Wonder Woman #1 was the first issue of Wonder Woman that I have ever bought. And was I ever pleasantly surprised. I have always been a fan of Heinberg and Dodson and they certainly didn’t disappoint me with their debut issue of Wonder Woman. I am sure that I’m going to enjoy Wonder Woman #2. I can’t believe that I’m actually becoming a Wonder Woman fan! Let’s do this review.
Creative Team
Writer: Allan Heinberg
Penciler: Terry Dodson
Inker: Rachel Dodson
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10.
Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10.
Synopsis: This issue stats with a flashback scene of Donna as Wonder Woman fighting Dr. Poison and Dr. Cyber. Donna shows off her skills by smacking around the villains. From afar, Diana is watching with Batman by her side. Diana tells Bruce that she feels she has to find out who she is. That she can only be successful on her mission by being herself. Diana tells Bruce that she just doesn’t know who she is. Bruce then hands her an I.D. badge with “Diana Prince” on it and a picture of Diana wearing glasses with her hair in a bun. Batman tells Diana that Sarge Steel is putting the Department of Metahuman Affairs back together. That as Agent Diana she could do almost everything she used to without having to be Wonder Woman. Diana smartly points out that this would also give Batman a contact inside the Department.
We then cut to the present. Agent Diana Prince and Nemesis are ruffling each others’ feathers. Nemesis thinks he is stud enough to do his job without having Diana as a partner. Diana’s mission is to find Wonder Woman. That Cheetah, Giganta and Doctor_Psycho are holding Donna Troy captive until the real Wonder Woman is turned over to them. Nemesis notes some new changes with these long time Wonder Woman villains. Cheetah is now human. Giganta retains her genius even when giant-sized. Dr. Psycho’s powers have been significantly upgraded. Think of him as Dr. Psycho ver. 2.0.
Diana mentions that if they ever found Wonder Woman then would be arrested for the murder of Maxwell Lord. Nemesis gets snarky and comments that the World Court dropped the charges when they ruled the killing self-defense. Nemesis continues to say that Diana is a federal agent and will eventually take someone’s life and better grow up.
Diana suggests to Sarge Steel that they call in some capes like Superman, Batman and Green Lantern. Nemesis is insulted and claims that he can find Wonder Woman himself without the help of capes. And with two snaps up, Nemesis haughtily storms out of the room.
We shift to Agent Diana Prince paying a visit to Wonder Girl and Robin who are investigating the museum where the battle from last issue took place and Donna was taken hostage. Wonder Girl is stunned to see Diana. Wonder Girl is angry that Diana would disappear for a year without telling her anything. Robin sticks up for Diana and then Wonder Girl gets mad at Robin for knowing where Diana was and not telling her. Wonder Girl then angrily charges out of the room basically saying that her friends suck and she’d rather take her chances with her enemies.
Robin tells Diana that he was unable to find anything other than one of Donna’s earrings and some strange vegetation. Suddenly, the floor begins to shake like an earthquake is hitting the city. But, this is no earthquake. It is a giant woman!
We see a rampaging Giganta wearing the most idiotic boots on a rather ugly costume with Donna Troy hanging off a chain around Giganta’s neck like she was a pendant. Giganta is ranting that she wants Wonder Woman. And, believe me she means now! Diana saves an innocent bystander from getting squished under Giganta’s boot. That bystander turns out to be Nemesis who is working under cover.
Wonder Girl then joins the battle and gets it on with Giganta. Suddenly, Conner appears and tells Wonder Girl to give him her lasso. Wonder Girl says that Conner can’t be here. That he is dead. Conner says he is dead and then lays a serious haymaker on Wonder Girl. It was just that dastardly Dr. Psycho screwing with Wonder Girl’s mind.
Cheetah then appears on the scene and grabs Diana by the neck. Diana proceeds to lay open up a can on Cheetah. Cheetah gets herself together and then is joined by Dr. Psycho and Giganta. The three then tell Diana that she just bit off more than she can chew. Diana dives into an alleyway. She takes off her glasses and begins to spin around as gold sparkles appear in the air. Oh yeah! We are talking some vintage Lynda Carter 1970’s Wonder Woman transformation here! Suddenly, a hand reaches out and stops Diana from transforming into Wonder Woman. It is Hercules! Hercules says the women have tired and failed, so it is time for a man to take a crack at this job. End of issue.
Comments
The Good: Wonder Woman #2 was a great issue! Heinberg did an excellent job delivering a very entertaining story. I thought this issue moved at a nice pace. There was a perfect blend of action and drama. Heinberg serves up some great dialogue. Heinberg has a knack for crafting humorous dialogue with plenty of quick witted quips. Heinberg manages to balance the humor with a more serious tone depending on the scene. This manages to keep the title from being too light hearted or too dark and serious. It is just right.
The scene between Batman and Diana was fantastic. I loved how Diana explained her internal conflict about who she is and how she can best carry out her mission. Heinberg creates some nice chemistry between Batman and Diana. I really enjoyed the interaction between these two icons in this scene.
The scene at the Department of Metahuman Affairs was a nice way to introduce the long time Wonder Woman villains to new readers. I liked that Heinberg managed to slip in that the Department obtained photos of a woman named I-Ching who they believe to be Wonder Woman. That was a cool little nod to Diana’s 1970’s alter ego.
But, most importantly, this scene addressed the killing of Maxwell Lord rather effectively. By having Nemesis not blink an eye over Wonder Woman killing Maxwell Lord shows that people understand that sometimes doing the right thing involves a lot of violence. That Federal Agents have to be ready and willing to kill people in order to carry out their job of protecting America and its citizens. The comment that Diana has “to grow up.” was very appropriate. Diana must move on from killing Maxwell Lord. Unfortunately, that is sometimes what is necessary in order to defeat the forces of evil.
The scene with Wonder Girl, Robin and Diana was another excellent scene. Again, Heinberg is able to create great chemistry between the characters and craft some fantastic dialogue. You can feel Wonder Girl’s hurt and anger in Diana “abandoning” her and Robin keeping the secret of knowing where Diana was from her. Poor Cassie has been through so much since Infinite Crisis. This character has been dumped on probably more than anyone else. I really feel bad for her and Heinberg did a nice job playing up Cassie’s feelings of hurt and betrayal.
Heinberg also give us a little clue in that scene with Robin finding some strange vegetation in the museum where Donna was captured. Just what does this have to do with anything? I have no idea, but I’m interested to find out.
The battle scene between Wonder Girl and Diana versus Giganta, Cheetah and Dr. Psycho was great. Dr. Psycho using Conner’s image to take down Wonder Girl was brilliant and highlighted just how reprehensible and vicious he is.
But, I must say that the hands down coolest scene in the entire comic was the final scene. Diana in the alleyway, doing her 1970’s Wonder Woman spin complete with golden sparkles just rocked!! I absolutely loved it. I’m a huge fan of the old Wonder Woman TV show and this scene just made me break out in a big smile.
And then Heinberg delivers the dramatic entry of Hercules. This was a great way to end the issue. You have three nasty villains and a huge battle that is about to explode and then he adds Hercules to the mix. I’m definitely eager for the next issue.
It is obvious that Heinberg loves Wonder Woman and has a great feel for her character. I like how he is writing Diana. DC has messed with Diana’s past and character more than any other character. Certainly much more than you would expect out of a character that is such an icon. Heinberg is finally trying to give Diana her own clearly defined and consistent character with her own motivation and direction. This will help firmly establish herself within this new DCU. I’m glad. Wonder Woman deserves this.
Heinberg is doing a fantastic job on Wonder Woman. Yes, Wonder Woman #2 has action, drama, strong dialogue and impressive character development. But, the best thing about Heinberg’s story is that it is simply flat out fun.
As always, Dodson’s artwork is simply gorgeous. There just aren’t too many artists around who can draw women as well as Dodson. This is just a fantastic book to look at.
The Bad: I have no complaints at all with this issue.
Overall: Wonder Woman #2 is a fun read. I had an absolute blast reading it. Heinberg and Dodson have made a Wonder Woman fan out of me! I can’t believe it. Now, I don’t know if long-time Wonder Woman fans will be happy with this new direction or not. Me? Well, as a new reader I love this title and would definitely recommend any other non-Wonder Woman fans to give this title a try.