Review: Wonder Woman #760
It seems that one of Diana’s darkest moments is getting a kind of look again, just in time to act as possible marketing for the characters second solo movie, Wonder Woman ’84, due out sometime this year.
Diana has gone through the wringer when it comes to challenges to her beliefs and her perceptions. This seems to be the current trend for a character that is as powerful as Superman. Where the Man of Steel has his larger supporting cast to ground him; Diana has her faith. Therefore, where as the bad guys threaten Lois and crew to get at Superman; Diana’s foes always seem to take a more personal route. Max Lord is back and promises that he is not up to his old mind control perception ways, though there is some severe circumstantial evidence to the contrary. In the middle of it all, is Diana. But even with a God, is seeing really believing?
As mentioned before, I have a lot of time for Mariko Tamaki. She is just the right sort of writer to have on what should be one of the key books in the DC Universe. Tamaki has a deft touch in the writing here and given that things are a little Stepford Wives in places, the nuances are hiding in plain sight. The dialogue works well with Diana sounding like she should. I especially liked the level of animosity from Diana to Max. Remember, Diana killed Max Lord all the way back in Wonder Woman (vol 2) #219 and lead, in part, to Infinite Crisis. That history is alluded too, but of course with New 52 and Rebirth who knows if this is still cannon. Still, the emotional aspects of the first act made for fun reading for a long time fan.
Mikel Janin did fantastic work on Batman. There his clean lines added a certain elegance to the Dark Knight. With that said, initially, I was a tad disappointed with his Diana. You would have thought that if any character would benefit from clean smooth lines, it would be Diana. Yet, that first panel where she is confronted by Max, it took a while to see that she wasn’t chained to the pillar. Janin’s faces can feel a little blank, almost dead-eyed at times, though this has been a quirk in his work for a while. Where Janin excels, is panel layout and page design. Here there are various shapes and sizes that keeps the reader interested in the goings on. The colors are provided by the always fantastic Jordie Bellaire. You could argue that at times, the colors are too bright, but I feel that element actually encapsulates Diana’s worldview. Bellaire gets to have fun with different environments that adds weight to the book. The letters by Pat Brosseau are a little quirky, which affects the overall aesthetic of the book. If you ever wonder how letters can impact a book or if you take letterers for granted, this book will be an eye opener.
Wonder Woman is a book that I keep an eye on. This book should be a top tier book, but there is a perception that DC doesn’t know what to do with her. But for the first time in a while, as long as Tamaki and Janin stay on the book, she has a real chance of hitting that tier.
Writing – 4 Stars
Art – 4 Stars
Colors. – 5 Stars
Overall – 4 Stars
Written by Mariko Tamaki
Art by; Mikel Janin
Colors by; Jordie Bellaire
Letters by; Pat Brosseau
Published by; DC Comics
Author Profile
- I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow
Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network
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