anderson-wilhelmina-valkyrie-faceWILHELMINA ANDERSON

Real Name: Wilhelmina Anderson

Identity/Class: Human;
    active during World War II (presumably, see comments) through modern era;
    Apparently born in unrevealed location in Europe (see comments)

Occupation: Nurse

Group Membership: None known

Affiliations: Jane Foster (aka Valkyrie) Mister Horse, Runa the Valkyrie

Enemies: German soldiers during wartime (see comments)

Known Relatives: Unidentified child

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Unrevealed (possibly Valhalla vs. Heaven or some other afterlife);
    formerly the Maria Wheelock Cancer Center at the McCarthy Medical Institute, 42nd street, midtown Manhattan, New York;
    formerly at least two European nationsanderson-wilhelmina-valkyrie-bed-story

First Appearance: The Mighty Valkyries#1 (June, 2021)

Powers/Abilities: Wilhelmina Anderson had no superhuman powers. 

    She was experienced as a nurse mid-twentieth century, and she was both courageous and compassionate, as well as having enough pride to prevent from admitting when she wanted company or appreciated help).

    Even on her deathbed, she had an excellent memory of events perhaps 80-years-old, and she could tell fascinating stories.

    She also retained her sense of humor.

    She apparently enjoyed smoking cigars (or perhaps she was just joking, given her advanced lung disease and that a cigar was about the last thing her lungs needed)

Height: Unrevealed (approximately approximately 5'8"; she looked to be maybe a foot or more shorter than the 6'10" Runa)
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 110 lbs. at time of death (she seemed very slight))
Eyes: Unrevealed (her eyes were never shown in color and/or up-close)
Hair: White (presumably another color in youth

History:
(The Mighty Valkyries#1 (fb) - BTS) - Wilhelmina Anderson led a fascinating life, which Jane Foster would later describe as more fascinating than anyone she had ever met, including gods, elves, and Hell-Hounds. anderson-wilhelmina-valkyrie-laugh

(The Mighty Valkyries#1 (fb) - BTS) - During World War II (presumably), Wilhelmina was a young woman fresh out of nursing school at her first job when the German soldiers came to the hospital to recruit nurses for their base.

    As they arrived, Wilhelmina jumped into a free bed, roughed up her hair and pretended to be a patient. Everyone else played along, and Wilhelmina spent a year living in that hospital, working as a nurse during the day and sleeping in the hospital bed at night.

    Every time the soldiers came back, she jumped back into bed, pretending to be at death's door.

(The Mighty Valkyries#5 (fb) - BTS) - In line to cross a national border, Wilhelmina's pregnancy reached full term as she was having contractions and her water had broken (ruptured of the amniotic sac).

    Knowing that she only had papers for herself and that if she had her baby before she crossed the border, they would let her or her child leave the country, Wilhelmina apparently held the baby in until she had crossed the border.

(The Mighty Valkyries#1 (fb) - BTS) - Eventually cancer ate away at Wilhelmina's lungs. Jane Foster -- even without her Valkyrie vision -- knew that Wilhelmina did not have long to live.

    With all of her family and friends having passed, Wilhelmina had no one to visit her or with whom to share her stories.

    Jane Foster took her coffee break with Wilhelmina, listening to her stories so they could live on her memory, at least.

    Wilhelmina would tell her story and then throw Jane out, too proud to admit that she enjoyed the company.anderson-wilhelmina-valkyrie-full-robust

(The Mighty Valkyries#1) - As Jane Foster quietly listened, the oxygen-supplemented Wilhelmina told her the story of when she pretended to be a patient to prevent the "Krauts" (see comments) from forcing her to be a nurse at their base.

    When Jane told her to get back downstairs but would be back tomorrow, Wilhelmina told her, "If you insist on returning -- and I'm not saying you should -- bring me a damn cigar, will you!"

(The Mighty Valkyries#5 (fb) - BTS) - Wilhelmina apparently died.

(The Mighty Valkyries#5) - On the room of the McCarthy Medical Institute, Wilhelmina related her stories about the war to Runa the Valkyrie, noting that what she remembered most vividly about the war was the absence of humanity.

    As the Valkyrie (Jane Foster) arrived, Wilhelmina recognized her, noting that she didn't think she would make it in time. Jane assured her that she wold not miss this moment for the world.

    Sitting atop the winged steed Mr. Horse behind Runa, Wilhelmina shared her story of her holding in her baby until after she had crossed the border.

     "Have you ever tried holdin' in a baby? It's not an easy task. Yet there I was..." anderson-wilhelmina-valkyrie-intolight

    Runa and Jane led Wilhelmina to the afterlife.

Comments: Created by Jason Aaron, Torunn Gronbekk, and Mattia de Iulis.

    In case you don't know, Krauts was an ethnic slur used to describe Germans, especially World War I and II soldiers, based on the European food Sauerkraut.

    While it is possible that Wilhelmina was referring to World War I stories, she would have had to have been at least 15-16 years old in 1918, which would make her like 119 years old even at the time of publication of the story in 2021. Making her active perhaps 20-25 years later in World War II fits better, although the sliding timescale will eventually make that problematic, too.

    Wilhelmina was in Europe when she had her encounter with "the Germans." The fact that she called them that would seem to indicate that she was not German. Wilhelmina is a Germanic name, a feminine form of Wilhelm, both meaning "protector" and based of the word for helmet. However, the name was popular in surrounding countries, such as the Netherlands.
    Her reference to crossing the border while pregnant seems to indicate that this was also in Europe, rather than coming to the USA, because that would have been via boat to Ellis Island.
    But, obviously, she did come to the USA at some point.

    She was much sturdier in Mighty Valkyries#5, which presumably represented her frame before she developed cancer cachexia.

    Regardless, she was an interesting woman. It would be cool to see her in some World War II stories involving the Invaders, etc.

    Per the Marvel Database regarding the Maria Wheelock Center:

This location is named after Maria Wheelock, the late mother of a reader who contacted Mighty Thor penciler Russell Dauterman to express her excitement about the revelation that Jane Foster had become the then-new Thor, saying that Jane's courage reminded her of her mother's own battle with cancer. With the blessing of the reader and her family, the cancer center where Jane was receiving treatment was named after Maria. Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso has stated that the name of this location is "a small way of not only honoring Maria but also acknowledging all the other real people out there who are battling or have battled this illness."

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Wilhelmina Anderson should be distinguished from:


images: (without ads)
The Mighty Valkyries#1, story pg. 2, panel 2 (telling story from hospital bed);
           panel 4 (laughing);
    #5, story pg. 21, panel 5 (sturdy, standing by Runa)
        pg. 22, panel 2 (best face, by Runa);
          panel 4 (into the light)

Appearances:
The Mighty Valkyries#1 (June, 2021) - Jason Aaron and Torunn Gronbekk (writer), Mattia de Iulis (artist), Wil Moss & Sarah Brunstad (editors)
The Mighty Valkyries#5 (November, 2021) - Jason Aaron & Torunn Gronbekk (writer), Mattia De Iulis (artist), Wil Moss & Sarah Brunstad (editors)

First posted: 05/06/2023
Last updated: 05/06/2023

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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