A tragedy has pitted the U.S. Government against The Amazons, again. But, Diana has chosen to stand her ground. Your Major Spoilers review of Wonder Woman #1, awaits!
WONDER WOMAN #1
Writer: Tom King
Artist: Daniel Sampere
Colorist: Tomeu Morey
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Editor: Brittany Holzherr
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: September 19th, 2023
Previously in Wonder Woman: Diana is as revered as ever before and the past tensions between Themyscira and the U.S. have cooled over the years and many Amazons have chosen to make America their home.
FOLLOWING ORDERS
Wonder Woman #1 opens in a pool hall in Montana. A woman is trying to finish up her game when she suddenly finds herself on the receiving end of harassment and unwanted male attention. She reveals herself to be an Amazon and then kills every man in the place. Tensions immediately escalate and the government quickly passes an act to enact mandatory deportations of every Amazon in the US. Things then shift to a man named Sargent Steel who is tapped to lead the initiative. Some time later he and a squad of armed federal agents appear at the home of a married Amazon couple to detain them. After resisting the order, Steel orders that one of them be gunned down. Later on, in a cemetery, Steel and his men arrive to assassinate Wonder Woman. A fight ensues and she is able to learn about who is really calling the shots.
SWINGING FOR THE FENCES
My opinion of titles written by Tom King has been mixed at best. The one thing I will always give those series credit for though is that they often touch on topics and ideas that aren’t often brought up in comics from the big two and Wonder Woman #1 continues that trend in a big way. In one issue he manages to commentate on issues like the relationship between immigrant communities and the US Government, the treatment of women in America, and problems stemming from the militarization of law enforcement. Not to mention, without going into too many details, the way American history itself is re-written, is a pretty bold move. It’s an ambitious comic to say the least. There’s also a great use of rising tension and the judicial way that Wonder Woman herself is utilized here allows for a real “fist pump into the air” type of moment to have some real impact. But, all the seemingly anti-centrist sentiment that is garnered throughout the issue is essentially squandered with a downright silly cliffhanger. While it’s impossible to know how this will play out at this point, what the cliffhanger does to this issue is to dull all of the social commentary by introducing a scapegoat for all of the government actions on display here.
FINALLY A DIANA THAT LOOKS STRONG
I really enjoyed the art in Wonder Woman #1. The issue is full of pages with unique and engaging layouts. For example, there’s a shot right at the beginning of a guy getting his face smashed into a pool table, sending a pool ball flying in which the reflection of his friend can be seen. Also, it’s nice to finally get a version of Wonder Woman that actually looks strong, but doesn’t exaggerate it. Diana has some heft here as you’d expect someone to have who spends most of her time getting into contests of strength with literal Greek gods. Yet, there’s restraint here so we don’t end up with a character who looks like she can’t turn her neck, but instead looks like a warrior who utilizes motion just as much as she does her brute strength.
BOTTOM LINE: A SHAKY THUMBS UP
Wonder Woman #1 gets a lot of credit from me for being willing to at least broach the topics it does. But, it loses a decent amount of that credit for introducing an element that threatens to do away with all of that commentary. But, even with that narrative misstep, it’s a well-paced and good-looking issue. 4 out of 5 stars.
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Wonder Woman #1
Wonder Woman #1 is a rare issue that shows real ambition with what it's doing. But a bout of non-commitment near the end, puts a damper on the better parts of this one.
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Writing6
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Art10
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Coloring10
At a young age, Jonathan was dragged to a small town in Wisconsin. A small town in Wisconsin that just so happened to have a comic book shop. Faced with a decision to either spend the humid summers and bitter winters traipsing through the pine trees or in climate controlled comfort with tales of adventure, horror, and romance, he chose the latter. Jonathan can often be found playing video games, board games, reading comics and wincing as his “to watch” list grows wildly out of control.