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| Silver Swan | ||||
| Real name | Vanessa Kapatelis | |||
| Debut | Wonder Woman v2 #171 (August 2001) | |||
| Created by | George Pérez | |||
| Abilities | flight, vocal sound waves, telepathy with birds | |||
| GALLERY | ||||
Vanessa Kapatelis is the third individual to assume the alias of the Silver Swan. A longtime friend of Wonder Woman, Vanessa was kidnapped and brainwashed into hating her former idol.
History
Vanessa 'Nessie' Kapatelis had the chance to meet Wonder Woman at a young age. When Wonder Woman first came to the United States, Nessie's mother, Julia, invited her into their home. At first, Nessie was jealous of Diana's beauty, but eventually the two got to know one another and formed a close bond, with Nessie loving Wonder Woman as an older sister. Only a high school student, Nessie dreamed of fighting evil alongside Wonder Woman.
Nessie had already been traumatized by her father's death when she was a child, but she was pushed over the edge when her best friend Lucy committed suicide. She began to blame herself for all the bad things that happened to the people she cared about. Doctor Psycho began causing her to have nightmares and, to help Nessie recover, the school counselor recommended that Wonder Woman leave the Kapatelis house.
Nessie recovered, but could not forgive her mother for making Wonder Woman leave. Eventually, she would start to blame Wonder Woman for abandoning her. Circe, in conjunction with Doctor Psycho, decided to use these mixed feelings as a way to use Nessie against Wonder Woman. Employing cybernetic implants and mental conditioning, they turned the young woman into a killing machine - the new Silver Swan.
After defeating Circe, Wonder Woman tried to help Nessie recuperate. However, Sebastian Ballestros, who had been behind Nessie's initial transformation, kidnapped Nessie and sold her to Veronica Cale, a woman who hated Wonder Woman. Cale ravaged Nessie's body even further, making her her even more of a cyborg and sending her to fight Wonder Woman once more.
Defeating Nessie again, Wonder Woman begged Dr. Leslie Anderson to remove Nessie's cybernetic implants once and for all. Nessie was then sent to Themyscira for recovery. It is presumed that after Themyscira vanished, Nessie returned to the care of her mother.
Sadly, it seems that her battle isn't over - the Silver Swan was forcefully exiled to a prison planet by the Suicide Squad with dozens of other arch-criminals and Injustice League members in Salvation Run. She sides with Lex Luthor when the villains break up into three groups, led by Luthor, The Joker, and Vandal Savage. It is in this group that Lex had her attack Martian Manhunter (who was masquerading as Blockbuster) with her sonic abilites. She is one of the villains used to power the teleporter, and is seemingly killed when it explodes.
Managing to survive, the Silver Swan eventually made her way back to Earth.
Most recently, Vanessa has appeared during Final Crisis as a victim infected by the Anti-Life Equation.
Powers and Abilities
Silver Swan has the ability to create powerful sound waves with her voice. Her "swan song" is capable of devastating a small area of land with its destructive force. By creating a low-level humming, the Silver Swan can form a protective shield around herself that can deflect bullets and projectiles. Unlike the original Silver Swan, Vanessa Kapatelis needs artificial wings to control her flight motion. She also has the telepathic ability to control birds.