Writer: Shea Fontana
Art: Mirka Andolfo
Release Date: July 12, 2017
Cover Price: $2.99
This leaves the questions: How does this first issue hold up? Does it fill the hole that Rucka had created?
*WARNING! SOME SPOILERS BELOW!*
To my surprise, it actually held up pretty well, but I did see a few flaws.
This first chapter shows us that Diana has really been bottling up the pain that she has felt over the years. Ever since she was a kid(an adorably drawn one at that), she has been focused on becoming tougher, similar to an Amazon Warrior. We see this carried to the present where Diana is now convinced she has to carry the weight of loss on her heart instead of sharing it when people offer it. On the one hand, it does stay in character, showing Diana as a compassionate human being who'd rather carry the emotional baggage of war than share it with others. On the other hand, one of the biggest parts I enjoyed in past Wonder Woman stories was the fact that she had this family who would help shoulder this burden. Yes, this is the first chapter with a new creative team, but if they're going to be using the same characters, they could carry over the family aspect.
Along with the family aspect being missing, there is also a very obvious foreshadowing of the villain of this arc. After a mission at an attacked United Nations refugee camp, Diana gets a physical check up from doctors, and it's clear that there is some shady business already at work. I might be reading into it too deeply, but the doctors seem fascinated by the Amazon's anatomy, making them either the biggest red herring or may as well have a sign on them that says 'HI! I'M THE VILLAIN, LOOK AT ME!' At the end of the issue, we have a little girl describing the doctor that was checking up on Diana...right before revealing a bomb that was set next to them. As I said, it's either the biggest red herring or the most blatant tell. We'll just have to wait till next issue to see.
The highlight of the issue for me was the flashback to when Diana was a child on Themyscaria. We see her playing with a doll and after she goes to bed, Diana hears her mother questioning her own parenting skills, worried that letting her be more like a child is leading her astray from the Amazon way. This leads to Diana emotionally locking her doll in a box and throwing away the key. This scene was so heart wrenching to me because one could argue that THIS was the scene where she realized it was time to grow up. She was never meant to be a child and from this moment on, Diana will become hard, yet still remain compassionate.
When it comes to the art of Mirka Andolfo, I can sum it down to three words: adorable yet effective. Every character was drawn extremely well, especially with their very expressive faces. I've always enjoyed her art, with the obvious example being the DC Bombshells series.
Overall, while the flaws are obvious, I don't think that they genuinely break the story. I enjoyed what I read and I want to see where this goes. This story feels like it's going to really show off the compassionate side of Wonder Woman by having her deal with a tragedy that strikes close to home. It was well written, well drawn, and promises a good story in the coming issues.
7.8/10
Issue Description:
“HEART OF THE AMAZON” part one! Writer Shea Fontana (DC SUPER HERO GIRLS) steps in for a new story! Wonder Woman finally takes a moment to catch her breath and attend a friend’s wedding…but unfortunately, horror’s followed her even there!
No comments:
Post a Comment