How would you reboot Wonder Woman (and the entire DC universe)?

[WonderScott]

I have plans and ideas for reincorporating so many Wonder foes and Amazon adversaries into Diana's world (as well as several new ones), it's ridiculous:

Ares
Cheetah
Circe
Doctor Psycho
Giganta
Doctor Poison
Angle Man
Eviless
Villainy Inc.
Ares' Children
Duke of Deception
Lord Conquest
Earl of Greed
Medusa
Heracles
Doctor Cyber
Godwatch
Queen Clea
Gundra the Valkyrie
Dark Angel
Veronica Cale
Inversion
The Mask
Superwoman
Devastation
Silver Swan
... and quite a few more.

Diana has so many good villains with great concepts behind them that have never been developed. It's an absolute shame they've been forgotten or marginalized before they could ever be used.

[TheRay]

I would start Wonder Woman's story at World War II, maybe even World War I.

[kjn]

By sitting down with some serious world-building sessions around Themyscira. The more I've thought about the Amazons and their society, the more I've realised how important it is for establishing Diana's relation to Man's World, but also how tricky and complex a world-building problem Themyscira is.

Do they use magic, magitech, or technology? Was Diana the only child of the Amazons, or the last child, or the special child due to being born from clay (or have Zeus for a daddy…). What are the Amazon relations to the patrons? Why did they retreat to Themyscira, and how does that relate to the Bana-Mighdall? Are the Amazon abilities innate or trained, or a combination? What sort of training and education did Diana receive? How old is Diana? What is Themyscira's relation to time passing in Man's World? How is Themyscira governed? Are there any fissures or conflicts within Amazon society, relating to Man's World, the Bana-Mighdall, Diana, or something else? Do the Amazons think themselves of having a "job" on Themyscira, or do they just live there? What crafts and arts do they practice?

And all of those impact on each other. Just the idea of reproduction (past or present) is a huge hassle to work out.

[CRaymond]

By sitting down with some serious world-building sessions around Themyscira. The more I've thought about the Amazons and their society, the more I've realised how important it is for establishing Diana's relation to Man's World, but also how tricky and complex a world-building problem Themyscira is.

Do they use magic, magitech, or technology? Was Diana the only child of the Amazons, or the last child, or the special child due to being born from clay (or have Zeus for a daddy…). What are the Amazon relations to the patrons? Why did they retreat to Themyscira, and how does that relate to the Bana-Mighdall? Are the Amazon abilities innate or trained, or a combination? What sort of training and education did Diana receive? How old is Diana? What is Themyscira's relation to time passing in Man's World? How is Themyscira governed? Are there any fissures or conflicts within Amazon society, relating to Man's World, the Bana-Mighdall, Diana, or something else? Do the Amazons think themselves of having a "job" on Themyscira, or do they just live there? What crafts and arts do they practice?

Are these legit separate questions you'd like to hear solutions to, or is it just conceptual ranting for you to formalize your own thoughts?

[kjn]

Are these legit separate questions you'd like to hear solutions to, or is it just conceptual ranting for you to formalize your own thoughts?

A little of both, but perhaps the most important piece is that all solutions have impacts on other questions and shape them. Marston had a very clear concept of Diana and the Amazons, but his world-building was still very ad-hoc and built on whatever idea he had right now. Pérez's world-building was extraordinary, but to me today feels dated and limiting.

[Gaius]

Some ideas I've had

-Diana would be sculpted from clay and brought to life by Hestia (since Hestia is the goddess who mostly aligns to how I view Diana). The average Amazon is as strong as say Captain America and the winner of the contest to decide their representative/ambassador to Man's World is granted the power and weapons of the gods that makes brings Diana up to her usual levels.

-Gateway City would be WW's main base of operations and, playing off the name, when Themiscira eventually reveals itself to the world it becomes the only place in Man's World to have a reliable gateway portal to Themiscira (like in Rucka's first run, located at the Themisciran embassy when it eventually gets established). Overtime it eventually comes home to a variety of creatures from mythologies around the world. Julia and Vanessa Kapatelis would be residents of the city with Julia working out of a museum at the city that thanks to WW gains a lot of rare historical and mystical artifacts from her adventures. Myndi Mayer would also live there.

-The Amazons of Bana-Migdhall weren't the only tribe of Amazons to depart following their rebellion against Herucles. There are other tribes that worship other existing pantheons in the world following their departure, such as the Norse and Mayan, that Diana uncovers in her journeys. Some would be allies and other potential rivals to Diana and her tribe of Amazons.

[CRaymond]

but to me today feels dated and limiting.

Go on.

I actually have a reboot idea that's comprehensive and fleshes out many of your questions, but it's bound to make a bunch of people unhappy haha.

[kjn]

Go on.

I actually have a reboot idea that's comprehensive and fleshes out many of your questions, but it's bound to make a bunch of people unhappy haha.

See Feminism, Pérez, and the Amazons for some of it. I also think that Pérez's vision of the Amazons has locked far too many later writers towards a Wonder Woman that is far too tied to the Greek gods.

Yeah, all these questions can be answered. But then you have the real undering clincher in the values and the ideals that the depiction is built on.

From a strict world-building perspective, Azzarello had one of the most coherent visions of Amazon society and history. I doubt it's one that many people here want. I certainly don't.

[CRaymond]

See Feminism, Pérez, and the Amazons for some of it. I also think that Pérez's vision of the Amazons has locked far too many later writers towards a Wonder Woman that is far too tied to the Greek gods.

Thanks for the link. I understand what you mean, especially with regard to weightiness of the bracers. I'm not sure I understand the benefit of decoupling Wonder Woman from her mythological origins. It's her Krypton/Yellow Sun. Maybe I don't understand what you mean.

From a strict world-building perspective, Azzarello had one of the most coherent visions of Amazon society and history. I doubt it's one that many people here want. I certainly don't.

Yeah, my reboot leans a bit into Azzarello in scope, but grants Hippolyte a HUGE backstory that makes her a big player in antiquity, a difficult to understand leader, and a mysterious yet loving mother. I added lots of complicated layers to the mother-daughter relationship, lies, secrets, half-truths, legit myths, family stories, etc

[AmiMizuno]

One idea i had was Dr.Cyber has obsession with upgrading herself. She and Dr.Poison are business partners. They would together. Doris I would keep her having a disorder that she wanted to cure. She wamted to use the purple healing ray but due to the man’s world being different it’s going go be harder to make it work. So maybe Doris gets it from her fixing purple healing ray.

In terms of the amazons. I did have a idea that some of the Amazons did do the sex pirate thing. Because at first they wanted to return but than saw things haven’t changed.

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

I'd have Donna as a refugee from Bialya. She and her family was fleeing from Queen Bee's regime and she was the only survivor.

As an adult she returns to Bialya to be an advocate for reform. She and other Amazons would set up a women's shelter and she would use her job as a photographer to shed light on Bialya's condition etc.

[AmiMizuno]

I'd have Donna as a refugee from Bialya. She and her family was fleeing from Queen Bee's regime and she was the only survivor.

As an adult she returns to Bialya to be an advocate for reform. She and other Amazons would set up a women's shelter and she would use her job as a photographer to shed light on Bialya's condition etc.

But she could already do that without being a survivor. What does this origin add to history? I mean Donna has too much issues to add this one.

[CRaymond]

I'd have Donna as a refugee from Bialya. She and her family was fleeing from Queen Bee's regime and she was the only survivor.

As an adult she returns to Bialya to be an advocate for reform. She and other Amazons would set up a women's shelter and she would use her job as a photographer to shed light on Bialya's condition etc.

But she could already do that without being a survivor. What does this origin add to history?

Donna's such a third rail and shibboleth for Wonder Woman fans. I don't blame writers for building continuities that ignore her.

[Nyssane]

I'm not sure about plots or whatnot but I think that my rebooted Wonder Woman cast would largely look like:

Supporting Characters:

• Steve Trevor
• Etta Candy (back to being white, young, and fat)
• Queen Hippolyta
• Amazons: Philippus, Mala, Nubia, Artemis, Menalippe, Io, Euboea, Antiope, Althea, Dalma, and Areto
• Julia & Vanessa Kapatelis
• Ferdinand
• Myndi Mayer
• The Oddfellows
• Mayfly (I really liked the storyline where she sort of turned over a new leaf because of Diana)
• Aphrodite, Athena, and Hermes (the rest of the gods would be indifferent to Diana)

Core Rogues Gallery:

• Cheetah
• Ares (plus his servants: Deimos, Phobos, Eris, Silver Swan, Decay, and the Duke of Deception)
• Circe
• Doctor Cyber
• Villainy, Inc. (Eviless, Queen Clea, Dr. Poison, Giganta, Cheetah, Blue Snowman, Zara, and Hypnota, all classic bay-bee)
• Doctor Psycho
• Veronica Cale
• Baroness Von Gunther
• Medusa and the Gorgons
• Angle Man (I picture him being like Kite-Man from the Harley Quinn animated series; maybe toss his chum Mouse Man into the mix)
• Osira (dreadfully underutilized)
• Sharkeeta (I want her reappearance dammit)

Also, kangas. Lots and lots of Kangas.

[AmiMizuno]

One idea i have had. To get Queen Clea back. I like the idea of Clea being a help to the Amazons. That the Amazons and clea’s people have been keeping a dangerous monster. She winds up being arrested by Queen Hippolyta and others of Villainy Inc. would soon fill the area and their will bond