History[]
Courtney Ross is a supporting character from the Marvel UK strip Captain Britain. She was the unluckiest woman in Britain, who could barely leave the house without getting into some sort of deadly peril. A student at Thames University in London, she hung out with Jacko Tanner and had a casual romantic relationship with Brian Braddock. Courtney wanted it to go further, but Brian was a rather reserved and solitary person who didn't want people getting too close to him.
When Brian became Captain Britain, Courtney was involved in several of his early cases, at one point being captured by the villain Arcade. Perhaps her stupidest moment was when she saw Captain Britain on the other side of a street during Lord Hawk's attack on Piccadilly Circus and literally ran in front of a bus to try and get to him (because... that's what women do when they see a good-looking young superhero?). She was knocked down and injured.
When she had recovered Courtney went to Loch Ness with Brian and Jacko to try and find the Loch Ness Monster using a sonar scanner (designed by Brian) while plumbing the loch's depths in a bathysphere (designed by Brian). This may indicate that she, like him, was a physics student. Alternatively, it was an interdepartmental investigation and Courtney was studying a relevant discipline like zoology, palaeontology or engineering. Or maybe she was an incredibly persuasive art history student who fancied a short holiday in Scotland.
Despite witnessing (a) a spaceship which the Lurker from Loch Ness had disguised as the Loch Ness Monster and (b) the explosion caused when Captain Britain made the ship blow up, Courtney concluded that there was nothing in the loch which merited further investigation.
Courtney's next mishap involved spending a weekend with a peer of the realm who turned out to be a vampire who wanted to turn her into his vampire bride. Her evil host, Lord Kemp, summoned Satan from Hell to ask him for his, um, blessing on the union. Luckily, Captain Britain killed Kemp and burned his castle to the ground. Courtney watched aghast as the face of Satan appeared snarling in the flames.
Having a face-to-face encounter with the Arch-Fiend twice did nothing to dampen Courtney's spirits.
Courtney and Brian's relationship eventually fizzled out after circumstances took Brian's life in a different direction.
American revival
It was revealed years later that Courtney had gone into banking and was now a high flyer in that world. She was apparently murdered and impersonated by her own other-dimensional doppelganger, Opul Lun Sat-Yr-Nin (see also Saturnyne).
Powers and abilities[]
Powers
None.
Abilities
Financial acumen; remarkable mental fortitude.
Strength level
Reasonably fit human female.
Notes[]
- Courtney's demise took place in the American series Excalibur, after she'd been absent from comics for about ten years.
- When written by Chris Claremont, Courtney was fairly independent and self-assertive. When written by Gary Friedrich, she had an annoying tendency to gave longingly at photos of Brian Braddock and wonder what secret hurts lay in his heart, as the tears coursed slowly down her cheeks. It was a bit like one of those girls' comics about a talented young ballerina/equestrian/gymnast who falls in love with a handsome but secretive neighbour/schoolmate/aristocrat. Will she win the dashing physicist's heart? Find out next week, true believers!
Trivia[]
Courtney originally had auburn hair, but it was later revealed that she dyed it.
Links[]
- Appearances of Courtney Ross
- Character Gallery: Courtney Ross
- Images that feature Courtney Ross
- Fan-Art Gallery: Courtney Ross
- Courtney Ross quotations
Discover and Discuss[]
- Search News for: Courtney Ross · Courtney Ross