Wonder Woman #783 is the Action Set-Up for Things to Come

Wonder Woman #783 depicts Wonder Woman and friends tackling another new spin on an old acquaintance written by Michael Conrad and Becky Cloonan, with Marcio Takara as artist, Tamra Bonvillain as colorist and Pat Brosseau on letters. Meanwhile in Bana-Mighdall, Atalanta, Faruka, and Artemis debate what the Oracle’s vision shows. Written by Vita Ayala, art by Skylar Patridge, colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr and letters by Becca Carey.

Andrea Ayres: Well, we are back at it, eh Cat? The issue is fun, as most of Cloonan and Conrad’s Wonder Women issues are. That said, I don’t know if there’s a WHOLE lot to unpack here, but we’ll do our best!

Cat Purcell: Yeah, this is a classic fun fight romp of an issue! We’ve got a lot of punches and tiaras being thrown, and less substance. Even though I love doing deep dives with the lore Cloonan and Conrad throw at us, this was still a powerhouse treat!

Shining Knight

Andrea: So, Dr. Cizco has dubbed a new Shining Knight. No, it isn’t Sir Justin (Justin Arthur), the founding member of the Seven Soldiers of Victory. But, oh if it were! We don’t know who this new Shining Knight is. Another wriggle in the tangled tapestry Cloonan and Conrad have weaved for us. Dr. Psycho tells this new Shining Knight that he’s there to help him send Wonder Woman back to the afterlife. So, Diana’s travels through the afterlife continue to haunt her. Stab in the dark, Cat? Any guess as to who the Shining Knight could be?

Cat: I’m at a loss! Knights and things are usually my jam, but I haven’t the slightest clue who this guy who wandered right out of a Medieval Times Restaurant could be! But with the knight and colors by Bonvillain again, I couldn’t help but feel like it shared a world with Gillen’s Once & Future, and I’m not complaining! I do think it’s interesting to note that Shining Knight isn’t so much in Psycho’s thrawl that he’s unable to battle the mirror Wonder Woman’s alongside Steve, Etta, Deadman and Diana.

Andrea: I’m wondering what you think about introducing another character? I’ve seen reviews floating around about Wonder Woman #783, and there are some mixed thoughts (Quelle surprise!). I think it’s probably early to come down on one side of the fence (or sword) or the other. That said, I will say it feels like there’s just too much going on narratively, which may prevent readers from finding the hook that keeps them coming back. What are your thoughts about that?

Cat: I feel what they’re saying. We’ve got a LOT going on right now between Dr. Psycho and Diana, Steve and Diana’s reunion, Siggy’s loose ends, Diana’s Mirrors versions and more. I had to glance over last month’s issue to double-check I hadn’t missed anything with Shining Knight’s introduction. At the same time, Dr. Psycho has limited, um, strength to work with. I guess this is his best attempt to combat Wonder Woman. It lends itself to feeling disjointed. Even though we enjoyed tiny slivers of worlds in C&C’s multiverse run, this feels as shattered as the mirror selves Diana and Deadman keep smashing.

Tricky Reflections

Andrea: Cat, is this a metaphor for imposter syndrome? Because that’s what I think it is. Maybe that’s too simple, though. Interestingly, a growing number of folks out there think we shouldn’t tell people they have imposter syndrome. That’s not to say it doesn’t exist. It means our understanding of it may not be correct.

Authors Ruchika Tulshyan and Jodi-Ann Burey say that by telling people they have imposter syndrome we focus the attention on the individual and not on structural failures of the workplace. People may feel like an imposter at work due to systemic bias or other issues that are ignored by only citing imposter syndrome. That’s not to say that imposter syndrome does not exist. It does. The authors just want us to be more judicious in our application of it.

Cat: Oh, I haven’t heard about this newest thing, not telling folks they have imposter syndrome. There are moments I fall victim to it! And it does help to remind me of whatever accomplishments I had built up before whatever the moment was to ground myself in my worth.

I was amused by this one-page monologue by Image-Maker on reflections and self-perception, though. As a kid, I used to stand in front of my grandma’s medicine cabinet because it had a tri-fold. I would open both wings up and stare at the multiplied versions of myself reflected within. I tried to catch a delay in my movements or something to show where the trick was. I imagine this was a similar thing that Image-Maker was getting at. How do you think this could play into all the various versions of herself Diana has faced on her journey back to life again, Andrea?

Andrea: Cat, that’s what I used to do in my house growing up! Marcio Takara and Tamra Bonvillain do a stellar job with the action in this issue. I think Takara’s work elevates a fairly muddled issue if I’m being honest. Yeah, Image-Maker says, “The person in the mirror is real, and it is YOU who is the reflection.”

I’m pretty sure Lacan would have something to say about that. According to the French philosopher, if anything, the mirror is all we may ever know about ourselves. The mirror is the furthest thing away from who we are. The closest we come to seeing ourselves is a reflection and how others reflect on us. We are introduced to ourselves, our image, through another source (a parent) who displays our image to us and says, “This is you.” Lacan would say the delight we have in our image as babies is partly because of our parents’ joy in showing us our reflection. Anyway, Image-Maker is wrong. On to bigger things!

Maybe Diana could just do this? Give herself a stern talking to:

Have we touched on Etta working for Checkmate, the governmental organization that is part of Task Force X? There is an interesting tie-in with The Janus Directive, which again puts us back into Diana’s adventures in the afterlife. There’s definitely more to discover there.

Cat: The Checkmate connection with Etta Candy is yet another exciting thread to this over-complicated tapestry. And I don’t think it’s a coincidence that our writers would have it tie back to the Janus Directive, which dealt with real versions and duplicates, missed memories, and other confusions. I’m anxious to see how Diana finally connects from her mirror selves to Image-Maker and how this whole confrontation will go. Especially with that ending page! I like how you brought up Lacan’s note on our parents shaping our view of ourselves as we now have Hippolyta brought in with a Wonder Woman Dupe! I adored how our team showed the relationship between Hippolyta and Diana when Wonder Woman first came back from the dead, and I have a feeling I’m gonna cherish this setup to reunite them!

Andrea: Okay, before we move on. I need to say this: the Shining Knight talks like a bad impersonation of an early gamer bro, “You m’lady, are my quest.” No thanks. He says he serves the archmage of this confounding era. Does Dr. Psycho consider himself as the archmage? I feel like Zatanna would have something to say about that. Whoever this Shining Knight is, they don’t seem to be giving Diana too much trouble.

Hazy Visions

Cat: I love a good vision set up and we start off on Bana-Mighdall with the Oracle having a vision of a wolf and lion fighting, with a serpent circling them and a Shadowcat watching and waiting. None of that sounds like a good omen for the women. Faruka seems to think it has to do with Yara Flor, and I’ll be honest, I haven’t kept up with that series at all. But it sounds like pretty much all of the Amazons aren’t fans of her quest to find out her history and what Hera has in store for her. Artemis disagrees. What did you make of all this setup, Andrea?

Andrea: Cat, I’ll be honest, I have no freaking idea. It seems like we are getting prepared for Trial of the Amazons more than anything else. There’s a lot of stage setting. I don’t know if I have a lot more to add aside from that?! I mean it’s absolutely gorgeous thanks to the work of Skylar Patridge. Certainly, I’m happy to see Artemis getting more love and a real role here. It certainly makes me excited for Trial.

Cat: That’s about where I’m at with this scene too. It seems like a very beautiful way to show the different Amazons are not of one mind on a LOT of things affecting Themyscira, Bana-Mighdall, and the world at large. It seems a nice way to possibly lead up to the factions of Amazons becoming more in harmony with each other, though. At least that’s where I hope this goes.

Andrea: I am fine with this issue but sometimes I wish Cloonan and Conrad could (in the words of Tim Gunn) edit, edit, edit. There are so many ideas and story points and I just don’t know why we need the Image-Maker threat and Shining Knight threat. I’m hoping to be proven wrong (as I often am).

Cat: I feel like both of these two sections in the Wonder Woman world are kind of set up issues and it’ll be interesting to see if it pays off. I agree, some editing could come in handy, but I am excited to see how these threads conclude, either way. It’s certainly not boring, which would be worse in my book!

Wonderful Whims

Though short, the Steve and Diana reunion was adorable and just what it needed to be!
There’s some character issues with Deadman here (he can be seen?)
Between Fajardo Jr, and Patridge and Takara and Bonvillain, I feel these issues are a feast for the eyes!