Artemis of Bana-Mighdall briefly served as Wonder Woman during Hippolyta's trials for a new Wonder Woman. Orana, a character similar to Artemis, defeated Diana in a new contest and became Wonder Woman in pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity. Orana was killed during her first mission. Others who have donned the Wonder Woman persona include Nubia, Cassandra Sandsmark, and Donna Troy.
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.
Following Pérez, William Messner-Loebs took over as writer and Mike Deodato became the artist for the title. Messner-Loebs introduced Diana's Daxamite friend Julia in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #68 during the six-issue space arc.[38][39] Messner-Loebs's most memorable contribution to the title was the introduction of the red-headed Amazon Artemis, who took over the mantle of Wonder Woman for a short time. He also included a subplot during his run in an attempt to further humanize Diana by having her work for a fictional fast food chain called "Taco Whiz".[9]
Wonder Woman's supporting characters were altered as well. In addition to the introduction of the Kapatelises, Steve Trevor was changed into an Air Force officer considerably older than Diana, thus sidestepping the traditional romance between the two. Instead, Trevor became involved with Etta Candy, a mature military officer possessing a plump physique. The Greek war god Ares and the witch Circe eventually became two of Diana's greatest enemies. Her rogues gallery included the Cheetah, a woman who could transform into a ferocious feline-humanoid creature; and the Silver Swan, a once-deformed radiation victim granted beauty, wings and deafening sonic powers through genetic engineering.[9]
Wonder Woman had its world premiere on May 15, 2017, in Shanghai. It premiered on May 25, 2017, in Los Angeles.[146] The film's London premiere, which was scheduled to take place on May 31 at the Odeon Leicester Square, was cancelled due to the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing.[147] The film had its Latin America premiere in Mexico City on May 27. It was released in most of the world, including in IMAX,[148] on June 2, 2017, after originally being scheduled for June 23.[149][150] Belgium, Singapore and South Korea received the film first, with May 31 openings.[151][152][153] On April 17, it was announced that Wonder Woman would be released in China on June 2, the same day as its North American release.[154]
Orion tells Diana that he was sent to earth to fight a threat, and surprised that the possible threat he faces is a mere child. They find out that Zola's baby is being kept with Hermes, who in turn is hiding in Demeter's realm. Going back to the hotel to regroup, they find Zola and Hera missing. Finally finding them in a bar, Diana comes face to face with War, her old master.
Not long after this, Athena sensed a dark destiny for the gods amidst the cosmic mechanations of Alexander Luthor Jr.. In the crisis created by his chaos, Diana was forced to kill Maxwell Lord, and incurred the ire of the world's public.[34] The U.S. government responded by mobilizing against Themyscira, and Diana realized that as long as she was a target, the Amazons would never be safe. Diana prayed to the gods to take the Amazons to safety, but got more than she bargained for.[35] On Olympus, she pleaded against Athena's decision to remove the gods from Earth's affairs. Regardless, the gods departed, leaving Diana bereft of family and faith.[36]
After Sekowsky's run ended in the early 1970s, Diana's roots were reverted to her old mythological ones and she wore a more modernized version of her original outfit, a predecessor to her "bathing suit" outfit.[194] Later, in 1976, her glowing white belt was turned into a yellow one.[194] For Series 3, artist Terry Dodson redrew her outfit as a strapless swimsuit.[195]
Wonder Woman's social reforms were not initially accepted by the Amazons, even if they were morally necessary. Later, she had a training session with Artemis, who urged her to accept the Amazons' worship as a goddess, but Diana refused. Unfortunately, Dessa, a fellow Amazon, kidnapped Zeke and threatened to throw him off a cliff, for she disagreed with Diana's new perspective. Diana convinced her to return the boy to Zola. Shortly afterwards, the men of Paradise Island returned to their original home, with Diana welcoming them with open arms.[44]
Sword Mastery: Wonder Woman is an extremely skilled swordswoman, with centuries of experience wielding her magical God Killer sword (and later the Sword of Athena) in many battles, including those of World War I. Thus, she managed to slash at enemy soldiers with her sword even while racing past on horseback, to instantly slice apart in mid-air a car hurled at her by Doomsday with the Sword of Athena, to later do the same to massive piece of debris hurled at her by resurrected Superman, and to sever one of Doomsday's arms during her battle with the monster, delivering wounds that would have otherwise been lethal, had it not been for the monster's incredible healing factor and adaptive evolution.
The inspiration to give Diana bracelets came from the pair of bracelets worn by Olive Byrne, creator William Moulton Marston's research assistant and lover.[5] "Wonder Woman and her sister Amazons have to wear heavy bracelets to remind them of what happens to a girl when she lets a man conquer her," quoted Marston in a 1942 interview. "The Amazons once surrendered to the charm of some handsom Greeks and what a mess they got themselves into. The Greeks put them in chains of the Hitler type, beat them, and made them work like horses in the fields. Aphrodite, goddess of love, finally freed these unhappy girls. But she laid down the rule ("Aphrodite's Law") that they must never surrender to a man for any reason. I know of no better advice to give modern day women than this rule that Aphrodite gave the Amazon girls."[206]
Preparing to get Zola back from Hades, Wonder Woman and her male companions sought out Eros in Italy. She hoped that he could lead them to Hephaestus, who might have been able to arm them appropriately for battle with the ruler of Hell. He lead them to Mount Etna, where the blacksmith agreed to arm them. As retribution for his aid, though, Hades sent a monster to kill them all, which had to be dispatched by Diana.[20] Afterwards, Hephaestus armed Diana with new weapons, insisting that she take Eros' guns of love with her to Hell.
Not even girls want to be girls so long as our feminine archetype lacks force, strength, and power. Not wanting to be girls, they don't want to be tender, submissive, peace-loving as good women are. Women's strong qualities have become despised because of their weakness. The obvious remedy is to create a feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman.
In the Gods' absence, the Amazons began to revert to clay. To justify the Olympians' return to Earth, Zeus summoned Diana and several of her friends to testify before him. It was Hippolyta who tipped the scales, however. She played a secret card which greatly swayed them. In truth, she simply reminded Ares that before her reincarnation, Hippolyta had been Ares' daughter, and thus Zeus' granddaughter. At this time, Zeus also granted strength and flight to Cassie Sandsmark.[18] Soon, Highfather of the New Gods summoned Zeus and Heracles to once gain battle Darkseid. To this end, Zeus, Odin, Ares, Jove and Highfather merged into one being and entered the Source. When cast out, Zeus was gravely injured and remained bonded to Jove. Heracles returned with him to Olympus.[19][20]
Superhuman Reflexes: Wonder Woman's speed also extends to her reflexes, even if she is not moving at super speed, because when a German soldier fired her weapon past her, she could perceive the bullet as if it were moving in slow motion. She repeatedly used this skill to deflect bullets with her Bracelets of Submission and block the blows of her opponents with ease. One hundred years later, Wonder Woman's reflexes improve further, to the point that she was able to block all of the rapid machine-gun shots of a British terrorist with her bracelets, leaving the people standing behind her unscathed. When she dropped her sword mid-battle with Parademons, Wonder Woman was able to perceive Flash super speeding towards her fallen weapon, and hence outstretched her hand while he returned the sword to her grasp. Her reflexes were not powerful enough to contend with those of Flash or resurrected Superman, however, as Superman managed to grasp Wonder Woman's Bracelets of Submission before she could clash them.
Upon becoming a super-heroine, Wonder Woman became a founding member of the Justice League. Her ambassadorial duties required her to visit Washington D.C., with army officer Steve Trevor as her liaison. When Parademons stormed Metropolis, Wonder Woman resolved to defend the city, meeting the heroes Superman, Batman, Flash, Green Lantern and Aquaman.[12] They also met the young hero Cyborg, who attempted to warn them against the evil alien conqueror Darkseid. Unfortunately, Cyborg's warnings were meaningless, as Darkseid had already arrived.[13] Although Darkseid had initially beat them without effort, Green Lantern rallied them in order to confront Darkseid as a team.[14] Wonder Woman proved crucial in Darkseid's defeat, stabbing him in one of his eyes to prevent him from using his Omega Beams. This gave Superman and Cyborg enough time to throw Darkseid back into his home-world.[15]
Born to Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, Diana lived a serene and joyful life until the intervention of Steve Trevor upon the island of Themyscira.[2] A tournament was held among the Amazons to determine the representative that would return to Man's World along with Trevor. Diana defeated the other Amazons but was tasked with the final challenge, deflecting a bullet fired from a gun by her mother. After winning the contest Diana was awarded a suit of armor and the Lasso of Truth and left for the United States,[3] though upon her arrival she was arrested and detained in a cell. Falling into despair, Diana was visited by the Gods of Olympus in their animal forms: a peacock, deer, owl, mouse, eagle, dove and tortoise, who granted her the gifts of strength, speed, endurance, empathy and flight.[4]
Would DC Comics introduce Diana's twin brother only to dispatch him so soon? And would he be defeated by Diana, after being manipulated by the Dark Gods? We would wager that Jason sees reason at some point - Diana's greatest superpower is love, compassion, and truth, after all - but anything is possible. Especially with the final splash page promising a war between gods that lives up to the name.
The JLA's first trip to the universe is where Owlman is found hacking computer systems to get the info he needs. There, the JLA fights recruits the Crime Syndicate of America has recruited. Their second trip was when Batman followed Superwoman, and defeats her. After taking out Superwoman, he calls the JLA, and alongside the JLA travels to the moon, to get to the Crime Syndicate's headquarters. From there on, every JLA'er fights against their counterparts, and Wonder Woman manages to even win against her counterpart, Superwoman.
Not long after this, Athena sensed a dark destiny for the gods amidst the cosmic mechanations of Alexander Luthor Jr.. In the crisis created by his chaos, Diana was forced to kill Maxwell Lord, and incurred the ire of the world's public.[34] The U.S. government responded by mobilizing against Themyscira, and Diana realized that as long as she was a target, the Amazons would never be safe. Diana prayed to the gods to take the Amazons to safety, but got more than she bargained for.[35] On Olympus, she pleaded against Athena's decision to remove the gods from Earth's affairs. Regardless, the gods departed, leaving Diana bereft of family and faith.[36]
John Byrne's run included a period in which Diana's mother Hippolyta served as Wonder Woman, having traveled back to the 1940s, while Diana ascended to Mount Olympus as the Goddess of Truth after being killed in issue #124. In addition, Wonder Woman's Amazon ally Nubia was re-introduced as Nu'Bia, scripted by a different author.[40] Byrne posited that Hippolyta had been the Golden Age Wonder Woman. Byrne restored the series' status quo in his last issue.[41]
In one episode, a newspaper editor named Brown, desperate to discover Wonder Woman’s past, assigns a team of reporters to chase her down; she easily escapes them. Brown, gone half mad, is committed to a hospital. Wonder Woman disguises herself as a nurse and brings him a scroll. “This parchment seems to be the history of that girl you call ‘Wonder Woman’!” she tells him. “A strange, veiled woman left it with me.” Brown leaps out of bed and races back to the city desk, where he cries out, parchment in hand, “Stop the presses! I’ve got the history of Wonder Woman!” But Wonder Woman’s secret history isn’t written on parchment. Instead, it lies buried in boxes and cabinets and drawers, in thousands of documents, housed in libraries, archives and collections spread all over the United States, including the private papers of creator Marston—papers that, before I saw them, had never before been seen by anyone outside of Marston’s family.
Siracca tells Diana how she and her mother were killed by the hands of the jealous goddess Hera. Although she was torn to shreds by Hera's fury, Zeus took pity on her and turned her into wind. The very same wind that spills secrets to Lennox. Wonder Woman share her encounter with Hera and how she so desperately needs to find Zola's child, stolen due to Hermes. Siracca attempts to help Diana in finding Hermes and the baby. She suggests meeting Milan, once again, another child of Zeus for advice. Diana treks off to New York to find him.
When a Godwave spilled forth from the creation of the Fourth World, the Earth was seeded with great power. It first manifested in the form of old gods, then of metahumans. Some of the oldest of these gods were hidden from the universe until the time of ancient Greece by the sorceress, Hecate. Hecate reasoned that the Olympian Gods (as they would eventually be called) were greatly weakened after usurping power from their father Cronus and the Titans of Myth. She feared that other powerful gods in the universe (notably Darkseid of Apokolips) would seize Earth for himself. Because of Hecate's enchantment, Darkseid wrongly believed that he and the other New Gods pre-dated the Olympians.[1][2]
Sword Mastery: Wonder Woman is an extremely skilled swordswoman, with centuries of experience wielding her magical God Killer sword (and later the Sword of Athena) in many battles, including those of World War I. Thus, she managed to slash at enemy soldiers with her sword even while racing past on horseback, to instantly slice apart in mid-air a car hurled at her by Doomsday with the Sword of Athena, to later do the same to massive piece of debris hurled at her by resurrected Superman, and to sever one of Doomsday's arms during her battle with the monster, delivering wounds that would have otherwise been lethal, had it not been for the monster's incredible healing factor and adaptive evolution.
Siracca tells Diana how she and her mother were killed by the hands of the jealous goddess Hera. Although she was torn to shreds by Hera's fury, Zeus took pity on her and turned her into wind. The very same wind that spills secrets to Lennox. Wonder Woman share her encounter with Hera and how she so desperately needs to find Zola's child, stolen due to Hermes. Siracca attempts to help Diana in finding Hermes and the baby. She suggests meeting Milan, once again, another child of Zeus for advice. Diana treks off to New York to find him.
In May 2017, early tracking had Wonder Woman opening with $65–75 million, and possibly as high as $105 million.[177][178][179][180][174] The film opened Friday, June 2, 2017, across 4,165 theaters and made $38.7 million on its opening day, including $3.7 million in IMAX. It was the biggest single-day gross for a woman-directed film, ahead of the $35.9 million opening Friday of Catherine Hardwicke's Twilight in 2008 and the biggest opening day for a woman-led comic book superhero film, ahead of Ghost in the Shell ($7 million).[181] This included $11 million it made from Thursday previews, also the best start for a film directed by a woman, surpassing Fifty Shades of Grey's $8.6 million which was directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, and the third-biggest of the year, behind Beauty and the Beast and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Of that, $1.5 million came from IMAX screenings.[182][183]
As the soldiers landed on the shore and began to open fire, several archers leaped from the cliffs. Diana watched, horrified, as a bullet fired from one of the German soldiers hit an archer, killing her almost instantly. Amazonian cavalry stormed the beach, engaging the soldiers and quickly overwhelming them. Though Trevor told her to stay back as he fought one of the German soldiers, Diana picked up a sword from a fallen Amazon and easily dispatched a soldier.
After a training session, Diana happened to come across Captain Steve Trevor during his escape from the Imperial German Army. A battle soon followed, as the Germans tracked Trevor to Themyscira, where they invaded in pursuit of Doctor Poison's notes. The loss of her aunt and realization of Mankind's downfall during the absence of the amazons convinced Diana to join the war effort, recognizing Ares as the instigator of the conflict.
The character's depiction in the New 52 has been mostly along the same lines as the remainder of her modern appearances, though as of yet much remains to be explained about her character. One development with the character in this new universe is that some of the developments which occurred during Flashpoint are occasionally referenced (such as her using London as her base of operations). In her New 52, written by Brian Azzarello, Wonder Woman's origin is that she is the daughter of Hippolyta and Zeus; no longer is she a golem of clay and earth, but an actual demigoddess.
Magic (Formerly): When she was a child, Diana was marked by the goddess Hecate and bestowed with a fraction of her magical ability.[108] This power lay dormant until it was activated by the Upside-Down Man. Zatanna remarked that Wonder Woman's magical power was unlike anything she had ever seen or felt, and Diana possessed at least enough power to cast out the Upside-Down Man, an immensely powerful demon, from the world.[109] After the Justice League Dark defeated Hecate, the Witchmarked's power was taken from them and absorbed by Circe.[110]
An immortal Amazon warrior goddess who is the crown princess of Themyscira and the daughter of Queen Hippolyta and Zeus given to the Amazons to raise, and half-sister of Ares.[12] Describing Wonder Woman and her appeal, Gadot said, "She's relatable. She has the heart of a human and is very compassionate, but her experiences—or lack of them, her naivete, really—make her interested in everything around her and able to view the world in a way that we'd all like to: with a genuine curiosity."[13] On Diana's relationship with her mother, Gadot said, "Diana is a very opinionated girl. Her mother is very opinionated. Her mother is very protective as well, and they have, you know, the very natural clash that a mother has with her daughter, with their daughters, the first time they want to leave home."[14] On taking on the role as Wonder Woman, Gadot stated, "I feel very privileged that I got the opportunity to portray such an iconic, strong female character. I adore this character and everything that she stands for and everything that she symbolizes."[15] On Diana going to the world, Gadot stated, "When Diana comes to the real world she's completely oblivious about gender and society rules, that women are not equal to men."[16] Describing Diana's relationship with her mother and aunts, Jenkins said, "She is the only child they raised together. And their love for her manifests in a different way for each of them."[17] On working with Gadot, Jenkins said, "Gal quickly became the person I wanted to talk to about everything. We'd shoot together all day. And then on weekends, we'd be like, 'What do you want to do?' That's maybe not totally normal."[18]
A stand-alone #0 issue was released in September which explored Diana's childhood and her tutelage under Ares, the God of War, now known most often as simply 'War'.[148] The issue was narrated in the style of a typical Silver Age comic book and saw Diana in her childhood years.[149] The main plot of the issue was Diana training under War as he thought of her being an extraordinary girl with immense potential. The issue ultimately concluded with Diana learning and experiencing the importance of mercy, which she first learned when War showed it to her during their sparring. This later translated into her refusal to kill the Minotaur – a task given to her by War; however, this show of mercy makes her a failure in War's eyes, which was actually his fault since he inadvertently "taught" her mercy and affection as his protege.[148][149][150] Later in the series, Wonder Woman is forced to kill War during a conflict with her evil half-brother, Zeus' son First Born, and herself becomes the God of War. After the Amazons are restored, she rules over them both as a warrior queen and God of War, as the ongoing conflict with First Born escalates. At the end of Azzarello's run, as part of a final conflict, Wonder Woman kills First Born, while Zeke is revealed to have been Zeus' plan for resurrection, with Zola revealed to have been a mortal shell for the goddess Athena, who gave birth to Zeus just as he once did to her. Wonder Woman pleads with Athena not to allow the Zola personality, whom she has grown to love as a friend, die with Athena's awakening. Athena leaves the site in animal form, leaving a stunned and confused Zola behind with Wonder Woman.[151]
Considering Bruce's offer, Diana meanwhile returns to her job as Curator for the Department of Antiquities[6] at the Louvre Museum. Bruce sends Diana a package, which contains the original, physical photograph of herself with the Wonder Men. This causes her to reminisce about her childhood, naive idealism, and all of the ensuing events of World War I. She sends a thankful e-mail. Diana then dons her Wonder Woman armor after hearing a disturbance in the distance of Paris by sailing off the roof of the museum at sunset in Paris to confront it.[3]
Siracca tells Diana how she and her mother were killed by the hands of the jealous goddess Hera. Although she was torn to shreds by Hera's fury, Zeus took pity on her and turned her into wind. The very same wind that spills secrets to Lennox. Wonder Woman share her encounter with Hera and how she so desperately needs to find Zola's child, stolen due to Hermes. Siracca attempts to help Diana in finding Hermes and the baby. She suggests meeting Milan, once again, another child of Zeus for advice. Diana treks off to New York to find him.
The debate continued with the release of Jenkins's 2017 film, Wonder Woman, which according to the BBC had "some thinking it's too feminist and others thinking it's not feminist enough".[235] Kyle Killian found an inherent contradiction in the construction of Wonder Woman as "a warrior" who, she states, is also highly sexualized. Killian thus suggests that these elements "should not be the focus of a kickass heroine—her beauty, bone structure, and sexiness—if she is to be a feminist icon".[236] Theresa Harold concurred, comparing Wonder Woman to Katniss Everdeen (of The Hunger Games), who "didn't have to wear a teenager's wet dream of a costume to fight in".[237] Christina Cauterucci also felt that Wonder Woman's ability to be considered a "feminist antidote" was undermined by her "sex appeal".[238] Other critics refer to the construction of Wonder Woman in the film as "an implausible post-feminist hero".[227][239]
The Invisible Plane was a creation of Diana's during her younger years on Paradise Island. She created it to be an improvement on her mother's planes which would be shot down in Man's World. The result of her innovation was an invisible plane that could fly at terrific speeds silently and not be detected by hostile forces. Initially, it was portrayed as being transparent.[citation needed]
Cheetah isn't the only one experiencing unexplained bouts of rage; this type of behavior is happening globally. Across the globe, thousands of people are lashing out in anger, rioting and swearing off the gods they once worshiped, all of them praising that these next gods, the Dark Gods, will be coming soon. According to Trevor, those that are affected by this rage are people whose confidence and belief in their respective gods is shaken, no matter who they are, and no matter what planet they come from.
Starting in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #51, the Amazons, who had revealed their presence to the world in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #50, are blamed for a series of murders and for the theft of various artifacts. The Amazons are then taken into custody, Queen Hippolyta is nowhere to be found and Steve Trevor is forced by General Yedziniak to attack Themyscira. These events lead to the "War of the Gods" occurring. The culprit of the murders, thefts and the framing of the Amazons is revealed to be the witch Circe, who "kills" Diana by reverting her form back into the clay she was born from. Later, Wonder Woman is brought back to life and together with Donna Troy, battles Circe and ultimately defeats her.[103][104][105][106] Circe would later return by unknown means.
During the Silver Age, under writer Robert Kanigher, Wonder Woman's origin was revamped,[33] along with other characters'. The new origin story increased the character's Hellenic and mythological roots: receiving the blessing of each deity in her crib, Diana is destined to become as "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, strong as Hercules, and swift as Hermes."[34]
The First Born imprisoned Wonder Woman in what remained of Olympus and ordered his forces to attack Themyscira. As they watched the confrontation, the First Born offered her a place in his goals of conquest, but she steadfastly refused, causing him to thrust a spike into her side.[46] As Diana lied mortally wounded, Eris dragged her to Themyscira, for she wanted Diana to see her home destroyed and humiliate her. Recovering her strength, Wonder Woman punched Eris down and took Zola and Zeke to Olympus. Her plan was to place Zeke on the throne, so that he could be the new king of Olympus and end the bloodshed, but before she could, Poseidon revealed his presence.[47]
Hermaphroditus Wonder Woman #69 (April 24, 2019) Hermaphroditus is the God of Androgyny, Sexuality, Unions, Fertility and Marriage who is based on the god of the same name. In the DC Universe, Hermaphroditus is a transgender deity with angelic wings and goes by the name "Atlantiades". He revealed that he left Mount Olympus in hopes to get away from his mother Aphrodite and decided to take refuge on earth in a neighborhood called Summergrove in Connecticut. He used his powers to influence the Summergrove residents to submit to their inner desires.
