Secret Identity: Yes or No?

[Rightoya]

Yeah, but just partly.

[Celgress]

I voted yes because it can lead to some interesting storytelling. But, honestly, I could go either way on this one.

[marhawkman]

I voted yes because it can lead to some interesting storytelling. But, honestly, I could go either way on this one.

But as a permanent alternate Identity or a temporary one?

[Koriand'r]

Because I think Marston had lots of good ideas, and Diana Prince wasn't one of them. He followed the standard of every superhero having a secret identiy (even Steve Rogers, can you believe it?).

Diana is confident and comfortable in who she is. She grew up being in the spotlight, and it's what made her so strong. She wants other women to stand right alongside her, even without powers. She uses all of her history to connect to others in the daylight. If she wants to rest somewhere full of people, she still wouldn't need a double life to do that. Just a pair of sunglasses and different outfit.

Most of those stories about Diana were about her pretending to be something she isn't, which is a waste of time considering why she came to this world. And I certainly hated the idea of Diana being unhappy because Steve Trevor loved WW and not the army nurse in glasses

Wonder Woman came to our world to teach but also to learn. The secret identity allows her to put into practice what she preaches and become one of us without the benefits or burdens of celebrity. If it doesn’t exist she's always "on" and never truly treated like a normal person. She's a superhero potentate that looks like a supermodel, so it's easy for her to say "empower yourself" when she's had none of the struggles regular women face.

As Diana Prince she went from a mousy secretary, to a secret agent and eventually an astronaut under her own merits. She had to actually deal with gender biases and workplace discrimination not just talk about it from her lofty, unassailable, ivory tower.

Diana Prince gives her insight and experience and makes her more relatable a very real world way.

[Jim Kelly]

I like how Diana Prince was a real person who loaned her identity to Wonder Woman. This is sort of like the Shadow, in some versions, where Lamont Cranston is someone else but the Shadow sometimes uses his identity.

I would say that they don't even look alike. Diana Prince looks like how Dick Giordano drew her. Wonder Woman looks like how George Perez drew her. The magic lasso allows Wonder Woman to change her appearance and look like Diana Prince.

This way you could have Diana Prince as an independent character who has her own adventures and even teams up with Wonder Woman on occasion.

[HestiasHearth]

I am a sucker for the classic secret identity superhero trope, plus I agree 100 % with the last post by Koriand'r. So yeah, I'd love to see a modern Wonder Woman story that integrated the Diana Prince secret ID.

[Alpha]

if it doesn’t exist she's always "on" and never truly treated like a normal person. She's a superhero potentate that looks like a supermodel, so it's easy for her to say "empower yourself" when she's had none of the struggles regular women face.

Yes that's exactly the point. Princess Diana isn't a normal woman, nor would she ever want to be one. She can't actually relate to the struggles of "ordinary people". That's why her best friend is Etta Candy, who the world would normally look down upon, but still acts like an extraordinary adventurer. Because she's the only woman who lives full of self love as much as Diana.

Diana is privileged and worshipped. She was sculpted from clay and is the only woman ever born without any man being involved. All of this gives her an unnatural amount of confidence and self love, and joy of life.

[HestiasHearth]

Diana is privileged and worshipped. She was sculpted from clay and is the only woman ever born without any many being involved. All of this gives her an unnatural amount of confidence and self love, and joy of life.

I disagree. If anything, I feel that being created from clay yet being born into a society (and world) in which everyone else is born in "natural" ways and make "natural" connections based on mutuality and shared experiences would give one a terrible sense of existential loneliness and isolation. I would definitely want a secret ID through which I could not only protect (as much as I can) my loved ones from villains, but attempt a "normal" life when not fighting evil.
Just my opinion.
And by the way, in my opinion that WOULD NOT make Etta redundant. Diana could have Etta AND a secret ID. Maybe Etta could be the only one that knows WW's identity (just like Jimmy Olsen with Superman).

[Largo161]

Did they give us the clay origin back while I wasn’t looking???

[BiteTheBullet]

Did they give us the clay origin back while I wasn’t looking???

I think people are assuming.

Nothing is concrete unless stated.

Put it this way, I don't even think during Cloonrads tenure that they have said which way their origin is.

[Gaius]

Did they give us the clay origin back while I wasn’t looking???

Not in the main books, no. Daddy Zeus is stated to still be a thing in an issue of Cloonan and Conrad's run.

[Alpha]

Not in the name books, no. Daddy Zeus is stated to still be a thing in an issue of Cloonan and Conrad's run.

Not exactly. There was a brief narration in #775 where it was suggested that "Diana was Zeus' neglected progeny". While most would assume this means she is his daughter, there are other possible interpretations of this.

But I refuse to acknowledge the dumb idea of Diana being the daughter of Zeus

[Guy_McNichts]

Personally, I don't see Diana wasting time juggling a dual identity while she's a) flying around fighting bad guys & saving people as Wonder Woman and b) doing activism and diplomacy and charitable things as Diana of Themyscira. I just don't see her devoting portions of her day to a 9-5 and worrying about whether her neighbor her newest boy or girlfriend will figure out her secret.

I also think not having a secret identity sets her apart from other heroes in interesting ways. Batman needs Bruce Wayne as a cover. Superman likes being Clark and having side of his life because he was raised as Clark Kent. What does Diana care about "Diana Prince?" She has no need or attachment to that identity.

Doesn't add a whole lot of drama to her friendships when Steve, Etta, Julia, Cassie, and virtually everyone else she knows met her as Wonder Woman. Oh, but what about new friends? How about we give time and attention to the underdeveloped supporting cast she already has before we through in co-workers and love interests.

It just strikes me as an unwanted and uninteresting burden. Diana has enough on her plate without a secret identity she needs to keep up because...? Sorry, I also don't buy the whole "She needs to learn how to be human" angle either. She doesn't need to pretend to be someone else to empathize with people.

She should absolutely have a personal life and down time. And she could use Diana Prince as her pseudonym. But "Diana Prince" should not be an act with her own job and separate life that she needs to maintain on top of everything else she does.

[Guy_McNichts]

Not exactly. There was a brief narration in #775 where it was suggested that "Diana was Zeus' neglected progeny". While most would assume this means she is his daughter, there are other possible interpretations of this.

But I refuse to acknowledge the dumb idea of Diana being the daughter of Zeus

Hey, "everything counts" now. I think head-canon is encouraged these days. By all means, pick and choose what you want to believe.

[JBatmanFan05]

I voted yes, but I don’t necessarily think she needs one in the same sense she needed one in the past where she was constantly ducking behind trash cans to change from one persona to the other.

I like the idea of Diana Prince as a civilian identity- like it’s the name on her credit cards and passport for if she ever needs a little off time and some privacy. It’s a nice nod to the past and… I just like the name “Diana Prince”.

This. It's as she originally was (per Wikipedia): "The 'Diana Prince' identity has been part of Wonder Woman's history since her comics debut in 1941. . . using [Diana] Prince as her cover."

I'm a big believer in considering the Golden Age version (though not always adhering to it strictly and forever) but removing big important things without a good important reason is something I'm not cool with.