Wonder Woman #32 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Cliff Chiang (breakdowns), Goran Sudžuka (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Diana gets her Braveheart on.

The Review: This all started with a squabble among gods: to save a pregnant Zola from Hera’s wrath, Hermes teleports her into Diana’s apartment. Diana hasn’t been able to escape the Olympians’ domestic affairs since, and now she finds herself leading the effort to topple the balance of power on Olympus itself. That’s the interesting thing about this series: Diana is a reluctant heroine, whose involvement has mostly been to clean up her relatives’ messes.

That’s a small-minded way of looking at this storyline, but what else are you supposed to think when these divine struggles seem to have no overt effect on the world at large? In fighting the First Born, Diana may be saving humanity from certain disaster, but no one, other than the Amazons and the gods themselves, seems to notice. With the kind of stakes involved here—even the New Gods are paying attention, for heaven’s sake—shouldn’t the ramifications be felt by people outside of Diana’s direct circle of supporting characters?

Wonder Woman #26 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story) Goran Sudžuka (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: A sibling rivalry to end all sibling rivalries.

The Review: I take back everything I ever said about Geoff Johns and his decompressed style of writing.  I think it’s safe to say that Azzarello has taken decompression to a whole new level on Wonder Woman, with entire issues going by that have only so much to say for themselves.  Not that every issue (or even every comic, come to that) has to be packed with action or direct confrontation, but the pace of advancement on this series has gotten quite ridiculous.

Azzarello’s problem is in his choice of intrigue, which is almost purely speculative.  No other writer indulges so much in the stimulation of euphemism, vagaries, double-meanings, and almost nothing else as Azzarello does.  And for a long while, he got away with it.  His reconstruction of what a Wonder Woman comic could look like kept us entranced at first, but there has to be a point when he stops building and starts living in the house he has built.

Wonder Woman #25 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story) Goran Sudžuka (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Sibling rivalries take on new meaning when gods are involved.

The Review: One of the frequent criticisms of this title, and one that I often levy myself, is that Wonder Woman feels strangely out of place in a series where she’s supposedly the star.  Perhaps this is evidence that Azzarello is not so much interested in his heroine herself as the possibilities of her world.  There’s no denying that he’s taken her mythological background and mined it extravagantly, turning the Olympians into the best part of the series.

So he can hardly be blamed for spending so much of each issue featuring their various schemes at the cost of crowding out Diana.  And I use “crowding out” very purposely; with us barely noticing it, Azzarello has given Wonder Woman one of the biggest ongoing casts of all the new 52 titles.  Give any two or three Olympians a scene of their own, tack on some panels for Diana’s core crew, and naturally she’ll wind up with little page-time for herself.

Superman/Wonder Woman #2 – Review

By: Charles Soule (story), Tony S. Daniel (pencils), Batt (inks), Tomev Morey (colors)

The Story: When her boyfriend’s in trouble, Diana goes for her family hook-ups.

The Review: I’ve never been all that fond of the grab-bag style of comic book storytelling—you know, a plot in which all of a character’s biggest villains get thrown in at once for some dubious reason and ultimately get disposed en masse.  This seems like it would increase the scale of a story, but the effect is often overinflated.  As with most things, quantity has little relation to quality, and the more villains we deal with, the less consequential the story feels.

This is especially true once you get to a certain caliber of villain, the ones who can ordinarily support an entire arc or more by themselves.  Crowd them together and you may give the hero a bigger challenge, but you’ll diminish their viability.  So from the moment Doomsday revealed itself at the end of last issue, I’ve been hoping Soule would do what almost no writer has done and focus on finding any layers that may have been lying in secret within the monster.  Soule disappoints by instead eroding Doomsday’s importance with the appearance of a more defined Superman foe, which feels suspiciously like the start of a grab-bag story.

Wonder Woman #24 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story) Goran Sudžuka (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Diana learns that family reunions are indeed the worst.

The Review: The end of Villains Month marks the official start of the DCU’s third year since its relaunch.  Needless to say, its landscape has changed a great deal during this period of time.  Nearly half of the original 52 titles are with us no longer, most of them deservedly, and many of those that are left have lost the spirit that made them seem so exciting when they debuted.  Only a few, like Wonder Woman, remain steadfast to the direction and principles they started with.

As critical as I’ve been about certain points of execution, I have to admire how Azzarello has managed to stick to his guns on this title, somehow staying above the fray of tacky promotional campaigns, pointless crossovers, and pushy Big Events.  In a market saturated with angst and loud, hyperactive action, the fact that Wonder Woman still makes a living off mythological intrigue and family dynamics is remarkable indeed.

Wonder Woman #18 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Goran Sudzuka & Cliff Chiang (art), Tony Akins (pencils), Dan Green (inks), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Who’s fastest—old god, new god, or demi-goddess?

The Review: I’ve officially reviewed Azzarello’s Wonder Woman for over a year and a half now, and I still feel like I haven’t quite grasped the nature of his craft just yet.  He doesn’t quite fall into any easy category.  He’s not really a character writer in the vein of Pete Tomasi or Paul Cornell; an ideas-man like Grant Morrison or Jonathan Hickman; or a weaver of universes like Brian Michael Bendis or Geoff Johns.  Of all writers, he truly stands alone.

In fact, Azzarello has something of all three elements in his writing, with such equal weight that it’s easy to take his work for granted.  While there aren’t any striking personalities in this title, over time the voices of the characters have grown distinct and recognizable, even unattached to a face.  Azzarello’s ideas are no less profound for being based in myth rather than science.  And by bringing old and new gods together, he’s done some of the most intriguing world-building of all.

Wonder Woman #17 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Tony Akins (pencils), Amilcar Pinna (art), Dan Green (inks), Matthew Wilson & Nick Filard (colors)

The Story: Clearly, Diana’s mother never warned her about leaving clubs with sketchy old men.

The Review: Whatever the naysayers might say (most likely but not guaranteed to be “nay”), Azzarello has accomplished quite a lot for this title.  For one, he made Wonder Woman Top Fifty, which hasn’t happened in ages, to my understanding.  For another, he introduced this incredibly rich new mythology to the character, allowing Wonder Woman to cross over between the grounded, the divine, and the cosmic all at once.

But if I had to pick out the most important thing Azzarello has given to DC’s first lady, it’s her irresistibly intriguing extended family, quite possibly the most compelling supporting cast she’s ever had.  For a while, you fell into the habit of placing the Pantheon gods into one of two camps: those on Wonder Woman’s side and those who aren’t.  That all changed once Hermes went rogue; now, you can’t trust anyone who calls Olympus home.

Wonder Woman #16 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Cliff Chiang (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: And here Zola and Hera live the city high life while Diana ambles the sewers.

The Review: When the DC relaunch first started, Wonder Woman took nearly everyone by surprise with the particular direction Azzarello chose to run with.  You can associate a lot of different qualities with comics’ leading lady, but “horror” wasn’t really one of them.  In his first arc, Azzarello made you realize that Greek myth was full of monsters and horror, not all of it centered on actual monsters.

As Wonder Woman’s feats grew bolder and more adventurous, the visceral feeling of fear, established when we first saw a bloodied arm stretching from the fleshy torso of a decapitated horse, has slowly ebbed away.  This issue doesn’t quite restore that element of terror, but it does start building suspense once more; it distinctly feels that events are closing in on the plot, that traps are being laid around our heroes even as they still move freely.

Wonder Woman #12 – Review

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?

Wonder Woman #11 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Cliff Chiang (art), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Wonder Woman in the Appalachian emergency room.

The Review: I think we tend to forget, in our experience of smooth political transitions and well-oiled government systems, how critical and damaging the vacuum of leadership can be.  Once it disappears, the chaos that follows rushes toward critical mass—a comment, I suppose, on our human nature as followers—with some striving to keep the status quo in place and others seeing it as an opportunity to change things up.

For the Greek pantheon, their view of Zeus’ absence depends largely on their essential natures, which Azzarello portrays with faithful attention to mythic tradition.  Clearly, the family boasts a number of go-getters, who spend the bulk of their time forging alliances and inviting favor for the inevitable battle for the throne.  It’s been fascinating, watching these Medici-style schemes play out, a series of power plays whose appeal is more cerebral than anything else.

Wonder Woman #10 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Kano & Tony Akins (art), Dan Green (inks), Matthew Wilson (colorist)

The Story: Woman hath no fury like hell scorned.  No, wait…

The Review: One of the great evolutions of Wonder Woman’s character over the years is how she has become the paragon of warriors in the DCU, regardless of gender.  Yet this focus on her fighting spirit and ability leaves little room to appreciate her sensitivity and compassion, a common conflict for many women in positions of power.  Yes, she can kick nearly anyone’s butt six ways to Sunday, but she’s also capable of incredible depths of tenderness.

At first glance, this series has shown many different sides to its star—her cleverness, her never-say-die persistence, and that all-consuming desire for truth—but love doesn’t quite shine through.  In retrospect, it’s because the kind of love Diana indulges in is very, very tough.  She can be warm and affectionate, but never expect her to be sweet or lavish.  She’s actually quite maternal, but she’s not the mom who bakes you cookies after you come home from school; she’s more like the mom who gives you a hand after you fall off your bike, then shushes you as she puts iodine on your skinned knee.  She wants the best for you, but she won’t brook any nonsense.

Wonder Woman #9 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (story), Tony Akins (pencils), Dan Green (inks), Matthew Wilson (colors)

The Story: Not even the god of death can keep crashers from his wedding.

The Review: As I read this month’s issue of Wonder Woman, I suddenly thought about All-Star Superman and what made it such a great, timeless story for the Man of Steel.  Writers tend to pay attention to superheroes for their power sets and fantastical backgrounds, but in All-Star, Grant Morrison managed to craft tales which got to the very essence of what made Superman beloved in the first place: a character who makes you believe anything is possible.

The reason why any of this is relevant to Wonder Woman is because Azzarello is attempting the same feat with comics’ leading lady.  We haven’t seen a lot of physical challenges for our heroine, which at first seems a waste of her strengths, but now I begin to think Azzarello wants us to put her bodily gifts aside.  The obstacles he’s set in her path may not require outstanding bouts of warrior prowess, but they’ve been no less demanding on her.

Wonder Woman #4 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (writer), Cliff Chiang (artist), Matthew Wilson (colorist)

The Story: Someone pop on some AC/DC and turn it up—Wonder Woman’s mourning.

The Review: As a young buff of Greek mythology, I always found the gods and goddesses baffling in their arbitrariness.  Even the most reasoned and benevolent ones would have their petty streaks from time to time, and few of them had any moral compunction about using their power with impunity and without regard for the consequences to mortals.  For that reason, I’ve never felt inclined to feel sympathetic to any of them.  They are gods, after all.

For the most part, Azzarello stays true to the conniving, scheming world of the Greek pantheon.  Ever since Apollo’s oracles revealed Zeus “doesn’t exist,” a truly astonishing pronouncement if you ever heard one, you’d think there’d be some kind of uproar among the divinities, or at least some kind of inquiry as to how this could possibly happen.  But we’re talking about the ultimate mafia family here, so when the head of the household disappears, power plays abound.

To that end, Apollo goes to Ares to secure an alliance of sorts, or at least support for when he makes his bid for leadership.  To your surprise, Ares agrees to stay out of the bidding with little resistance.  In fact, he seems quite lethargic, even melancholy in this portrayal.  While Apollo states that Ares is “vital—now, more than ever,” Ares responds with only a weary smile, as if millennia of spinning the world’s conflict has finally gotten to him.

Hera doesn’t even seem aware, much less affected, by her husband’s disappearance; she only wants to get her revenge on the dalliances he left behind.  Now, her oft-extreme retaliations against those she feels has wronged her may sway you into thinking her mean-spirited or horribly spiteful, but here, she reminds us she has every reason to be: “I am the queen of the gods…the goddess of women…ultimately yet, a woman.”  And any woman would be enraged by such constant infidelity from her husband.

Wonder Woman #3 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (writer), Cliff Chiang (artist), Matthew Wilson (colorist)

The Story: Diana joins the ranks of women (and men) who have major daddy issues.

The Review: Even back in ancient days the concept of the Amazons captured people’s fancies.  Granted, society at that point was such that a race of women who lived and acted on the same footing as men had the same novelty as, say, hydras and sheep with golden wool.  Anyway, DC’s fictional Amazons for a while followed their traditional forbears in a strict ban on interaction with men, but Wonder Woman’s relationship to Man’s world weakened that prejudice over time.

In this new DCU, the Amazons are back to man-hating with passion; even male gods aren’t spared from their wrath and scorn, judging by their threats to the injured Hermes last issue.  Actually, the Amazons don’t tiptoe around any god at all, not even the literally shadowing presence of Strife.  Even as they bury the casualties of the demi-goddess’ power, that doesn’t prevent them from back-talking her with seeming impunity: “…you trick us into murdering our own…and now you mock us.”  “A god’s appetite truly has no shame.”

This brings up a question I bring from the original myths: if the gods are so inclined  and capable of interfering in mortals’ lives, why don’t they go all out in exercising that power?  The most likely answer, of course, is the gods simply enjoy themselves more going the hard way about it.  They indisputably have the upper hand in raw power, so the only amusement they can get out of us is to bring themselves down to our level and see if we can match them that way.  Little wonder why Hippolyta and Zeus hooked up; she saw a man who could actually match her skill in battle, and he saw a mortal woman who could give the king of gods a challenge.

Ultimately, the truth about Diana’s parentage indeed creates discord on the island (one woman darkly speculates on Hippolyta’s death), but it also brings to light tensions that have afflicted Diana since childhood.  Paradise, it seems, offers little protection from the usual mean-spirited taunts most people receive as kids (“…not since I was a little girl have I been called [Clay].”).

Wonder Woman #2 – Review

By: Brian Azzarello (writer), Cliff Chiang (art), Matthew Wilson (colorist)

The Story: Can’t you gods work out your issues on Maury or something?

The Review: Actually, it may have been in Wonder Woman that I read this, but I distinctly remember a character musing on the idea that gods, as idealizations of humans, represent not only the brightest, greatest, finest parts of humanity, but also humanity at its very worst.  Only the gods are ever so much better at it.  They not only scheme, nurse grudges, and arbitrarily act with the best of them, they have the power to carry out even their least thought-out agendas.

If you didn’t realize that before, this issue will ring the idea home, big time.  You have Wonder Woman carrying a wounded god in her arms.  She brings with her a young, pregnant woman to a secret island populated by outrageously tall, semi-barbarian women.  Her mother, a figure even more impressive than Diana, who carries a large double-headed axe in one hand, expresses fear of the future.  All this because of one goddess’ jealousy.  These immortals don’t mess around.