Comic Book Review: Wonder Woman #3

It seems like forever since I read Wonder Woman #2. In fact it was back on August 23, 2006 that I read Wonder Woman #2. That is way too long to go between issues. Having said that, Heinberg and Dodson are a talented team that has turned out a couple of exciting issues. Can Wonder Woman #3 keep the ball rolling? I’m pretty confident that Wonder Woman #3 will be another entertaining read. Let’s hit the review.

Creative Team
Writer: Allan Heinberg
Penciler: Terry Dodson
Inker: Rachel Dodson

Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10.
Story Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10.
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10.

Synopsis: The issue begins with Hercules brawling with Giganta. Hercules takes out Giganta and then frees Donna Troy. Cheetah then attacks Hercules. Hercules then takes out Cheetah. Dr. Psycho then appears and is about to attack Diana Prince, when Hercules swoops in and takes down Dr. Psycho. Suddenly, Dr. Psycho teleports himself and his villains along with Donna Troy and Wonder Girl away from the fight scene.

Hercules then blames Diana for everything that is happening. Hercules says that Diana abandoned her role as Olympus’ champion. So, the Gods have sent Hercules to replace Diana. Hercules says that Diana walked away from the Gods when they needed her the most. That Diana entrusted her duty to Donna Troy and Wonder Girl who are now missing and in danger. Diana says that she will find them. Hercules tells Diana that he will find them. Hercules tells Diana to say out of his way.

We cut to Diana and Nemesis back at the Department of Metahuman Affairs headquarters. They get outfitted with plenty of cool gadgets to help them with their mission of finding Donna Troy and Wonder Girl.

We shift to Diana and Nemesis sneaking into an embassy. Hercules is also on the scene. Suddenly, Hercules transforms into a Minotaur. Diana and Nemesis are then attacked by Bestiamorphs. They are men who have been enchanted and turned into beasts. Suddenly, Nemesis transforms into a Bestiamorph. And with that, Circe enters the scene. Behind Circe are Wonder Girl and Donna Troy who are unconscious and chained to the wall. Circe says that she wants to help Diana. That Diana no longer wants to be Wonder Woman and that Diana doesn’t have to be Wonder Woman anymore.

Diana says that she doesn’t even need to use her powers to defeat Circe. With that Diana and Circe start brawling. Circe tells Diana that Circe has become the immortal avenger of all wronged women. That Diana has squandered her power by battling cyborg centurions and psychic despots when every day, thousands of women are beaten, rapes and murdered because they have no one to fight for them. That Diana was too busy being a super hero to be the champion of women. And now, Diana isn’t even a super hero. Diana is pretending to be human. Circe then tells Diana that she no longer has to pretend anymore. End of issue.

Comments
The Good: Wonder Woman #3 was another good read. Heinberg keeps the story moving at a quick pace not giving the reader much time to catch their breath. The twists and turns keep coming. We learn that Hercules has been sent by the Gods to replace Wonder Woman. We then have Diana’s two apprentices in Donna and Cassie captured. And on top of all that, their captor is none other than Circe. And Hercules and Nemesis have been transformed into Bestiamorphs. Heinberg really knows how to crank out one fun ride of an issue.

Heinberg’s dialogue is as good as ever. Heinberg flashes his great sense of humor through out this issue. Heinberg’s dialogue creates a pleasant flow that makes this issue a quick read. Heinberg also engages in excellent character development. Each character has been given their own individual personality. Nemesis’ devil may care attitude where each mission is simply an exciting adventure. Hercules’ egotistical and arrogant attitude perfectly suites his new role as champion of the Gods sent to carry out Wonder Woman’s mission. These all make each character much more enjoyable and allow for some nice chemistry between the characters.

Heinberg also serves up a great Diana Prince. Heinberg is on a mission to answer two interrelated questions: Who is Diana Prince? Who is Wonder Woman? There are no simple answers. Considering that Wonder Woman is part of the “holy trinity” of the DCU, she has been horribly mishandled. Her character has been constantly changed and re-invented in drastically different directions. While DC has always been protective of Superman and Batman and have always had a clear vision for those two characters, it is obvious that DC has either not cared too much for Wonder Woman or at least not known what to do with her character.

Now, Heinberg is going to get to the root of what makes Diana who she is. What is Diana’s role and purpose in our world? Is she the Champion of the Gods? Is she a super hero? Is she the avenger of wronged women? Heinberg is going to strip away all of the layers to Diana’s character so he can answer this root question. Once Diana finally realizes who she is, then she can begin to rebuild herself into a more focused Wonder Woman with a clear purpose and direction. Heinberg is delivering to the reader a wonderfully confused and unsure Diana. It should be an enjoyable ride for the reader to go along with Diana on her journey to re-invent herself.

I dig Heinberg’s Circe. She is a total wackjob, but she is definitely the perfect villain to help force Diana to answer the question of who she truly is. Plus, Circe has more than enough firepower to make for one massive battle between her and Wonder Woman.

Heinberg also delivers an exciting ending that hooks the reader into waiting probably another two or three months for the next issue. Nemesis and Hercules are under the control of Circe while Donna and Cassie are held captive by Circe. On top of that, it appears that Circe is threatening to strip Diana of all her powers and make her truly human. I cannot wait to see what Heinberg does next with this storyline.

The Bad: It may be the massive delays between issues, but it seems to me that Heinberg is starting to lose some of his direction and focus. I’m not too sure where Heinberg wants to go with Diana’s character. I don’t mind a little suspense about who is Wonder Woman, but I hope that Heinberg gets this storyline moving toward a conclusion soon.

DC has really dropped the ball with the scheduling of Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman #1 came out back on June 7, 2006. Wonder Woman #2 came out on August 23, 2006. Now, here we are getting Wonder Woman #3 on November 22, 2006. That is two and ½ months between issues 1 and 2 and another three months between issues 2 and 3. That is absolutely ridiculous. There is no excuse at all that DC has such massive delays on this title. To only turn out three issues over a six month period is a joke. These massive delays in shipping on Wonder Woman have almost killed my interest in this title. DC needs to correct this problem immediately.

I appreciate Heinberg’s talent, but if the delays are because he is a Hollywood writer first and a comic book writer second, then DC needs to remove him from this title.

Overall: Wonder Woman #3 was another good read. Heinberg is delivering a fun ride that has gotten me interested in Wonder Woman for the first time in my life. Dodson’s wonderful artwork is a nice match to Heinberg’s enjoyable story. DC does need to work out the shipping delays on this title if they hope that this title is going to be successful with fans. Despite the delays, I still recommend giving Wonder Woman a try.