Alright, time to jump in for some more Rebirth and see what shenanigans DC are up to this week!
Wonder Woman Rebirth #1 literally starts with Diana being reborn over and over again which is kinda amusing. THE STORY KEEPS CHANGING says Diana (and DC Fans the world over) - and we’re off!
Greg Rucka begins his run by drawing a firm line under what went before. Is Diana Ares, the God of War? Nuh-uh! How about her New 52 outfit? So over! Because you know, what better way to start than by flipping off the previous character/storyline that emerged from Brian Azzarello/Cliff Chiang’s well-received run (the less said about Meredith/David Finch’s run the better!)? Ach, I know, it’s a new start, etc. still I can see more than a few fans not feeling great about that choice.
So we know who she is NOW but what about her past and what happened to the other versions of her? And that’s the story of the first two arcs. Why two? Because Rucka’s going to do two alternating storylines with Wonder Woman #1 uncovering the mysteries of her present and Wonder Woman #2 revealing the secrets of her past and continuing in that manner - that won’t get confusing!
I know it’s set up to be a jumping-on point for new readers but it could’ve been a more exciting issue. Rucka gives us a workmanlike retelling of Diana’s various origins and has her do something conventionally heroic: rescuing innocent women who’re being exploited for their bodies by evil men, booo! I like that she went all Indiana Jones with her lasso though!
Besides setting up her character we find out things are rotten in the state of Olympus - but what’s going on?! There’s no hint of it here but if you’ve read DC Universe Rebirth #1 (or follow comics news) you might know who’s behind all the hubbub.
It’s basically an entire issue with one idea behind it: something’s up in Wonder Woman’s world and she’s a-gonna find out what it is. Feels very slight and kinda pointless, like this could’ve been covered in a two or three page prologue in the main series #1 - until you see the 17 pages of ads and then you see why DC dunit! That said, the splash page tribute to Darwyn Cooke, who passed away last month, was very sweet.
The art is DC house style - slick but ordinary and unexciting - though it’s impressive that with three pencillers (Matthew Clark, Jeremy Colwell and Liam Sharp) there’s a uniformity to the visuals throughout.
Did Wonder Woman Rebirth #1 set up the new Wonder Woman series well? Yeah sort of, though I expect the next #1 will provide a summary that’ll render this issue redundant. Was it a fun read? Not really. Did it make me want to pick up the series proper? Nope! Good job, Greg Rucka/DC!
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