Wonder Woman continues her trip to Asgard, where she meets an old enemy, a new adversary, and takes a trip up the World Tree in Wonder Woman #771 with a story by Becky Cloonan and Michael W Conrad, art by Travis Moore, colors by Tamra Bonvillain and letters by Pat Broseau.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting this next issue since I turned the last page of issue #770 so when I woke up to the notification that this issue had dropped, there was nothing left for me to do except pour some coffee into my Wonder Woman mug and dig in! After setting the stage for how Valhalla worked, we’re on to discover what Diana can do to break this cycle and heal the Yggdrasil tree.
We left Diana on the battlefield, countless warriors slain before her with no return in sight and with an appearance from Thor himself. Right away this Thor is a very different Thor than we might be used to in pop culture. He’s ready to get back into the drinking and fighting without wanting to think about anything further than that, and it doesn’t sit well with Diana. As always, she wants to know the truth and she has no patience for those who aren’t interested in problems that don’t affect them. Thor’s comment about leaving the bleeding heart to a woman caused me to bristle. I’ve been at the receiving end of that comment and told to not care so much too many times, myself.
On the next stop in their quest to get to the bottom of the warriors’ disappearance and Yggdrasil’s illness Diana and Ratatosk have a nasty fight with some Murk Elves. This incredibly drawn scene made me want to load up my last Elder Scrolls game again. But the fight ends in her death. And again a figure talks to her about how she’s not meant to be there or concern herself with Valhalla’s problems. The first few times I really thought it might be Superman sans cape, but why would he be so concerned with Olympus? Could this be Hermes? He’s been known in previous runs to assist or guide Wonder Woman. It’s really bugging me that I just can’t place them!
After respawning right where she lost another life this time, Diana runs into an old foe, Dr. Psycho. Unlike Diana, he seems to remember everything from outside of this realm just fine. Grabbing a rope, Diana easily finds out from him that he’s been enchanting weapons with mind control and she needs a key from a snake in the roots of Yggdrasil, but they want an eagle egg in exchange. On the journey to the top to get the egg for the snake, she runs into none other than Thor’s dad, Odin himself; he seems more of a goofy guru than a wise sky wizard, though. Is his nonsense just that or is there some hidden meaning in her comment that Thor is doing nothing but sitting on his ass with a beer? From the top, she sees the endless battle repeat itself and once again Siegfried’s memory pushes her onward. Giant Egg in hand, she and the squirrel slide down to the roots and she climbs in the shell to be swallowed by the snake who wants nothing more than to bring on Ragnarok.
I bothered to recap all of this because there is SO MUCH going on here. Just like the last issue, there’s a lot of the Prose Edda woven into some of Wonder Woman’s own vast history. I KNEW it’d be important to mention both Ratatosk being the messenger from the eagle to the snake and Odin’s penchant for sacrificing himself last month because here we are! It’s a delight to see these tales reinterpreted by Cloonan and Conrad because they add such fun new twists to them. And it also makes me want to know more about what their plans for Siegfried are. At the same time, I don’t want to dive into too much into his lore because I want to be surprised by what flavors they add into it. Regardless, it’s out there if you’re interested and I have a sneaky suspicion he’ll have something to do with Nidhogg, the snake.
The difference between the brand of man we see in Thor and in Doctor Psycho, I mean Cizko, is quite interesting. Dr. Psycho is one of Wondy’s oldest villains, so I was expecting a bit more out of her interaction with him here. He’s known for manipulating people to get what he wants. I was disappointed in how short and simple it was to get what she needed from him. But there are other story threads to weave and perhaps some to revisit later on. What a coincidence that Cizko talks about how much he appreciates the realm’s raw masculinity and lack of meddling women when we have the epitome of that in Thor here. With his burly barrel chest and his dismissal of the concerns of women, we get just that. He wants nothing more than to be left alone to his vices of eating, drinking, fighting, and not caring about much else. It’s a good choice to have Diana bump up against these ideologies and yet be unconcerned about them because Diana’s gonna do what Diana’s gonna do: find the truth regardless.
This series continues to delight in its rich history, from classic villains in both lores and in it’s return to the classic narration blocks. I’ve been revisiting some classic Wonder Woman issues and Pat Brosseau, Cloonan, and Conrad nailed the exact feeling of the originals. Travis Moore and Tamra Bonvillain shape the tone of this comic and harken back to those ancient quest story lines with the dynamic fight scenes and layers of reds, purples, greens, and blues.
Whether you’re just getting into Wonder Woman, Norse Mythology, or are deep in the trenches of this stuff like I am, these are some great issues to pick up. And if embedded easter eggs from weird mythology isn’t your jam, these issues offer some great surface level fights and twists and turns as well. We still have yet to find out any clues about the Valkyries but Diana’s trapped in the belly of the beast! Just like with 770, I’m chomping at the BIT for the next issue!
Wonderful Whims
- I may not like this Thor, but his quip about leaving the blind eye to his dad gave me a chuckle.
- If I dont see some Siggie cosplays out there once we all get back on the convention circuit again, it’ll be a shame to the beautiful design Moore and Bonvillain have given his costume!
- I need a Yggdrasil rollercoaster ride STAT!
Cat Purcell is a Career Services Librarian, cosplayer, artist, and massive coffee consumer.
