Wonder Woman 12

Today, Patrick and Peter are discussing Wonder Woman 12, originally released August 15th, 2012.

Patrick: One of the biggest strengths of Brain Azzarello’s Wonder Woman is the richness of its details. The gods are reinvented for comics and the resultant designs are full of specifics that delight by their own virtue. It’s not uncommon in this series to meet a new character or a new creature just because it’s going to be really really really cool. I took Demeter’s introduction last month to be one of those knock-me-down detail-fests that I love so much, but that was shortsighted of me. In any other narrative, introducing a character at this stage in the game would automatically foreshadow that character’s involvement in the conclusion of the story. It turns out that was the case here, but I was too suckered by the writing to see the authorial gears grinding away behind it. That’s awesome.

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Wonder Woman 11

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Wonder Woman 11, originally released July 18th, 2012.

Patrick: Drew! It has been ages since you and I wrote about this series together. Last month, we had help from guest-writer (and voice of our Cram Sessions), Siri Hellerman. Otherwise, Shelby usually gets in on writing about Wonder Woman, and we’re thrilled to get that female perspective. It’s by pure random chance that you and I selected the butchest issue of Wonder Woman yet to review. Thankfully, the more action-heavy tone didn’t overpower the series’ usual style, cleverness and depth.
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Wonder Woman 10

Today, Drew and (special guest writer) Siri Hellerman are discussing Wonder Woman 10, originally released June 20th, 2012.

Drew: Fantasy is always going to have an exposition problem. It’s hard enough establishing who everyone is and what their motivations are elegantly without having to explain the rules of various magics or the politics between various races. This is especially true of myths, where the stories are often distilled down to their essence, such that any details (which could otherwise be written off as just adding color) bears obvious narrative significance, as if Chekov himself were pointing them out for you. Brian Azzarello manages to side-step this issue both by relying on pre-esstablished myths (voiding any need for exposition), and by mirthfully keeping us in the dark regarding much of those telling details. Continue reading

Wonder Woman 9

Today, Shelby and Drew are discussing Wonder Woman 9, originally released May 16th, 2012.

Shelby: I love weddings. I love Greek mythology. I love comic books. I think I even love Brian Azzarello. Wonder Woman 9 has all of these things: therefore, I love it.

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Wonder Woman 8

Today, Patrick and Shelby are discussing Wonder Woman 8, originally released April 18th, 2012.

Patrick: Last month, we were promised a trip to Hell. Given all the characters in-play in Wonder Woman, I foolishly assumed we’d get something of an Orpheus story. But that assumption proved too narrow and too literal: Brian Azzarello may have been given license to explicitly alter the Wonder Woman mythos, but he takes the same liberties with Greek mythology. The result is a trippy adventure through the underworld that is recognizably epic (in both the traditional and modern sense of the word) and wholly, boldly new.
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Wonder Woman 7

Today, Shelby and Drew are discussing Wonder Woman 7, originally released March 21st, 2012.

Shelby: The Greek gods were the comic book superheroes of the ancient world. They are depicted in prose and art. Their stories were used to teach lessons and explain the world, and were filled with action, drama, and intrigue. They have convoluted origin stories and multiple lines of continuity. Is it really any wonder Brian Azzarello has tapped into this rich vein of golden characters to tell Wonder Woman’s latest adventure?
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