Lies, prevarications and half-truths… What is the true origin of Diana, princess of the Amazons? Your Major Spoilers review of Wonder Woman: Rebirth #1 awaits!
WONDER WOMAN: REBIRTH #1
Writer: Greg Rucka
Penciler: Matthew Clark/Liam Sharp
Inker: Sean Parsons
Colorist: Jeremy Colwell & Laura Martin
Letterer: Jodi Wynn
Editor: Chris Conroy & Mark Doyle
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $2.99
Previously in Wonder Woman: Rebirth: Since the Flashpoint Paradox, Diana’s past has been different: No longer the being of animate clay, she was revealed to be the daughter of Zeus himself, and has become the new God of War after defeating Ares in combat…
Or, perhaps not.
WHICH STORY IS TRUE?
Generally speaking, I’m leery of any “Everything you know is WRONG!” story, because so often it ends up just creating two versions of the same thing. As this issue opens, Diana is besieged with memories, realizing that she actually has TWO sets thereof: One we’ve been seeing since 2011, and another that resembles the Pre-Flashpoint origins. There are references to previous iterations of the character (a couple to Gail Simone’s run, and at least one to Rucka’s previous work on the character) but everything comes together when Diana, frustrated, crushes her Goddawar helmet, something that shouldn’t be possible. Finally, she enwraps herself in her lasso of truth, using its magic to discern the real from the false…
I LIKE THE NEW/OLD LOOK
The moment where Diana realizes her inner truth is a very strong one, followed by her abandoning her new black-and-silver togs for a more traditional (albeit more armored and movie-inspired) version of her red-blue-and-gold costume, and setting off for Olympus. Both art teams do good work this issue, and having the transition between artists come at the moment where Wonder Woman abandons her false memories and takes on her new world is pretty ingenious. The downside is, having two artists, two origins and two different stories in play makes for an issue that is a little bit confusing, especially for someone who hasn’t been regularly picking up the Finch run on the character. As the issue ends, Wonder Woman realizes that what she thought was Olympus may not be all that it seems, but she’s confident she can discover the truth: “This lie is afraid of me…
As it should be.”
THE BOTTOM LINE: A BIT CONFUSING, BUT WELL-DONE
There are a couple of things I really like about this issue: No sword, for one, with a focus instead on the traditional ‘Golden Perfect’, the Magic Lasso. The abandonment of the mostly silver costume is a mixed bag for me, but the design work on the new uniform is lovely visually and makes sense character-wise. Best of all, the confidence that I associate with the best versions of the Wonder Woman character is back, transitioning from the younger version we’ve had recently to a more mature feeling character. All in all, Wonder Woman: Rebirth #1 is a well-done take on the difficult ‘Everything you know is wrong’ trope, with talented artists and a good script, only a little bit hampered by the convolutions of its own story, earning a better than average 3 out of 5 stars overall. I have to say, I’m excited to see this new/old Wonder Woman in action…
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Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.