This is Comic Book Easter Eggs, where I spotlight notable “Easter Eggs” (basically hidden references) within comic books or other media (so long as it is connected to comic books somehow).
With issue #6 of Wonder Woman ’77 Meets the Bionic Woman getting released this Wednesday, we asked the writer of the comic, best-selling author Andy Mangels, for some of the secrets and easter eggs for the series so far. There are so many of these bad boys that we’re going to spread it out over three days leading up to the release of the final issue on Wednesday! So #1-2 yesterday, #3-4 today and then #5 tomorrow.
Be warned, there are spoilers ahead… but they’ll allow an appreciation for the immense research and knowledge that went into crafting this series that is selling out across the country and getting great reviews from critics and the fans!
NOTE FROM ANDY:
A quick note before you digest this list of Easter Eggs…
The WONDER WOMAN ’77 MEETS THE BIONIC WOMAN story was designed so that even casual readers could enjoy it.
But, like any good franchise, whether it’s Star Trek or Star Wars, Aliens or Buffy, or any number of comic books, anime, television, or film franchises, those fans who have a deeper knowledge and appreciation of the characers and their history want to know more!
So don’t look at these Easter Eggs and footnotes as a necessity to enjoy the action-packed story, but instead, look at them as a way to deepen the experience and view just how the puzzle pieces all fit together. It’s like a commentary track on a DVD; you can enjoy the project without it, or enjoy it even more with it.
Wonder Woman ’77 Meets the Bionic Woman #3 Easter Eggs
Cover: Cat Staggs’ cover for this issue is a very slight homage to a Neal Adams-drawn cover for the Wonder Woman record “The Return of Brunhilde.”
Page One, Panel Five: As in the comics of that time, Diana has a mental link to the invisible plane. Also, Jaime really was a stewardess in The Bionic Woman episode “Fly Jaime.”
Page Six, Panel Four: The Fembot in the background is Katy, Dr. Fanklin’s favorite, as played by Janice Whitby.
Page Seven, Panel Two: Solano’s first name, Thiago, is introduced here.
Page Seven, Panel Five: The Amazons thought they wiped Captain Radl’s memories at the conclusion of “The Feminum Mystique.” Apparently, they were wrong…
Also, Radl’s first name, “Horst,” is a Germanic invention by the author.
Page Eight, Panel Four: Played by John Houseman, Dr. Franklin was the creator of the Fembots. He inexplicably favored ascots.
Page Nine, Panel Four: As noted, the Fembot “son” of Dr. Franklin, Carl Franklin (played by Michael Burns), first appeared in The Bionic Woman two-parter, “Fembots in Las Vegas.” His explanation of faking his father’s death reveals why the OSI thought Dr. Franklin to be dead.
Page Ten: Although the start of this page recaps the introduction of Dr. Solano and Gloria Marquez in “The Return of Wonder Woman,” Gloria fills in what happened after the episode, and how she came to be Dr. Cyber! Solano was portrayed by Fritz Weaver, while Gloria was played by Jessica Walter.
Page Eleven, Panel Four: Played by Frank Gorshin in Wonder Woman’s “The Deadly Toys,” Dr. Hoffman has a very strange sense of humor.
Page Eleven, Panels Five-Six: As seen in The Bionic Woman’s “Biofeedback,” Ivan Karp is an expatriate American who has become an international information broker. Who or what “The Gerent” won’t be revealed until much later in the story…
Page Twelve, Panels Five-Six: Samarra is another of the countries named in “The Return of Wonder Woman,” along with Lauray. Samarra is also where the state of Amapa in coastal Brazil would be on a real world map.
Page Twelve, Panels Seven: Jaime references a line from Diana Prince in “The Return of Wonder Woman” when she hears Solano’s name. Nightshade was also the original name of Solano in early drafts of the episode’s script!
Page Seventeen, Panel Two: Yes, Rover can talk. Many people forget that, perhaps purposely, as his voice was annoying.
Page Seventeen, Panel Four and Six: Jim and Helen Elgin were the stepfather and mother of Steve Austin, and became guardians of Jaime Sommers as a teen when her parents died. They were played by Ford Rainey and Martha Scott on episodes of The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman. The importance of Jaime telling Jim she had flown a plane is because he piloted his own plane on the series!
Page Eighteen: Dr. Rudy Wells is responsible for the bionic implants in both Steve Austin and Jaime Sommers, and he was a regular on both The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman. For the latter series, he was always portrayed by Martin E. Brooks,
Page Twenty, Panel One: Lynda Wilson is an assistant of Rudy Wells, and appeared in the “Kill Oscar” three-parter. She was played by Corrine Michaels.
Page Twenty, Panel Two: Max/Maximillian is the world’s first bionic dog, and he appeared throughout The Bionic Woman’s third season. He was played by several German Shepherd dogs.
Page Twenty, Panels Five-Seven: Diana can make mental connections with animals, as seen multiple times on the Wonder Woman TV series.
Page Twenty-Two: The appearance of the Fembot quartet here is meant to reflect scenes from “Fembots in Las Vegas,” as these are some of the same models of Fembots. Peggy Callahan was Oscar Goldman’s secretary — played by Jennifer Darling — and she had the unfortunate luck of being replaced by evil Fembots in two different storylines. Sorry, Callahan, make that three.
Go to the next page for Easter Eggs from the fourth issue!