By: Brian Azzarello (story), Cliff Chiang (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)
The Story: In business terms, Mount Olympus is going through a period of “reorganization.”
The Review: Over a year ago—and it makes me feel a bit odd and anxious to say that—I wrote in an op-ed with SoldierHawk the kind of things I wanted to see from Wonder Woman to make her more of the icon she should be:
“I’d simply like to know more about her makeup as a person… We already have plenty of stories that depict her as both warrior and humanitarian. We need to see stories where she embraces the other roles that make a woman: as sister, mentor, friend, even as employee or lover… If anything, these are the things she truly lacks in contrast to her male peers, and why the public at large can respect her, but can’t sympathize with her. And really, it’s how much we sympathize with a character that makes them popular and beloved, regardless of whatever principles they represent.”
The DC relaunch seemed the perfect opportunity to achieve some of these things, and DC certainly offered some of the best talent to do it. So how have they done?
To be sure, the human elements are still missing; aside from a brief, strangely meditative evening at a rock club, Diana has shown almost no other earthly interests that suggest there’s a relatable person under all that armor. Yet even though we don’t relate to her, we still manage to sympathize with her, and that’s really the aim. We share her in her grief and humiliation, her pride and anger, even if we can only imagine the mythical context in which she experiences it.
Most of all, we resonate with her defiance against people who think themselves above us. Notice how both Artemis and Hera emphasize that they are “gods,” almost like a self-fulfilling mantra, as if saying so makes their superiority fact. Also notice how shortly after they say it, they meet their comeuppance. And boy, it doesn’t get better when Wonder Woman’s the one who doles it out. If nothing else, this series has given her an iconic moment for a new generation to revel over, when Artemis mocks Diana for tossing aside her best defense against the goddess.
“My defense?” Diana scoffs. “My cuffs were yours.”
More than the elevation of her character is what Azzarello has done to expand Wonder Woman’s mythos. By making the Pantheon such crucial parts of the series, both as supporting figures and antagonizing ones as well, he reminds us that the domains of gods are whole worlds, which means Wonder Woman’s stomping grounds have grown that much bigger. And with the heart-stopping twist at the end of the issue, the expansion may not stop with mere worlds. “New gods,” Hermes mutters forebodingly.
Chiang has to be the master of understatement. Honestly, if you just look at his art, it seems like he hardly uses any lines at all, and yet there it sits, fully-fleshed, dynamic, and beautiful. You’d be right to say his style is the embodiment of Wonder Woman. This time around, I’d like to praise a member of the creative team who hasn’t received nearly his due: Wilson, the man who’s given Wonder Woman the boldest yet classiest colors of almost any title, the man who can make a world come to life with two dozen shades of blue.
Conclusion: This arc may not have given me anything I expected, but it gave me everything I hoped for a Wonder Woman story and more.
Grade: A-
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – Wait, wait—so Wonder Woman couldn’t fly before now? And will she be able to fly from now on?
Grade
Conclusion