Wonder Woman returns to a world that has moved on from her in Wonder Woman #781 written by Michael Conrad and Becky Cloonan with Marcio Takara as artist, Tamra Bonvillain as colorist and Pat Brousseau as letterer.
Cat Purcell: We’ve got another great issue here that sets up some wonderful possibilities. It’s good to see Steve Trevor and Etta Candy in an issue with Diana again! We’ve also got Vita Ayala, Skylar Patridge, Romulo Fajardo Jr, and Pat Brosseau in the wonderful short at the end of the issue.
Old Friends
Diana wrestles with the idea of whether Earth needs her now that she’s returned. In her catch up lunch date with Etta, Etta makes it clear she doesn’t think coming back from death would be worth it. But Diana is eager to get back to feeling needed and relevant, even if being back feels surreal. I can’t blame her. Her recent journey through death and the multiverse was definitely confusing, but I think it reaffirmed some things for her and made her reevaluate others. One thing Diana isn’t eager to return to is a reunion with Steve. Although she says seeing him is a priority, we know her actions have shown everything but that. At the sight of Dr. Cizko, she flies off to confront him, but then immediately turns to Deadman.
Cloonan and Conrad, Takara and Bonvillain do a great job of showing the constant transitional state Boston lives in. His greying skin and the building’s bland color palette is good foil to Diana’s red and blues. Poor guy is a literal walking deadman, haunting around an old estate that’s not his, so he’s eager to help her. With men like Steve and Dr. Psycho swirling in her mind, Diana makes it her first goal to put her feelings to rest about Siegfried. Before we know it, Boston and Diana are on a flight to put Siggy’s sword to rest with his body. I think this might be a bit of good closure for Diana, even if it means we’ve seen the last of Siggy. She’s got a lot of unfinished business, especially now that she sees she’s got more doubles to deal with, including one Steve Trevor bumped into on his balcony.
Old Enemies
Who knows if Dr Cizko is behind Diana’s doubles this time, but he’s certainly up to no good with his book deal and declaring that men across the world will have a voice through him. Dr. Cizko will exploit any emotional weakness Diana has, including attempting to throw strangers to their deaths by literally using their voice for his needs to throw Diana off his back. He certainly does know Wonder Woman’s song and I think Diana is smart to recognize she’s got to deal with some of her baggage before taking him on again. Takara and Bonvillain did a fantastic job of showing Dr. Psycho’s expressions through this man’s face once we realize it’s him.
At the end of this issue we see Wonder Woman’s suspicions are right, he’s traded fake money for something definitely not a guitar from his man on the other side of the door.
New Recruits
Vita Ayala takes us on a trip to Bana-Mighdall where we see three women wanting to join the Amazons there. One is tired of men walking all over her, the other doesn’t want to be a victim and the third is tired of the cruelty of the world. They are told to fight to the death and given weapons to choose from. Ayala excels at writing fully realized characters in concise and clear situations. The stakes are high, the emotions are tense and the action is swift. Combined with Partridge and Fajardo Jr’s art, I immediately cared about these three women and their history as well as their future.
In a great twist, we learn that the challenge was to NOT want to kill their opponents immediately and only one woman passed. Although in DC’s history, Bana-Mighdall is known for being the more violent and war-like sister of Themyscira, Ayala tips that idea on its head by showing Artemis leading women who are warriors, but they’re not ruthless. The one that failed the test aren’t killed, they’re given money and their memory of finding the Bana-Mighdall is lost, showing these sister Amazons as compassionate as well.
Final Thoughts
We’ve got some great stories ahead of us in both Conrad and Cloonan’s Wonder Woman section and Ayala’s ending story based in the sister Tribe of Themyscira. I’m curious to see where either plot leads us as they both struggle with hidden baggage and how one deals with not feeling needed or wanted in a world anymore. Our teams are tackling some hard concepts and I’m excited for the journey!
Wonderful Whims
- I suspect some of our writers were hungry during this issue – divine salad, Diana’s going to serve justice hot and garnished, Dr. Cizko’s man wondering if he brought him something to eat, Boston going mad over some chicken and green beans?
- Wonder Woman, you really couldn’t have stopped that car without crumpling the front bumper!?
Cat Purcell is a Career Services Librarian, cosplayer, artist, and massive coffee consumer.
