Julia Ratsel was a top female agent for the third Reich, and a vicious man-hater. She thought all men felt superior to women, and she set out to prove herself stronger and more ruthless than any man.
When Hitler discovered the American comic book Major Victory by Private Biljo White, which duplicated Captain America's origin down to almost the last detail, Hitler assumed that PFC White knew something about the Super-Soldier Serum that created Cap. Hitler dispatched Frau Ratsel as an undercover agent, pretending to be interested in PFC White romantically so she could learn what he knew. She ultimately took Biljo captive and tortured him with her whip to make him talk. When she realized that he didn't consciously know anything, she hypnotized him to see what information was locked in his subconscious. It turns out that PFC White knew Dr. Anderson, whos helped create the Super-Soldier Serum, and Dr. Anderson told Biljo that one of the ingredients used was potassium. Frau Ratsel had fragments of the serum Brain Drain used to create Master Man, but the ingredient she was missing was potassium. Instead of taking this valuable information directly to Hitler, she began creating the formula to use on herself. She was discovered by a Hauptman [Captain] Shneider, who insisted on turning her in for not directly sharing the information. When he pulled a gun on Frau Ratsel, she grabbed him with her whip and flung him across the room. He went flying into the apparatus Brain Drain used, and the resulting explosion, combined with the formula, made Julia Ratsel superhuman. She used her newfound strength to serve Hitler as Warrior Woman!
As Julia was being transformed into Warrior Woman, the Invaders were battling Master Man in Hitler's Berchtesgaden fortress. She helped Master Man defeat the Invaders, and Hitler ordered her to marry Master Man so that they could produce the most perfect Aryan offspring. Though she loathed Master Man, Warrior Woman had no choice but to follow the fuehrer's orders. However, during the ceremony, an explosion caused a cave-in that killed the minister before he could finish the wedding. Though they were not legally married, Hitler decreed them man and wife himself. Warrior Woman was stuck with a man she hated. During the remainder of the war, Master Man and Warrior Woman served the Reich and fought the Invaders several times. They also briefly worked with Baron Blood and U-Man as part of Lady Lotus' Super-Axis. Each time, they ultimately met with defeat.
Shortly before the end of the war, Nazi scientist herr Nacht had Master Man and Warrior Woman put into suspended animation. Sensing the impending Nazi defeat, he wanted to preserve the two villains so that the Reich could one day rise again. Nacht raised his son to be a Nazi and told him about Master Man and Warrior Woman so that he could one day release them. The younger Nacht fell in love with Warrior Woman, and when the day came that they were freed from suspended animation, he decided to marry Frau Ratsel himself and become the new Master Man. To get rid of Willie Lohmer, the original Master Man, Nacht sent him into battle against the Sub-Mariner. Nacht knew that during the battle Master Man would resort to his weak Willie Lohmer personality and be defeated. Theis happened, and Nacht (as the new Master Man) and the rejuvenated Warrior Woman joined the battle against Sub-Mariner and his allies. Crushed by Warrior Woman's betrayal and the realization that she never loved him, Willie Lohmer triggered an explosion that destroyed the warehouse were the battle was taking place. It was presumed that both Master Men and Warrior Woman were killed in the explosion, but no bodies were ever found. So it remains a definite possibility that Warrior Woman may yet rise again to wreak havoc on the world.
First Appearance: [as Julia Ratsel] INVADERS #16 (1977); [as Warrior Woman] INVADERS #17 (1977)
Other Appearances: INVADERS #18-21, 40-41; SUB-MARINER (vol. II) #11-12 (1991)
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