Well that was surprising – a Wonder Woman book that was really good! Sensation Comics Volume 1 is a collection of short stories featuring Wonder Woman/Diana Prince, the most iconic female superhero of them all and, astonishingly for an anthology, there wasn’t a crap story in the mix!
I enjoyed seeing a lot of indie creators turning their hands to mainstream superhero comics for a change. Gabriel Hardman in particular blew my hair back with his artwork on the final story here. Diana accepts a mission to rescue a couple of Amazons from Apokolips and thwart a potential invasion from Darkseid. The story’s pretty cool but, man, Hardman’s art was outstanding and made the comic for me. His depiction of Apokoliptian society was industrialised and grimy, the images of its core were hellish, and I loved the way he drew Wonder Woman and Darkseid .
The story could be cleaner in its plotting as the ending is a bit tough to swallow - something is dropped down a deep pit and it takes WW several moments before she goes after it, making her catching it all the more implausible. But generally I really liked this story. I think Hardman’s a much better WW artist than David Finch, who’s currently drawing the title.
Sean E. Williams and Marguerite Sauvage’s rock’n’roll Wonder Woman was awesome and I enjoyed the cosmic corniness of Gilbert Hernandez’s story which saw Diana team up with Supergirl and Mary Marvel. His brawny WW design was brilliant too - nobody draws the ladies quite like Beto! Gail Simone and Ethan Van Sciver’s contribution sees Diana become Gotham’s temporary protector after Batman goes AWOL. It’s always fun to see how different heroes handle Batman’s rogues gallery and Diana doesn’t disappoint.
While I wasn’t as impressed with the other offerings, I didn’t dislike them either - they were just ok. Amanda Deibert and Cat Staggs’ story had a laudable message about being true to yourself, Jason Bischoff and David A. Williams took us back to Diana’s childhood, showing us the determination forming that led to her becoming the greatest of all Amazons. It was also good to see Etta Candy, Diana’s Golden Age best friend, make an appearance in the Dean Haspiel-drawn story.
Sensation Comics does a great job of showing us the many sides to Wonder Woman with some entertaining stories highlighting various aspects of her character. Though not sensational, it’s a fine read and, considering how rare good Wonder Woman books are, it’s definitely worth seeking out if you’re interested in/are a fan of the character.
Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman ,Volume 1
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