By: Geoff Johns (story), Tony S. Daniel (pencils), Richard Friend & Batt (inks), Tomeu Morey
The Story: I just have to say, Wonder Woman, your “friend” seems pretty catty to me.
The Review: One of the complaints I’ve had about this series from nearly the beginning is the relegation of Wonder Woman to sideman status on a team where she should stand our more prominently as its sole female member. Johns seemed completely at a loss of what to do with her other than portraying her as someone’s girlfriend, whether Steve Trevor’s ex or Superman’s newest flame. The chauvinism behind this should be pretty clear to anyone.
Johns may be just as aware of these problems as anyone else, as this month’s issue gives Diana a whole plot of her own outside the relationship stuff. Not to say that the relationship stuff is dead by a long shot. Diana continues a pathological concern for Steve’s safety (however pointless, since even without associating with her, he could get bumped off by any one of his innumerable work-related dangers), even while the sexual tension between her and Clark continues to build.
I’ve often compared the dynamic of the League to that of office co-workers: everyone gets along professionally, with only the mildest of friendly or confrontational behavior, trying hard to keep the personal bits outside the office. And then two of the co-workers ruin things for everyone by hooking up (or, in the more prudish world of superheroics, by a brief bout of tonsil-play). There’s an awkwardness that follows when two people in a group achieve an intimacy totally at odds with the imposed distance of the others.
Maybe if Hal was still around, he and Barry’s bro-mance could serve as a counterweight to Diana and Clark’s attraction. Without his usual bestie, Barry starts to buddy up with Cyborg. His jokey, even jocular manner bears a definite resemblance to Wally West (Johns did write Wally as the Flash way before he Barry, and longer), particularly in how he joshes Vic around:
“C’mon, Vic,” he protests, “…You’re not a robot, Vic. Robots don’t laugh at jokes or talk about their favorite television shows or worry that they’re robots. Do you ever fantasize about making out with a toaster?”
“No.”
“I rest my case.”
Meanwhile, in the actual story, Wonder Woman’s enmity with Cheetah is meant to have a tragic element to it, but Johns blunders by never allowing us to actually see the relationship between them before it all went to goddess-possession hell. Some interesting things do follow from the premise, however ineptly introduced. Cheetah doesn’t seem interested in actually harming Wonder Woman, as she claims “we can be friends again,” and now that she’s apparently powered by some kind of deity, she makes for a more formidable foe, one that can take on the whole League singlehandedly and pull off a pretty remarkable twist on one of the most powerful at the end. Spoiler alert—I can’t say that Johns’ cliffhangers, like Superman turning into the/a Cheetah, are always smart or even clever, but they do keep you coming back.
Daniel falls in the same category as DC’s top mainstream artists: capable of rendering almost anything well and with credibility, a great hand at action sequences, and some unnaturally good-looking characters. The only criticism you can make is he has far more flair than style, and he’s often emotionally flat, using random shadows to convey both sexual chemistry, moodiness, and goddess possession at the same time. We also have logical gaps in the art, like Cheetah biting Superman’s neck, then instantly disappearing in the next panel.
Good ol’ Jeff Lemire gets in on the action by co-writing the back-up featuring Steve Trevor and Green Arrow, a clear teaser to the upcoming Justice League of America. There’s really nothing to say about it other than Johns seems determined to make this new team happen, even if he has to generate a whole new set of antagonists to do it. Brad Walker’s macho art (with Dan Hennessy and Jay David Ramos on inks and colors) occasionally drifts into strange territory (e.g. Arrow’s impossible body-twisting as he shoots an arrow in midair), but is otherwise fine.
Conclusion: Some very attractive art bolsters an issue which still displays much of the title’s running weaknesses. Neither the back-up nor main feature succeed in interesting you that much.
Grade: B-
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – Alright, I’m actually curious to know who this “Security” gal is.
Grade
Conclusion