Reviewer: Kevin S. Mahoney
Story Title: Pride of the Amazons
Written by: Greg Rucka
Penciled by: Rags Morales and Cliff Richards
Inked by: Michael Bair, Ray Snyder, Mark Propst
Colored by: Richard and Tanya Horie
Lettered by: Todd Klein
Editor: Ivan Coken
Publisher: DC Comics
The following few sentences have nothing to do with the review of this book; they are instead the reason this editor chose/was forced to review it, and why the very attempt was damned odd. Those who really read the Nexus for the criticism simply ought to skip down to the row of blue asterisks. That’s where the review starts proper.
Editing can be a tricky business sometimes. There’s juggling the assignments, keeping a rein on the writers, trying to stay aware of the major ongoing trends and upcoming possible ones in comics. It’s involving but occasionally dirty work. Sometimes there is no easy solution to a problem. And then you either have to let it slide or get fiendish. This week’s problem? One of our reliable writers dislocated his shoulder… again! So he can’t review the books he normally would, including a very hot very Infinite Crisis-related issue of Wonder Woman. No one else reads it regularly, and my editor-sense was screaming it ought to be reviewed. What would Uncle George do? He’d review the issue himself of course, and screw those guys who wanted the other more knowledgeable guy do it. Onward psychopaths! Don’t turn back now!
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This is a fun issue, with plenty of action, great art, and an obviously progressing (though intriguing nonetheless) sub-plot. There are O.M.A.C.s if the just concluded mini-series floated your Argo. Readers get an interesting take on the heroine shower scene, a Goddess/Heroine showdown, and learn the odds of property damage (and civilian casualties) in a donnybrook with Wonder Woman. That’s a lot to pack into one installment.
That’s not to say the issue was flawless. A new reader might be baffled by exactly what the heck is going on (and who it’s happening to) in pages two through four. The O.M.A.C.s look “funny” and not in a Steve Martin arrow-through-the-head way. And the end of this issue coincides with Brother Eye’s revenge as shown in the finale of O.M.A.C. Project #6, instead of following from it, as readers of that story would certainly hope. In a way, this whole book is a teaser for the fall out from Diana’s execution of Max Lord instead of really dealing with it. That’s the worst part of this issue. This is almost certainly the last chance Rucka and company will get a chance to tell a Wonder Woman centric story for months. Why shove away the consequences of the coolest character moment the lead has had in years instead of diving right in? Now it won’t be dealt with until IC is over, including the subsequent mandatory time-lapse of “one year later” required by 52!
The art really deserves its own special mention quite aside from the plot for two reasons. First, there are a hell of a lot of people collaborating on this issue, quite a few doing the same thing but on different pages. The story had two pencillers, three inkers, and two colorists. That’s nuts, and almost always results in the patchwork choppy look of too many tailors spoiling the quilt. The art in this book is not only harmonious, it’s gorgeous. The depiction of Wonder Woman kicks the daylights out of whoever else has drawn her since JLA was restarted. Morales’ fans won’t be surprised by this; his girls have always been amazing and distinctive. Just check back issues of Hawkman or Hourman for the real deal. But wherever Rags isn’t working, his partner Cliff has kept pace amazingly well. Many panels in this issue are poster worthy, and for a comic book, that’s almost the highest compliment there is. An extra special shout out goes to the letterer Todd Klein, as his interpretation of O.M.A.C. font is infinitely more straightforward and readable than other places it has been seen.
