After Crisis on Infinite Earths, George Pérez rebooted the character in 1987. She wore an outfit similar to her 1970s one, but now with a larger glowing golden belt.[194] This outfit continued until William Messner-Loebs' run, which had Diana pass on the role of Wonder Woman to Artemis.[194] No longer Wonder Woman, Diana sported a new black biker-girl outfit designed by artist Mike Deodato Jr.[194] After John Byrne took over writing and art duties, he redesigned the Wonder Woman outfit (Diana was reinstated as Wonder Woman at the end of Loebs' run) and joined the emblem and belt together.[194]
As a result of the New 52 in 2011, the entire line of DC characters was relaunched, incorporating properties belonging to the company's imprints: Wildstorm, Milestone, and Vertigo. As such, elements of this character's history have been altered in some way from the previous incarnation's. For a complete list of all versions of this character, see our disambiguation page.
Granted by Athena (Goddess of Wisdom), this gives her a degree of wisdom beyond that of most mortals and gives her a strong moral sense. Originally in the Golden Age, her wisdom primarily consisted of her deep knowledge of, and ability to navigate through, human emotions. When she first showed up in Man’s World, she learned enough English language to converse with others in a few hours only. This also aids her in her tactical ability. She is among the smartest and wisest members of the Justice League of America, along with the Martian Manhunter and Batman.
Candy helped Diana try on a great many outfits until she finally settled on one. Dissatisfied, thinking that she still looked too "distracting," Trevor gave her a pair of spectacles to wear. After they'd paid and left the store, Diana reluctantly allowed Candy to take her sword and shield back to Trevor's office while the two took Doctor Poison's notebook to the British War Council.
Wonder Woman was now a princess and emissary from Paradise Island (called Themyscira) to Patriarch's world. She possessed stunning beauty and a loving heart, gifts from the goddess Aphrodite. From Athena, she received the gift of great wisdom; from Demeter, the power and strength of the earth; from Hestia, sisterhood with fire; and from Artemis, unity with beasts and the instincts and prowess of a hunter. Finally, Diana received the gift of speed and the power of flight from the god Hermes.[9]
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.
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 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]
^ Lyons, Charles. "Suffering Sappho! A Look at the Creator & Creation of Wonder Woman". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2006. Maxwell Charles Gaines, then publisher of All-American Comics, saw the interview and offered Marston a job as an educational consultant to All-American and sister company DC Comics.
When last we left Wonder Woman #49, the battle brewing ever since DC's METAL cracked open the Multiverse seemed to be reaching its climax. With the Dark Gods playing similar roles to the Greek pantheon, but with all-powerful demands, enslaving humanity, Diana and her twin brother Jason were splitting up to oppose them around the globe. Just as they seemed to knock back their leader, King Best, the Dark Gods launch an assault on Jason.
In August 2011, the third volume of Wonder Woman was cancelled along with every other DC title as part of a line-wide relaunch following Flashpoint. The series was relaunched in September with a #1 issue written by Brian Azzarello and drawn by Cliff Chiang. Wonder Woman now sports another new costume, once again designed by Jim Lee.[60] Azzarello describes the new Wonder Woman book as being darker than the past series, even going so far as to call it a "horror" book.[61]
Diana quickly regained her sanity and was taken out of the mental hospital's care. She immediately noted the absence of Barbara and set out to locate her. However, when she arrived at Empire Enterprises, she was greeted only by Doctor Cyber.[81] Cale set Team Poison onto Wonder Woman once again, and Colonel Poison managed to shoot Diana through the chest. Diana and Steve quickly overcame their forces and followed Veronica Cale and Cheetah to a gateway that led to Themyscira. Wonder Woman and Cheetah fought, and a drop of Diana's blood fell onto the gateway which opened the portal to Ares' prison beneath Themyscira. Phobos and Deimos, whom Cale had turned into dogs with the help of Circe, entered the portal, along with Diana and Veronica Cale. Veronica found her daughter beside Ares.[82]
As Themyscira's emissary to Man's World, Diana has made it her duty to lead by example, even if the differences between her birthplace and new home sometimes present hurdles for her to jump. She has come to represent the possibility and potential of life without war, hate or violence, and she is a beacon of hope to all who find themselves in need. She stands as an equal among the most powerful Super Heroes, with a sense of purpose to protect the world from injustice in all forms.
As the men helped the Amazons prepare for battle against the First Born's army, Diana received news that the First Born had been attacking other gods' realms. With Eros and Artemis, Wonder Woman ambushed the Minotaur at Demeter's home. Unfortunately, the First Born had already defeated Demeter, so Wonder Woman sent her companions to safety while she confronted him by herself.[45]
Wonder Woman (vol. 1) #179 (Nov. 1969) showed Wonder Woman giving up her powers and returning her costume and title to her mother, in order to continue staying in Man's World. The reason behind this was that all the Amazons were shifting to another dimension, but Diana was unable to accompany them as she needed to stay behind to help Steve, who had been wrongly convicted.[92] Thus, she no longer held the title of Wonder Woman and after meeting and training under a blind martial arts mentor I-Ching, Diana resumed crime fighting as the powerless Diana Prince. She ran a mod-boutique as a business and dressed in a series of jumpsuits while fighting crime.[36][61][62][93][94] During this period, Samuel R. Delany took over scripting duties with issue #202. Delany was initially supposed to write a six-issue story arc, which would culminate in a battle over an abortion clinic, but Delany was removed reportedly due to criticism from Gloria Steinem, who, not knowing the content of the issues Delany was writing, was upset that Wonder Woman had lost her powers and was no longer wearing her traditional costume.[95]
Who are the Dark Gods, and what is it they want? We don't actually see them in the issue; the only glimpse we have of them so far is on the cover. They look mighty and regal, and they certainly look dangerous. We don't yet know where exactly they come from, but the issue's advanced solicit description does confirm that they have arrived in the wake of Dark Nights: Metal, and that they are part of new secrets of the cosmos -- secrets that have just been unveiled. Already, we have seen that they are able to affect the minds of the masses, and turn them against their own kind. And this is only the start.
In her debut in All Star Comics #8, Diana was a member of a tribe of women called the Amazons, native to Paradise Island – a secluded island set in the middle of a vast ocean. Captain Steve Trevor's plane crashes on the island and he is found alive but unconscious by Diana and fellow Amazon, and friend, Mala. Diana has him nursed back to health and falls in love with him. A competition is held amongst all the Amazons by Diana's mother, the Queen of the Amazons Hippolyta, in order to determine who is the most worthy of all the women; Hippolyta charges the winner with the responsibility of delivering Captain Steve Trevor back to Man's World and to fight for justice. Hippolyta forbids Diana from entering the competition, but she takes part nonetheless, wearing a mask to conceal her identity. She wins the competition and reveals herself, surprising Hippolyta, who ultimately accepts, and must give in to, Diana's wish to go to Man's World. She then is awarded a special uniform made by her mother for her new role as Wonder Woman and safely returns Steve Trevor to his home country.[86][87]
Pérez and Potter wrote Wonder Woman as a feminist character, and Pérez's research into Greek mythology provided Wonder Woman's world with depth and verisimilitude missing from her previous incarnation.[35][36] The incorporation of Greek gods and sharply characterized villains added a richness to Wonder Woman's Amazon heritage and set her apart from other DC heroes.[9]
^ Garcia, Joe. "The Best & Worst of DC Comics' New 52, One Year Later". Front Towards Gamer. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2012. Despite being one part of the Justice League's "Holy Trinity", Wonder Woman never seems to get the recognition that she deserves. While she might not be invincible, her strength is second only to Superman and she's arguably a better fighter. Her solo outings, however, were rarely very interesting. The New 52 put an end to that injustice, with Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang spearheading one of the best books DC is putting out. Azzarello currently has Wonder Woman tearing through the ranks of Greek mythology, and Chiang's art manages to be intense despite his use of softer lines. If you're not reading Wonder Woman, go rectify that.
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]
Marston introduced the idea to Gaines. Given the go-ahead, Marston developed Wonder Woman, whom he believed to be a model of that era's unconventional, liberated woman. Marston also drew inspiration from the bracelets worn by Olive Byrne, who lived with the couple in a polyamorous relationship.[22] Wonder Woman debuted in All Star Comics #8 (cover date Dec/Jan 1941/1942, released in October 1941),[23] scripted by Marston.
In the wake of the 1954 hearings, DC Comics removed Bender from its editorial advisory board, and the Comics Magazine Association of America adopted a new code. Under its terms, comic books could contain nothing cruel: “All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted.” There could be nothing kinky: “Illicit sex relations are neither to be hinted at nor portrayed. Violent love scenes as well as sexual abnormalities are unacceptable.” And there could be nothing unconventional: “The treatment of love-romance stories shall emphasize the value of the home and the sanctity of marriage.”
Duing the Perez run on the character, there were not as many story arcs either, but they did become more defined. Her entrance into Man’s World was to stop a global nuclear war created by Ares. She also had introduced a modern version of the Cheetah, Circe, Doctor Psycho and Silver Swan. One of the defining story arcs at this time was the Challenge of the Gods, where she discovers the truth about her own past as she journeys into the underworld. In this time as well she was a part of numerous company-wide crossovers including Millennium, Invasion and one focused on herself, the War of the Gods. The latter was Perez’s swansong on the character and with Messner Loebs taking over afterwards the direction of the character changed again somewhat. Under his direction, Diana became involved in battle factions of organized crime in Boston, and faced off against Ares Buchanan and the White Magician. This resulted in Wonder Woman being marooned in space, and returning to uncover the plot. During the events of Zero Hour a slightly different version of her origin is told, and Artemis wins the right to be Wonder Woman in another contest. This ends eventually with Diana battling the White Magician after Artemis has been killed. The John Byrne run equally was without as many defined story arcs except specifically with how her death affected others. This was also incorporated into the company wide Genesis event. Once she returned she faced a new villain known as Devastation who she battled occasionally, and she also took responsibility for Cassandra Sandsmark (who would later become Wonder Girl.) As a prominent character within the DC universe she took part in company-wide crossovers like Our Worlds at War and the Joker’s Last Laugh. When Rucka took over, some of the character's most memorable story arcs occurred, and most famously among them Stoned and the Superman story arc Sacrifice which ended in Wonder Woman #219 with her killing Maxwell Lord.
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]
Her outfit did not receive any prominent change until after the 2005–2006 Infinite Crisis storyline. Similar to her chestplate, her glowing belt was also shaped into a "W".[194] This outfit continued until issue #600 – J. Michael Straczynski's run of Wonder Woman's altered timeline changed her outfit drastically. Her outfit was redesigned by Jim Lee and included a redesigned emblem, a golden and red top, black pants, and a later discontinued blue-black jacket.[194]
Writer Gerry Conway brought Steve Trevor back to life again in issue #271 (September 1980).[16] Following Diana's renunciation of her role as Wonder Woman, a version of Steve Trevor from an undisclosed portion of the Multiverse accidentally made the transition to Earth-One. With Diana's memory erased by the Mists of Nepenthe, the new Steve again crash-landed and arrived at Paradise Island. After reclaiming the title of Wonder Woman, Diana returned to Military Intelligence, working with Trevor and re-joined by supporting characters Etta Candy and General Darnell.[9]
Wonder Woman experienced significant changes from the late 1950s through the 1960s during the Silver Age of Comic Books. Harry G. Peter was replaced by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito in issue #98 (May 1958),[6][7] and the character was revamped as were other characters in the Silver Age. In Diana's new origin story (issue #105), it is revealed that her powers are gifts from the gods. Receiving the blessing of each deity in her crib, Diana is destined to become as "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, stronger than Hercules, and swifter than Mercury". Further changes included the removal of all World War II references from Wonder Woman's origin, the changing of Hippolyta's hair color to blonde, Wonder Woman's new ability to glide on air currents, and the introduction of the rule that Paradise Island would be destroyed if a man ever set foot on it.[1]
While Superman watched out for Zod, Diana visited the deserted Themyscira to speak to her mother, still a clay statue. In her absence, a demon from Tartarus had escaped from its prison and roamed free on the island. Wonder Woman destroyed the creature and sealed the gates to Tartarus with her lasso. Leaving the island, she received word from Batman that Superman was engaging Zod and Faora in battle. Reaching Superman’s side, Wonder Woman steadily overwhelmed Faora until Zod threatened Superman’s life. Wonder Woman was forced to let the criminals go.[61]
Superhuman Strength: Diana possesses far greater strength than the finest human athletes. She kept an A.R.G.U.S aircraft from crashing by holding it up. She dispatched numerous Parademons during Darkseid's invasion and broke the Fortress of Solitude's doors down when H'el locked Superman out and took control of it. She has also managed to briefly overpower both Green Lantern and Aquaman, as well as Supergirl. She managed to defeat the goddess Artemis, as well as draw blood from The First Born.[citation needed]
Following Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wonder Woman was rebooted in 1987, by writer Greg Potter, who previously created the Jemm, Son of Saturn series for DC, was hired to rework the character. He spent several months working with editor Janice Race[28] on new concepts, before being joined by writer/artist George Pérez.[29] Inspired by John Byrne and Frank Miller's work on refashioning Superman and Batman, Pérez came in as the plotter and penciler of Wonder Woman.[30] Potter dropped out of writing the series after issue #2,[31][32] and Pérez became the sole plotter. Initially, Len Wein replaced Potter but Pérez took on the scripting as of issue #18. Mindy Newell would return to the title as scripter with issue #36 (November 1989).[33] Pérez produced 62 issues of the rebooted title. His relaunch of the character was a critical and sales success.[34]
Following the popularity of the Wonder Woman TV series (initially set during World War II), the comic book was also transposed to this era.[15] The change was made possible by the multiverse concept, which maintained that the 1970s Wonder Woman and the original 1940s version existed in two separate yet parallel worlds. A few months after the TV series changed its setting to the 1970s, the comic book returned to the contemporary timeline. Soon after, when the series was written by Jack C. Harris, Steve (Howard) Trevor was killed off yet again.[9]
Wonder Woman’s appearance in the early golden age of comics made her the first prominent female superheroine. The psychologist William Moulton Marston created Wonder Woman somewhat as a counter reaction to the presence of prominent male superheroes (at this time Superman, Batman and Captain America), as well as a counterbalance to the "blood curdling masculinity" that was dominant at the time, with the hopes that the character could serve as an inspiration for young children (though in certain ways it was geared more towards female readers.) Marston had been partially motivated to create this character because of the accomplishments of his own wife, who was also an accomplished academic at a time when it was difficult for women to fulfill this role. As a result, the first Wonder Woman series contained many complementary articles and features which sought to highlight the inner power of women. There were articles for instance on the different career paths that women could pursue (according to the standards of the 1940s) as well as a series of stories on famous and accomplished women, called the Wonder Women of History. Marston introduced the character in All-Star Comics #8 in 1941. She became the lead character in Sensation Comics in 1941, and got her first solo book in 1942.
Diana meets Barbara Ann Minerva for the first time. Minerva wants Diana's lasso and tricks Diana into believing that she has Antiope's Girdle of Gaea. Diana discovers the ruse and storms out of the house. Barbara transforms into the Cheetah and attacks Diana. Julia Kapatelis shoots Cheetah and fends her off. Diana returns to Themyscira. Zeus is infatuated with Diana and asks her for a physical communion to which Diana refuses. Angered, Zeus sends her on a mission, a "Challenge
The New 52 universe does not have a "Diana Prince" identity as stated in an interview by series writer Brian Azzarello.[67] However, when she and Superman began dating, for her civilian identity she used the Diana Prince alias whenever she was around Clark Kent; such as when she introduced herself to Lois Lane at Lois's housewarming party under that name.[68]
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]
