How strange for people to kill each other like that! I'm going to stop them! 
- — Wonder Boy src
Wonder Boy was an alien from a distant planet that roved the world performing superhuman feats of every kind.
History
Rocketed to Earth on a meteorite, after his home planet of Viro collided with a star and exploded, the unnamed Wonder Boy ended up in a Chicago orphanage after he was found wandering and unable to satisfactorily account for himself. However, because of his great strength, he was largely ostracized by his peers. He escaped from Chicago and swam to Europe, after hearing of a horde of invading Mongols.
He approached an American army base and the general assigned him a message to relay to the commandant at the front. Wonder Boy instead changed the retreat message and set out to defeat the invaders himself, earning him praise from the military men.[1]
The heroic acts gained him notoriety in Europe, but the would-be invaders hatched plots to take revenge on Wonder Boy. They managed to poison him and sell him off to Captain Sing, a river pirate, but Wonder Boy managed to escape.[2]
Wonder Boy spent time in the western United States, making friends with aeronautical engineer Willy Blake,[3] and encountering a town beset by prehistoric monsters. After driving them out, the town decided to sell the eggs as a novelty. After a tourist purchased one, believing it to be a fake, he abandoned it on the side of the road. Feeling sympathy, Wonder Boy adopted the baby creature.[4]
While aiding in problems around the world, Wonder Boy battled foes like the Redrum Co., a hitman organization using a trucking company as a front,[5], and befriended many individuals, like Pagi, a man kidnapped from his tribe in the South Pacific.[6] He was often involved with the American government as well. When inventor Jonas Falconi is hospitalized, Wonder Boy ran his plans for a stratosphere torpedo across the country to Washington.[7]
Prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, Wonder Boy approached an army air corps recruiting officer who assigned him as a civilian helper, since he was too young to enlist. He spent the next few years fighting the Nazis, alongside Sgt. Crane of the US Army. However, some military personnel were not receptive to Wonder Boy's help.[8] He managed to accomplish many more feats during this time, including earning awards for new flight records in altitude and duration,[9] and stopping spies from sabotaging an ammunitions factory.[10]
He would often help the country's youth, which often fell victim to criminals threatening them and their families to carry out jobs. He clears Johnny Doring's name when he's framed for murder,[11] and captures "Snatch" Kelly, a cruel man who forces two kids into crime with threats. Kelly's kids are paroled into Wonder Boy's care.[12] Wonder Boy meets Doris Emery and her mother, being unjustly evicted due to an illegal rent increase by their landlord, Nick Gatto, but Wonder Boy quickly exposes their schemes.[13]
After rescuing the young Watson Page from an undercover Nazi ship and preventing them from launching an attack, Wonder Boy sets out again to continue helping people around the world.[14]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Alien Physiology
- Superhuman Stamina
- Superhuman Strength: with the strength of 100 men, he can uproot trees and act like a human drill.[15]
- Super-Leaping[16]
- Superhuman Durability: While Wonder Boy is not completely indestructible, he is still able to shrug off things that would kill the average person, like a massive falling boulder.[16]
- Superhuman Speed
- Swimming: Wonder Boy has shown himself to be an extremely strong swimmer, crossing oceans several times effortlessly, towing large rafts and even entire ships.[15]
- Thermokinesis: Wonder Boy is unaffected by extreme temperatures.[15]
- Indomitable Will: The courage of 100 men.[15]
- Danger Sense[15]
Abilities
Notes
- This version of Wonder Boy, including all history and corresponding appearances, was erased from existence following the collapse of the original Multiverse in the 1985–86 Crisis on Infinite Earths event and later restored following the rebirth of the infinite Multiverse during the Dark Crisis of 2022-2023. Even though other versions of the character may have appeared, this information does not apply to those versions.
- Wonder Boy was originally published by Quality Comics. After his feature in National Comics (Volume 1) ran out, some new stories were published in Elliot Publishing's Bomber Comics, and Ajax-Farrell published stories in Terrific Comics #16 and Wonder Boy #17 and 18. DC acquired Quality's characters in 1956, though they have done nothing with Wonder Boy since.
- This character also should not be confused with the Wonder Boy who briefly aided the Team Titans.
Trivia
- Wonder Boy was not invulnerable.
- In National Comics #21, he uses a piece of sidewalk to deflect some bullets. Also he gets head-konked unconscious, with a club.
- In National Comics #23 he thinks: "Those shots are getting too close for comfort!"
- Wonder Boy holds a doctorate in law from a state college, even though he never attended any classes there.[17]
Related
- 26 Appearances of Wonder Boy (Quality Universe)
- 2 Images featuring Wonder Boy (Quality Universe)
- 2 Quotations by or about Wonder Boy (Quality Universe)
- Character Gallery: Wonder Boy (Quality Universe)
Footnotes
- ↑ National Comics #1
- ↑ National Comics #2
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 National Comics #11
- ↑ National Comics #4
- ↑ National Comics #9
- ↑ National Comics #16
- ↑ National Comics #14
- ↑ National Comics #17
- ↑ National Comics #18
- ↑ National Comics #23
- ↑ National Comics #6
- ↑ National Comics #20
- ↑ National Comics #22
- ↑ National Comics #26
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 National Comics #7
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 National Comics #5
- ↑ National Comics #21