Wonder Woman #787 Picks Up the Pieces of Diana's Life

Diana dives into the depths of Altuum’s claims after the heart wrenching Trail of the Amazons in Wonder Woman #787, written by Michael Conrad and Becky Cloonan, penciled by Emanuela Lupacchino, inked by Wade Von Grawbadger, colored by Tamra Bonvillain and lettered by Pat Brosseau.

Now with The Trial of the Amazons complete, are Cloonan and Conrad going to take us back where Diana left off with her conflicting feelings over Siggy and Steve, or wrap up loose ends in Themyscira? Well, we get a bit of both and a lot of the deep research C&C have come to be known for, so let’s get to it!

One Enemy

The aftermath of the Trial lies in ruins all around Diana as she strolls through Themyscira. She’s distraught at the destruction and the loss of her mother. Who could blame her? It’s not only been physically draining, but dealing with her grief on top would be too much for many. Nubia reminds her of the good things that came out of the past few days, including the joining of the three tribes, and encourages her to go back to Man’s World and carry on in her mom’s memory. Diana seems content with this, but honestly, I’d be a touch insulted. We still don’t know why Artemis killed Hippolyta and to imply that her death was worth the unification of the Amazons would make it sting even deeper. She takes off to take care of Altuum, hiding out in a sub just off the island.

Wonder Woman finds him quickly and a good ol’ fashioned fist fight breaks out and ends with her lasso around him. Turns out Altuum and his people were not the original inhabitants of Themyscira but souls confined to Tartarus, and the gods promised them a second chance at life if they killed the beasts of Themyscira. Diana leaves him to die at his wish as his submarine sinks to the ocean floor.

This felt like a bit of a cop out to me. Altuum has been a side plot built up since last August’s Annual and I’m disappointed it was all wrapped up in like 3 pages. I think it would have been really fascinating to see the Amazons, now that they’re united, struggle with confronting the idea that they had truly uprooted a group of people who were the original inhabitants of their paradise island. I wonder if we’ve truly seen the last of him, though.

But we get a great page of the lasso weaving around Altuum’s truth here, I’d like to point out. Bonvillain is still showing off her amazing colors, but I’m really digging the style of Lupacchino and Von Grawbadger on these expressions!

Two Bros

Back in Man’s World, Steve Trevor and Siegfreid are hanging out in Steve’s apartment. Siggy is taking his time getting ready as Etta circles the block. I appreciate the consistency here of giving us plenty to enjoy with Siggy on panel, both for our eyes and with the humor of his adjustment to modern life. HIs choice of a tie with a t-shirt and jeans is adorable. I also think it’s great that they’re thwarting the stereotype that Trevor and Siggy wouldn’t get along. Before this trio can get going, however, it looks like a bottle of milk has smashed Etta’s window. The milk thugs reference Dr. Cizko and Wonder Woman leaps in to capture the men before they can get away.

Sensation Comics #7/Wonder Woman #787 Comparison

I really have to wonder if Cloonan and Conrad are referencing a classic Wonder Woman issue, Sensation Comics #7. In 1942 Wonder Woman captures Paula Von Gunther’s crew who’s overhauled the milk business and has been depriving poor, starving babies of their much needed milk. It’s a wonderful example of 1940s comic propaganda and just a fun issue. But I’d be surprised if this wasn’t a direct reference. I also think it’s a wonderful example of the timeliness of what was going on with milk at the time and the huge coincidence of what’s going on today with baby formula. In the 1930s and 40s, the war effort caused a lot of milk to be shipped overseas. US Dairy farmers ramped up supply and created a huge surplus of milk, so in compensation, the government created programs to ramp up demand, hence comics like #7. Here we have an opposite problem today, where due to shipping issues and contamination stores are seriously lacking formula, causing actual starving babies.

I’m not sure if a direct line can be drawn from these panels in Sensation Comics #7 and Wonder Woman #787, but it’s a fascinating look into how you shouldn’t let anyone convince you comics don’t reflect the current times. Knowing C&C have done extensive research into Wonder Woman’s past and references lots of other myths and stories, I wouldn’t be surprised!

Three’s a crowd of Villains

Turns out all this milk is coming directly from Dr. Cizko. His program that reverberates with themes of a Tucker Carlson episode is still going strong and attracting men and talking about soy-boys. He’s also somehow got the inside scoop on the “Chaotic” goings-on in Themyscira, including Hippolyta’s death. While Diana and Etta figure out what to do about it, Dr. Cizko himself is finally revealing his group of villains in his group: Dr. Poison, Professor Calculus and the Twin Shadows. It seems he’s also kept a mirror version of Wonder Woman on his staff to serve his needs. Some of these are new, some of them are old, but I’m curious to see how all of them work against Wonder Woman!

Wonderful Whims

Altuum refers to her lump of clay origin story, which is the only one I recognize. Yay!
How creepy is Dr. Cizco for keeping around a Wonder Woman look alike to serve him!?