's End
crossover event.
and Daemonite
s. Kherubims, a nearly immortal, human-looking alien race with exceptional powers and skills, eventually traveled to Earth and by breeding with humans populated the planet with "Half-Breeds". Daemonites, besides having a fearsome appearance, also possessed various superhuman abilities including body possession and mental control over human beings. The initial arc brought Voodoo over to the team as the readers' point of view character as Helspont
, a Daemonite warlord has taken control over Vice President of the United States
Dan Quayle
. Rob Liefeld's Youngblood
co-starred in the closing chapters of the arc.
WildC.A.T.s' story continued in the mini Trilogy, penciled by Jae Lee, that introduced the Daemonite Lord Hightower. Jim Lee and Marc Silvestri proceeded to publish a 'Killer Instinct' crossover detailing Warblade's connection to Marc Silvestri's Cyberforce
.
Jim Lee devoted his time to coming up with the new concepts of Gen13, Deathblow
and Stormwatch
. Before he left the book he did the four-issue Gathering of Eagles storyline written by his Uncanny X-Men
writer, Chris Claremont
. It featured a new villain in Tapestry and added the characters of Mister Majestic
, Savant and Soldier, and featured Claremont's creator owned character Huntsman.
Almost all of the characters were spun off into their own mini-series, with Zealot featured in a 3 part Ron Marz written story, Spartan having his Kurt Busiek written mini-series, Warblade sharing another with Cyberforce's Ripclaw, Grifter co-starred in a mini with Stormwatch's Backlash that led to the latter's ongoing title, as well as another with Youngblood's Bedrock, Billy Tucci's Shi and even Dark Horse's
the Mask
.
James Robinson wrote a handful of issues, and also participated in the Wildcats' first Annual as well as a Team One Stormwatch/WildC.A.T.s mini-series detailing the past of the Wildstorm universe. The title also participated in the WildC.A.T.s-oriented "Wildstorm Rising
" crossover that saw the heroes try to gain control of the Daemonite battleship, which turned out to be the Kheran Ship instead, with WildC.A.T.s eventually leaving for Khera. Following a Grifter oneshot, the crossover gave birth to a short-lived Steven Seagle written Grifter series that centered on his super spy/superhero adventures while linking to an obscure Team One character Regiment at one point.
Alan Moore
attempted to give the series depth and cohesion by following up on the initial premise of the Daemonite and Kherubim war. After Grifter resigned, the C.A.T.s had the opportunity to venture to Khera where they found what appeared to be paradise. The Kherubims had won the Daemonite-Kherubim war and were living in prosperity. Appearances were deceiving, however, and it was apparent the planet was run by power-hungry politicians who have ruthlessly subjugated the Daemonites as second-class citizens. Voodoo, with her Daemonite blood, experienced this firsthand. Maul's race was also treated unjustly and though Emp, Warblade and Zealot were seduced by promises of power and recognition, Spartan discovered the truth about Khera's corrupt leaders. It took the death of one of Maul's race for the WildC.A.T.s to leave and head back for Earth. Disillusioned by the outcome of the war offworld and their selfishness, the team fell apart. Voodoo left and Emp fell into depression. The original team returned to Earth in pieces and despite having new members, they were defeated by the cunning traitor, Tao, who had manipulated them at each turn. Alan Moore also participated in Fire From Heaven
, a huge continuity-heavy crossover that resolved plotlines regarding Team 1, Team 7 and Kaizen Gamorra.
Alan Moore spun Voodoo off in a four-issue mini-series that had almost no connection to WildC.A.T.s mythos instead dealing with voodoo magic. Alan Moore also wrote a time-traveling WildC.A.T.s/Spawn
crossover mini-series.
At the time, Grifter had another turn at an ongoing series, this time written by Steven Grant with a much more gritty take on the character while Zealot was featured in a Backlash spinoff, Wildcore.
A two part arc was set in place before the book's co-creator Brandon Choi returned, setting up the short lasting Savant Garde spin-off. Choi initiated a storyline with an organization called Puritans as the main villains. The Puritans' goal was to eradicate the Kherubim and Daemonites on Earth. The 'C.A.T.s included Grifter, Condition Red and new members Mythos (a Kherubim Lord), Olympia (a Coda-trained Daemonite) and Sister Eve (the daughter of Emp's brother, Lord Entropy). The team traveled in time, and had various adventures through different time periods.
, resurrected the Wildcats under a whole different premise - Wildcats dealt with the lives of the original members after the team's breakup following a botched mission during which team member Zealot apparently died. Scott Lobdell provided the writing for the initial seven issues as well as a Mosaic oneshot detailing the change in Lord Emp, with Travis Charest penciling most of them. New villains like Kenyan and CC Rendozo were featured as antagonists, but it was all dropped very quickly, with Charest leaving the monthly comic format to work on a French Metabarons
graphic novel called Dreamshifters and Lobdell exiting a couple of issues later.
As Joe Casey and Sean Phillips took over Wildcats, they quickly dealt away with Kenyan while Void and Emp ended up having Spartan absorb their assets and powers, thus the book began a long spell featuring him aided by Ladytron and Grifter with Maul and Voodoo guest-starring and as well as new characters Noir, Agents Wax and Mohr of the National Park Service. Warblade was featured very briefly, last time in the Wildcats 2000 annual that brought back the dead version Condition Red, killing Olympia. Casey and Phillips signaled the new Wildstorm - critically acclaimed but low on readers' radar. The heroes fought Samuel "Slaughterhouse" Smith
(a superhuman serial killer
whose grandfather had appeared in Team One: WildC.A.T.s) after which eventually Zealot returned. Casey also wrote the Ladytron oneshot, a farsic rendition of her past, as well as a Mister Majestic ongoing series which ran for nine issues.
Wild Times: Wildcats and Wild Times: Grifter were published as oneshots, as a part of the crossover series Wild Times that spotlighted the characters in Elseworlds
-like alternate reality scenarios that blended genres. Wildcats also participated in the WildC.A.T.s/Aliens
crossover written by Stormwatch's Warren Ellis that served as a coda to that series and a prequel to his Authority run, having very little to do with the Wildcats themselves.
and most of it was illustrated by Dustin Nguyen.
Concurrent with Wildcats Version 3.0, Wildstorm also published a critically acclaimed noir-superhero series Sleeper
starring Alan Moore's Wildcats villain Tao, several Wildcats and other related characters. Spartan played a role in the Coup D'État crossover centering on The Authority taking over as rulers of the Wildstorm Universe's United States.
After guest-starring in Superman books, in 2004 DC published a Mr. Majestic
mini-series to test waters for an ongoing series that ran for seventeen issues.
Wildcats starred in a limited series by Robbie Morrison
and Talent Caldwell
entitled Wildcats: Nemesis, focusing on Zealot, Majestic and the Coda continuity, while heavily spotlighting the new Wildstorm universe anti-hero character of Charis, Lady Nemesis.
At the same time, Wildstorm published the Captain Atom: Armageddon maxi-series, heavily featuring the Wildcats as they tried to help DC character Captain Atom return to his universe and stop him from accidentally destroying their reality. Nikola, a female medic became the new Void with Captain Atom sharing a part of the power that eventually remade the Wildstorm universe altogether.
and drawn by Jim Lee
. The team consisted of Spartan, Mr. Majestic
, Zealot, Grifter, Voodoo, Savant, and Ladytron. Warblade is on a secret mission, and Maul has retired to his civilian identity. Kaizen Gamorra returned as villain, aided by the WildCats' first enemy, Helspont. However, the title was permanently put on hold after only one issue due to Morrison's work schedule.
and pencilled by Neil Googe
following on from the imprint's Number of the Beast
mini-series. Adam Beechen
took over writing duties from Gage in late 2009, with he, and artist Tim Seeley
, starting with issue #19 until the book's cancellation in December 2010 with #30.
Nemesis subsequently went missing following the teams battle with Majestic, while Savant rejoined the team.
collections:
Vol. 1 issue #14 is collected in Savage Dragon
Vol. 4: Possessed as it was done by Erik Larson
as part of Image X Month, issue 20 is also collected in the Wildstorm Rising trade paperback, while JLA/WildC.A.T.s is collected in the JLA: Ultramarine Corps
trade.
Both WildC.A.T.S Covert Action Teams: Compendium and A Gathering of Eagles are out of print. New printings of the trade paperbacks WildC.A.T.s: Homecoming and WildC.A.T.s: Gang War were published in 1999 after the late 1998 acquisition of WildStorm Productions by DC Comics
; as of 2009, both volumes have now sold out and are currently out of print. In August 2007 Alan Moore's Complete WildC.A.T.S TPB was released, containing the contents of both Gang War and Homecoming TPBs, as well as the short story from WildC.A.T.S #50.
and WildStorm (Funimation recently released the series' entire run on DVD).
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
team created by the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comic book artist
Comic Book Artist
Comic Book Artist was an American magazine founded by Jon B. Cooke devoted to anecdotal histories of American comic books, with emphasis on comics published since the 1960s...
Jim Lee
Jim Lee
Jim Lee is a Korean-American comic book artist, writer, editor and publisher. He first broke into the industry in 1987 as an artist for Marvel Comics, illustrating titles such as Alpha Flight and Punisher War Journal, before gaining a great deal of popularity on The Uncanny X-Men...
and writer Brandon Choi
Brandon Choi
Brandon Choi is an American comic book writer best known as one of the co-creators of the series Gen¹³ which enjoyed high popularity in the middle and late 1990s. He also wrote several other titles for Wildstorm Comics.-Biography:...
.
Publication history
The team first appeared in 19921992 in comics
-Year overall:* Image Comics explodes onto the scene, releasing eight ongoing and limited series, starting with Youngblood in April; followed by Spawn in May; Savage Dragon in July; and Brigade, Shadowhawk, and WildC.A.T.S. in August....
in the first issue of their eponymous comic book WildC.A.T.s: Covert Action Teams, published by Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
. It was Image founding partner Jim Lee's first work published by the newly-launched company, and his first creator owned project. The Wildcats were the starting point for Lee's menagerie of interconnected superhero creations which became the foundation of the Wildstorm Universe
Wildstorm Universe
The Wildstorm Universe is a fictional shared universe where the comic books published by Wildstorm take place. It represents an alternate history of the real world where ideas such as interstellar travel and superhuman abilities are commonplace...
. The Wildcats comics, launched at the apex of a speculator-fuelled comics sales boom, was wildly popular at its inception, with wholesale sales to comic book stores above one million copies for early issues. This first series ran for 50 issues, and in addition to Lee featured work by such prominent comics creators as Travis Charest
Travis Charest
Travis Charest is a Canadian comic book penciller, inker and painter, known for his work on such books as Darkstars, WildC.A.T.s, Grifter/Shi, WildC.A.T.s/X-Men: The Golden Age and The Metabarons...
, Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...
, James Robinson
James Dale Robinson
James Dale Robinson is a British writer of comic books and screenplays who is also known for his interest in vintage collectibles and memorabilia. His style is described as smart and energetic, built upon his vast knowledge of obscure continuity from the period known to fans and historians as the...
and Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
. This popularity saw the property expand into other media, with an animated adaptation of the comic debuting on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in 1994 and a toyline from Playmates Toys
Playmates Toys
Playmates Toys is a Costa Mesa, California toy manufacturer and a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Playmates Holdings Ltd , which was founded in 1966.-Proprietary brands:*Amazing Dolls*Amazing Pets*Kinder-Garden Babies*R.E.V.s*Waterbabies*WOW Pals...
.
In 1998
1998 in comics
-Spring:* Gay Comix , with issue #25, publishes its final issue -October:* Toy Biz buys Marvel Comics* Excalibur is canceled by Marvel with issue #125.-November:...
, ownership of the Wildcats concepts and characters were sold to DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, a subsidiary of Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
, as part of DC's acquisition of Lee's company Wildstorm Productions
WildStorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
. A new incarnation of the team was soon launched, under the simplified title Wildcats, focusing on the former members of the now-disbanded team and emphasizing a grittier tone during its 28-issue run. The third series, Wildcats Version 3.0, revolved around the HALO Corporation, its CEO Jack Marlowe (an amalgamation of original team members Spartan
Spartan (comics)
Spartan is a fictional character in the American comic Wildstorm universe and one of the central characters and current leader of Jim Lee's superhero team WildC.A.T.s.-Yohn Kohl:...
& Void
Void (comics)
Void is a fictional character in the Wildstorm Universe.-Fictional character biography:Adrianna was born in Arkhangelsk, Russia. Adrianna and her sister Svetlana were raised by their father after the death of their mother. Her father loved Adrianna and her ambition to become a cosmonaut and...
), Grifter and a gallery of new characters subverting corporation politics to their cause of creating a better world. This incarnation lasted 24 issues and was followed by a nine-issue limited series titled Wildcats: Nemesis, which returned to a more superheroic style reminiscent of the first series. In late 2006, a fourth ongoing series was launched as a part of the Worldstorm publishing initiative. The series saw the return of Jim Lee as regular penciller for the first time since its first volume while Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
took over writing duties. Only one issue was ever published, with future issues placed on hold. In mid-2008 a fifth volume of Wildcats was launched, tying into the World's End
World's End (comics)
"World's End" is a 2008-2009 comic book crossover storyline published by Wildstorm and taking place in the Wildstorm Universe. The event takes place in the issues of all of Wildstorm's Wildstorm Universe ongoing series.-Publication history:...
crossover event.
WildC.A.T.s volume one
Launched as an original Image comic book title by popular X-Men penciler Jim Lee and his friend, writer Brandon Choi, the comic book's premise revolved around the centuries long war between aliens called KherubimKherubim
The Kherubim or Kherans are an alien race in the fictional Wildstorm Universe. They were created by Jim Lee and first appeared in WildC.A.Ts #1 .-Biology:...
and Daemonite
Daemonite
The Daemonites are a fictional alien race in the . They were created by Jim Lee and first appeared in WildC.A.T.s. #1 .-Biology:Daemonites are reptilian aliens from the planet Daemon, who are capable of possessing host bodies...
s. Kherubims, a nearly immortal, human-looking alien race with exceptional powers and skills, eventually traveled to Earth and by breeding with humans populated the planet with "Half-Breeds". Daemonites, besides having a fearsome appearance, also possessed various superhuman abilities including body possession and mental control over human beings. The initial arc brought Voodoo over to the team as the readers' point of view character as Helspont
Helspont
Helspont is a fictional character, a supervillain in Wildstorm's comics. He has often fought the WildC.A.T.s, but also fought Team One, Gen¹³ and Backlash.-Fictional character biography:...
, a Daemonite warlord has taken control over Vice President of the United States
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
Dan Quayle
Dan Quayle
James Danforth "Dan" Quayle served as the 44th Vice President of the United States, serving with President George H. W. Bush . He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from the state of Indiana....
. Rob Liefeld's Youngblood
Youngblood (comics)
Youngblood is a superhero team that starred in their self-titled comic book, created by writer/artist Rob Liefeld. The team made its debut as a backup feature in the 1987 one-shot Megaton: Explosion before later appearing in its own ongoing series in 1992 as the flagship publication for Image Comics...
co-starred in the closing chapters of the arc.
WildC.A.T.s' story continued in the mini Trilogy, penciled by Jae Lee, that introduced the Daemonite Lord Hightower. Jim Lee and Marc Silvestri proceeded to publish a 'Killer Instinct' crossover detailing Warblade's connection to Marc Silvestri's Cyberforce
Cyberforce
Cyberforce is an Image Comics super-hero team created by artist Marc Silvestri and writer Eric Silvestri in 1992. Silvestri would begin performing both the plotting and pencilling chores, but the series was subsequently drawn by other artists, including David Finch...
.
Jim Lee devoted his time to coming up with the new concepts of Gen13, Deathblow
Deathblow
Deathblow is a fictional character in the . He first appears in Darker Image #1 was created by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi.-Fictional character biography:...
and Stormwatch
Stormwatch (comics)
Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that originated in the Wildstorm Universe and has since been revived as part of the DC Universe. The original version of Stormwatch first appeared in Stormwatch Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that...
. Before he left the book he did the four-issue Gathering of Eagles storyline written by his Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men, first published as The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. It is the mainstream continuity featuring the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes...
writer, Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...
. It featured a new villain in Tapestry and added the characters of Mister Majestic
Mister Majestic
Mister Majestic is a fictional character, a Wildstorm Productions superhero created by H.K. Proger and Jim Lee. He first appears in a backup story within WildC.A.T.s #11. One of the most powerful heroes in the WildStorm universe, he bears a strong, deliberate resemblance to DC Comics's...
, Savant and Soldier, and featured Claremont's creator owned character Huntsman.
Almost all of the characters were spun off into their own mini-series, with Zealot featured in a 3 part Ron Marz written story, Spartan having his Kurt Busiek written mini-series, Warblade sharing another with Cyberforce's Ripclaw, Grifter co-starred in a mini with Stormwatch's Backlash that led to the latter's ongoing title, as well as another with Youngblood's Bedrock, Billy Tucci's Shi and even Dark Horse's
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
the Mask
The Mask
The Mask is a Dark Horse comic book series created by writer John Arcudi and artist Doug Mahnke, and based on a concept by publisher Mike Richardson. The series follows a magical mask which imbues the wearer with reality-bending powers and physical imperviousness, as well as bypassing the wearer's...
.
James Robinson wrote a handful of issues, and also participated in the Wildcats' first Annual as well as a Team One Stormwatch/WildC.A.T.s mini-series detailing the past of the Wildstorm universe. The title also participated in the WildC.A.T.s-oriented "Wildstorm Rising
Wildstorm Rising
Wildstorm Rising was a crossover event published by Image Comics/WildStorm that involved the entire line of titles published by WildStorm in 1995.-Publication history:...
" crossover that saw the heroes try to gain control of the Daemonite battleship, which turned out to be the Kheran Ship instead, with WildC.A.T.s eventually leaving for Khera. Following a Grifter oneshot, the crossover gave birth to a short-lived Steven Seagle written Grifter series that centered on his super spy/superhero adventures while linking to an obscure Team One character Regiment at one point.
Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
attempted to give the series depth and cohesion by following up on the initial premise of the Daemonite and Kherubim war. After Grifter resigned, the C.A.T.s had the opportunity to venture to Khera where they found what appeared to be paradise. The Kherubims had won the Daemonite-Kherubim war and were living in prosperity. Appearances were deceiving, however, and it was apparent the planet was run by power-hungry politicians who have ruthlessly subjugated the Daemonites as second-class citizens. Voodoo, with her Daemonite blood, experienced this firsthand. Maul's race was also treated unjustly and though Emp, Warblade and Zealot were seduced by promises of power and recognition, Spartan discovered the truth about Khera's corrupt leaders. It took the death of one of Maul's race for the WildC.A.T.s to leave and head back for Earth. Disillusioned by the outcome of the war offworld and their selfishness, the team fell apart. Voodoo left and Emp fell into depression. The original team returned to Earth in pieces and despite having new members, they were defeated by the cunning traitor, Tao, who had manipulated them at each turn. Alan Moore also participated in Fire From Heaven
Fire From Heaven (comics)
"Fire From Heaven" was a company-wide crossover event story arc published by Wildstorm comics in 1996. The story ran across at least one issue of most Wildstorm titles at the time and several independent one-shots...
, a huge continuity-heavy crossover that resolved plotlines regarding Team 1, Team 7 and Kaizen Gamorra.
Alan Moore spun Voodoo off in a four-issue mini-series that had almost no connection to WildC.A.T.s mythos instead dealing with voodoo magic. Alan Moore also wrote a time-traveling WildC.A.T.s/Spawn
Spawn (comics)
Spawn is a fictional comic book superhero who appears in a monthly comic book of the same name published by Image Comics. Created by writer/artist Todd McFarlane, Spawn first appeared in Spawn #1...
crossover mini-series.
At the time, Grifter had another turn at an ongoing series, this time written by Steven Grant with a much more gritty take on the character while Zealot was featured in a Backlash spinoff, Wildcore.
A two part arc was set in place before the book's co-creator Brandon Choi returned, setting up the short lasting Savant Garde spin-off. Choi initiated a storyline with an organization called Puritans as the main villains. The Puritans' goal was to eradicate the Kherubim and Daemonites on Earth. The 'C.A.T.s included Grifter, Condition Red and new members Mythos (a Kherubim Lord), Olympia (a Coda-trained Daemonite) and Sister Eve (the daughter of Emp's brother, Lord Entropy). The team traveled in time, and had various adventures through different time periods.
Wildcats volume two
After the first series cancellation, WildStorm, now an imprint of DC ComicsDC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, resurrected the Wildcats under a whole different premise - Wildcats dealt with the lives of the original members after the team's breakup following a botched mission during which team member Zealot apparently died. Scott Lobdell provided the writing for the initial seven issues as well as a Mosaic oneshot detailing the change in Lord Emp, with Travis Charest penciling most of them. New villains like Kenyan and CC Rendozo were featured as antagonists, but it was all dropped very quickly, with Charest leaving the monthly comic format to work on a French Metabarons
Metabarons
The Metabarons or The Saga of The Meta-Barons is a science fantasy comic series relating the history of a dynasty of perfect warriors known as the Metabarons. The Metabarons series was written by creator Alejandro Jodorowsky and illustrated by Argentinian artist Juan Gimenez...
graphic novel called Dreamshifters and Lobdell exiting a couple of issues later.
As Joe Casey and Sean Phillips took over Wildcats, they quickly dealt away with Kenyan while Void and Emp ended up having Spartan absorb their assets and powers, thus the book began a long spell featuring him aided by Ladytron and Grifter with Maul and Voodoo guest-starring and as well as new characters Noir, Agents Wax and Mohr of the National Park Service. Warblade was featured very briefly, last time in the Wildcats 2000 annual that brought back the dead version Condition Red, killing Olympia. Casey and Phillips signaled the new Wildstorm - critically acclaimed but low on readers' radar. The heroes fought Samuel "Slaughterhouse" Smith
Slaughterhouse Smith
Slaughterhouse Smith is the name used by two fictional characters in Wildstorm comics universe.-Slaughterhouse Smith:The first Slaughterhouse Smith was a powerful gangster in the sixties. He first appeared in the Team One limited series. Smith joined the daemonite Helspont in the latter's plot to...
(a superhuman serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
whose grandfather had appeared in Team One: WildC.A.T.s) after which eventually Zealot returned. Casey also wrote the Ladytron oneshot, a farsic rendition of her past, as well as a Mister Majestic ongoing series which ran for nine issues.
Wild Times: Wildcats and Wild Times: Grifter were published as oneshots, as a part of the crossover series Wild Times that spotlighted the characters in Elseworlds
Elseworlds
Elseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
-like alternate reality scenarios that blended genres. Wildcats also participated in the WildC.A.T.s/Aliens
WildC.A.T.s/Aliens
WildC.A.T.S/Aliens was a one-shot comic book and intercompany crossover event, published by Wildstorm and Dark Horse Comics in 1998. The comic was written by Warren Ellis, pencilled by Chris Sprouse, with Kevin Nowlan inking and Laura Depuy as the colorist.-Overview:The story is set between the...
crossover written by Stormwatch's Warren Ellis that served as a coda to that series and a prequel to his Authority run, having very little to do with the Wildcats themselves.
Wildcats volume 3
The third series, Wildcats Version 3.0, was a part of the mature readers' Eye of the Storm imprint, dealing with Spartan's (now Jack Marlowe) agenda to better the world by proliferating advanced technology and power sources throughout the world via the HALO Corporation. Grifter was his troubleshooter and Agent Wax was one of his first associates. The stories added a motley group to this proactive organisation including the power broker C.C. Rendozzo and her organization, Agent Orange, and Grifter's unlikely pupil Edwin Dolby, one of HALO's accountants. The series ended with a thunderous finale where Zealot destroyed the Coda chapter she created on Earth. The whole series was written by Joe CaseyJoe Casey
Joe Casey is an American comic book writer. He has worked on titles such as Wildcats 3.0, Uncanny X-Men, The Intimates, Adventures of Superman, and G.I. Joe: America's Elite, among others.-Biography:...
and most of it was illustrated by Dustin Nguyen.
Concurrent with Wildcats Version 3.0, Wildstorm also published a critically acclaimed noir-superhero series Sleeper
Sleeper (comic book)
Sleeper was a comic book series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Sean Phillips, published by DC Comics under their Wildstorm imprint. The series consisted of two twelve-issue limited series and the events of the first "season" served as a catalyst for the Coup D'Etat line-wide crossover.Sleeper...
starring Alan Moore's Wildcats villain Tao, several Wildcats and other related characters. Spartan played a role in the Coup D'État crossover centering on The Authority taking over as rulers of the Wildstorm Universe's United States.
After guest-starring in Superman books, in 2004 DC published a Mr. Majestic
Mister Majestic
Mister Majestic is a fictional character, a Wildstorm Productions superhero created by H.K. Proger and Jim Lee. He first appears in a backup story within WildC.A.T.s #11. One of the most powerful heroes in the WildStorm universe, he bears a strong, deliberate resemblance to DC Comics's...
mini-series to test waters for an ongoing series that ran for seventeen issues.
Wildcats starred in a limited series by Robbie Morrison
Robbie Morrison
Robbie Morrison is a British comics writer most known for his work in 2000 AD and as the co-creator of popular character Nikolai Dante .-Biography:...
and Talent Caldwell
Talent Caldwell
Talent Caldwell is a comic book artist best known for his work on the Top Cow Productions character Fathom. He has also drawn for DC Comics' Superman and Marvel Comics' Spider-Man characters.-Biography:...
entitled Wildcats: Nemesis, focusing on Zealot, Majestic and the Coda continuity, while heavily spotlighting the new Wildstorm universe anti-hero character of Charis, Lady Nemesis.
At the same time, Wildstorm published the Captain Atom: Armageddon maxi-series, heavily featuring the Wildcats as they tried to help DC character Captain Atom return to his universe and stop him from accidentally destroying their reality. Nikola, a female medic became the new Void with Captain Atom sharing a part of the power that eventually remade the Wildstorm universe altogether.
Wildcats volume 4
In 2006, as part of the "Worldstorm" line-wide event, the title was restarted, written by Grant MorrisonGrant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
and drawn by Jim Lee
Jim Lee
Jim Lee is a Korean-American comic book artist, writer, editor and publisher. He first broke into the industry in 1987 as an artist for Marvel Comics, illustrating titles such as Alpha Flight and Punisher War Journal, before gaining a great deal of popularity on The Uncanny X-Men...
. The team consisted of Spartan, Mr. Majestic
Mister Majestic
Mister Majestic is a fictional character, a Wildstorm Productions superhero created by H.K. Proger and Jim Lee. He first appears in a backup story within WildC.A.T.s #11. One of the most powerful heroes in the WildStorm universe, he bears a strong, deliberate resemblance to DC Comics's...
, Zealot, Grifter, Voodoo, Savant, and Ladytron. Warblade is on a secret mission, and Maul has retired to his civilian identity. Kaizen Gamorra returned as villain, aided by the WildCats' first enemy, Helspont. However, the title was permanently put on hold after only one issue due to Morrison's work schedule.
Wildcats volume 5
In July 2008 Wildstorm debuted a new ongoing WildCats series written by Christos GageChristos Gage
Christos N. "Chris" Gage is an American comic book writer and screenwriter.-Early life:Gage is the son of author and journalist Nicholas Gage. He was born in New York, and grew up in Athens, Greece, and then North Grafton, Massachusetts...
and pencilled by Neil Googe
Neil Googe
-Biography:Googe's early comics work include a Shotgun Mary mini-series and work on 2000 AD, including a number of Judge Dredd stories....
following on from the imprint's Number of the Beast
Number of the Beast (comics)
Number of the Beast is a comic book limited series, written by Scott Beatty, with art by Chris Sprouse.Number of the Beast was the second of a number bi-weekly series, it was preceded by Wildstorm: Revelations, which resulted in the relaunch of a number of Wildstorm titles.-Characters:As well as...
mini-series. Adam Beechen
Adam Beechen
Adam Beechen is an American comic book writer who wrote Countdown to Adventure and co-wrote Countdown for DC Comics.-Animation:Beechen has written scripts for various cartoon, such as Teen Titans, The Wild Thornberrys, Rugrats, Pink Panther and Pals, The Batman and the Ben 10 franchise...
took over writing duties from Gage in late 2009, with he, and artist Tim Seeley
Tim Seeley
Tim Seeley is a comic book artist and writer known for his work on books such as G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe vs. Transformers and New Exiles.-Career:Seeley has illustrated a variety of comics, including Kore, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe vs...
, starting with issue #19 until the book's cancellation in December 2010 with #30.
Original team
The original WildC.A.T.s (Covert Action Team) consisted of:- SpartanSpartan (comics)Spartan is a fictional character in the American comic Wildstorm universe and one of the central characters and current leader of Jim Lee's superhero team WildC.A.T.s.-Yohn Kohl:...
: originally intended to be a highly sophisticated cyborg who could "die" and easily be downloaded to another body, Spartan's character has been revised several times. It was discovered that he was designed after the Hadrian-series of cyborgs from the Kherubim's homeworld and there were plenty of similar androids like him. Spartan resembled the X-Men's leader CyclopsCyclops (comics)Cyclops is a fictional character, the leader of the X-Men superhero team in the . A mutant, Cyclops emits a powerful energy beam from his eyes...
in many ways but had an interesting angle by having "human emotions" towards Voodoo. Spartan's history grew even more complicated when Alan Moore explained that he was an incarnation of a long-dead hero, John Colt, a.k.a. the Kherubim lord Yohn Kohl. Later still, he absorbed the powers of Void, making him one of the most powerful beings in the Wildstorm Universe. He later turned away from the role of superhero, trying to improve the world as Jack Marlowe, CEO of the Halo Corporation by introducing highly advanced alien technology into human society. - ZealotZealot (Wildstorm)Zealot is a comic book character from DC Comics/Wildstorm.Artist Mike Deodato loves the character of Zealot so much that when he took over as artist of the comic book Wonder Woman he used Zealot's physical appearance as a template for the then new character Artemis of...
: Zannah, a Kherubim and a Coda warrior, Zealot is the former Majestrix of the Coda and helped develop their virtues and practices. She has lived for thousands of years and has had many relationships with both humans and aliens alike. After failing to follow her own rules under the Coda, she left their clan and they have hunted her since. She was part of Team One under the name of Lucy Blaze. Zealot has a close friendship with Grifter though she is equally devoted to her sister Savant, who is secretly her real daughter. Winter from Stormwatch is, possibly, Zealot's son. Zealot left the Wildcats and for a limited amount of time she joined Dept. PSI and co-led WildCORE with Backlash; a half Kherubim and former member Team 7. Zealot is seemingly based on the DC Comics character Wonder WomanWonder WomanWonder 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....
and the Marvel Comics character ElektraElektra (comics)Elektra Natchios, usually referred to only by her first name Elektra, is a fictional character in publications from Marvel Comics.Elektra is a kunoichi – female ninja assassin – of Greek descent. She wields a pair of bladed sai as her trademark weapon. She is a love interest of the superhero...
. In recent years Zealot has turned upon her former allies in the Coda, claiming that by becoming mere assassins they have betrayed their purpose. Since then she has almost wiped out the Coda single-handed. - VoodooVoodoo (Wildstorm)Voodoo is a comic book character from the Wildstorm Universe and has since been revived as part of the DC Universe.-Wildstorm:The first Voodoo series was a four-issue limited series, published in 1997 and written by Alan Moore.-DC Comics:...
: Priscilla Kitaen, a telepathicTelepathyTelepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
Human-Kherubim hybrid with Daemonite ancestry, Voodoo has the ability to see Daemonites who have possessed humans and separate them from the bodies the Daemonites possessed. Voodoo was an exotic dancer before being rescued by the WildC.A.Ts from the Daemonites. She was later trained by Zealot in combat and developed an attraction towards Spartan. Her Daemonite ancestry was not revealed until she lapsed into a coma after being shot. Void entered her mind through a computer, and it was revealed that one of her ancestors, a Kherubim, was possessed by a Daemonite. Disappointed by her life as a superhero, she left the Wildcats and studied Voodoo magic. After she left the Wildcats, Voodoo was attacked by a serial killer named Samuel Smith, a fight which cost her both her legs. An elderly Daemonite appeared to her and taught her to use her hidden powers of regeneration and time manipulation. She managed to regrow her legs and started a relationship with her former teammate Maul. - Grifter: Former government operative and member of Team 7, Cole Cash is the only male ever trained by the Coda. Grifter represented the loner of the group though he seemed devoted to his partner Zealot. He was the only member of the original team not to use any active post-human powers (even though he had them due to being gen-activeGen-ActiveGen-Active is a comic book anthology-series from Wildstorm. It was published from 2000 to 2001 and ran for six issues.It is also the term used to describe a form of superhuman beings in the Wildstorm Universe, those who possess the Gen-Factor....
following Team 7's disbanding). His disagreements with Jacob Marlowe and the arrival of a second group of WildC.A.T.s led to his resignation and ill-fated solo comic book series. He returned to the Wildcats after the death of his brother, Max, only to leave the team again after Zealot's apparent death. Emp managed to convince him to rejoin the team to battle the threat of Kenyan. After Kenyan's death, Cole started working for Jack Marlowe. This job cost him the use of his legs, landing him in a wheelchair for a long time, even forcing him to use Ladytron's robotic body as a remote-controlled stand-in. Recently Grifter's latent powers healed his broken legs. - MaulMaul (Wildstorm)Maul is a comic book character from DC Comics/Wildstorm. Maul is a half human, half titanthrope , biochemist from Earth. Maul experiences powerful rage and is actually a Nobel-prized scientist named Dr. Jeremy Stone.-History:...
: Human-Titanthrop hybrid capable of increasing his mass at the cost of his reasoning capability. Some have argued that the Maul character is an imitation of the HulkHulk (comics)The Hulk is a fictional character, a superhero in the . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 ....
. Maul experiences powerful rage and is actually a NobelNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
-prize-winning scientist named Dr. Jeremy Stone. In the second series, by which time he Voodoo has become his roommate of three months, he was shown to have become more devoted to science and reluctant to use his superhuman abilities. He discovered he could increase his intelligence by decreasing his body mass, but this proved to be physically depleting. - Warblade: Human-Shaper hybrid capable of transforming parts of his body into any solid weapon. Warblade is an accomplished martial artist. Although a virtual killing machine, Reno Bryce also has the soul of an artist, having his sculpted work displayed in major art galleries. During Moore's run, a Kheran lord trained him in the use of his powers. In the second series, he killed the mercenary Pike for killing his girlfriend and retired as a superhero. He still keeps in touch with Grifter.
- VoidVoid (comics)Void is a fictional character in the Wildstorm Universe.-Fictional character biography:Adrianna was born in Arkhangelsk, Russia. Adrianna and her sister Svetlana were raised by their father after the death of their mother. Her father loved Adrianna and her ambition to become a cosmonaut and...
: Adrianna Tereshkova has the ability to see the future and teleport herself and others to anywhere on Earth due to her absorption of an Orb of Power. Over time, Void grew more and more distant from humanity and the part of her spirit that was Adrianna moved on to the afterlife. The Void entity existed without any host for a short time, before the actions of the traitor Noir endangered its existence and Spartan temporarily became its new host before it bonded with paramedic Nikola Hanssen. - Lord EmpLord EmpLord Emp is a comic book character from DC Comics/Wildstorm.-History:Like the other Kherubim on Earth, Emp arrived on the planet when the Explorer ship he was travelling on crash-landed thousands of years ago, following an orbital battle with a Daemonite vessel...
: Jacob Marlowe is a multi-millionaire who owns the media/technology conglomerate the Halo CorporationHalo CorporationThe Halo Corporation is a fictional company appearing in Wildstorm comics. It first appeared in WildC.A.T.S. volume 1 #1 and was created by Brandon Choi and Jim Lee and played an important role in Wildcats volume 2 and 3.-History:...
. Although he was once a Kherubim warlord, Emp does not remember his past and has no control over the powers he once wielded. It was the woman named Void who took him from his life as a homeless man and made him into the wealthy financier of the WildC.A.Ts. It was revealed he has assumed other rich personas in the past, including that of industrialist Saul Baxter during most of the 20th century. In the second series, Emp had taken a more alien appearance in preparation for his 'Ascension', a process which ultimately cost him his physical body but freed his spirit. Gone from the physical plane of existence, he left all his possessions to Spartan.
Savant's team
A second team was introduced later in the series. They were formed after the original team, rumored to be dead, had left for Khera, the Kherubim homeworld. This unlikely group broke from the WildC.A.T.s usual anti-Daemonite agenda and conducted a proactive war on criminals. This alienated them from many other characters in the Wildstorm universe.- Mister MajesticMister MajesticMister Majestic is a fictional character, a Wildstorm Productions superhero created by H.K. Proger and Jim Lee. He first appears in a backup story within WildC.A.T.s #11. One of the most powerful heroes in the WildStorm universe, he bears a strong, deliberate resemblance to DC Comics's...
: He was another Kherubim warlord, Lord Majestros, one of four that had been stuck on Earth. Mr. Majestic is a SupermanSupermanSuperman 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...
homage, with similar powers and physical characteristics (though he has had much better feats of strength and power than the current Superman), though he also is a genius inventor and a highly skilled martial artist (focused mostly on swordplay). He recently crossed over into the Superman comics, replacing the Man of Steel for a brief time, though he later returned and recently met Captain AtomCaptain AtomCaptain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
. Following his return from the DC Universe, Majestic starred in his second ongoing solo-series. - SavantSavant (Wildstorm)Savant is a comic book fictional character from DC Comics/Wildstorm.-Fictional character biography:Savant's real name is Kenesha. She is the daughter of Lord Majestros and Lady Zannah, better known as Zealot. However, Zannah, wanting to be a warrior, could not be a mother...
: The daughter of Lord Majestros and Zealot (a fact which was until recently only known to Zealot), Savant thinks she is Zealot's sister. She is an adventurer possessing many artifacts of mystic power and advanced technologies, including boots that can teleport the person who wears it and a piece of Void's Orb. Savant has shown superhuman strength, virtual immortality and has a genius-level intellect, but can also be irresponsible and brash. She was the leading character of the short-lived Savant Garde series. - Condition RedCondition Red (comics)Condition Red is the name of two different fictional American comic book characters who exist in the Wildstorm Universe: Max Cash from WildC.A.T.s and Caleb from the Monarchy.-Max Cash :...
: Max Cash is the younger brother of Grifter with excellent fighting and marksmanship abilities. Max was gunned down by a Coda Assassin in issue #49 of the first series and died in the final issue. He was resurrected as a zombie for one annual in the second series. - T.A.O.Tao (comics)Tao is a fictional character in the Wildstorm universe.-History:The Tactical Augmented Organism was created by Optigen, a subsidiary of the Halo Corporation, on behalf of International Operations. As a child, he grew at an amazing rate...
: The T.A.O. is an artificially produced human being with peculiar thinking abilities that enables him to be inhumanly persuasive and incredibly intuitiveIntuition (knowledge)Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without inference or the use of reason. "The word 'intuition' comes from the Latin word 'intueri', which is often roughly translated as meaning 'to look inside'’ or 'to contemplate'." Intuition provides us with beliefs that we cannot necessarily justify...
. He was eventually revealed to have been manipulating the team to self-destruction, the revelation of which caused him to seemingly be killed by Majestic. Eventually it was revealed that he had foreseen this and had a shapeshifted prisoner take the hit. He later re-appeared, having founded a worldwide criminal organization that aimed to destabilize human global governments, public institutions and age-old secret societies that controlled many aspects of the Wildstorm Universe. T.A.O.'s story after he left the WildC.A.T.S. were told in the series Point Blank and SleeperSleeper (comic book)Sleeper was a comic book series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Sean Phillips, published by DC Comics under their Wildstorm imprint. The series consisted of two twelve-issue limited series and the events of the first "season" served as a catalyst for the Coup D'Etat line-wide crossover.Sleeper...
. - LadytronLadytron (comics)Ladytron is a fictional character in the Wildstorm universe. In addition to her character appearances, Ladytron's likeness was used in-universe by Jack Marlowe's Halo Corporation as a mascot in various commercials.-History:...
: Maxine Manchester, a cyborg punkPunk subcultureThe punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
with homicidal tendencies. She was captured by the Wildcats and through T.A.O.'s reprogramming convinced to join the team. She admired the cybernetic mercenary Overtkill and was romantically interested in Max Cash, though her interest was not returned. When T.A.O. was revealed as a traitor, he disabled her robotic body and Ladytron was taken to the Church of Gort. She became a nun for this new age cult devoted to robotics, but had a falling out with its members because she still contained organic bodyparts. She ended up with the Wildcats again, but was wounded again, this time by the serial killer Samuel Smith. The damage was so extensive that Ladytron was shut down. A short stint as Noir's reprogrammed pawn later, Ladytron's mind was downloaded into the Halo mainframe and her body was used by the wheelchair-bound Grifter as a remote-controlled stand-in.
Time travel team
The team consisted of Grifter, Max Profitt (Max Cash), Void and Spartan (an old Spartan unit, with no knowledge about Khera or the "previous life" as John Colt), as well as these new members:- Mythos: A powerful mystic and Kherubim lord. He has superhuman physical attributes, such as an incredible speed.
- Olimpya: A Daemonite mercenary who has Coda training. Unlike many of her race, she was peaceful and even adopted a teenager named Kai, who apparently has Coda training as well. When Max Cash was killed, she killed his assassin in revenge. She was killed by zombie Max Cash during the Devil's Night crossover
- Sister Eve: Lord Entropy's daughter, who was a nun before joining the WildC.A.T.s. She has inherited her father's "chaos power".
3.0 cast
Besides Grifter and Jack Marlowe, the main characters were:- Edwin Dolby (a.k.a Grifter): Jack Marlowe's main accountant and right-hand man in the Halo Corporation. When Grifter's legs were seriously injured in a mission, he started training Dolby to be the second Grifter after learning of Dolby's natural aptitude for markmanship. Dolby, however, refused to kill. Despite this, Dolby was sent on a mission and during this mission he panicked and accidentally killed a man. He suffered a mental breakdown and quit Halo, but Marlowe was able to convince him to return by reinforcing his belief in the success of Halo's mission.
- Agent Wax: Jack Marlowe's mole at the National Park Service, a government agency tasked with monitoring superhuman activity. Wax is gifted with strong hypnotic powers, but his superiors never knew this. He quit the Service after the death of his partner, but he returned later. Because he had left, he was forced to take a desk job and was bullied by his boss, Agent Downs. He enacted revenge by using his powers to force Downs' wife into having sex with him on multiple occasions. Downs learned of Wax's manipulations and forced Wax to a confrontation. Wax made Downs kill himself with his hypnotic powers. He then used his powers to impersonate Downs. Marlowe found out about Downs' death, but decided to give Wax a second chance.
- C. C. Rendozzo: An information broker who knows about Jack Marlowe's alien origin. In return for her silence on his alien heritage, he agreed to rescue her son, who had been kidnapped by his government agent father. Despite spending most of her time behind a desk, Rendozzo is quite skilled with firearms and joined Grifter in an attempt to rescue Zealot, even taking a number of her henchmen along with her.
- Agent Orange: Another mole of Jack Marlowe, this time at the FBI. Agent Orange is an enhanced human, who can be mentally programmed for certain tasks. Agent Orange's blood is composed of dioxin and he has shown superhuman strength, durability and endurance. Never speaking or showing any emotion, Agent Orange is quite similar in appearance and behaviour to The TerminatorThe TerminatorThe Terminator is a 1984 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, co-written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr., and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. The film was produced by Hemdale Film Corporation and distributed by Orion Pictures, and filmed in Los...
. - The Beef Boys: Two remarkably, possibly superhumanly, strong men dressed in S&M fetish gear. Apart from running a BDSM club, they are also mercenaries who work for Grifter from time to time. The taller of the two, Glenn, never speaks, while the other, Cedric, is quite eloquent. Glenn was killed by the CodaCoda (Wildstorm)The Coda is a group of fictional female warriors in Wildstorm comics. The Coda first appeared in WildC.A.T.S. volume 1 #1 and were created by Brandon Choi and Jim Lee.-Fictional background:...
.
"World's End"
With the "World's End" crossover, original Wildcats Spartan, Zealot, Voodoo, Grifter, Maul and Warblade were brought together again to help save what was left of the human race. Their membership also included Ladytron as well as new members:- NemesisNemesis (Wildstorm)Nemesis is a fictional comic book character owned by DC Comics/Wildstorm Comics. She is an immortal member of the Adrastea class from Khera and a trained Coda warrior.-Life on Khera:...
: A CodaCoda (Wildstorm)The Coda is a group of fictional female warriors in Wildstorm comics. The Coda first appeared in WildC.A.T.S. volume 1 #1 and were created by Brandon Choi and Jim Lee.-Fictional background:...
warrior and former lover of Majestic. - Backlash: Formerly known as Jet, Jodi Slayton is the daughter of the original Backlash. She possesses superhuman speed and reflexes.
Nemesis subsequently went missing following the teams battle with Majestic, while Savant rejoined the team.
Volume 1
- 0–9: Jim Lee (Plot, Art), Brandon Choi (Script), Brett Booth (Art #0)
- 10–13: Chris ClaremontChris ClaremontChris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...
(Writer), Jim Lee (Artist) - 14: Erik LarsenErik LarsenErik J. Larsen is an American comic book writer, artist and publisher. He is best known for his work on Savage Dragon, as one of the founders of Image Comics, and for his work on Spider-Man for Marvel Comics.-Early life:...
(Writer, Artist) - 15–20: James Robinson (Writer), Travis CharestTravis CharestTravis Charest is a Canadian comic book penciller, inker and painter, known for his work on such books as Darkstars, WildC.A.T.s, Grifter/Shi, WildC.A.T.s/X-Men: The Golden Age and The Metabarons...
, Jim Lee (Artists) - 21–34: Alan MooreAlan MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
(Writer), and various artists (Jim Lee, Mat Broome, Travis Charest and others) - 35–36: Barbara KeselBarbara KeselBarbara Randall Kesel is an American writer and editor of comic books; her bibliography includes work for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Crossgen, Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics.-Biography:...
(Writer), Pascual Ferry, Rich Johnson and Carlos D'Anda (Artists) - 37–50: Brandon Choi, John Peterson (co-plotters), Mat Broome, Ed BenesEd BenesJosé Edilbenes Bezerra is a Brazilian comic book artist, better known by his pen name of Ed Benes...
and others (Artists)
Volume 2
- 1–7: Scott Lobdell, Joe CaseyJoe CaseyJoe Casey is an American comic book writer. He has worked on titles such as Wildcats 3.0, Uncanny X-Men, The Intimates, Adventures of Superman, and G.I. Joe: America's Elite, among others.-Biography:...
(co-plotters), Travis CharestTravis CharestTravis Charest is a Canadian comic book penciller, inker and painter, known for his work on such books as Darkstars, WildC.A.T.s, Grifter/Shi, WildC.A.T.s/X-Men: The Golden Age and The Metabarons...
and others (art) - 8–28: Joe Casey (writer), Sean PhillipsSean PhillipsSean Phillips is a British comic book artist.He is best known in the American comic book industry for his work on DC Comics' Sleeper, WildC.A.T.s, Batman and Hellblazer.-Career:...
, Steve DillonSteve DillonSteve Dillon is a British comic book artist, from Luton, Bedfordshire, best known for his work with writer Garth Ennis on Hellblazer, Preacher and The Punisher.-Biography:...
(art)
Volume 4
- 1: Grant Morrison (plot), Jim Lee (art). No more of these issues have been solicited by DC Comics. The series is on permanent hold.
Volume 5
- 1–12: Christos Gage (writer), Neil Googe, Pete Woods (art).
- 13–18: Christos Gage (writer), Shawn Moll (art).
- 19–30: Adam Beechen (writer), Tim Seeley (art).
Collected editions
Trade paperbackTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
collections:
- WildC.A.T.S Covert Action Teams: Compendium - Collects vol. 1 # 1-4
- WildC.A.T.S/Cyberforce: Killer Instinct (ISBN 1401203221) - Collects vol. 1 #5-7 and Cyberforce V2 #1-3 (ISBN 1401203221)
- A Gathering of Eagles - Collects vol. 1 # 10-13 (ISBN 1563895852)
- James Robinson's Complete WildC.A.T.S (ISBN 1401222048) - Collects vol. 1 # 15-20, Annual #1 & Team One/WildC.A.T.S. (January 2009)
- Alan Moore's Complete WildC.A.T.S - Collects vol. 1 # 21-34, and #50
- WildC.A.T.s: Homecoming - Collects vol. 1 # 21-27 (ISBN 156389582X) (first printing, 1998; second printing 1999)
- WildC.A.T.s: Gang War - Collects vol. 1 # 28-34 (ISBN 1-58240-037-7) (first printing, November 1998; second printing, May 1999)
- Wildcats: Street Smart - Collects vol. 2 # 1-6
- Wildcats: Vicious Circles - Collects vol. 2 # 8-13
- Wildcats: Serial Boxes - Collects vol. 2 # 14-19
- Wildcats: Battery Park - Collects vol. 2 # 20-28
- Wildcats 3.0 Year One - Collects vol. 3 # 1-12
- Wildcats Version 3.0: Brand Building - Collects vol. 3 # 1-6
- Wildcats Version 3.0: Full Disclosure - Collects vol. 3 # 7-12
- Wildcats 3.0 Year Two - Collects vol. 3 # 13-24
- Wildcats: Nemesis - Collects Wildcats: Nemesis # 1-9
- Wildcats: World's End - Collects vol. 5 # 1-6, ISBN 1-4012-2363-X
- Wildcats: Family Secrets - Collects vol. 5 # 7-12, ISBN 1-4012-2668-X
Vol. 1 issue #14 is collected in Savage Dragon
Savage Dragon
Savage Dragon is an ongoing American comic book series created by Erik Larsen, published by Image Comics and taking place in the Image Universe. The comic features the adventures of a superheroic police officer named the Dragon...
Vol. 4: Possessed as it was done by Erik Larson
Erik Larson
Erik Larson is an American author. He has written Isaac's Storm , about the experiences of Isaac Cline during the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America , about the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago and a series of...
as part of Image X Month, issue 20 is also collected in the Wildstorm Rising trade paperback, while JLA/WildC.A.T.s is collected in the JLA: Ultramarine Corps
Ultramarine Corps
The International Ultramarine Corps, formerly the Ultramarine Corps, is a fictional team of superheroes published by DC Comics. They first appeared in DC One Million #2 , and were created by Grant Morrison and Howard Porter....
trade.
Both WildC.A.T.S Covert Action Teams: Compendium and A Gathering of Eagles are out of print. New printings of the trade paperbacks WildC.A.T.s: Homecoming and WildC.A.T.s: Gang War were published in 1999 after the late 1998 acquisition of WildStorm Productions by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
; as of 2009, both volumes have now sold out and are currently out of print. In August 2007 Alan Moore's Complete WildC.A.T.S TPB was released, containing the contents of both Gang War and Homecoming TPBs, as well as the short story from WildC.A.T.S #50.
TV series
A WildC.A.T.s TV series was created in 1994. It had only thirteen episodes and a more family-friendly storyline. As a result there were numerous changes from the source material, such as Voodoo being an adolescent rather than an ex-stripper and Lord Emp being an ordinary human. The group was composed of all the original 'C.A.T.s. The major villain was Helspont, but the Troika and the Coda were featured. A parody of the series, MadD.O.G.s, was seen during Alan Moore's run in the comics. The series was produced by NelvanaNelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
and WildStorm (Funimation recently released the series' entire run on DVD).