Should Wonder Woman be invulnerable to man-made bullets and other piercing weapons?

[anarki]

They could just have it that her skin is like a net with tiny holes in it because she's only half-God, and that, if the caliber's small enough, a bullet can pierce her flesh though the soft areas of her skin. But her muscles are so supernaturally dense, the bullet doesn't go through them and it just hurts really bad.

Have you read Aquaman. A bullet can pierce Aquaman's skin, but his muscles are so supernaturally dense, that it barely hurts him, only some bruise.
Do you think Aquaman's muscle density > WW's?
BTW, N52 WW is a real god now.

[brettc1]

So, what's your fictonal explanation as to why Diana can be punched in the face by Darkseid, but not tank a bullet? What's so special about bullets that are so dangerous to Amazonian physiology? How is being weak to bullets thematically or narratively relevant to Wonder Woman as a character?
Hell, a more simple one: what purpose would such a weakness serve? By your own admission, even you don't think bullets should be a threat to her. "How is she vulnerable to bullets if they never hit her?". Your words.
You're so caught up in wether or not you could have weak to bullets that you didn't even consider wether or not you should.

First, you get props for paraphrasing Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park.

Second, my personal explanation would be that bullets are weapons of war and Ares is not her patron god. She gets wisdom from Athena, not necessarily skill at arms. Which I would say is the more valuable gift for a warrior for peace.

Or if you prefer the new continuity where she is a god - the God of War would not WANT to be invulnerable to its weapons. Because to be war you must understand it, and you cannot understand war if you are indestructible. War is danger and mortality, and so the god of war must have an intimate understanding of that mortal peril.

Of course one could then say - hey, what about bombs. They are weapons of war. She should be affected by them too.

To which I would reply - they are not man to man weapons. Ares was all about the classic idea of warriors meeting in face to face combat. Rifles might not be exactly face to face these days, but are much more so than dropping a bomb or an artillery shell on somebody miles away. If a warrior is going to meet you in such honourable combat, it is only just that they have the chance, however small, to defeat you.

[anarki]

First, you get props for paraphrasing Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park.

Second, my personal explanation would be that bullets are weapons of war and Ares is not her patron god. She gets wisdom from Athena, not necessarily skill at arms. Which I would say is the more valuable gift for a warrior for peace.

Or if you prefer the new continuity where she is a god - the God of War would not WANT to be invulnerable to its weapons. Because to be war you must understand it, and you cannot understand war if you are indestructible. War is danger and mortality, and so the god of war must have an intimate understanding of that mortal peril.

Of course one could then say - hey, what about bombs. They are weapons of war. She should be affected by them too.

To which I would reply - they are not man to man weapons. Ares was all about the classic idea of warriors meeting in face to face combat. Rifles might not be exactly face to face these days, but are much more so than dropping a bomb or an artillery shell on somebody miles away. If a warrior is going to meet you in such honourable combat, it is only just that they have the chance, however small, to defeat you.

Weird idea.
But if she was capable of bulletproof,and just decided by herself not to. Then it's acceptble to me.
But, it could be valid only if it's canon. Because it's only you(maybe) came up with this idea, while most of the comic readers don't think this way. She just can't resist bullets to them.
So if it's canon, it's acceptable to me, otherwise, it's just some kind of fanfiction. Tell Meredith Finch about this.

BTW, I remember you posted a thread 'Wolverine Vs Wonder Woman', I don't want this kind of battle to happen at the first place, should be Thor Vs WW, or Ironman Vs WW, etc.

[Hawk80]

She should be invulnerable to mundane weapons.

[brettc1]

Weird idea.
But if she was capable of bulletproof,and just decided by herself not to. Then it's acceptble to me.
But, it could be valid only if it's canon. Because it's only you(maybe) came up with this idea, while most of the comic readers don't think this way. She just can't resist bullets to them.
So if it's canon, it's acceptable to me, otherwise, it's just some kind of fanfiction. Tell Meredith Finch about this.

BTW, I remember you posted a thread 'Wolverine Vs Wonder Woman', I don't want this kind of battle to happen at the first place, should be Thor Vs WW, or Ironman Vs WW, etc.

I don't think that was me

[brettc1]

They guys on facebook cast 18 votes all up for Bullets and Bracelets - two for invulnerable but use the bracelets anyway

[Silvanus]

Only with regard to how she could sense the shot coming, in the scenario where she fights the League blind Batman says she is adjusting by sensing pressure differentials in the air around her.

Now some will say "you cant do that with a bullet fired a long range"

Some might, but I wouldn't, necessarily. If the writers want to say or show that she can do that with a bullet fired at long range, I can try to suspend disbelief about that. But I would say that no writer of whom I'm aware has said or shown that she can do this with a bullet fired at long range while she is not expecting danger, or while she is asleep or incapacitated. When she fought the League blind, she knew she was in a fight (or, rather, a test) and she was making an active effort to anticipate and locate incoming attacks; but if a sniper with a telescopic lens took a shot at her from the hills while (for instance) she was distributing food to the poor and teaching Luthor about charity, would she have detected that? She woke up when Zola entered her townhouse in issue 1, but would she have been woken up by "air currents" if Zola had instead been pointing a rifle at her from a flat across the street? No writer that I'm aware of has depicted her with that kind of personal alarm system, and until it's actually presented in the comic, I can't really suspend disbelief about it. That would be not so much suspension of belief as suspension of reading, in favor of making up my own story elements--and, you know, far be it from me.

Second, my personal explanation would be that bullets are weapons of war and Ares is not her patron god. She gets wisdom from Athena, not necessarily skill at arms.

Is she invulnerable to spears? A spear was one of the attributes Athena is most often depicted with in ancient art. Anyway, I didn't think it was Athena's gift that made her durable against superstrong punches or explosions--maybe it was Hercules', or Gaea's, or a combination?By the way, what about clubs or non-spiked maces or hammers? Those aren't edged or point weapons, but they are hand-to-hand weapons; should Wonder Woman be vulnerable to them?

Or if you prefer the new continuity where she is a god - the God of War would not WANT to be invulnerable to its weapons. Because to be war you must understand it, and you cannot understand war if you are indestructible.

She's vulnerable enough to attacks by other gods, like the First Born, and other beings at her level. I don't think a modern infantry unit has to face down a group of kids with slingshots or cavemen with clubs to understand war, and I don't think gods have to be vulnerable to petty mortals weapons like ordinary guns to understand war.

See what happens when you think too much

But aren't you our resident "logic" guru? You saying we shouldn't think about comics too much is like Neil deGrasse Tyson saying we shouldn't think about astronomy too much.

[anarki]

They guys on facebook cast 18 votes all up for Bullets and Bracelets - two for invulnerable but use the bracelets anyway

Maybe they don't read comics, or don't read Wonder Woman, or haven't read WW's book for a long time.
You know Linda's version is the most popular one among non-comic readers.

I've met so many people on internet who think WW is a Captain Ameica-level character(and there's a popular DC vs Marvel video, 4,032,965 clicks, in which WW is fighting Captain America,). And many people think Wolverine or Deadpool could have a chance to defeat WW, because they just don't die, while WW is 'vunerable'.

[Dr. Poison]

Maybe they don't read comics, or don't read Wonder Woman, or haven't read WW's book for a long time.
You know Linda's version is the most popular one among non-comic readers.

I've met so many people on internet who think WW is a Captain Ameica-level character(and there's a popular DC vs Marvel video, 4,032,965 clicks, in which WW is fighting Captain America,). And many people think Wolverine or Deadpool could have a chance to defeat WW, because they just don't die, while WW is 'vunerable'.

Why would anyone, even if they only know Wonder Woman from her 70s TV series, think that she was a Captain America level character? Even in the TV show she did things that well surpassed Cap's abilities like jump from the roof of a several story building, stop a moving vehicle, and bend steel bars with her bare hands. Cap certainly couldn't do any of these things.

[anarki]

Why would anyone, even if they only know Wonder Woman from her 70s TV series, think that she was a Captain America level character? Even in the TV show she did things that well surpassed Cap's abilities like jump from the roof of a several story building, stop a moving vehicle, and bend steel bars with her bare hands. Cap certainly couldn't do any of these things.

I think he could, clike the link, from comicvine

[CarolStrick]

Wonder Woman should be kept unique. Even nuWonder Woman (blech) shouldn't be Superman with boobs. They've got Supergirl to be that.

[Aula_Magna]

This sounds more like a problem of being way too insecure over Superman comparisons than any problems in regards to how it affects Wonder Woman from a characterization and story pov. If everything you do or don't do with her is based on another character, then you're already messing up.

Further, the idea that her powers shouldn't be like Superman's doesn't seem to be uniform. I mean, I rarely see anyone having a problem with the idea she can fly, and that's more "Superman" in the public consciousness than being invulnerable to bullets. Yet I saw more people upset when we thought she might not be able to fly in this continuity. Why is bullets of all things the line? Just further shows how flawed it is to look at her through the prism of "Does this make her too much like Superman?" He was the first superhero. And to paraphrase Cartman "He has lots and lots of powers". Comparisons are going to be drawn, same for most every other superhero to come after him. If avoiding that at all costs is the sole reason behind decisions...then the decision maker needs to find some better reasons.

I think flying is a more generic superpower that people associate with superheroes but bullets bouncing off his chest, that's Superman's trademark isn't it, hence his moniker "Man of Steel". Think of it this way, there's a tipping point where the parallels between Superman and Wonder Woman just become too many so we keep the power of flight and forgo the invulnerability, because flight is less Superman-y and more advantageous to Wonder Woman. If they make her bulletproof though I'm not gonna lose my mind but I don't see why they can't give Wonder Woman something else, something more unique like the shockwave. And she needs a weakness, more weaknesses = more story possibilities.

[Aula_Magna]

Have you read Aquaman. A bullet can pierce Aquaman's skin, but his muscles are so supernaturally dense, that it barely hurts him, only some bruise.
Do you think Aquaman's muscle density > WW's?
BTW, N52 WW is a real god now.

Roughly the same I would say, I mean she's maybe a bit stronger...or he is, I don't know.

[brettc1]

Some might, but I wouldn't, necessarily. If the writers want to say or show that she can do that with a bullet fired at long range, I can try to suspend disbelief about that. But I would say that no writer of whom I'm aware has said or shown that she can do this with a bullet fired at long range while she is not expecting danger, or while she is asleep or incapacitated. When she fought the League blind, she knew she was in a fight (or, rather, a test) and she was making an active effort to anticipate and locate incoming attacks; but if a sniper with a telescopic lens took a shot at her from the hills while (for instance) she was distributing food to the poor and teaching Luthor about charity, would she have detected that? She woke up when Zola entered her townhouse in issue 1, but would she have been woken up by "air currents" if Zola had instead been pointing a rifle at her from a flat across the street? No writer that I'm aware of has depicted her with that kind of personal alarm system, and until it's actually presented in the comic, I can't really suspend disbelief about it. That would be not so much suspension of belief as suspension of reading, in favor of making up my own story elements--and, you know, far be it from me.

Asleep or incapacitated is a whole different argument. We have seen her deflect thousands of incoming energy burst in the Shattered God story, and considering each one is moving at about lightspeed her reaction time must be truly phenomenal.

Is she invulnerable to spears? A spear was one of the attributes Athena is most often depicted with in ancient art. Anyway, I didn't think it was Athena's gift that made her durable against superstrong punches or explosions--maybe it was Hercules', or Gaea's, or a combination?By the way, what about clubs or non-spiked maces or hammers? Those aren't edged or point weapons, but they are hand-to-hand weapons; should Wonder Woman be vulnerable to them?

Ares particular choice of weapons was axe and spear. In other words, cutting and piercing weapons. But a club is more like a fist.

She's vulnerable enough to attacks by other gods, like the First Born, and other beings at her level. I don't think a modern infantry unit has to face down a group of kids with slingshots or cavemen with clubs to understand war, and I don't think gods have to be vulnerable to petty mortals weapons like ordinary guns to understand war.

How often do gods fight each other to the death? Most wars are fought by mortals, who are far more easily killed than a god. Those kids with slingshots don't really understand war, and neither would the infantry soldiers if kids with slingshots was all they ever fought. Ares might have been a lot of things, but a coward does not usually feature as one of them. And there is no bravery without the risk of defeat.

But aren't you our resident "logic" guru? You saying we shouldn't think about comics too much is like Neil deGrasse Tyson saying we shouldn't think about astronomy too much.

Applying logic to things where logic simply does not apply is like trying to observe the stars through a telescope at high noon. I reserve it for character motivations and actions, and cause and effect within the story. Logical thinking about super powers might be a worthwhile exercise in discussing past precedents that have been set, but in the face of how super powers could really work it usually fails like an egg dropped into a black hole.

Like I said earlier, the Hulk's mass goes where when he transforms back to Banner? What's that Handbook of the Marvel Universe? There is a pocket reality which he accesses to draw mass into his body and then deposit back again when he shrinks down? Yeah, just forget about explaining that little quirk and write interesting stories. LOL

[brettc1]

I think he could, clike the link, from comicvine

I don't think he can hold back a tank or a jet fighter with his bare hands.