I've realized something else from reading pre-Crisis Wonder Woman. I'm actually really fond of the Invisible Jet. It was really prominent in the Golden Age stories, and they didn't get rid of it until the Perez reboot when she got flight. To this day, it is still one of the most recognizable elements of her franchise. I've gotten guys from the office across the hall coming over to ask me to explain the Invisible Jet.
It was a really neat addition. It allowed her to do aerial rescues hanging from a rope ladder and she basically used it like Batman uses the batplane. It gave her a communications and tech base where-ever in the world she went. It let her easily transport large groups of people without looking silly. (Yeah, she and Superman can carry a bus, but it looks odd.) And it was something that Steve, Etta, and Hippolyta could all fly in case she needed help.
It served a really good purpose in the origin story as a way to transport Steve back from the island. (In fact, questions about the Invisible Jet are my excuse to recount Wonder Woman's origin story.) I think I've written before about how I cringe at the idea of someone with multiple injuries being carried from the Bermuda Triangle to Boston in someone's arms, after all. Diana's an expert carrier, and I love that she carts Steve all over the place in some of these stories but I really think a long trip would be better with him strapped into a stretcher.
But it had to go, because the Perez reboot got rid of the idea that the Amazons were a technologically advanced civilization. Instead, they spent 3000 years with no technological breakthroughs, despite never having had a Dark Ages, being inclined to academic pursuits and having the uninterrupted wisdom of the Ancient World at their fingertips. Oh, and being followers of Athena.
Still, that's being dumped slowly but surely. Byrne gave us kind of the Invisible Jet, only to have someone later take it away. And the Purple Ray has been referenced. The Amazon Library, when it shows, is freaking amazing and I think Harbinger set up that tech but it's there. Really, we need some equivalent of Paula and Tonia back on the island, researching science day in and day out for the Amazons.
We might get that. (Probably with Greek names.) As much as fans are clinging to the Perez reboot as the definitive origin still, a revision is coming. Infinite Crisis changed the timeline already. Odyssey and Flashpoint will give them any excuses they want. I think, with the news of the TV show and his inclusion in the last animated movie, it's not a stretch to suspect we're getting Steve back (fingers crossed we'll be keeping old Steve as a father or uncle to him.) I have my doubts about the jet, though.
But man, I liked it. And I think they could get away with it. It'd establish the Amazons as technologically advanced again. They could explain her using it by having her flight power develop more slowly, even just having it be a gift from her accomplishments in the first story. I am annoyed/enraged with the JMS story arc, but I don't think a revised origin story where she starts off with the basic strength/speed/invulnerability and slowly gains her other gifts through a trial by fire in Man's World would be a terrible thing.
I'm sure that the current talent at DC is more than capable of turning it into a terrible thing, but I wouldn't say it's inherently a bad idea.
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Saturday, March 05, 2011
They should play up the princess angle in Wonder Woman more often.
As long as I'm on about the supporting cast of Wonder Woman, there's one female character I really wish they'd add to it.
Ystina from Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight.
Can you imagine the effect Diana would have on someone like her? She's a young woman from an ancient Celtic society who hid her gender in order to become a warrior. (I believe the Queen's shown in armor in a flashback, but with Ystina's actions I think that's a strangeness.) Diana is female warrior of incredible prowess from a society of female warriors.
Not only that, Diana is an honest-to-gods Princess (with really impressive gold armor) and Ystina's a knight without a liege. There's no reason someone of Arthurian values and virtues wouldn't imprint on Wonder Woman and pledge their sword to her forever. Can you imagine Ystina exclaiming that she sees the light of Camelot in Diana's words and actions, then dramatically kneeling and holding her sword up to Diana to offer it in her service? This is a scene just waiting to happen.
On Diana's side, she would certainly understand coming from a warrior culture and finding yourself adjusting to the 21st Century USA. She's experienced this sort of culture shock before. As a warrior from an idealistic monarchy she'd understand many of Ystina's expectations. (But not so many that we wouldn't have some interesting confusion and disagreement between the two.) She'd be a fine mentor in addition to a liegelady, and she'd be that much needed emotional support for Ystina.
Of course, that might just be my fixation on Arthurian legends imprinting on Wonder Woman. Hippolyta, to me, seems very much a King Arthur figure. She's a great warrior in a leadership position, and she varies in her morality and alignment according to whatever point the writer wants to make. Phillipus is clearly Sir Kay the Seneschal, but the badass one of the early Welsh stories rather than the guy who got unhorsed by everyone in the Mallory books. Diana's our questing prince/princess/knight. She's out righting wrongs and spreading the Queen's justice in the wild lawless lands.
Really, the pre-Crisis adventures read a bit like those old romances. (And not just with the strange attitude towards characterization and logic.) You have the Knight and the lady who needs his help in those. They travel for a while and he solves her problem, having adventures along the way. Steve Trevor's like the lady who starts the quest. His career in military intelligence makes him the center of all sorts of problems, especially during the war when he was in constant danger of spies seeking information, and he will either seek out help from the Princess of the Amazons or by lucky coincidence be found and rescued by her. He's not just someone who tags along to be protected, he's either the initiator or the object of the quest. Just like the damsel in the old stories, who often accompanied the questing knight like Steve accompanies Diana.
Hell, the Amazons actually had a tournament to decide who would get the honor to escort him home. And that's the one time I absolutely want them to establish he's awake on the island (I wasn't too happy with movie-Steve being so active on Themiscyra, it seemed off to me), during the Tournament. I want someone to do that scene with Steve sitting in a little chair (with his feet on that gold rug they used Pre-Crisis to avoid activating the curse) by Hippolyta's side, anxiously watching the tournament.
That's right, just like Guinevere.
Not only that, I want him to give Diana a scrap of parachute material or his tie to carry during the tournament like ladies gave knights their scarves or sleeves. Any writer who did this I would love forever.
Since they aged and put Steve aside, Diana's been kind of like Gawain. She often has an opposite-sex companion on her quests, and it's a different person every writer. The Knight errant impression is still very strong to me post-Crisis. That's probably the nature of superheroes, though. They're a modern continuation of the same idea as the old Arthurian romances.
Except I think it's a bit stronger with Diana than fully modern-world heroes, because she's a traveling princess from an enchanted land over the sea. A traveling princess who rescues dudes in distress. From an enchanted land where they have tournaments over who can escort a man home.
Yeah. Ystina could be comfortable in this franchise.
Ystina from Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight.
Can you imagine the effect Diana would have on someone like her? She's a young woman from an ancient Celtic society who hid her gender in order to become a warrior. (I believe the Queen's shown in armor in a flashback, but with Ystina's actions I think that's a strangeness.) Diana is female warrior of incredible prowess from a society of female warriors.
Not only that, Diana is an honest-to-gods Princess (with really impressive gold armor) and Ystina's a knight without a liege. There's no reason someone of Arthurian values and virtues wouldn't imprint on Wonder Woman and pledge their sword to her forever. Can you imagine Ystina exclaiming that she sees the light of Camelot in Diana's words and actions, then dramatically kneeling and holding her sword up to Diana to offer it in her service? This is a scene just waiting to happen.
On Diana's side, she would certainly understand coming from a warrior culture and finding yourself adjusting to the 21st Century USA. She's experienced this sort of culture shock before. As a warrior from an idealistic monarchy she'd understand many of Ystina's expectations. (But not so many that we wouldn't have some interesting confusion and disagreement between the two.) She'd be a fine mentor in addition to a liegelady, and she'd be that much needed emotional support for Ystina.
Of course, that might just be my fixation on Arthurian legends imprinting on Wonder Woman. Hippolyta, to me, seems very much a King Arthur figure. She's a great warrior in a leadership position, and she varies in her morality and alignment according to whatever point the writer wants to make. Phillipus is clearly Sir Kay the Seneschal, but the badass one of the early Welsh stories rather than the guy who got unhorsed by everyone in the Mallory books. Diana's our questing prince/princess/knight. She's out righting wrongs and spreading the Queen's justice in the wild lawless lands.
Really, the pre-Crisis adventures read a bit like those old romances. (And not just with the strange attitude towards characterization and logic.) You have the Knight and the lady who needs his help in those. They travel for a while and he solves her problem, having adventures along the way. Steve Trevor's like the lady who starts the quest. His career in military intelligence makes him the center of all sorts of problems, especially during the war when he was in constant danger of spies seeking information, and he will either seek out help from the Princess of the Amazons or by lucky coincidence be found and rescued by her. He's not just someone who tags along to be protected, he's either the initiator or the object of the quest. Just like the damsel in the old stories, who often accompanied the questing knight like Steve accompanies Diana.
Hell, the Amazons actually had a tournament to decide who would get the honor to escort him home. And that's the one time I absolutely want them to establish he's awake on the island (I wasn't too happy with movie-Steve being so active on Themiscyra, it seemed off to me), during the Tournament. I want someone to do that scene with Steve sitting in a little chair (with his feet on that gold rug they used Pre-Crisis to avoid activating the curse) by Hippolyta's side, anxiously watching the tournament.
That's right, just like Guinevere.
Not only that, I want him to give Diana a scrap of parachute material or his tie to carry during the tournament like ladies gave knights their scarves or sleeves. Any writer who did this I would love forever.
Since they aged and put Steve aside, Diana's been kind of like Gawain. She often has an opposite-sex companion on her quests, and it's a different person every writer. The Knight errant impression is still very strong to me post-Crisis. That's probably the nature of superheroes, though. They're a modern continuation of the same idea as the old Arthurian romances.
Except I think it's a bit stronger with Diana than fully modern-world heroes, because she's a traveling princess from an enchanted land over the sea. A traveling princess who rescues dudes in distress. From an enchanted land where they have tournaments over who can escort a man home.
Yeah. Ystina could be comfortable in this franchise.
Friday, March 04, 2011
The casting continues
They went ahead and cast the first male, Pedro Pascal as Ed Indelicato. So far, I don't know ANY of these actors but I like the characters they've chosen.
I'm always glad to see more Ed, actually. We don't get to see him too often because the Wonder Woman franchise has Rooster Syndrome. You have a lot of female characters usually only get one male character that's notable and active. And that character will be pushed to the side when they bring in another male character. Since they took Steve (still my all-time favorite rooster) off the board as the main love interest we've had a rotating Rooster chair. A lot of these guys (Mike Schorr, Trevor Barnes) didn't work for me. Others like older Steve, Micah, and Nemesis were pretty enjoyable. (Achilles I thought had the most potential, but they erased his timeline.)
So far my favorite post-Crisis rooster has been Ed. He's cynical, cranky, macho, and nurses a crush on Diana that will never develop into anything substantial between them. As a foil for Diana, he's got a lot of potential and I think he's been underused so that writers can focus on their own pet roosters. When Byrne moved them out of Boston, Ed got put on the shelf.
I actually saw him the the Ghost Annual (Annual #7) before I ever saw him in the Perez run. He was the viewpoint character. I liked his voice, it was that hardboiled down-on-his-luck cop stereotype. The narration underscored the effect she has on people, to hear this sort of guy go on about her idealism and energy. There was a moment when he gave her good news so she picked him up and twirled him around.
It freaks him out. I've kind of loved Ed ever since.
ETA: This show won't have rooster syndrome. They just cast a familiar face as another of the male characters. Still waiting on the Steve pick, though.
I'm always glad to see more Ed, actually. We don't get to see him too often because the Wonder Woman franchise has Rooster Syndrome. You have a lot of female characters usually only get one male character that's notable and active. And that character will be pushed to the side when they bring in another male character. Since they took Steve (still my all-time favorite rooster) off the board as the main love interest we've had a rotating Rooster chair. A lot of these guys (Mike Schorr, Trevor Barnes) didn't work for me. Others like older Steve, Micah, and Nemesis were pretty enjoyable. (Achilles I thought had the most potential, but they erased his timeline.)
So far my favorite post-Crisis rooster has been Ed. He's cynical, cranky, macho, and nurses a crush on Diana that will never develop into anything substantial between them. As a foil for Diana, he's got a lot of potential and I think he's been underused so that writers can focus on their own pet roosters. When Byrne moved them out of Boston, Ed got put on the shelf.
I actually saw him the the Ghost Annual (Annual #7) before I ever saw him in the Perez run. He was the viewpoint character. I liked his voice, it was that hardboiled down-on-his-luck cop stereotype. The narration underscored the effect she has on people, to hear this sort of guy go on about her idealism and energy. There was a moment when he gave her good news so she picked him up and twirled him around.
It freaks him out. I've kind of loved Ed ever since.
ETA: This show won't have rooster syndrome. They just cast a familiar face as another of the male characters. Still waiting on the Steve pick, though.
Thursday, March 03, 2011
More Wonder Woman Casting
And we have a Veronica Cale. This is really happening.
ETA: And an Etta Candy. Watch the Steve casting choice leak while I'm asleep tonight.
ETA: And an Etta Candy. Watch the Steve casting choice leak while I'm asleep tonight.
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
You can always go home, but you can never go back.
My current obsession with Pre-Crisis Wonder Woman hasn't shifted my buying habits back to DC it seems. I have Avengers Academy, Heroes for Hire, and Captain America and the Falcon on my order this week.
That's pretty much the problem with DC's supposed Silver Age nostalgia. As much as they attempt to bring back the past setting, they're missing the spark. Here I am, a genuine Silver Age lover in the middle of a full-blown Silver Age Wonder Woman obsession and I have all Marvel on my list. For all their resurrections and realignments... I'm reading the reprints.
That's pretty much the problem with DC's supposed Silver Age nostalgia. As much as they attempt to bring back the past setting, they're missing the spark. Here I am, a genuine Silver Age lover in the middle of a full-blown Silver Age Wonder Woman obsession and I have all Marvel on my list. For all their resurrections and realignments... I'm reading the reprints.
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Yeah, it's unnecessary.
DC Women Kicking Ass:
You might be surprised to hear this, because I rant about the Perez reboot and fervently wish they'd bring back her pre-Crisis male love interest, but DCW is right. There is nothing wrong with Wonder Woman. There is no reason we can't read great stories with the setup Perez gave her. I rave more about Marston and Kanigher reprints but I enjoyed the hell out of the Rucka and Simone runs. And as cheesy as the Byrne run was, it was still a blast. I liked reading Perez's stuff. I liked the William Messner-Loebs stuff. I.. Phil Jimenez had some okay moments.
And you know when I had the most fun with these writers? Not when they were tearing up the mythos (I am still super-pissed at Jiminez for offing Hippolyta and Perez for offing Hermes and removing so many pre-Crisis elements that worked), but when they were building the mythos. She does not need to be redefined all the time. There's plenty to write with there (Hell, I've got three different ways off the top of my head to bring back Steve and not change a damned thing about Diana's current setting--Yes, that's right, we can bring back love interest Steve and keep older Steve too if they get their heads out of their asses for once and remember they're writing a comic book) and plenty to work with. The strength of the stories relies on the skill of the writer, not something that's broken in her setup. If all your writer can do is raze the setting and start from scratch, find a new fucking writer.
"But it doesn't SELL" they whine. Yeah, because they don't ever push it like they do the crap that does. Because they don't aim it at women, the original intended audience for Wonder Woman.
Oh the bright side, it looks like they've wised up a bit. I don't know if I fully trust a variant, but it looks promising, doesn't it?
I am opposed to a new costume being part of the “Something is wrong with Wonder Woman” theme that I heard last year. As I said a few weeks ago on the 3 Chicks cast, “the only thing wrong with Wonder Woman is that they keep trying to fix her.”
You might be surprised to hear this, because I rant about the Perez reboot and fervently wish they'd bring back her pre-Crisis male love interest, but DCW is right. There is nothing wrong with Wonder Woman. There is no reason we can't read great stories with the setup Perez gave her. I rave more about Marston and Kanigher reprints but I enjoyed the hell out of the Rucka and Simone runs. And as cheesy as the Byrne run was, it was still a blast. I liked reading Perez's stuff. I liked the William Messner-Loebs stuff. I.. Phil Jimenez had some okay moments.
And you know when I had the most fun with these writers? Not when they were tearing up the mythos (I am still super-pissed at Jiminez for offing Hippolyta and Perez for offing Hermes and removing so many pre-Crisis elements that worked), but when they were building the mythos. She does not need to be redefined all the time. There's plenty to write with there (Hell, I've got three different ways off the top of my head to bring back Steve and not change a damned thing about Diana's current setting--Yes, that's right, we can bring back love interest Steve and keep older Steve too if they get their heads out of their asses for once and remember they're writing a comic book) and plenty to work with. The strength of the stories relies on the skill of the writer, not something that's broken in her setup. If all your writer can do is raze the setting and start from scratch, find a new fucking writer.
"But it doesn't SELL" they whine. Yeah, because they don't ever push it like they do the crap that does. Because they don't aim it at women, the original intended audience for Wonder Woman.
Oh the bright side, it looks like they've wised up a bit. I don't know if I fully trust a variant, but it looks promising, doesn't it?
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