DC: How do we solve a problem like Wonder Woman?

Through out the years, Wonder Woman has been noted for being the most memorable, iconic, and longest lasting heroine in comic history. I should say that I love Wonder Woman and have been a fan since the moment I saw Lynda Carter star as Wonder Woman in the amazing TV show during my childhood. Is the show perfect? Nope, but it's wonderful anyhow. I did not, however, get into Wonder Woman as a comic character until much later in life. I started with solely X-Men comics in middle school and it took until the Birds of Prey TV show aired on TV before I really began to grasp the wonder that is DC Comics. So as someone who hasn't grown up with Wonder Woman all my life and adored her as others, what right do I have to say anything you might ask? Well.. I may be late to the party, but I tend to jump in head first. I've read a rather extensive amount of WW comics in the last several years and I've grown very fond of Diana. So stating all this, I have to say, I've been SEVERELY disappointed with DC's treatment of Diana since pretty much George Perez left the title almost 20 years ago.

Another aside I wanna state, though I've not be thrilled with some writers take on Wonder Woman as much as others, I do not by any means want to blame any writer for what I believe are severe mistakes in Wonder Woman's formation and transformation since she was re-created after Crisis on Infinite Earths. I believe that all fault lies with DC and their utter disregard for this character and her Amazon sisters. DC has wanted Diana to stand toe-to-toe with Batman and Superman but they have not invested half the money or interest in her as they have the other big two or MOST of their male leads. It's a travesty that such an amazing character has been thrown aside this way.

So let's start at the beginning (again, I guess). I'm a fan of the Pre-Crisis Wonder Woman. I love that she's a WOMAN first, a super-heroine second. She has a love interest, she has a class, and most of all she has compassion, something I think she's lacked since Perez left the title. We can list the countless little elements that were taken from WW since Crisis that have transformed the character, but my MAJOR complaint is that Wonder Woman has been treated more as Warrior Woman than Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman's first response seems always to be hit first, ask questions later. She's the axe wielding warrior woman (as some blogger described her). She comes across almost always as a WARRIOR first, woman second. All of the Amazons have been transformed as well. They no longer have peaceful jobs such as poet or scientist or potter as seen some with Perez, but more prevalent in the Pre-Crisis Wonder Woman when the Amazons were more advanced as well as magical. They are no longer women, but a group of lesbian warriors all butched up and ready to fight (and yes, Gail Simone openly introduced the idea that the Amazons were in fact lesbians, though to be fair not all and it's been hinted at before, but did we REALLY have to go there? If it was Wonder Man on an island of all men, would we imply that they're all gay? I doubt it).

So recently, Alan Heinberg was given the task of REBOOTING Wonder Woman again, bringing her back to her roots supposedly. It didn't take very well (especially since DC decided to launch the ridiculous "Amazon's Attack" during this relaunch). Wonder Woman was cursed/gifted by Circe (one of her major foes) with humanity (something Wonder Woman has been lacking, acting more like a judgmental goddess of truth than a woman). This was to balance Diana out and give her more of a human prospective. Did it work? Not really. Shortly after that, Wonder Woman becomes the axe wielding warrior all over again. It just felt so wrong for me. So now we've had that reboot, some people loved it (I didn't, but it worked for a lot of fans), now DC decides to do it ALL OVER AGAIN. Yup kids, we just had a reboot a few years ago.. so now let's REBOOT her again! This time, unlike all the other mini reboots in her series where she moves cities and gets all new friends and everything with EVERY new writer, this one would be a complete overhaul of the character. New chip-on-your-shoulder costume, new attitude, and vastly more WARRIOR WOMAN!

Yeah I just finished Wonder Woman #600 and what have we got? Warrior Woman on PARADE. I thought it was bad before, this time.. SO MUCH MORE. Does she wield an axe? No, but she's got a huge problem with the world, all authority, and basically she's a petulant teenager raging against the world. Yeah, Wonder Woman is Wonder GIRL now. Gone is all of her regal qualities, gone is her compassion and her desire to see rights wronged (not just seeing all her opponents smashed to bits like Hulk). Instead, we get the Buffication of Wonder Woman. Yeah, she's Buffy or more properly, she's Fray, a slayer from the future that Whedon created. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Buffy, but Buffy is NOT Wonder Woman anymore than Wonder Woman is Xena Warrior Princess (though you wouldn't know it from reading ANY Wonder Woman recently). It just seems that we're making WW harder and harder, more violent and tougher to compensate that she's not one of her male contemporaries (and to get her male audience to read her) and somewhere along the way, we forgot what made Wonder Woman so amazing. She was a powerhouse that could turn a hawk a dove and save the world with TRUTH tempered by compassion, not a sword of truth cutting through EVERYTHING and everyone.

Oh and JMS, NO ONE believes for a moment that female fans were demanding that you fix Wonder Woman's costume because of possible "Wardrobe malfunctions". First of all, it's a one-piece bathing suit, women wear them every day without anything popping out (as long as it fits properly). Second of all and most importantly, Lynda Carter and her stunt double DID it for three whole seasons of Wonder Woman TV and no wardrobe malfunctions there.

Good news: You kids can read the "new direction" by JMS for FREE https://comics.comixology.com/#/issue/2644/Wonder-Woman-600-Preview

New Direction

I am going to take this blog in a new direction. Initially this was going to be a place to put my short stories about Pied Piper, Hartley Rathaway, but I have since found a better venue for that and I have changed directions. I still intend to write the stories in my head, but I will be working on a completely different project in the near future.

Now what is this blog now about? Me and my ideas. Not very original, but I have not seen anyone on the web with a take on the world I have. Do I think my ideas are completely and 100% original? Doubt it. I just wanted a place to explain my ideas and why I feel about a certain topic the way I do. That's all. Like it, hate it, whatever. I just need this space for that. It's a blog though, no clue where I'm gonna go from one day to the next and no clue how long I will use this space or how much. I just want to try.