Doctor Poison

Doctor Poison
Doctor Poison as depicted in Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #151 (December 1999); art by Matthew Clark (penciler), Tom Simmons (inker), and Patricia Mulvihill (colorist).
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Sensation Comics #2 (February 1942)
Created by	William Moulton Marston Harry G. Peter
In-story information
Alter ego	Princess Maru Marina Maru
Team affiliations	Villainy Inc. Secret Society of Super-Villains Godwatch
Abilities	Scientific genius in fields of chemistry and biology Engineering of pathogens, poisons, toxins, plagues and chemical-based weapons

Doctor Poison is a supervillain appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as a recurring adversary of the superhero Wonder Woman. A sadistic bioterrorist with a ghoulish face, she first appeared in 1942’s Sensation Comics #2, written by Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston and illustrated by Harry G. Peter, and holds a distinction as Wonder Woman’s first costumed supervillain.^[1]

As the narrative continuity of Wonder Woman comics has been adjusted by different writers and artists throughout the years, various versions of Doctor Poison have been presented, usually as perversely cruel toxicologists of Japanese descent. There have been at least four different incarnations of the character since her debut: (1) the Golden Age Doctor Poison Princess Maru; (2) the unnamed Post-Crisis Doctor Poison and Maru’s granddaughter, first appearing in 1999’s Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #151; (3) the short-lived New 52 Doctor Poison, a Russian scientist known only as Dr. Maru, first appearing in 2016’s Wonder Woman (vol. 4) #48; and (4) Colonel Marina Maru, a Post-Rebirth reformulation of the character who heads an elite team of mercenaries known as "Poison", first appearing in 2017’s Wonder Woman (vol. 5) #13.

Elena Anaya portrayed the character in the 2017 DC Extended Universe film Wonder Woman.