Assuming you’re not all too busy watching the first two episodes of DC’s new cartoon series for girls, DC SuperHero Girls, which feature a young Wonder Woman on some kind of exchange trip to Superhero High in the US, shall we mosey on over the jump to look at last week’s comics featuring Wonder Woman?
DC Bombshells found Second World War Wonder Woman getting a new uniform and facing off against both Nazis and Allied Forces, while 1977 Wonder Woman has to deal with a familiar member of the walking dead over in Wonder Woman ’77.
Meanwhile, over in Detective Comics #45, DCYou Wonder Woman is testing both old and new Batmans (or should that be Batmen?) and in Injustice: Gods Among Us: Year Four #23, weedy Wonder Woman is saving the world from nuclear missiles. I do hope that means we’re not going to get Superman IV next issue.
DC Bombshells #12
Plot
Wonder Woman has joined the ‘bombshells’ and has been off fighting for the Allies against the Nazis. She’s even been given a new set of ‘armour’ by Amanda Waller, based on the ‘goddesses’ that adorn Allied planes. But now she’s back to visit Steve.
Meanwhile, the Allied soldiers are taunting Steve for being a cowardly spy, rather than a soldier.
They also want to kill their Nazi prisoners.
Something to which Wonder Woman doesn’t take kindly.
However, in a time of war, that counts as treason, the penalty for which is…
Is it any good?
It’s more surprising than good. We’re in the same strange Elseworlds 1940s Greece as before, where the Allied ground forces not only include US troops but have already arrived to protect Greece from a German invasion. And where 1970s US city ambulances help the wounded.
It’s in this Elseworld that a pin-up outfit made by Amanda Waller for Wonder Woman qualifies as ‘armour’, but we’ll put this down to her unfamiliarity with the 20th century terms (although ἔντεα versus ἀμφίεσις et al was still a distinction made in Ancient Greece…).
What’s more surprising is that for what is the first of Wonder Woman’s fights for the ‘Bombshells’, Marguerite Bennett has chosen to have her fighting Allied troops who would commit war crimes against their prisoners. It’s an unusual first choice, albeit appropriate for Diana, although the forces’ rationalisation for their choice is a good few years too soon (along with their involvement at all).
Indeed, it feels more like a subtextual comment on the War Against Terror than something that feels in any way historically accurate or appropriate.
But if you were expecting a mere bit of Second World War hijinks, with our heroines in cleavage busting outfits, it seems that the series is heading in a slightly different direction at least.
Rating: 4/7 (3/7 for the art)
Wonder Woman ’77 #13
Plot
Wonder Woman and Steve are at a funfair, when Solomon Grundy arrives.
However, it turns out that Grundy is merely protecting one of his descendants, who is being abused by her boyfriend. With Wonder Woman promising to protect her and ensure the boyfriend stands justice, Grundy retreats.
Is it any good?
It’s a little preachy, a little daft, but has some great artwork. In the standard nitpicks is the idea that a Halloween funfair would be more exciting than a bacchanalia.
Poor research by the author, Wondy having a joke (the bacchanalia having been a Roman thing) or 2,000 years of changing customs neutering the festival on Themyscira? Take your pick.
The VAWG storyline is clumsily, if as reverently handled as it can be in the confines of a single issue of a comic.
On the plus side, we do get a reference to Wonder Woman’s age that you can square with TV continuity, at least, if not comic book continuity.
The art, as you can tell, is great. And Grundy’s fun no matter what.
A bit of a throwaway single issue, but not bad.
Rating: 4/7 (7/7 for the art)
Detective Comics #45
Plot
While the transition from nu52 to DCYou has resulted in few changes to Wonder Woman beyond her costume, it’s been all change over on Batman. Bruce Wayne has amnesia, can’t remember his parents’ killing and can’t remember he’s Batman. He’s actually quite happy about it, too.
In his place as Batman is Jim Gordon – although his Batman is more Iron Man, given he’s wearing a flying ‘metal’ super suit so he can beat up baddies.
What the rest of the Justice League want to know is whether Bruce is gone for good and whether the new Batman can be trusted to join them.
So they pay them both a little visit.
It’s mostly Diana and her Lasso of Truth who deals with determining the truth of Bruce Wayne’s situation.
The conclusion? Bruce Wayne is no longer Batman.
Bruce Wayne’s status determined, the League want to know if Gordon’s willing to take his place… and then take him on his first mission.
Is it any good?
The inherent daftness of the Wayne/Gordon situations aside (anyone want to bet that within a year or so, the status quo will be restored?), it’s not a bad little comic. It’s all quite subtly done and the issue offers the Justice League’s poignant thank you and goodbye to their former friend and colleague, a man who can’t be allowed to remember what he once was.
Nitpicking away, Diana’s dialogue is a bit dithering and faltering for someone who’s a goddess and has been lassoing people for years, including various members of the Justice League. But that niggle aside, I enjoyed the issue and the Batman: Year One-style artwork was a pleasing surprise, too.
Rating: 6/7 (artwork 6/7)
Injustice: Gods Among Us: Year Four #23
Plot
It turns out that Diana’s annoyance last issue was with Zeus, so she and the Justice League decide to try to beat up some gods. How odd.
Odder still is that they actually get somewhere with this plan.
Until Hera decides she’s had enough of it all so decides to do something godly.
But then, those nuclear missiles from last issue get spotted. With the gods apparently not giving a monkeys about the missiles, who will save the day, despite her having nearly been killed by a nuclear explosion back in Year One? Wonder Woman, of course.
But who will save her? Well, fortunately, someone’s just come back from a walk on the Darkseid.
Of course, Superman coming back to Earth gets Zeus’ attention far more easily than some nuclear missiles could.
But just as Zeus begins to lay down the law, it turns out that someone else would like a god-to-god conversation with him.
Is it any good?
As usual, we have to accept a lot of things. We have to accept that the gods of this Elseworld aren’t even as powerful as Robin the boy wonder in a fight. We have to accept that they don’t really understand nuclear missiles (or maybe they’re invulnerable to them). We have to accept that this Wonder Woman just isn’t half as strong as Superman so can’t do the missile toss she could in Volume 2.
Or the missile punch.
Nor is this Lasso of Truth as good as Volume 1’s Lasso of Truth.
That depowering aside, it’s a strong issue for Wonder Woman, as she commits herself to an act that almost killed her once and is almost certain to kill her again, just so she can save everyone else, including her enemies. We also have an almost romantic Superman-Wonder Woman reunion, which is quite sweet.
We also get what I think is the first ever meeting between Zeus and Highfather, which is sure to be interesting.
Basically, it’s the usual mix of sexism, bad artwork, incredibly stupidity and outright coolness that’s come to define Injustice: Gods Among Us.
Rating: 5/7 (artwork: 3/7)
Disclaimer: Owing to the small fortune it would take to buy every single DC comic each week, this is not a guaranteed rundown of all the comics that feature Wonder Woman. If you know of any I’ve missed, email me or leave a comment below and I’ll cover them the following week
