A fully powered Bubastis
Originally existing as Adrian Veidt's genetically engineered pet Lynx, Bubastis was seemingly killed at the climax of Watchmen when Veidt attempted to kill Dr. Manhattan using an intrinsic field subtractor. She fully reassembles herself in WatchmeX #27 but chooses to appear in the form of a young woman, albeit one with cat-like features. Though not as strong as Osterman she has powers on a par with that of Lady Manhattan. Fans commonly refer to her as "Bubastits" due to her predilection for showing her bare breasts in several issues.
Though at first she was depicted as orange in appearance, as the series progressed Bubastis' fur lightened considerably, turning almost yellow in some issues. The reasons for this are unexplained and may result from mere artistic preference. Her other main colour changes occurred when she reached "maximum potential" in which state she would glow a vibrant shade of blue, similar to Dr. and Lady Manhattan.
In the mid-1990s, a run on the series by Chris Claremont revealed that the character had contracted terminal cancer from being excessively bombarded with tachyons in Karnak. Her metaphorical 'fight' with the disease was demonstrated rather literally through several months worth of dream sequences interspersed with other events. Notable from this period was the depiction of Cancer as an amalgamation of Nite Owl II, Rorschach and Silk Spectre II from the Watchmen series. Many fans have speculated that this is a meant to illustrate subconscious fears Bubastis developed toward the three after they threatened Adrien Veidt, and before the intrinsic field subtraction that allowed her to be reborn with an advanced intellect.
Death[]
Bubastis, an early design
After a protracted battle with cancer and a brief coma, Bubastis was afforded a moment of clarity. Her last wish was to be worshiped as a deity in a remote area of Egypt and to reconcile with her sister, Sitsabub. Claremont ended his run on the series with a group of servants, wearing hooded robes reminiscent of the Ozymandias costume, surrounding Bubastis on a dais. Sitsabub makes herself known as their leader and finally acknowledges the bond between them before pronouncing Bubastis a true god. Sitsabub kills everyone present and removes Bubastis' intrinsic field, destroying her body and sending her consciousness back in time to be reborn again.
Bubastis as drawn by Rob Liefeld
Reception[]
While American fans accepted Bubastis, she was never really seen as a groundbreaking or particularly popular character. However, in Japan, the introduction of a humanoid Bubastis nearly tripled sales of the WatchmeX comic. This lead to various fan comics, or "doujinshi" being created and rising in popularity to the point where Bubastis became the star of her own manga series for a brief time. The series, simply called "Bubastis" was passed around various artists and writers before being eventually canceled due to copyright issues.