She asked him who he was, but before he could answer, the two noticed several boats coming through the island's forcefield. Steve noted that he was one of the good guys and the people on the boats—Germans—were bad guys. Having noticed the invading ships, the Amazons quickly gathered on the cliffs above the beach. Hippolyta ordered Trevor to move away from Diana, but forgot about him as the German soldiers began to come closer to shore. She took command of her army, ordering the archers to fire on the boats. Diana and Trevor took cover behind boulders on the beach.
Wonder Woman has been the subject of a discussion regarding the appearance and representation of female power in general, and of female action heroes in particular[225] since her initial 1941 appearance in Sensation Comics,[225] as she was created to document "the growth in the power of women", while wearing "a golden tiara, a red bustier, blue underpants and knee-high, red leather boots."[226] She was blacklisted a year later in 1942 in the "Publications Disapproved for Youth" because, the group behind the list argued, she was "not sufficiently dressed".[226][227]
Wonder Woman's origin story relates that she was sculpted from clay by her mother Queen Hippolyta and was given a life to live as an Amazon, along with superhuman powers as gifts by the Greek gods. In recent years, DC changed her background with the retcon that she is the daughter of Zeus and Hippolyta, jointly raised by her mother and her aunts Antiope and Menalippe. The character has changed in depiction over the decades, including briefly losing her powers entirely in the late 1960s; by the 1980s, artist George Perez gave her an atheltic look and emphasized her Amazonian heritage.[11][12] She possesses an arsenal of advanced technology, including the Lasso of Truth, a pair of indestructible bracelets, a tiara which serves as a projectile, and, in older stories, a range of devices based on Amazon technology.
In London, a small group of reactionary terrorists took over the Old Bailey courthouse, taking several hostages including a school field trip. Diana storms the building, using the Lasso of Hestia to compel one of the terrorists to tell her their plans. He reveals that their leader has a bomb powerful enough to destroy several city blocks while the world media watches. Diana takes out the terrorists and neutralizes the bomb. The terrorist leader then tries to kill the hostages with a gun, but Diana protects the hostages by deflecting bullets with her bracelets.[8]
Wonder Woman is the most popular female comic-book superhero of all time. Aside from Superman and Batman, no other comic-book character has lasted as long. Generations of girls have carried their sandwiches to school in Wonder Woman lunchboxes. Like every other superhero, Wonder Woman has a secret identity. Unlike every other superhero, she also has a secret history.
After the departure of Thomas in 1983, Dan Mishkin took over the writing. Mishkin and Colan reintroduced the character Circe to the rogues gallery of Wonder Woman's adversaries.[24] Don Heck replaced Colan as artist as of issue #306 (Aug. 1983) but sales of the title continued to decline.[25] Shortly after Mishkin's departure in 1985 – including a three-issue run by Mindy Newell and a never-published revamp by Steve Gerber[26] – the series ended with issue #329 (February 1986). Written by Gerry Conway, the final issue depicted Wonder Woman's marriage to Steve Trevor.[9]
Carolyn Cocca has stated that Wonder Woman possesses a "duality of character" due to the character possessing both feminine and masculine qualities in her physical abilities and attitude, which Cocca felt made her more appealing to a wide audience.[224] Wonder Woman's first female editor, Karen Berger, claimed that, "Wonder Woman [is] a great role model to young women, but also contains many elements that appeal to males as well. Wonder Woman crosses the gender line.".[224] Berger worked with George Pérez on the new issues of Wonder Woman starting in 1987, and the new Diana "works with friends and allies to teach lessons of peace and equality."[225]
Coming to America for the first time, Wonder Woman comes upon a wailing army nurse. Inquiring about her state, she finds that the nurse wanted to leave for South America with her fiancé but was unable due to shortage of money. As both of them looked identical and Wonder Woman needed a job and a valid identity to look after Steve (who was admitted in the same army hospital), she gives her the money she had earned earlier to help her go to her fiancé in exchange for her credentials. The nurse reveals her name as Diana Prince, and thus, Wonder Woman's secret identity was created, and she began working as a nurse in the army.[59][88]
Master Combatant: Wonder Woman, having been trained in combat tactics by Menalippe and Antiope, is a tremendously skilled, fierce, and formidable hand-to-hand combatant (being at least on par with Batman[9]), a master of a vast array of unique Amazonian martial arts, as well as an expert in most types of melee weapons (though she most frequently uses her bracelets, lasso, sword, and even shield). She has centuries of combat experience, with her claiming to have fought and defeated several beings from "other worlds" (which includes even the fearsome God of War Ares himself). Wonder Woman swiftly became the greatest warrior of Themyscira, her tremendous combat skills eventually becoming enough to rival even those of her mentor Antiope and ultimately surpassing her upon acquiring full potential, due to the latter (upon Hippolyta's insistence) training her much harder than any Amazon ever before her. Hence, Wonder Woman defeated the notorious Slipknot with effortless ease,[7] as well as many World War I soldiers (she defeated and killed even the enhanced General Ludendorff relatively quickly), and numerous Parademons single-handedly, seamlessly incorporating hand-to-hand combat, sword-fighting with the God Killer (and later with the Sword of Athena), and the Lasso of Hestia in her own personalized, formidable style. Indeed, Wonder Woman's tremendous skill and exceptionally versatile style make her capable of effectively holding her own against either more experienced or more powerful opponents, even the mighty God of War Ares (albeit only with considerable effort and initial failure, given his superior combat experience, and her need to use a non-violent mindset), the New God Steppenwolf, an enraged resurrected Superman, and the gigantic Doomsday, with her managing to temporarily knock the latter fearsome monster down (by smashing his feet from under him with her shield), and even temporarily restrain him with her Lasso of Hestia, as well as cut off his right arm with the Sword of Athena. Indeed, had Doomsday not had his incredibly adaptable healing factor, it is safe to assume that Wonder Woman's tremendous combat skills would have allowed her to ultimately defeat him. Moreover, even when Wonder Woman's sword was destroyed by Ares, she still held her own against the more powerful Old God. However, although she put up a considerable fight, Wonder Woman was ultimately fairly quickly defeated by the resurrected Superman, and was only saved by Lois Lane's timely intervention.
Veronica Cale employed the toxicologist Colonel Poison, who led Team Poison, a team that attempted to capture Diana and Steve. In order to protect Diana in her vulnerable state, Steve had her admitted to a mental hospital in London.[79] Team Poison continued to pursue Steve, Barbara and Commander Etta Candy, however. Barbara, who had been a member of Godwatch when she was Cheetah, decided to speak to Veronica herself. Cale and Doctor Cyber showed Barbara footage of Team Poison, who were about to kill her friends, and Barbara agreed to become Cheetah again in exchange for Veronica calling off the team and sparing their lives.[80]
