Written by: Greg Rucka
Art by: Liam Sharp & Laura Martin
Publisher: DC Comics
Writing superheroes is not an easy task–in no small part due to fans like myself, who have certain expectations of their favorite characters. Meeting reader expectations without your book feeling derivative is especially difficult.
None of the above applies to Wonder Woman.
What has consistently impressed me about Rucka’s time writing Wonder Woman is how innately he seems to understand her. As with most superheroes, there’s far more depth to her than is initially evident. In Wonder Woman #9, Rucka focuses heavily on her character traits. The issue does play into the larger Lies story arc, but it’s more a collection of character moments than anything else.
Now, despite my love for character moments, that’s not inherently a good thing. Books that collect character moments run the risk of feeling like random filler and often fail to advance the story. In some cases, character moments don’t even advance the characters. Fortunately, this is not a trap that Wonder Woman #9 falls into. Sure, there are some parts (like the climax of the mall scene) that are just good moments, but the rest of the book serves to push the plot forward, leaving us with quite the cliffhanger.
We also get a few questions answered, and I finally realized that the book is actually building off Rucka’s previous run on the character. I’m not sure what that means for those who haven’t read it–I don’t think the impact will be huge, but then again, my perspective is skewed.
Perhaps more importantly, there was some real movement on the character dynamics front in this issue. Without delving too far into spoiler territory, the Diana/Steve relationship gets advanced. Rucka handles it deftly. All of the dialogue just works in the scenes they share.
All that being said, the writing is not without its issues. After spending four (great) issues in the jungle, wrapping up this arc in the next issue seems a bit abrupt. Rucka hasn’t delved into the meat of it quite as much as I would like. That said, I think it’s more than fair to reserve judgement until we see where the book actually goes. For now, however, it is a point of concern for me.
I’m also not sure that I’m entirely on board with the direction they’re going with Barbara. As I’ve said many times before, I love how Rucka has used her in this arc. After years of her being little more than “Wonder Woman’s nemesis” to me, Rucka has succeeded in transforming her into a character I really like. That said, I kind of assumed there would be a little more follow up based on the way issue #7 ended. Again, that could still be coming.
As per usual, Liam Sharp and Laura Martin do an outstanding job bringing the book to life on a visual level. There are definitely a few panels here and there that feel kind of off, but they’re few and far between. They also don’t necessarily look bad, but mediocre art stands out a lot more when surrounded by visuals as well crafted as the rest of the book. To be honest, considering the two consecutive pages of massive crowds that Sharp had to draw for this issue, I’m more than willing to forgive a few lapses.
Look, Wonder Woman #9 is yet another fantastic entry into the series. If you’re reading any Rebirth book, it should be this one. Hands down. It’s not particularly close.
