Wonder Woman #4 Preview

[Nyssane]

I was finally able to sit down and read it and...

spoilers:

Honestly, I'm kinda blown away. This is one of my favorite single issues of WW in a loooong time. I'm not super fond of the Sovereign stuff which seems to be dragging on a bit much, but damn... Diana hanging out with Jack was brilliantly done. Jack was so well-characterized, constantly apologizing at the beginning and then questioning if the reason he's dying is because he likes girl stuff instead of the more generically masculine Batman/Superman. As a gay man who grew up liking girly **** it really resonated with me. And Diana's monologue which ends with "I have known cruelty and I have known love. And I choose love."? Amazing. And the gorgeous art just amplifies everything. So good.

end of spoilers

[SiegePerilous02]

Excellent issue. This may be among the best work King has ever done. I still don't know if I trust him in the long haul, but for a one-off issue, this captures Diana perfectly.

Isn't Circe still trapped in that magic prison after Witching War? I really hope she's not part of this arc since she's above Waller's pay grade. Her return deserves its own arc.

I wish it was Doctor Poison instead of Doctor Psycho. We just had a ton of Psycho in the last run.

I'd love it if King uses Helen Alexandros as the Silver Swan instead of Vanessa, but I highly doubt it.

I still think the Charmer is going to be someone like Zara who is known for her persuasion or Hypnota who has literal charming powers. King also said there's some obscure villains showing up, and I don't think Giganta, Silver Swan, Angle Man, Doctor Psycho, or Grail are particularly obscure.

I also hope we don't see anymore Cheetah. That little cameo was fine, but King is very much on the "Cheetah is Diana's ally" camp which I'm vehemently not a part of.

Agree with pretty much everything you said. Considering Cheetah's cameo and Waller's pointed silence when Steel brings her up (I actually loved that- it distinguishes her from the rest), we will probably see her come to Diana's aid in this arc. Which hopefully doesn't mean she will be a ally permanently, because King based their dynamic off Rucka, Rucka defined Barbara as someone who will inevitably turn on Diana.

Though it actually doesn't sound like Waller has any of these villains on hand already, she's sending Steel out to get them. And even advising him to be on his guard against Psycho. Circe being part of the group would sit a little better if they have to make a bargain with her. But Hypnota or Zara would be preferable.

[Frontier]

The scenes with Steve were probably the most basic thing King could've done with him.

I would've rather had him, Etta, and Siggy investigating what's going on in the US government as Agents of Checkmate.

Even though they are basically just spin-offs of the WW costume.....he couldn't just rip off one of these, adjust a little and put Cassie in it? Did like the looks though

I think this was the one bit that I really didn't care for (well, that and the Steve scene). It reminded me too much of that scene in Robert Venditti's JL run where the Amazons were all aggro on Diana for bringing men to Themyscira even though there was, like, a crisis going on. And compared to the males of the JL this is literally a child and no amount of testy political situation is going to convince me that the Amazons would act like this.

And Diana waxing lyrical about how strong she is (even if it's to defuse fights) is starting to feel a little like overcompensating.

Also I think Sampere is a fantastic artist but I'm starting to think he's not a great designer. Cassie's low effort redesign, thinking short-haired Cheetah was a good choice, all the derivative Amazon uniforms, etc. It makes me a little worried about him redesigning some of The Rogues when they show up.

[bardkeep]

This was by far the best issue yet, and honestly the best single issue of the ongoing in as long as I can remember. I've groused about the lack of characterization for Diana in this run, but I genuinely think this issue alone did better, more thoughtful character work than every non-Rucka/Orlando post-n52 issue combined (which, granted, is as much a dig at the ongoing as it is a compliment for King, but still...).

The last scene in particular blew me away. The bit where Diana consoles the boy made me cry and I absolutely loved her monologue. It was so cool to almost frame it as a gotcha - it's yet another page where the story is overlaid by captions waxing poetic about power and tradition, but this time it's Diana talking about about how the people (or gods) in power are full of ****. Also this last bit is an all-timer for me: "I have traveled far and wide. I have warred with the angels and supped with the devils. I have seen universes birthed into my hands, and men dying with my name fumbling from their lips. I have known cruelty and love. And I choose love."

I really didn't like Diana's confrontation with the Amazons and I do have a nitpick about her not using her real name, but it's forgivable when everything else with her was solid gold. Also the "no thank you" bit is getting really stale but I did love the moment where he flipped it and turned it into a "no, thank you."

Sovereign's part of the story kinda felt like one scene stretched out into a whole subplot but it was fine. The recurring motif of politeness for both him and Diana is interesting. And we do have something big set up with Steel going to recruit the rogues (I assumed "the charmer" was Circe, FWIW), though obviously him trying to recruit them doesn't mean he'll succeed. I kinda hope he fucks around and finds out with Circe and gets turned into a pig...

The Trinity backup didn't work for me at all, which is a shame because I did really like the last one. Felt like a tedious, unnecessary bookend after such a beautiful final scene.

Also I think Sampere is a fantastic artist but I'm starting to think he's not a great designer. Cassie's low effort redesign, thinking short-haired Cheetah was a good choice, all the derivative Amazon uniforms, etc. It makes me a little worried about him redesigning some of The Rogues when they show up.

I feel the same way tbh - see also: Trinity's costume. It's a bummer because he really is an extraordinary talent otherwise. I like the small tweaks he made to Diana's suit (the shorter, Perez-esque bracers and white stripes on the boots) but I'm glad he didn't do a full redesign.

[HestiasHearth]

"I have known cruelty and I have known love. And I choose love."

Damn, a comic book has not made me cry, literally, in a very long time. ^^^This is what Wonder Woman will always be about, and this is why she will always be my favorite superhero of them all.

[Agent Z]

Even though they are basically just spin-offs of the WW costume.....he couldn't just rip off one of these, adjust a little and put Cassie in it? Did like the looks though

Because none of these outfits fit Cassie as a character.

[Fuzzy Mittens]

Im looking forward to Steel trying to recruit Psycho since the last time they met, Psycho was using the dummy as a hand puppet.

[Koriand'r]

He got me.

I went from grinning from ear to ear, to almost wanting to cry, back to grinning again. There were so many amazing parts, for me the standouts were Philippus' speech about Diana, Steve having her back to his own detriment, the Sovereign's talk with the President, Waller, Artemis, the depiction of the jet, the mention of Amazon spies and the Magic Sphere.

The discussion about the gods was only true for the Olympians, and I didn't like how my God was sort of included subtextually with the lines about angels and devils and no answers being found in the heavens. Admittedly, I'm probably reading too much into it, but I didn't like it.

The "Amazonian" stuff was spot on though, and I think Wonder39 was right about King using it to illustrate a disconnect.

[Koriand'r]

The scenes with Steve were probably the most basic thing King could've done with him.

I would've rather had him, Etta, and Siggy investigating what's going on in the US government as Agents of Checkmate.

I think this was the one bit that I really didn't care for (well, that and the Steve scene). It reminded me too much of that scene in Robert Venditti's JL run where the Amazons were all aggro on Diana for bringing men to Themyscira even though there was, like, a crisis going on. And compared to the males of the JL this is literally a child and no amount of testy political situation is going to convince me that the Amazons would act like this.

And Diana waxing lyrical about how strong she is (even if it's to defuse fights) is starting to feel a little like overcompensating.

Also I think Sampere is a fantastic artist but I'm starting to think he's not a great designer. Cassie's low effort redesign, thinking short-haired Cheetah was a good choice, all the derivative Amazon uniforms, etc. It makes me a little worried about him redesigning some of The Rogues when they show up.

I said this from the beginning, a great artist is not necessarily a great designer, and vice versa.

Also, if Etta and Siggy break Steve out of the brig, Tom King will become my new favorite Wonder Woman writer. That kind of adherence to continuity would permanently win me over from Rucka, but I don't believe that's happening.

Checkmate may be coming though, it's too good an idea to go unutilized. Diana has her own army and I want them all in this war. That's including Ferdinand and other rarely seen allies.

[Primal Slayer]

Because none of these outfits fit Cassie as a character.

Thus the "adjustment". Give it pants and not far off from her og TT outfit

[9AlphaOmega1]

Also enjoyed the issue, feels setting up the players of the story, hard to tell whether or not what Waller is doing, we know she trying to get rid of Superheros. Is she doing her own thing.

[Primal Slayer]

This entire sequence did make me laugh. But lord did it just remind me that I HATE her name being "Lizzie"

[Devaishwarya]

I didn't like the back-up story. It's just regurgitating what was already established about the character. And that anime art style has never ever been a favourite of mine.

[Koriand'r]

This entire sequence did make me laugh. But lord did it just remind me that I HATE her name being "Lizzie"

No thank you. I loved Cloonrad and never read Young Diana so I'm not starting now with a character I abhor. It feels like wasted money and pages, brink back Huntress! (Or Artemis, Cassie, Nubia or Donna.)

[Primal Slayer]

No thank you. I loved Cloonrad and never read Young Diana so I'm not starting now with a character I abhor. It feels like wasted money and pages, brink back Huntress! (Or Artemis, Cassie, Nubia or Donna.)

To each their own.

Im enjoying the character and art right now