I'm a hard sell on Wonder Woman in general, as I don't have a built-in fondness for a character or much knowledge of her supporting cast and history. So I find that although I'm quite enthusiastic about this creative team's run, I haven't yet been wowed by an issue, as I'd been hoping, and I'm a little wary of the fairly mundane take they have on such a powerhouse character, which is focused more on politics and everyday life than super-powers, reminding me of what you might see from a Smallville-type television take on Wonder Woman. That said, though, we're only two issues in, and while I'm hoping we'll see a little bit of action and costumes sooner rather than later, a series where Wonder Woman is overtly political and reads like the kind of thing you'd see in a well-written dramatic TV series is certainly more exciting to me than most of what I've seen in the book so far.
Rucka's approach is to touch on the mythological and larger-than-life super-hero aspects of Diana's life, but it almost seems to be a case of treating them as she might see them, as sort of everyday occurrences without much of the magic. Thus we get two of the Greek gods, looking not unlike mere mortals and discussing Diana's book. We get scenes where Diana teases her cook, or chats with a friend, or signs books. That her cook is a minotaur, her friend is an Amazon with some sort of curse about weapons making and her book signing is attended by members of the Teen Titans and JLA is little more than a splash of color. The focus is on sort of real, down-to-earth character interaction and stuff that is abnormal because it's celebrity behavior but not because it's in the super-hero realm.
There are upsides and downsides to this, of course. The big upside is that these characters feel real to me, and I really am reminded of well-done television drama here rather than comic-book storytelling. There's a lot of emphasis on issues that are near and dear to my heart, like "family first" hypocrites and sleazy corporate types who seek to bring down someone who only wants to do something good, and it does look like Rucka is going to tread on some controversial political ground with this series. I have a feeling that the right wing contingent may quickly decide that they hate this comic, and those who didn't like Winick bringing some real-life issues into the DC universe probably won't like what Rucka is doing either. Myself, I find that the introduction of real-world politics into super-heroes, if done intelligently, can be interesting, although it does risk putting off a sizable chunk of an already niche audience.
I'd be more happy about it if there was a sense that Wonder Woman is going to continue to be a super-hero as well as a public celebrity and political figure. In the first issue by this creative team, the action was off-stage, but it was there. This issue, Wonder Woman doesn't appear in costume and she never once uses her powers. It actually works fine in this issue, but I can see growing tired of stories where Wonder Woman's formidable powers aren't being put to use as much as her impressive presence and intelligence. With the creepy appearance by Dr. Psycho in this issue, though, I'm betting that super-heroics are just around the corner.
Rucka and Johnson have an impressive ability to make the low-key events of this issue absolutely fascinating. Johnson's design for Dr. Psycho makes him seem very dangerous despite his tiny stature, and he gives Diana a regal presence even in normal clothes, which bodes well for when we see her in action. If they can blend this excellent, well-written character development and exploration of real world politics with some of the familiar tropes of super-hero comics like action and super-villains, they may yet turn me into a Wonder Woman fan.
