Wonder Woman 1: Blood

This one had me piqued from the get-go. I think Azarello's Joker is one of the grittiest comics I've read in a while and had one of my favorite Batman lines ever in it. That being said I had no idea how he'd handle this. I was pleasantly surprised.
Basically, he creates his own new mythos and destroys (I'm sure to the chagrin of a lot of pre52 WW fans) her original, laughable origin story and replaces it with something much more interesting (which in turn leads to a great reason for her leaving the island and becoming Wonder Woman in the first place). Her personality is very strong yet caring, as she should be. The plot basically revolves around this woman that gets pregnant by a god and the other gods are trying to kill her or exploit her for power in Olympus. There is a lot of power politics mixed with Greek tragedy, ti's not merely an excuse for Wonder Woman to chop off hers (don't worry she does that too though.) Cliff Chang's art was weird at first but now I find it's iconic and fitting with the style of the comic. The violence is necessary, all the people complaining about AN AMAZON WARRIOR killing just need to really analyze that statement. The humor and wit is also surprisingly good, lots of puns, quips, etc that actually develop characters and not merely showboat the writers storytelling ability. The portrayal and character designs of the gods are nothing short of amazing, from peacock dresses, flaming candle heads, gun wielding, leviathans. Honestly, this was my favorite announcement of the new 52. (besides Aquaman of course, another title that didn't disappoint in the slightest.) I can not recommend this enough, especially to those of you who knew Wonder Woman was badass but could never prove it, Azarello's run shows why she's so awesome.

This is one of the best titles in the DC new 52 relaunch. It's a soft reboot meaning it's still basically the same character we all know and love but with some tweaks to enhance her mythology.

What they have done is focus more on the Greek mythology, but this isn't the traditional Greek gods in white togas! They look more supernatural and each of them have their own agendas. They're a godly dysfunctional family. What's great though is that their personalities are still very true to classic Greek myths as they personify aspects of nature.

This volume begins with Wonder Woman protecting a girl who sought her help. Along the way, Wonder Woman makes new discoveries about about herself, her family, and her past. There's intense action and some horror elements, but nothing our Amazon warrior princess can't handle!

To sum things up, this Wonder Woman welcomes all readers who are into superheros, mythology, and sand & sword fantasy. It explores the theme of truth, betrayal, family, and loss. It's gritty and more grounded than previous versions of the character, and it's something both male and female readers can get into!

I've never been much of a Wonder Woman reader, mostly tuning out of the character's solo series after Greg Rucka's run ended years back, and since then her series just hasn't had the kind of appeal to me that it ever had before. That being said, hearing that the Wonder Woman relaunch under DC's New 52 would be written by Brian Azzarello (100 Bullets, Loveless, Joker, Hellblazer, and many more) definitely got my attention, and the end result is the best Wonder Woman story I've read in quite some time. Under Azzarello's pen, Wonder Woman is less the princess and ambassador of peace that she was in the past, and is much more the full-fledged Amazon warrior that we all know and love. Azzarello has tapped so deeply into Greek mythology with this first storyarc that it's compulsively addictive, and the balance of the order of the Gods in the background makes it all the more page-turning, twisty, and will have you salivating for more. Combine all that with the wonderful artwork of Cliff Chiang (and to a lesser extent Tony Akins, who fills in for art duties on the final two issues of this collection) and Blood winds up being a winner. Even if you've never read Wonder Woman before, check out Azzarello's new and exciting take on the character. You'll be pleasantly surprised and glad that you did.

For the longest time, I considered Wonder Woman a character only recognized with her association with the Justice League and as icon for woman around the world and really nothing more. It's just when you talk about other top name comic characters like Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Iron Man (that's a lot of men!)...they have certain stories and aspects that make them top tier characters. WW sort of felt like she was limited in just 2 categories, because she doesn't have a laundry list of stories people know off the top of their heads or having noticeable villains (not saying she doesn't have either. George Perez, Greg Rucka, and Gail Simone's runs are all excellent arcs on WW, for example).

But I started getting into WW about a year before her New 52 reboot took affect, and I started to slowly see the appeal. The thing is WW is a progressive character that is slowly evolving as time goes on. All the different incarnations of her and she is still finding her place as a compelling character after 70 years. Yet some of those great characteristics that writers like Rucka, Simone, and Perez have made her (her Amazonian side and Greek mythology) haven't been played to the fullest...until now. Brian Azzarello looks to take WW and put her in her own version of The Odyssey, because this looks like an epic of Greek proportions.

WONDER WOMAN VOL.1: BLOOD collects issues #1-6 and begins with a young woman named Zola who whines up on WW's door asking for protection from attackers. In the heat of battle, Zola finds out she's pregnant with Zeus's unborn child from Hermes, the messenger god and that those attackers were sent from Hera, Zeus jealous wife. From this information, WW, Hermes, and Zola then have to figure out a plan to work this whole situation out while protecting the unborn. As all this is happening, an omen from Apollo regarding Zeus, king of Olympus, looks to shake the foundation of Olympus itself...and Zeus is missing. With word of this out to the gods, many of them start making plays for power among themselves for the position of ruler of Olympus.

Azzarello sets up a lot of information in a short amount of time, one that is heavy on Greek mythology, theatrics, and inspiration. Azzarello wants this to be a Greek epic, again akin to Homer's The Odyssey. There is a little of everything in this same regard: adventure, mysticism, suspense, love, desires, humor, revelations, and a whole heap of things being setup for the future to come. This is meant to be a long and arduous journey for WW that, unlike many other trades out there from the New 52, where story arcs go up to the amount of the trade collected...this story doesn't end here. It looks to be that Azzarello wants this to last awhile. So if your going to read this run, you have to start here because your probably going to get left behind later on in the continuing issues to come.

Azzarello's WW is very much like her old self, despite many WW purist think. She may not be an ambassador of peace or a princess like her old self, but she cares for life, innocents, and justice her own way...but she's more Amazon about it here. There are many variations of WW over the years and it's very difficult to strike a balance with her to make her work (as well as appeasable to fans). Azzarello's WW I think strikes that good balance of warrior and hero at the same time. So for new readers, I think you'll love her. But for old WW fans, try to set your mind into this new WW before hand.

But to be honest, the real narrative here of the new WW is the world itself and the characters that inhabit it. Again, going with the concept Homer's The Odyssey (or the epic poem of Dante in the Divine Comedy), WW is meant to be about the journey and as a loose main character in awe of her surroundings. Going from a dead forest to England and to Paradise Island, or seeing the other characters like the gods own interactions, beliefs, and own personal twisted way of showing appeasement and retribution is intriguing. Characters like Apollo, War, Strife, and Hermes are all complex beings that could be made into case studies in and of themselves. They really are that interesting to read about, and Azzarello does a wonderful job in that regard.

I have to mention the beautiful art by Cliff Chiang. Do yourself a favor and go open a tab and look up Greek art in the search engine and you'll get an idea of what Chiang's art is meant to be like. The bold thick lines and distinct color contraptions are just excellent. Chiang's WW is also beautiful without looking like a Barbie-doll figure. She's lean and mean and beautiful in-between. And Chiang's designs for the Gods are creative and have a lot of hidden innuendoes in their designs that only Chiang and Azzarello probably know and won't tell us. And a honorable mention to Tony Akins who does issues #5-6. His imitation of Chiang's is a bit of a weak spot (especially WW's face expressions), but overall he still does some wonderful shots (you have to see his Poseidon) and I don't think it affects the art narrative that bad actually.

Now I prefer to give some level of critique when I review books to try to stay subjective and fair about what I review, but I'm at a loss for what to say for I or anyone might not like or agree with (though everything is subjective regardless of bad or good review). I really enjoyed this. So instead of a negative, I will mention the new origin that's been seen as "blasphemy" from long time fans. I've already mentioned the current take on WW with older fans, and then I sort of understand the complaints regarding her new origin. Azzarello's new focus on the world itself instead of Diana and the origin is quite a bit to ask for older fans. But I personally enjoy this new origin. It makes her more grounded and more inline with a traditional Greek twist in a storyline (and it still explains her power level). But again, the story might play out well once it's all said and done down the road. But if you're an old WW fan and you can't get behind this new take, then that's your own standings and I respect it. It's just a bummer you can't get into this.

WONDER WOMAN VOL.1: BLOOD is wonderful start for new readers to look into. If your one that by all means have never picked up a single WW comic in your life, I recommend giving this a try. And if you're a fan of Diana already and are open for the challenge, and then you can add on what appears to be another great interpretation of WW. Hera, give me strength...because this looks like this is going to be a great long run.

One thing strikes me about this comic...its lack of text on all of the pages. You can read through this entire book in no time flat because there isn't all that much to actually read. The story itself isn't all that great either. Any action that takes place is short lived and Wonder Woman takes a backseat to all the uninteresting supporting cast of characters. There is also the change in Wonder Woman's origin. I don't mind change so long as it's an improvement but that's not the case here. Brian Azzarello changed who Wonder Woman fundamentally is and made her a more common place super hero who isn't special anymore. I'm also not a fan of the artwork by Cliff Chiang. I guess some like his blocky/cartoon style but it looks rather cheap to me. I also think he needs to take more classes in human anatomy because his proportions are off frequently. To top that off, his panels aren't dynamic and look rather lifeless.

Wonder Woman being my favorite DC hero, it makes me sad to say that this is my least favorite of what I've read so far in the new 52.

So, Ive always liked Wondy as a character, even though each writer writes her differently, and there are few "Great" Wondy books (The Hiketia, League of One, Rucka's, Perez's) I like this interpretation. The characterizations are great, and the large supporting cast somewhat hampers Wondy, since the focus isnt always on her, but it also improves her and finally makes her a well-rounded character. DC has seemed to always struggle with characterizing Wonder Woman. Is she a just princess? A warrior? A man's fantasy? Well, Brian Azzarello makes her a stone-cold badass that fights against greek gods, and slays monsters. The highlight of the book for me was the interpretation of the Greek gods. Ares is a man in a suit with an uncanny resemblance to Azzarello, Hermes is a bird-man, Apollo looks like a beach lounger, and poseidon is a giant fish. I was getting Sandman vibes when I see them.
The cons are that it is really decompressed, but that's just Azarello's style, and Wondy is very silent, there is little... actually I think there is no internal dialogue at all, characterizing Wondy through her actions and companions, which I think hampers her a little.
However, this book is insane and awesome.

Great script, great art. I've always liked WW as a character, but this is the first time in years I'll be anticipating this series issue-to-issue. I'm glad that Azzarello figured out that the most interesting thing about Diana is her Greek myth background.

this is a good comic book. The art is nice and the story line got me hooked. This was my first comic book and it opened a new window into what they are really like. I can't wait for the next one to come out!

Originally written 1-20-13

In a wooden house located somewhere in the woods, a young girl by the name of Zola receives a message to flee her home or be killed. She's quickly attacked and her supposed savior hands her a teleportation artifact, which lands her in the bedroom of Diana aka Wonder Woman. Diana chooses to help the girl in her situation, and in the process learns something about herself. -summary

Wonder Woman really hasn't gotten the best treatment from DC before the reboot. She had went through hell with Will Pfeiefer's short time at the helm, and even though Gail Simone did some solid work for the character, I thought she had her slight misses as well. In regards to DC's trinity, I enjoyed Wonder Woman's stories the least; with that said, at first, I wasn't exactly looking forward to her reboot in DC's New 52. My interest was eventually piqued when someone mentioned to me that it was probably the best story since The Contest. Even though I thought there was some type of exaggeration going on, I came into this book expecting a little bit of greatness. Thankfully my hopes weren't very high since I wasn't impressed at all. Written by Brian Azzarello, the man who penned The Joker, Wonder Woman Vol. 1: Blood contains issues 1 - 6.

I know about the groans when concerning Wonder Woman's tweaked origin for this reboot, and when I saw where it was going it bothered me less because there's definitely potential here. The plot begins when the girl Zola learns that she was impregnated by Zeus. Hera, the wife of Zeus, is enraged knowing that there's another bastard child out there by her husband. She sends her minions to kill the girl, in which Wonder Woman steps in and takes the girl to Paradise Island for protection. And this is where post-crisis WW fans are going to become upset, but I rather leave this for potential readers to learn on their own.

The story is bursting with potential, but like Superman - Action Comics 1, in my case at least; there appears to be too much of WW's world crammed into one sitting, with more than enough Greek Mythology thrown out there than some people will be able to bare. And in the process, although WW is pretty well developed, there really isn't too much to truly attach new readers to her unless they're just very easy to please. There are subplots and many characters that steal her thunder; saying nothing of the fact that it could have used more skillful Wonder Woman action, instead of Wonder Woman the cunning strategist. This could have actually waited or not played such a heavy role in the story so early. Most mainstream comic fans feel Batman is the only character allowed to think and plan, and I blame that on DC due to their animated series and movies in many ways portraying Wonder Woman as nothing but brawn.

Now don't get me twisted and believe that I'm saying the story is horrible. No, there's some good to be found here through some smart and even witty dialog. There's a good blend of light comedy to at least show that WW's world has something of a sense of humor. In some ways, the story reminds me a little of Greg Pak's and Fred Van Lente's Incredible Hercules run, except at this point minus the serious imagination.

I wasn't the least bit impressed with Cliff Chiang's artwork; I don't exactly think it was bad, only subpar for one of DCs big three opening series. If you take a look at Superman and Batman's artwork, and in the case of the latter, any of his New 52 books. It seems as if DC had more hopes for those two, and they already felt Wonder Woman just wasn't going to catch on. I mean hell, even Green Lantern: Sinestro boasts far superior artwork, but then again before the reboot, I would actually argue that Green Lantern had been DC's best superhero for a good while. Any way, there's some good imagination concerning the centaurs and even the leviathan that shows up later. The artwork has enough good backgrounds and Greek influenced character designs, that sets Wonder Woman's mythical fantasy world apart from Batman's crime-drama and Superman's sci-fi fantasy. The action is decent at best, and there's a small amount of gore.

There's only one thing keeping me from giving this book a lower rating, and it's the subplots setting the stage for future storylines, in which one appears to be a big deal plus the cliffhanger ending. I'm hoping that the next batch of stories build off this and deliver something truly worthy of the amazon princess. Overall, a semi-decent start that never truly bored me. For those who are new to Wonder Woman comics, I actually recommend waiting for this story to develop further before diving in, and during the wait check out some older stories that will better introduce you to Diana's world. Wonder Woman Vol 1: Gods and Mortals, Vol. 2 Challenge of the Gods, The Contest, and The Challenge of Artemis would be some nice books to start on. And as a final side note, I wouldn't recommend this book for younger girls due to some obvious sexual references.

Pros: At the very least readable

Cons: Not enough focus on the main character

I thought this revitalization of the Wonder Woman mythos was a great return to classical sources. It's still Wonder Woman but blends superhero themes with mobster movies and Greek mythology, breathing new life into a perhaps cliched title and character. Cliched no more. There's a war on among the gods, Hera is out for revenge on all of Zeus's little flings, Diana is both victim and protector. The storytelling is mature and involved, the art and style crackles with excitement and gore, and the reimagining of the Greek gods is truly original. I had never been a follower of Wonder Woman but I think this new take on her is going to attract a large new audience for a very deserving book.

J. D. Brink

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