Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business The 7 Worlds of Wonder: Secret Files & Vignettes (W.I.P) (Update: Special Preview of THOSE 70S TITANS.)

INTRODUCTION:

This post-MULTIVERSITY "Solar System" of 7 DC Universes, known as "THE 7 WORLDS OF WONDER" is, in a nutshell, my chance to play with the DCU toys however I choose, in 7 different variations.  That, I think, is far more manageable to keep track of than an infinity of Earths, or, Gods forbid, 52 of them!!

The main reason the universes are numbered with decimal points is to provide a consistent number in front (7, of course), and also in order to prevent overlap with established DC Universes (including the "official" Earth-7, which a quick check of the Multiversity Guidebook reminds me was The Other Quasi-Marvel-Universe Besides Earth-8, as well as the first Earth to be destroyed by the Gentry.  Fancy that.  Let's move on, shall we?)

To get quasi-scientific for just a moment, the 7 Worlds revolve around not a sun or a star, but rather THE SOURCE (as introduced by Jack Kirby in THE FOURTH WORLD saga.)  And in this system, The Source is not a wall, but rather, a gigantic sphere of coherent energy which acts as what might be colloquially termed a COSMIC HUB.  I don't know if any of this holds up to scrutiny from people who actually understand science, but I'm not losing sleep over that.  My whole objective is to entertain all of you and have myself a lot of fun along the way.

The biggest question, of course, is, do the 7 universes interact?  To which I have to say, yes, indeed, they do, all the time, with heroines & heroes and villainesses & villains alike constantly darting in and out of each others' worlds, whether as welcome guests or unwelcome would-be conquerors.  But, to reiterate, with only 7 of them, I am convinced it is possible to keep it all coherent.  (I know, famous last words...)

Oh, for those who might be fearing the worst, I feel I should make it clear that there have only ever been, and only ever will be, TWO "inter-universal events" where all 7 Worlds interact with each other:

THE 9-YEAR META-WAR (9YMW for short), from 1977 to 1986.

and

THE ULTIMATE CRISIS (UC for short), from 2003 to 2009.

And finally, to both sweeten the pot AND make it all more coherent, certain groups & characters are specific to only on one Earth.  To put it in the simplest possible way:

EARTH-7.1 (Earth-Gold): GOLDEN AGE characters, teams, and Post-World War Two legacy characters & teams, except for all QUALITY characters & teams (originally from E-7.4.) Beginning in the 2nd half of the 1980s, this world starts changing so fast and so radically, it almost feels like...VERTIGO?

Most notable teams: JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA (1940-1951), 7 SOLDIERS OF VICTORY I (1941-1943, 1972-1973), ALL-STAR SQUADRON (1941-1945), INFINITE JUSTICE (1960-Present), 7 SOLDIERS OF VICTORY II (2005-2009), THE LEGACY LEGION (2958-Still active)

EARTH-7.2 (Earth-Silver): SILVER AGE characters & teams, and Post-1960s characters & teams with ties to that era, though without the supporting presences of Captain Comet, Adam Strange, or any of the other 1950s s/f characters of the early Silver Age (all originally from E-7.7)

Most notable teams: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA (1960-1986), TEEN TITANS, later THE NEW PANTHEON (1976-1986), BATMAN & THE OUTSIDERS (1983-1987), THE OUTSIDERS (1987-Present), THE LEGION OF TITANS (2966-Still active)

EARTH-7.3 (Earth-Anomaly):  Overcrowded and protean, to the extent that many of its inhabitants, meta and non-meta alike, have had their youthfulness -- and often, their very lives -- reset at random intervals, E-7.3 is the closest thing the 7WoW Multiversal System has to the Post-Crisis on Infinite Earths universe.  Here, analogs of almost everything and everyone who ever was or ever will be in the other six worlds are crammed into one universe!!  And, no, it doesn't work out any better here than it did in the "official" DC Post-CoIE universe, but out of such a mess there is, potentially, a great deal of entertaining drama to work with, just as long as there's some kind of inner logic to it.  Not surprisingly, this world is the prime target for villainous alliances from the other six worlds, especially when it comes to Earth-7.6's Council of Meta-Sentients. In addition, and not surprisingly, E-7.3 was the site of the most devastating event ever to occur within a single 7WoW universe: 1996's YOUTHQUAKE!!

Selected notable teams: JSA (1940-1951, 1963-1979, 1984-1989, 1999-Present), JLA (1960-1979, 1987-2004, 2006-Present) OMEGA MEN (1981-2016), DARKSTARS (1992-2004), THE LEGION OF ANTI-HEROES (2976-3006) (More teams to come in future updates)

EARTH-7.4 (known as either Earth-Pax or Earth-Storm, depending on which side of the political divide you lean towards.)  All WILDSTORM, CHARLTON, and QUALITY characters & teams, along with variations on all the basic DCU icons.)  Seemingly destined to be forever divided, contradictory, and bifurcated, Earth-7.4 has ever been a powder-keg, both socio-politically and cosmically.  In other words: Another day, another battle rages on!!

Notable teams: FREEDOM FIGHTERS (1940-1973, 1974-1991), SENTINELS OF JUSTICE (1984-1991), WILDCATS (1992-1998), STORMWATCH (1992-1998), THE AUTHORITY (1999-2009), M.F.F./MILLENIAL FREEDOM FIGHTERS (2010-Present), PAX MUNDI (2015-Present), THE LEGION (2994-3004)


EARTH-7.5 (Earth-5th World): Obviously, from the name, this is the one from which the NEW GODS originate, and, as you've also probably figured out already, they have their own Ragnarok sometime between the late 20th Century and the early 31st Century, and evolve into their next, far less polarized yet still far from perfect, incarnation.  As with E-7.4, most of the DCU icons are here, although some differ quite radically from more familiar incarnations, perhaps none more than a Wonder Woman self-exiled from Apokolips (DIANA DEMOLITIA of the Female Furies, a hybrid analog of Wonder Woman & BIG BARDA), and the lack of a Batman (here, the premiere non-superpowered hero is Diana's lover, MISTER MIRACLE/SCOTT FREE!!)

Notable teams: FEMALE FURIES (Date of origin still unknown, team still active at present), DEEP SIX (Date of origin still unknown), FOREVER PEOPLE (1965-1980, though not seen in public until 1971), JUSTICE LEAGUE (1968-Present), SUICIDE SQUAD (1986-Present), L.E.G.I.O.N. (1989-2021), THE TITANS (1998-Present), LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES (2988-Still active)

EARTH-7.6 (Earth-Dark): Makes their neighboring universe's Apokolips look utopian!!  Ruled since 1987, in the aftermath of Nine Year Meta War, by the COUNCIL OF META-SENTIENTS, which is really the CRIME SYNDICATE OF AMERICA with a new, more innocuous name to disguise the fact that their crimes have only gotten more insidious and more repugnant since then.

Heroines & heroes are hard to find here, to put it mildly (in fact, one of the mainstays of the ruling meta-elites, the late SUPERWOMAN (died 2009), went by the name Alexis Thorul, but her birth name was ALEXANDRA LUTHOR, illegitimate daughter of the fallible, yet still the most noble, man ever to be born on E-7.6, and therefore, the most hated and persecuted man ever to...et cetera.) 

The first tiny spark of hope finally appears in 3006, with the arrival of the mysterious SUPERGIRL (tellingly, she originates from a different one of the 7 universes, the exact one still unknown at present)

Notable teams: JUSTICE LEAGUE UNDERGROUND (1987-2004), SUPERGIRL'S LEGION (3006-Date of disbanding presently unknown; formerly LEGION OF META-REBELS from 3004 to 3005.)

EARTH-7.7 (Earth-Shazam): The youngest and brightest of the 7 Worlds, whose founding heroes are THE SHAZAM FAMILY of the Brigadoon-like, extradimensional THUNDERWORLD, followed by THE ALPHA PEOPLE (a dynasty...of space, founded by E-7.6 fugitives ALEXANDER LUTHOR SR. & LOIS LANE, a reluctant hero from E-7.7's planet Earth, ADAM STRANGE, and his partner in both adventure & romance, ALANNA STRANGE of the planet Rann.  This universe's first and most important team to originate on the planet Earth itself would be the GLOBAL GUARDIANS, followed two generations later by YOUNG JUSTICE.

This world is also home to the last remaining ATLANTIS in any of the 7 Worlds, and has the only 21st Century Trinity that is both multi-racial and two-thirds female: (SUPERWOMAN (Linda Danvers), THE MIDNIGHT MIST (Sholo, son of Global Guardians founder DOCTOR MIST), and WONDER WOMAN (Cassandra Sandsmark.)) 

Most notable teams: THE SHAZAM FAMILY (1940-1953, 1975-Present), THE ALPHA PEOPLE (1956-2356), THE GLOBAL GUARDIANS (1974-1986, 1996-Present), JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL (1987-1995, an oddball "interim team" of sorts before the return of the Global Guardians), YOUNG JUSTICE (1998-Present), LEGIONNAIRES (3016-Still active)

COMING SOON: The 1st VIGNETTE, starring E-7.1's ALL-STAR SQUADRON

(IMPORTANT NOTE: All 7WoW Vignettes shall be self-contained within one single post.)

EARTH-7.1 SECRET FILES:

TRINITY OF E-7.1:

WONDER WOMAN/PRINCESS DIANA OF PARADISE ISLAND/DIANA PRINCE/DIANA TREVOR

Overview:

Amazons are equally blessed and cursed with special long-life genes, the latter holds especially true for those who leave Paradise Island, whether by choice or by royal decree, and relocate to "Man's World."  No greater, or more tragic, case can be made for this than the true story of Diana, daughter of Queen Hippolyta.

Life and Death:

(Work in progress)

BATMAN/BRUCE WAYNE

Overview:

It has been argued, and quite persuasively, that Batman was always a reactionary marionette of the establishment.  At the same time, it is borderline undeniable is that when he first started out, he had a genuinely cool, scary, and just-plain-badass look and attitude.  Besides that, there was something so dynamic and so righteous about him and his private war on crime, that it transcended all party lines.  But less then five years on, it was already the beginning of the end after he changed his costume to look less threatening to the public (why the hell would BATMAN, of all people, care about his bloody public image??)  It only got worse from there, but if Batman's legacy is a mostly disgraceful one, there are at least three incontestably positive achievements of his:

1) Mentoring his fellow orphan, Robin/Dick Grayson, who grew up to do his father-figure proud and then some.

2) Helping his rogue-turned-ally-turned-lover-turned-spouse, Catwoman/Selina Kyle, find redemption and absolution from the sins of her youth.

...and, most importantly...

3) Fathering a daughter, Helena Wayne, who grew up to carry on Batman's legacy, and arguably redeem it in almost every sense, as THE HUNTRESS.

Life and Death:

(Work in progress)

SUPERMAN/KAL-L OF PLANET KRYPTON/CLARK KENT

Overview:

(Work in progress)

Life and Death:

(Work in progress)

E-7.1 KEY TEAMS:

(NOTE 1: Roll Call lists are incomplete, will be completed in future updates)

(NOTE 2: Individual bite-size profiles of members to come with future updates)

Justice Society of America (1940-1951)

JSoA Roll Call:

GREEN LANTERN/ALAN SCOTT (founder)

FLASH/JAY GARRICK (founder)

HAWKMAN/CARTER HALL (founder)

DOCTOR FATE/KENT NELSON/AVATAR OF NABU (founder)

ATOM/AL PRATT (founder)

HOURMAN/REX TYLER (founder)

THE SANDMAN/WESLEY DODDS (founder)

THE SPECTRE/JIM CORRIGAN/AVATAR OF DIVINE VENGEANCE? (founder)

WONDER WOMAN I/DIANA PRINCE/PRINCESS DIANA OF PARADISE
ISLAND

MISS AMERICA/Interim WONDER WOMAN (1943)/JOAN DALE

HAWKGIRL/SHIERA HALL

BLACK CANARY/DINAH DRAKE


7 Soldiers of Victory I (1941-1943, 1972-1973)

7SoV Roll Call:


SHINING KNIGHT/SIR JUSTIN (founder)

CRIMSON AVENGER/LEE TRAVIS

VIGILANTE/GREG SANDERS

STAR-SPANGLED KID/SYLVESTER PEMBERTON & STRIPESY/PAT DUGAN

TNT/TOM "TEX" THOMAS & DYNA-MITE/DAN DUNBAR (founders; latter deceased 1942, replaced by DINA-MITA/SARA MONTEZ)


All-Star Squadron (1941-1945)

All-Star Squadron Roll Call (NOTE: Did you really think I was going to "go there?"  ;)  )

LIBERTY BELLE/LIBBY LAWRENCE (founder & core member)

JOHNNY QUICK/JOHN CHAMBERS (founder & core member)

FIREBRAND II/DANNETTE REILLY (founder & core member)

SHINING KNIGHT/SIR JUSTIN (founder; ancillary member, simultaneously allied with 7SoV)

TARANTULA/JONATHAN LAW (core member)

IRON MUNRO

FURY I

NEPTUNE PERKINS

TSUNAMI


Infinite Justice (1960-Present)

IJ Roll Call:

WONDER WOMAN II/HIPPOLYTA "LYTA" TREVOR

GREEN LANTERN II/JENNIE-LYNN SCOTT

OBISIDIAN/TODD SCOTT

DOCTOR MID-NITE II/BEN CHAPEL

LEVIATHAN/AL ROTHSTEIN

SILVER SCARAB/BIRD OF PREY/HECTOR HALL

MISTER TERRIFIC II/MICHAEL HOLT

HOURMAN II/RICK TYLER

POWER GIRL/KARA ZOR-L

HUNTRESS/HELENA WAYNE

LA GARRA/YOLANDA MONTEZ

STARGIRL/STARWOMAN/JACQUELINE KNIGHT

ROBIN/NIGHTWING/DICK GRAYSON

FLAMEBIRD/DINAH LANCE

7 Soldiers of Victory II (2005-2009)

7SoV2 Roll Call:

SHINING KNIGHT/LADY YSTINA (Reincarnation in a female body, a la "CAMELOT 3000") of E-7.1

VIGILANTE/ROY HARPER, JR. (Son of Roy Harper, Sr. & Dakota Jamison; the Roy Harper of E-7.3 is the father of a daughter, Lian Harper) of E-7.2

CRIMSON AVENGER/MIA DEARDEN of E-7.3

CANDY STRIPE/PATRICIA DUGAN of E-7.4

STARWOMAN II/PATRICIA DUGAN of E-7.5

TNT/DOMINIC "DOM" GATTO & X-BOMB BENNY/BENJAMIN BALL of E-7.7


E-7.1 CHRONOLOGY:

(Work-in-progress)

WRITERS & EDITORS EMERITUS for E-7.1:

Gardner Fox, Julius Schwartz, Len Wein, Paul Levitz, Roy Thomas, James Robinson, Archie Goodwin, Peter J. Tomasi.

HONORABLE MENTION: Gerry Conway (at the very least for creating POWER GIRL, even if it was Levitz who defined her personality.)

(If there are any writers or editors you feel I have overlooked in the above list, please PM me.)

EARTH-7.1 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:

In anticipation of questions regarding continuity fudging and other, similar matters, I thought it would be good for each Earth to have its own Q&A section.  Feel free to PM me any questions you have, and I'll edit the answers into this post.

Questions I've already expected in advance include:

Q: Why is the 7SoV lineup the version from after the so-called "Crisis Trilogy" reboot of the mid-2000s, with TNT & Dyna-Mite in place of Green Arrow & Speedy?

A: Because, to be quite frank, I have no interest whatsoever in the Earth-Two Green Arrow & Speedy, being a huge fan of the Earth-One G.A., and finding the Earth-Two Speedy, later Arsenal, at the very least potentially interesting.

Q: If the QUALITY COMICS characters are on E-7.4, does that mean Phantom Lady and Plastic Man are not members of the 7WoW All-Star Squadron?  And how do you then explain the presences on E-7.1 of Firebrands I & II and Miss America?

A: Sadly, Sandra & Eel are not in this iteration of that team, even though Roy Thomas deserves a lot of credit for being the first creator to put Sandra in the well-deserved spotlight.  And though Rod & Danette are on E-7.1, I've tried to compensate by retaining Danette's Quality counterpart, the original WILDFIRE, on E-7.4 (FUN FACT: Roy Thomas originally wanted Danette to be called Wildfire instead of Firebrand, but was overruled by DC execs.)  Finally, all will be explained about Miss America in due time -- and as Joan Dale is the arguable DCU counterpart to Marvel's Sersi (more like progenitor, since Joan's 1st appearance preceded Sersi's by 35 years) I have BIG plans for her!!

Q: Do the Young All-Stars exist on E-7.1?  And if not, what are Iron Munro and Fury doing there?

A: In my humble opinion, YA-S never quite jelled, but I do see great potential in those two characters.

EARTH-7.2 SECRET FILES:


BIRTH YEARS OF EARTH-7.2 METAS:

(CURRENTLY BEING RE-WRITTEN)

EARTH-7.2 TRINITY:

WONDER WOMAN

Overview:

(Work-in-progress)

Life and Death:

(Work-in-progress)

BATMAN

Overview:

(Work-in-progress)

Life and Death:

(Work-in-progress)

SUPERMAN/KAL-EL OF PLANET KRYPTON/CLARK KENT

Overview:

(Work-in-progress)

Life and Death:

(Work-in-progress)

EARTH-7.2 KEY TEAMS:

Justice League of America (1960-1986)

Roll Call:

(Work in progress)

Teen Titans (1976-1978)/The New Olympians (1980-1986)

(Work in progress)

Batman & the Outsiders (1983-1987)

(Work in progress)

The New Outsiders (1987-1994)/The Outsiders (1996-Present)

(Work in progress)

The Legion of Titans (2965-Still active as of last report)

(Work in progress)

EARTH-7.2 CHRONOLOGY:

(Work in progress)

WRITERS & EDITORS EMERITUS for E-7.2:

John Broome, Gardner Fox, Denny O'Neil, Cary Bates, Steve Engelhart, Gerry Conway, Martin Pasko, Bob Rozakis, Julius Schwartz, Otto Binder, Jerry Siegel, Edmond Hamilton, Jim Shooter, E. Nelson Bridwell, Mort Weisinger, Mike W. Barr, Marv Wolfman, Len Wein.

(If there are any writers or editors you feel I have overlooked in the above list, please PM me.)

EARTH-7.2 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:

In anticipation of questions regarding continuity fudging and other, similar matters, I thought it would be good for each Earth to have its own Q&A section.  Feel free to PM me any questions you have, and I'll edit the answers into this post.

Questions I've already expected in advance include:

Q: Will there be a list of birth years for E-7.1 characters?

But of course!!  Once I'm no longer swamped with all this other creative stuff, it will happen.

Q: Was there an E-7.2 Teen Titans before 1976?

A: In a word, no.  One reason is because 99% of the pre-1976 Titans stories from the "Official" DC Universe are suck-tacular (Nice Nick Cardy covers, though.)

Another reason -- the main reason -- is that the 1976-1978 Teen Titans were our late friend MLLASH's favorite iteration of that team, and so I did what I've done as a loving tribute to him.  I hope that wherever he is now, he's aware of this, and smiling.

Q: How do you get around the whole creepy thing about Black Canary's daughter being mistaken for her mother and dating the much older Green Arrow, or whatever exactly that pre-Crisis fustercluck of an origin was?

A: Easy.  Firstly, though there are Black Canaries on E-7.1 and E-7.3, there are none on E-7.2.

Secondly, after I've finished the E-7.1 vignette about the Golden Age characters and posted it, I plan to do a JLoA of E-7.2/Infinite Justice of E-7.1 team up, set in 1968.  The E-7.1 team plays host to their friends this go-round, and when 41-year-old bachelor Ollie meets 51-year-old widow Dinah Drake, well...c'est l'amour!! (I don't know how to say "at first sight" in French.)

Moreover, the Dinah Lance of E-7.1 rebelled against her mother and refused to take over the Canary mantle.  Instead she became Flamebird, and began a wholly age-appropriate relationship with her fellow Infinite Justice member, Nightwing...formerly the E-7.1 Robin (Dick Grayson, of course.)

Problem solved.

Earth-7.3 SECRET FILES:

THE COSMIC STUFF

Note: My love of space opera (as both reader and writer) has made it inevitable that my creative instincts would put the Cosmic Stuff on the front burner for the entire 7WoW System.

I've also decided that there will be no Cosmic Stuff entries for E-7.1 or E-7.2 -- during the Golden Age, there was no cosmic stuff in comics that I am aware of; and during the Silver Age, cosmic stuff was Marvel's domain, where DC was pure space opera (each wonderful in their own right.) Arguably, the latter binary division continued well into the Bronze Age, until the end of the 70s, when several cosmically-inclined ex-Marvel creators moved to DC. And, yes, I know very well that there was the 4th World at DC during the Bronze Age, and you'll see my take on it in the E-7.5 Cosmic Stuff entry.

COSMIC CHARACTERS & TEAMS EXCLUSIVE TO E-7.3:

DARKSTARS:

On E-7.3, the DARKSTARS are the dominant inter-galactic force for justice from 1994 through 1999, while the GLC goes through a whole bunch of crises and nearly implodes (details temporarily CLASSIFIED.)

DONNA TROY becomes the Last of the Darkstars circa 1999. Details temporarily CLASSIFIED.

OMEGA MEN: Most details are temporarily CLASSIFIED, though a few are revealed in the GREEN LANTERN CORPS spoiler box below.

MANHUNTERS: All details temporarily CLASSIFIED.

COSMIC CHARACTERS & TEAMS WITH ANALOGS IN E-7.3:

GREEN LANTERN CORPS:

For the fates of the principal E-7.3 GLs, open spoiler box below



(And there's more, much more, on the GLC, and the Guardians, and the Zamarons, et cetera, to come. Watch this space.)

STARMEN:

Though there is a 7WoW TED KNIGHT on E-7.1, and he does have an heir (ID CLASSIFIED), they are exclusive to that universe.

The whole tangled STARMAN legacy unfolds here on E-7.3, with WILL PAYTON as its torch-bearer.

But the original Starman is PRINCE GAVYN, who really did die in the early 80s, with Will as his designated successor (I see Will as a sort of DC analog of my beloved QUASAR/WENDELL VAUGHN from the Marvel Universe.)

MIKAAL TOMAS is exclusive to E-7.5, taking the place of CAPTAIN COMET (E-7.7 exclusive) in 7WoW L.E.G.I.O.N. continuity, and there are no DAVID KNIGHT or JACK KNIGHT in the 7WoW.

But the THOM KALLOR of E-7.3 is still very much connected to the Legacy, for both good and ill (this is, after all, the universe where the Legion of Super-Heroes devolves into the Legion of Anti-Heroes.) Any more details on the Legacy are, for the moment, CLASSIFIED.

EARTH-7.3 TRINITY:

(W.I.P.)

EARTH-7.3 KEY TEAMS:

(W.I.P.)

EARTH-7.3 CHRONOLOGY:

(W.I.P.)

EARTH-7.3 WRITERS & EDITORS EMERITUS:

(W.I.P)

@ your fate for Guy Gardner, Fanfie!

I approve of your direction for Hal, especially the Captain Kirk comparisons. Hal always has appealed to my anti-authoritarian side for that reason!

I'm interested to see what you have in store for Kyle!

Thank you for chiming in, Kappa.

Glad...SO GLAD we agree on Guy.

Even gladder you approve of "HAL T. KIRK."

BTW, you might know this already, but Hal's boyhood love of Horatio Hornblower books is a tip of the hat to Nicholas Meyer, the director/co-writer of "STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN" AND "STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY."

And a HEADS-UP for everybody following the 7WoW:

I didn't include the HAWK-PEOPLE OF THANAGAR, because that needs a Special "Sidebar" post to explain. That's a work in progress.

I'm also going to do one for the various JUSTICE SOCIETY & JUSTICE LEAGUE analog teams.

NOTE: While I continue to take some time off from concluding my dark & cosmic Legion-meets-New-Gods fanfic, so that I can give it the proper big finish it deserves, I've found a creative outlet in a renewed enthusiasm for "THOSE 70S TITANS," my Teen Titans of Earth-7.2 fanfic project. To reiterate my description of it in this thread and in the Titans forum, it is both a sweet homage to, and a bitter satire of, the pop culture of the 70s (to put it another way, it's a floor wax and a dessert topping.)

On Earth-7.2, the Titans did not form until the mid-70s. I was originally going to begin the series with the origins-slash-formation of the team, but then decided it would be better to save that for later.

What follows is a series of irregularly-posted vignettes, which are basically the scenes I was most enthusiastic about writing. Consider them a Special Preview for when the series proper begins later this year.

THOSE 70S TITANS: "SHE'S A WONDER"

Inside the pristine showrooms of Newton's Department Store, one of the few remaining jewels in the rapidly-tarnishing crown of Gotham City, two teenage girls -- one tall, athletic, and olive-skinned, with a healthy-looking mane of wavy dark hair, the other of average height and slight build, with fair skin and long, straight red hair down to her waist, were having a fun time looking (and sometimes laughing) at the fashionable clothes they could never possibly afford, and which were designed for grown women in the first place.

"Is it just me, or does fashion just keep getting tackier and more tasteless every day?" chuckled the dark-haired girl.

"You picked a great time to start your internship at Snowflake Modeling Agency!" giggled the red-haired girl.

"I know, right? I mean, I'm confident in my talent as a photographer, but I don't know how I could ever make THIS STUFF look good."

"You're always up for a challenge...and this one's a doozy!"

The distaff duo began to laugh heartily, only for the laughter to suddenly catch in their throats when they heard a saleswoman's voice behind them, inquring:

"Can I help you with anything, young ladies? And just so you know, this section doesn't really carry anything in your sizes."

"Busted!" sighed the red-haired girl.

"Yeah, fun's over." concurred the dark-haired girl "Sorry if we were being obnoxious, but...OH."

To the girls' great surprise, the saleswoman was much younger than they had expected, dressed in similarly youthful fashions to them. And with her petite frame, minimal makeup, clunky eyeglasses, plus a head of dark hair even wavier than the one girl's and as long as the other girl's, she could have easily been mistaken for one of their high-school classmates.

"No harm done." said the saleswoman in a soft, affable, instantly ingratiating tone. "I've been known to do the same thing myself during lulls. And if I had the choice, I'd let you stay here as long as you'd like. Unfortunately...my manager probably wouldn't see it that way. And trust me, you're lucky that I happened to be walking the floor instead of her!"

"I'll bet." replied the red-haired girl. "Thanks for saving us a talking-to. You seem really sweet."

"Aww, thanks. And you girls are a lot sweeter than most of the divas that I usually deal with."

"I'm Lilith, by the way. It's nice to meet you. And this is my friend, Donna."

"Nice to meet you, too. My name's Elaine. And if there's anything else I can do for you, like if you need to find out where the other departments are...?"

"Actually," said Lilith sheepishly and nearly under her breath, "we were wondering where the children's books are. I...uh...wanted to see if there were any new book versions of the Charlie Brown TV specials."

"Oh, no need to feel embarrassed. I collect those myself."

"See, Lilith?" interjected Donna, "I told you that you'd meet one of your own people someday."

All three of them now shared a laugh, but this one ended up being cut short as well, when Elaine suddenly gasped, "Oh my...I don't believe this...Donna, I knew I recognized you from somewhere! You're Wonder Woman's sidekick, Wonder Girl!"

"In the flesh. Am I taller and more flat-chested than you expected?" shrugged Donna good-naturedly, "I get that a lot."

"Believe me, Donna, most woman would sell their soul for a frame like yours. I know I would."

"Well, Elaine, don't get down on yourself, because I'd sell MY soul for your curves."

"Wow, thanks! That's the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me! Oh, and I almost forgot -- can I please have your autograph for my niece?"

"I'd be happy to." replied Donna, reaching into her pocket book. "As a matter of fact, I always keep pen and paper handy for just such an emergency."

"YOU have a NIECE?" gasped a wide-eyed Lilith.

"Can you keep a secret?" asked Elaine.

"Sure!" said Donna, "We're all girls here."

Elaine moved closer to the girls and whispered, "I'm turning THIRTY in June."

"I'd never have thought...oh, wow, I hope I look like you when...uh...I'm sure you get the idea. No offense intended." said Lilith.

"None taken."

"Oh, Elaine, I forgot to ask," interjected Donna, "what's your niece's name?"

"Jackie."

"That's such a lovely name."

"Thank my brother-in-law Leonard. If it had been up to my sister Melissa, Jackie would have been called Ida, or Esther, or some yenta name like that."

After a couple minutes of further chuckles and pleasantries, Donna & Lilith bade reluctant farewell to Elaine, promising to seek her out the next time they came to Newton's.

As Donna & Lilith waited for the elevator, Lilith turned to face her friend, with a puzzled expression on her face. "You know, Donna, you never told me why you don't have a secret identity, like your sister Diana."

"I just don't see the point." replied Donna plaintively, before adding, with a smirk, "Besides, I wouldn't be caught dead disguising myself as a prissy old schoolmarm-type the way Diana does."

"Point taken."

"By the way, here's something else I never told you: My real name's Drusilla."

"No wonder you changed it...oh, God, WONDER...no pun intended."

The girl's laughter echoed across the showroom as they boarded the elevator and could even be heard for a few seconds after the elevator doors shut.