REVIEW: Wonder Woman #14
Writer: Gail Simone
Artists: Terry & Rachel Dodson
DC Comics
Gail Simone takes over the title with this issue and not a moment too soon! Of course, it goes without saying that this issue is at least 1000% better than anything done with Wonder Woman since the beginning of One Year Later. But if I don’t say it, this will be a very short review.
In all seriousness, this is a stellar premiere issue. Given the problems this title had over the last year, coming into this mess and trying to do anything – much less build upon the generally loathed status quo – would be a daunting task for any writer, even one as experienced and capable as Simone. After Amazons Attack and the farce that was the Jodi Picoult run, I think most comic fans would be happy to have a Wonder Woman book that is readable much less wonderful.
Rest assured though; the first issue IS wonderful. What Simone has done here is captured the essence of everything Wonder Woman is and should be. She is tough. She is smart. She is clever. She has a dry sense of humor. She is more than capable of handling herself in a fight but is always looking for ways to avoid fighting when possible. She is compassionate. She is understanding. She is, in short, every bit the wonder her name implies.
All of this is accomplished through one heck of a fight-scene with the forces of Gorilla Grodd. But apart from giving us talking ape assassins– something which automatically bumps up any comic a full letter grade in my book – Simone has crafted a perfect entry-level story. If you’ve never read an issue of Wonder Woman before (and given the last year, who can blame you?), you can safely pick this one up and rest assured that the status quo will be made clear. Indeed, Simone manages to give us all the back-story we need and then some without it seemingly like we are being exposited to.
Simone even manages the neat trick of bringing back what appears to be a new Etta Candy, who appears to be a slightly over-weight hardass like her Golden Age predecessor. And yes, even Hippolyta – unseen and forgotten in the months since Amazons Attack – even she is seen to be doing something in the background that will no doubt have major repercussions in the months to come
Coupled with the excellent artwork of The Dodsons, I’d say that Wonder Woman is in good hands. Of course it’s still a bit early to say that Simone can completely undo all the damage that has been done to the mythos of Comics’ First Lady. But I have every confidence that she will. Diana Prince isn’t the only Wonder Woman in comics, after all.
