Review – Legend of Wonder Woman #1 (DC Comics)

Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: Renae De Liz
Artist: Renae De Liz, Ray Dillon
Release Date: 13th January, 2016

Wonder Woman is the character of the DC trinity I know the least about, aside from her adventures with the Justice League in comics and hazy recollections of the Lynda Carter TV show from the 1970s. With ‘Dawn of Justice’ and a subsequent solo movie set to bring the character to the fore once again, this latest series from DC has arrived at a good time, providing an opportunity to get to know Princess Diana of Themyscira a little better beforehand.

Set long before before the ‘Aegis of Athena’ and the ‘Lariat of Hestia’, the series is a ‘Year One’ of sorts, exploring the formative years of the character, with this opening issue initially focussing on Diana’s mother Hippolyta, the creation of Themyscria, and of course, the birth of Diana. Renae De Liz quickly draws obvious parallels between mother and daughter, in terms of both art and story, casting both women as powerful, headstrong, and driven by a greater destiny. Where Hippolyta disobeyed the Gods in her desire to conceive, Diana disobeys her mother to begin study of combat, and the similarities in how these key events unfold hint at an unseen orchestrator.

Dialogue and narration is written in a grandiose, classical manner, but not so as to be impenetrable, lending just enough dramatic weight to proceedings. This extends to the artwork, which has a lavish ‘Hollywood Epic’ vibe to it. De Liz hooks you into the story with a superb opening sequence, using swirling clouds as panel gutters, and closes the issue out by demonstrating a fine line in creature design with a menagerie of wonderful beasts on display. Characters are cute, but given a strong defined line by Ray Dillon, and the opulence of De Liz’s rendering of Themyscira is suitably conveyed in striking visuals bathed in Dillon’s vivid, radiant colours.

‘Legend of Wonder Woman’ steps back though the mists of time and myth to explore the woman behind the wonder, and provides the perfect jumping-on point for new readers.

Rating: 4/5.