How Wonder Man Got His Powers in the Comics

Simon Williams is no mere Hollywood star. With his ionic powers, he’s an iconic Super Hero too. While Wonder Man may occasionally have doubts about being an Avenger, his unique set of superhuman abilities make him a powerhouse on any team he’s on.

Now, let’s peer behind Wonder Man’s red sunglasses and examine how his ionic abilities work. We’ll also break down how his powers evolved over time and how they could make him the last Avenger standing in the Marvel Universe.

HOW WONDER MAN GOT HIS POWERS

Before the world knew him as Wonder Man, Simon Williams was the son of a wealthy family that controlled a weapons company. Simon inherited the business but misused funds on the advice of his brother, Eric Williams. When the authorities got wind of these crimes, Simon went to jail and caught the attention of Baron Zemo (Heinrich Zemo) and the Masters of Evil. Sharing a common enemy in Tony Stark, Zemo freed Simon and brought him to his lab, transforming him into Wonder Man in AVENGERS (1963) #9 by Stan Lee and Don Heck.

Using an experimental device, Zemo bombarded Simon with vast amounts ionic energy, giving him superhuman abilities. The villain created ionic energy by charging ions with Pym Particles, putting them in a super-durable and super-dense state. However, instead of developing size-changing abilities like Giant-Man or Wasp, Simon emerged with superhuman strength and invulnerable skin. But Zemo did not give these powers for free. In exchange for Simon’s loyalty, the Baron would give his new champion weekly treatments to stop the ionic rays from killing him. 

Wonder Man agreed to Baron Zemo’s terms and subsequently joined the Avengers as a double agent. However, after battling Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Simon felt uncertain in his choice and ultimately betrayed Zemo. Without Zemo’s treatments however, Wonder Man seemingly died in the Avengers’ arms. But in the Marvel Universe, things are not always as they seem. 

HOW WONDER MAN BECAME IMMORTAL

While Wonder Man appeared lifeless, he actually fell into a deep coma as the ionic energy continued to transform his body. Inspired by his brother’s apparent death, Eric Williams became the villain known as Grim Reaper. The criminal stole Wonder Man’s body and magically revived him under the control of a mystic called Black Talon in AVENGERS (1963) #151 by Gerry Conway, Steve Englehart, Jim Shooter, and George Perez. Although Eric’s plan successfully restored Wonder Man as a mind-controlled zombie, the villainous Living Laser accidentally freed Simon when trying to take over his mind. Wonder Man’s core personality slowly began to return, but the hero struggled to understand his apparent resurrection. 

Wonder Man stayed with the Avengers, who quickly realized how the ionic energy had transformed Simon’s body in AVENGERS (1963) #164 by Jim Shooter and John Byrne. Although his body simulated normal living tissue, his cells produced energy like miniature fusion reactors. As he adjusted to his condition, Simon wondered whether he had a place on the Avengers. However, Wonder Man overcame those doubts and became a valuable member of multiple Avengers teams.

While seemingly immortal in this energy-based form, Wonder Man still experienced pain and learned about some of his other vulnerabilities. For instance, Wonder Man seemingly died when a Kree ion canon exploded in FORCE WORKS (1994) #1 by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, and Thomas Tenney. In reality, the blast merely dispersed Wonder Man’s energy across Los Angeles.

WONDER MAN’S ENERGY FORM

During his time with the Avengers, Wonder Man became close to Scarlet Witch, a romantic love that would in turn pave the path for his “resurrection.” When the Avengers fought Morgan Le Fay in AVENGERS (1998) #2 by Kurt Busiek and George Perez, a desperate Wanda Maximoff used her powers to reach out for help, inadvertently reassembling Wonder Man as a being made of pure, crackling ionic energy. Simon initially had trouble maintaining this physical form, but his rekindled romance with Wanda helped stabilize him. Once a physical body powered by ionic energy, Simon Williams returned as a being of pure energy.

HOW WONDER MAN’S POWERS EVOLVED

While Wonder Man instantly developed super-strength and invulnerable skin after being bombarded with Zemo’s ionic rays, his powers evolved over the years as he became an energy being. For instance, Simon initially required a jetpack to fly, but he eventually developed the ability to do so unassisted. Wonder Man also developed some rarely used powers, such as the ability to change his size or appearance, or even briefly empower other people. With some guidance from Beast and Wasp (Nadia Van Dyne), Simon also learned how to sense and perceive several types of energy beyond the visible spectrum. 

HOW STRONG IS WONDER MAN?

By any measure, Wonder Man is one of the Avengers’ strongest members, physically holding his own against powerhouse heroes like Hulk, Thor, Hercules, and Sentry. In WEST COAST AVENGERS ANNUAL (1986) #2 by Steve Engelhart and Al Milgrom, Wonder Man actually went toe-to-toe with the God of Thunder. While he might have lost that particular battle, Simon successfully took down both the Red Hulk and Abomination in combat, and stood his ground against Michael Korvac, a being of limitless cosmic power. 

Beyond his observable physical attributes, some of Wonder Man’s most impressive feats occurred when he combined his unique abilities with his willpower. In MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL: EMPEROR DOOM (1987) #1 by David Michelinie and Bob Hall, Doctor Doom took over the world using the Purple Man’s mind-controlling powers. As the only Avenger unaffected, Wonder Man faced the Latverian monarch head on.

CAN WONDER MAN DIE?

Wonder Man’s unique nature as an energy being effectively renders him immortal. In multiple alternate realties, Wonder Man stood the test of time as one of the last surviving heroes of those respective timelines. On Earth-72233, a realty where futuristic cities were built on top of modern infrastructure, a white-haired Wonder Man was his world’s last hero, as seen in WONDER MAN (2006) #1 by Peter David and Andrew Currie.

On Earth-691, the reality of the original Guardians of the Galaxy, Wonder Man survived almost a thousand years into the future. When aliens from Mars attacked that Earth in the present day, Vision sent Wonder Man into deep space to protect him. In the far future, Simon took on a new identity as Hollywood and reluctantly teamed up with Vision once more, now called Mainframe. Together, the two heroes kept the Avengers’ legacy alive in the far future as part of a group called the Galactic Guardians. Their adventures on this intergalactic team can be read in GALACTIC GUARDIANS (1994) #1 by Michael Gallagher, Yancey Labat, and Kevin West.

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