The Wonder of it All
So. There is a rumor going around that Wonder Woman is getting a new outfit. The boys at my beloved Comic Book Shop asked me for an opinion. It has been ALL over the blogs, AND it actually appears in the Wonder Woman #600 issue. So...having weighed the evidence before me, I suppose that it is time that I add my small voice to the cacophony of opinion.
It's...ok, I guess. My very first sight of it, was that I don't mind the black leggings, and the red top is alright. I HATE that stupid little jacket however. It seems so very pointless. She probably isn't cold, and I would think that it would be quite constricting, especially to a woman who has rarely fought while wearing sleeves.
I also am unsure whe exactly she feels the need to wear spurs. Jonah Hex, I can understand, but Wonder Woman? I mean really...spurs?
Was running around in a star-spangled bathing suit any more efficient for crime fighting? Of course not, but you do have to throw in the fact that it was awfully iconic. It's the outfit that shows up on all the lunchboxes after all.
My favorite incarnation has to be Darwyn Cooke's version, with the leather pleated skirt, and the bustier and breastpiece and tiara. It just looks FABULOUS! I am also quite fond of the white outfit with the armor that Alex Ross used. But I can live with her starry tiny blue bottoms. I have always liked the eagle shiny "W" thingie across her chest for some reason. And the boots. I've always liked the boots. There was that wonderful cover with just her booted foot on top of Batman's head, from the Hiketeaia(?) that was just so perfect. You knew EXACTLY who that was...just from the red and white boot.
Gold spurs aren't going to cut it.
So, I imagine that this little blip in her sartorial history will be just that. A blip. Until the NEXT big revamp of her comic.
I am less thrilled with the idea of throwing out ALL of her history, and having her younger, orphaned, and raised by some weird group. It just messes with too MUCH history that she shares with the rest of the DC Universe. I hated it when they threw out twenty some-odd years of continuity at Marvel, and I'm not any happier with the same prospect at DC.
I admit it. I'm an old fuddy-duddy, and dammit, I ENJOY continuity! The ability to reel off huge quantities of bizzare continuity to one's friends and family is the thing that separates the truly dedicated fan from the wannabees. It's a SKILL! A skill that needs honing! And suddenly, I am supposed to believe that none of that happened?
The first stories that were presented in Wonder Woman #600 were a nod to that history. Which makes the sudden about-face in the final JMS story so...jarring.
So, I've been enjoying the heck out of Wonder Woman. Up until now. I've been enjoying the heck out of Power Girl. Up until now. So, for the time being, I won't be picking up either book, until they get through this little hiccough. Thank goodness for Birds of Prey!
posted by SallyP @ 7:14 AM
8 Comments:
Whether this is temporary or permanent (who knows what they were really planning with the electric Superman or either time Dick was Batman), what we know through the history of altering icons is that a change needs to be subtle: tweak the shade of the color, remove the underwear from outside the pants, etc. It must remain true to its original appearance.
Why? Because it needs to be recognizable to the general populous. The torso is fine but lose the jacket. I like the idea of the pants and have thought for a long time her butt should be a little more covered but looking at only her legs (crotch down) I don't feel 'Wonder Woman'. Lose the jacket. I prefer the old bracers, don't dig the necklace and think the jacket should go. The tiara looks less weighty, so that's ok and is actually a a good change in my eyes. I miss the curly / wavy hair.
Verdict in my eyes: temporary. Sales booster.
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My problem with the outfit isn't that it's ugly, because it's not. It's rather attractive, regardless of the spurs being silly for WW and the jacket not being practical. As an outfit, it's nice. However, that's the problem. It's an outfit. It looks like her civvies, not her costume. Nothing about it says Costumed Crimefighter to me. Nothing about it makes her stand out.
She looks like she could be a martial artist. She looks more like Black Canary in a red top (Red Canary?) than Wonder Woman.
My reaction on seeing the new outfit was, "who's that?" Which is not the reaction you want for one of the most iconic characters in your collection of properties. And that is the entirety of my objection to it: it's not Wonder Woman.
-- Jack of Spades
Who is that is precisely NOT the response you want to one of the Big Three icons of Comics.
Shelly, you're absolutely right, it is a nice enough outfit, and if she wants to go clubbing, or get a milkshake, she's all set. For battling in the Justice League however...no. Just no.
Now Guy Gardner managed to carry off fighting while wearing a leather jacket, a pair of jeans and cowboy boots when he had the yellow ring, but all things considered, it didn't really last THAT long, and Guy is...well, Guy. And you'll all notice that he's back in HIS iconic duds.
This too shall pass, I am sure.
I really, REALLY think that is the dumbest looking outfit I've seen for Wonder Woman. Donna Troy, maybe. But Wonder Woman is, as you said, an Icon. He could have at LEAST nodded to her Amazon heritage. A costume change like that says, "I want MY version of her to be the one everyone sees. No one else matters because they did it wrong by not following MY vision." seen the attitude before. It didn't sound good then, either.
But, I agree. This is temporary, at best. Till then, she's just another chick in tights. I'm disappointed in JMS for thinking that was a good move. And DC for letting him.
I think that Shelly pointed out at her blog, that it looks like something she dug up out of her closet.
Nice enough I suppose, but it certainly doesn't say superhero.
It's too comtemporary. Wonder Woman is supposed to be from a culture that, for all intents and purposes, exists outside of "modern society." Putting her in this outfit is the equivalent of putting her in, say, petticoats and puffed sleeves if we were currently living at the beginning of the 20th century intead of the 21st. Her original look was timeless. It needs to be kept that way.
Her appearance isn't the problem. It's how she's been WRITTEN that's the problem. If the writers really want her background to be tied with classical mythology, it might do them some good to actually READ classical mythology (the REAL stuff, not Margaret Hamilton or "Percy Jackson" or "God of War") and then tailor Wonder Woman's stories to suit.
Here's my problem with the jacket-leather jacket, rolled up sleeves over superhero togs, um, when did Wonder Woman join the 1990's Avengers?
Sheeesh!
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