Who is Wonder Woman's Arch-Nemesis?

[Mel Dyer]

I think Wonder Woman's arch-nemesis is an empty chair, right now. That said, her perennial sorceress enemy, Circe, is slowly developing into something interesting, outside of the WW comic.

The new Circe, according to Justice League Dark, was a heroic sorceress princess, whose people married her off to a tyrant, to make peace between their kingdoms. When she killed him for abusing her, the tyrant's family demanded justice, and her people chased her out of her own land. Outraged, she sailed the ocean, until she came to an island, where she made a pact with Hekate, who gave her cosmic powers - powers she used to punish her people, upon her return. I guess she became a cosmic being...after that?

I don't know.

JLD kind of blurs things, from there, ..but, when she shows up, thousands of years later, and tries to conquer the world of magic, Wonder Woman stops her. In "Withcing War", it's not clear exactly what threat Circe is to mankind (what she wants from all of us), but, she puts a pretty creepy bunch, together - like the Upside Down Man - who raid the Hall of Justice for mystical artifacts. She wears Turkish-influenced, Northern Greek dress, and her hair is on-fire, ..but, it's a great story!

So...what this has to do with hating Wonder Woman, I don't know, but, it was a page-turner, and Circe was smack in the middle of it. Furthermore, it wasn't Roman-armored figures stomping around in a so-called god-war. I think it helped that the story was set in the shadowy, bizarre 'world of magic', instead of Olympus or Paradise Island, ..and that she and Diana were the only Greek mythicals, in the story. For Circe, it was a classic outing...

And certainly makes a case for her taking 'archenemy' spot in the Wonder-rogues gallery.

[Guy_McNichts]

In kayfabe, Diana's arch-nemesis is Cheetah...but only by default. In reality, her arch-nemesis is--and always has been--the glass ceiling.

I still think Circe, when written well, is the best suited for the title.

[WonderScott]

For lack of a better comparison, I see Diana’s archenemies in a quadrangle. It’s what I’d make, versus what exists now. The four points include:

Cheetah
Ares
Circe
Doctor Psycho

Doctor Pyscho doesn’t get near the prominence he should. A lot of people either don’t see his potential or feel challenged in trying to update him from the stereotypes and tropes his character has long evoked.

Weirdly, I see Supes and Bats nemeses as triangles - Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Darkseid and Joker, Ra’s al Ghul, and Catwoman, respectively and historically.

The complexity of Wonder Woman’s characteristics and being a woman character lends itself to other angles that need to be explored due to historical and current sexism and misogyny.

[AmiMizuno]

I often feel like it’s

Cheetah more of a mirror
Ares
Circle

[kjn]

Golden Age Paula von Gunther, and her modern spiritual descendant Veronica Cale. An extremely capable women who has managed to succeed and claw out a niche under patriarchy, but also has bought into it and defends it.

There is no other character as capable of playing up Diana as an ideological figure and an agent of change. With modern Cheetah we get the themes of love and redemption on a personal level. With Ares Diana is a defender of the status quo. Circe as an antagonist I have never managed to square with classical Circe, and again makes Diana into a defender of the status quo. Doctor Psycho is the worst of patriarchy.

[Ascended]

Voted for Cheetah, but I don't think Diana has a straight up nemesis, unless we can include DC editorial.

[Celgress]

Voted for Cheetah, but I don't think Diana has a straight up nemesis, unless we can include DC editorial.

A valid and one I agree with (including the last bit ).

[Mel Dyer]

Prior to Azzarello, I've always seen her true 'arch nemesis' as Ares, who in both the original and the Perez origins was the driving force behind her leaving Themyscira. He was the representative of war while she was the ambassador of peace, and as such was set up to be her true, long-term opposition.

I would find Ares much more interesting, if he was portrayed as a destructive force, who couldn't help himself.

I can even imagine what it would be like, if in the middle of a story, he would beg Diana to stop him, knowing the inevitable and result, if he where to succeed. A writer could create atmosphere of desperation and impending doom, with Wonder Woman racing against a clock to stop him.

The thing about Ares is he already knows that, if he wins, that's the end of everything. He already knows that he can never be truly victorious, which makes his ambitions rather pointless. I think a writer has to make Ares a little schizophrenic, at this point in his publishing history. Considering that we already know how a battle between the war god and Diana must finish, that might even make things interesting.

[Tzigone]

I would find Aries much more interesting, if he was betrayed as a destructive force, who couldn't help himself. I can even imagine what it would be like, if in the middle of a story, he would beg Diana to stop him, knowing the inevitable and result, if he where to succeed. A writer could create atmosphere of desperation and impending doom, with Wonder Woman racing against a clock to stop him.

I wouldn't like that. Firstly, because I'm tired to death of so-called sympathetic villains. Secondly, because it's not really consistent with his prior portrayals or with other gods (and if you portrayed him that way, then all other gods must be consistent with that portrayal/nature, too or it makes no sense). I don't want to be depressed by villains, either - I want to see heroes either triumph over them or (on rare occasion, but definitely appropriate for Diana) redeem them. And, more than that, it can never be anything but a never-ending depressing story because, as a god of war, he cannot stop being about war. Or else he dies (gods can die in Greek mythology). Then someone else suffers in his place.

I suppose the positive side of war - the aspect of fighting back to keep one's people from be conquered or destroyed - could be an interesting idea in the short term. Not sure it's compatible with the mythos, but maybe.

But I know we all have different tastes. Lot of people love tragic villains.

[Gaius]

Ares to me was at his most interesting in Rucka's first run where he was an open and proud deceiver who challenged Diana and her mission more with words as much as open conflict, similar to Batman and Ra's relationship.