Alya Raatko came to the attention of comic fans when Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott introduced the character in Cheetah & Cheshire Rob The Justice League, a six part series which started in the fall of 2025. Cheetah (Barbara Ann Minerva) and Cheshire (Jade Nguyen) are putting together a crew of villains, as the title says, to rob the Justice League Watchtower. Cheshire’s daughter Lian is the one who mentions Alya as a possible recruit. Intrigued by the suggestion, they travel to Hub City to observe Raatko where she is helping protestors by disabling an armored vehicle with a single punch.

Several facts about Alya are learned as the story unfolds. She is the 25 year old daughter of Nyssa Raatko which makes her the granddaughter of R’as al Ghul, a cousin to Damian Wayne, and niece to Talia al Ghul. Raatko has superhuman strength which is in contrast to her body being smaller framed and the reason behind the “Featherweight” name. However, there is a catch to her strength. Alya has to be motivated by intense emotion in some way in order to use it. Greg Rucka does not address any specific reasoning for this. Alya appears accustomed to using her unassuming size against targets in other ways such as when she distracts the attention of D list superhero Sideways on a crowded street while Lian swipes his Justice League identification. Her body also has a high degree of durability though exact details remain unclear. For instance, Alya wears an astronaut suit in space while performing her part of the heist.

Another member of the crew is Klarion the Witch Boy. While Klarion plays an important role in main heist story his character is also used to add an element of romance. His attraction to Alya is immediate upon seeing her for the first time in issue #3. Nicola Scott and Annette Kwok charmingly convey awkward glances and attempts at conversation between them. When Alya and Klarion finally have a real conversation Alya shares that she is both bisexual and a trans woman. With Rucka’s record of allyship Alya’s orientation and gender identity is not an problem for Klarion and the possibility of a relationship between them remains open ended.

Rucka adds an altruistic component to Alya’s character. Surprised by the amount of tech, artifacts, and other valuables that Cheetah and Cheshire successfully stole from the Justice League, Alya exclaims: “Do you know how many people I could help with this money?” Rucka then includes the possibility that Alya would travel to Greece to help fight against the rise of anti LGBTQA violence. Alya is also very empathetic to Cheetah’s plight and suffering due to a curse put on her.

Featherweight’s first appearance is Cheetah & Cheshire Rob The Justice League #2. While the pink and blue colors of Alya’s clothing seen in her first appearance are clues to her being a trans woman, this and her bisexuality are confirmed in dialog in issue #6.

Created by Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott. Art by Nicola Scott and Annette Kwok.

All rights reserved DC Comics