Let's us talks some realities here before we get into the fictional works here. There is no such thing as a black orchid and never has been. Black is a color that does not exist in the Orchid family naturally although it might be created someday by some biogeneticist. There are Orchids such as Coelogne pandurata which have been called 'the black Orchid' and certain Cymbidiums ---all of which have false black coloring spots. Usually these spots are actually a very dark red or very dark purple or blue. If very dark blue that makes it a rare color in the orchid family as the color blue only occurs naturally in Thelymitra orchids usually although a few other genera so have blue flowers.

This article discusses a DC Comics character. For the Doctor Who serial see Black Orchid (Doctor Who).

For the video game character see Killer Instinct.

Black Orchid is the name of three fictional superheroines published by DC Comics. The original version of the character first appeared in Adventure Comics #428 (July 1973). DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... In comic books, first appearance refers to the date or issue of a characters first appearance. ... Adventure Comics #296 Adventure Comics is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1935 to 1983. ... Sheldon Mayer was an American comic book writer. ... Tony deZuniga finished Commercial Arts at the University of Santo Tomas, in the Philippines. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Cages (1998) by Dave McKean David Tench McKean (born 29 December 1963 in Maidenhead, England) is an illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, filmmaker and musician. ... The Shadowpact is a group of magical DC Comics heroes who fought against the Spectre in the 2005 limited series Day of Vengeance. ... Suicide Squad is a name for a variety of organizations created for and owned by DC Comics. ... The Parliament of Trees is a fictional group of mystical trees, first appearing in . ... The Parliament of Trees is a fictional group of mystical trees, first appearing in . ... The Three Graces, here in a painting by Sandro Botticelli, were the goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility in Greek mythology. ... A superhero is a fictional character who is noted for feats of courage and nobility and who usually has a colorful name and costume and abilities beyond those of normal human beings. ... DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... Adventure Comics #296 Adventure Comics is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1935 to 1983. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ...

Black Orchid I

Although she has a number of superpowers—she can fly and is nigh-invulnerable—her main ability is a mastery of disguise. She often spends an entire investigation impersonating an insignificant background female, such as a maid, a secretary, someone's girlfriend, et cetera, and the other characters only discover her involvement at the end of the story upon finding the abandoned disguise with her calling card, a black orchid. Orchid re-directs here; for alternate uses see Orchid (disambiguation) Genera Over 800 See List of Orchidaceae genera. ...

Black Orchid I in her first appearance. Adventure Comics #428. Art by Tony DeZuniga.

After appearing in Adventure Comics #'s 428–430, the character next appeared as a backup feature in The Phantom Stranger #'s 31–41 (1974–1976), after which the character appeared only sporadically, such as an occasional cameo in comic books as diverse as the Crisis on Infinite Earths 12-issue limited series and Blue Devil Annual #1 (both 1985). She also appeared in Suicide Squad (first series) as a member of the team in issues #4, 7, 11, 12, 19, and 22 (1987–1988). Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (500x761, 92 KB) Cover to Adventure Comics #428. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (500x761, 92 KB) Cover to Adventure Comics #428. ... Tony deZuniga finished Commercial Arts at the University of Santo Tomas, in the Philippines. ... The Phantom Stranger is a fictional character of unspecified paranormal origins who battles mysterious and occult forces in various titles published by DC Comics. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-issue comic book limited series (identified as a 12 part maxi-series) and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 in order to simplify their fifty-year-old continuity. ... Blue Devil is a DC Comics superhero who first appeared in Fury of Firestorm #24 (1984). ... An annual publication, more often called simply an annual, is a book or a magazine, comic book or comic strip published yearly. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Suicide Squad is a name for a variety of organizations created for and owned by DC Comics. ...

Black Orchid II

In 1988, the character was relaunched in a three-part limited series called Black Orchid which was written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean. The miniseries fleshed out the character considerably, providing an origin story which explained how and why she became known as Black Orchid. It also gave the character a civilian name in her origin sequence, Susan Linden-Thorne. She was given ties to the characters Swamp Thing, Floronic Man, and Poison Ivy. 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Cages (1998) by Dave McKean David Tench McKean (born 29 December 1963 in Maidenhead, England) is an illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, filmmaker and musician. ... The Swamp Thing is a fictional character created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson for DC Comics, and featured in a long-running horror-fantasy comic book series of the same name. ... The Floronic Man is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. ... Binomial name Toxicodendron radicans (L.) Kuntze Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron radicans or Rhus toxicodendron), in the family Anacardiaceae, is a woody vine that is well-known for its ability to produce urushiol, a skin irritant which for most people will cause an agonizing, itching rash. ...

The original Black Orchid is killed in this miniseries, and a new one which is a "sister" of sorts to the original is introduced. She goes under the alias of Flora Black to meet with Sherilyn Sommers, her closest friend.

An ongoing Black Orchid series, published under the Vertigo imprint, featuring the new Black Orchid, ran from 1993 to 1995. The second version of the character used pheromone manipulation as mind control to became a femme fatale, breaking and marrying millionaire Elliot Weems to claim his fortune and company business as her own. She then became the series' major villain in the closing story arc. She perished in the final issue. Her companion, a child version of Black Orchid heretofore nicknamed "Suzy", had matured over the course of the series, taking up the mantle of the third and final Black Orchid as a young adult. Vertigo logo Vertigo is an imprint of comic book and graphic novel publisher DC Comics. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Mind control (or thought control) has the premise that an outside source can control an individuals thinking, behavior or consciousness (either directly or more subtly). ... Mata Hari, exotic dancer and convicted spy, made her name synonymous with femme fatale during WWI. A femme fatale is a stock character, usually a villainous woman, who deceptively misleads and ensnares the hapless hero and/or other males in order to gain some end they would not freely help...

Black Orchid III

Black Orchid III—the grown-up Suzy—is identical to the second and carries on the tradition in both the DC Universe and related Vertigo titles. She has appeared in four event titles: 1999's Totems graphic novel, 2001's Justice Leagues miniseries, 2005's Day of Vengeance miniseries, and 2006's Infinite Crisis miniseries. She is at present an ally of the Shadowpact. The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared setting where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. ... The Shadowpact is a group of magical DC Comics heroes who fought against the Spectre in the 2005 limited series Day of Vengeance. ...

Powers and abilities

The first Black Orchid had superstrength, invulnerability, flight, and was a master of disguise. The second and third Black Orchids had superstrength, flight, and can absorb nutrients from the air.

Publication trivia

The 1988 limited series was nominated for the Squiddy Award for Favorite Limited Series in 1989, and for the Squiddy Award for Favorite Limited Series of the 1980s. The 1993 ongoing series was nominated for the Squiddy Award for Favorite New Continuing Series in 1993, the Squiddy Award for Most Improved Series in 1993 and 1994. Issue #8 of the series was nominated for the Squiddy Award for Favorite Single Issue Story in a Series in 1993. The trade paperback collection of the mini-series was nominated for the Squiddy Award for Favorite Reprint Volume in 1991.

References

• Comic Book Awards Almanac

External links

• Toonopedia Entry on Black Orchid I
• Toonopedia Entry on Black Orchid II