article

Wonder Woman is a fictional DC Comics superheroine. Co-created by William Moulton Marston with his wife Elizabeth (Sadie) Holloway Marston, Wonder Woman first appeared in All Star Comics #8 (Dec. 1941). She is one of the first female superheroes and arguably the most famous.

In most adaptations, Wonder Woman is Princess Diana of the Amazon warrior tribe of Greek mythology. "Diana" is the Roman name for the Greek goddess on whom this character is based; "Artemis" is her Greek name. The Amazon ambassador to the larger world, she possesses several superhuman abilities and gifts from the Greek gods including the Lasso of Truth created from the Golden Girdle of Gaea and indestructible silver bracelets formed from the shield Aegis. For several years she was described, in the splash page of each story, as being "beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, swifter than Mercury and stronger than Hercules." She is also a member of the Justice League.

Marston designed the character Wonder Woman as a distinctly feminist character and many subsequent writers, especially those of the 1970s and afterward, have written her as such.

Outside the comic book community, she is known for the popular 1975–79 television adaptation starring Lynda Carter. Wonder Woman was also featured in the 1970s and '80s animated series Super Friends and the Justice League animated series in the 2000s.

History

Her origin and creator

William Moulton Marston was an educational consultant in 1940 for Detective Comics, Inc. (now DC Comics). Marston saw that the DC line was filled with such übermensch images as those of Green Lantern, Batman, and its flagship character, Superman. In response, Marston created a super female hero to serve as a role model for girls, and introduced the idea to Max Gaines, co-founder with Jack Liebowitz of All-American Publications. Given the go-ahead, Marston developed Wonder Woman with his wife, Elizabeth (Sadie) Holloway Marston, who served as the partial model for that era's unconventional liberated woman. Another inspiration was found in Olive Byrne, an equally unconventional individual, who lived with the couple in a polygamous/polyamorous relationship. Marston used a pseudonym that combined his own middle name with Gaines' middle name to devise Charles Moulton.

Marston was also the creator of the systolic blood-pressure test, which led to the creation of the polygraph (lie detector). From this work, Marston had been convinced that women were more honest and reliable than men, and could work faster and more accurately. During his lifetime, Marston championed the causes of women of the day.

In a 1943 issue of The American Scholar, Marston said:

Early days

In December 1941, Wonder Woman made her debut in All Star Comics #8. Following this exposure in the second largest selling comic in DC's line, she was featured in Sensation Comics #1 (January 1942), and six months later in her own self-titled book (Summer 1942), making her the first super-heroine to have her own comic book. Until his passing in 1947, Dr. Marston wrote all of Wonder Woman's appearances. Artist H.G. Peter (previously best known for his Gibson Girl illustrations) drew the book, giving it a simplistic but identifiable "female" style that contrasted with other super-hero comic books of the day.

Armed with her bulletproof bracelets, magic lasso, and her Amazonian training, Wonder Woman was the archetype of the perfect woman from the mind of her creator, Dr. Marston. She was beautiful, intelligent, strong, but still possessed a soft side. At that time, her powers came from "Amazon concentration," not as a gift from the gods.

Wonder Woman's "magic lasso" was supposedly forged from the Magic Girdle of Aphrodite, which Queen Hippolyta (Wonder Woman's mother) was bequeathed by the Goddess. To make the lasso, the god Hephaestus had borrowed the Olympian belt, removed links from it, and forged the magic lasso from it. It was unbreakable, infinitely stretchable, and could make all who are encircled obey the commands of the wielder, most notably to tell the truth.

In Wonder Woman's origin story, an intelligence officer in the United States Army named Steve Trevor crashed his plane on Paradise Island, the isolated homeland of the Amazons. He was nursed back to health with a "Purple Ray" by the Amazon princess Diana, who fell in love with him. When the goddess Aphrodite declared that it was time for an Amazon to travel to "Man's World" and fight the evil of the Nazis, a tournament was held to determine who was to be the Amazon champion. Although she was forbidden by her mother, Queen Hippolyte, to participate in the tournament, Princess Diana did so nevertheless by using a mask. After winning the tournament and revealing her true identity, Queen Hippolyte relented and allowed her daughter to become Wonder Woman. Diana brought Steve Trevor back to the outside world, and she soon adopted the secret identity of nurse Diana Prince (by taking the place of her exact double by that name) in order to be close to him as he recovered from his injuries. After he recovered, Steve Trevor became Wonder Woman's crimefighting partner and romantic interest. Wonder Woman was also aided by the Holiday Girls (led by the Rubenesque, sweets-addicted Etta Candy), who were a sorority that would help Wonder Woman in a time of emergency, or vice versa. Based partly on comedian Hugh Herbert, Etta was the only member of the Holliday Girls who stood out, with her distinctive figure and propensity for saying "Woo-woo" all the time, and was — after Steve Trevor and Diana herself — the most lasting character in the series.

Images of men putting women into bondage commonly appeared on the covers of Sensation Comics and Wonder Woman from 1942 to 1947. In Wonder Woman issue #3, it is Wonder Woman herself who takes the dominant side, tying other women up, and, in one memorable scene, dressing them up in deer outfits and chasing them through the forest, only to tie them up later and display them on a platter. This subtle, yet identifiable, sexual subtext to the book has been noted by comic book historians, who have debated whether it was an outlet for Dr. Marston's own sexual fantasies (recent biographies indicate that he was an avid practitioner of bondage); or whether it was meant (unconsciously or otherwise) to appeal to, and possibly influence, the developing sexuality of young readers.

During this same early period, Wonder Woman joined the Justice Society of America as its first female member. The Justice Society was the first super-team, featured in All Star Comics, and times being what they were, Wonder Woman, despite being one of the most powerful members, was the group's secretary.

From her inception, Wonder Woman was not out to just stop criminals, but to reform them. On a small island off Paradise Island was Transformation Island, a rehabilitation complex created by the Amazons to house and reform criminals. A large concept in his concept of Wonder Woman was one of "loving submission," in which one would be kind to others and be willing to surrender to them out of agape. This has often been parodied as male criminals being so enamored with her beauty that they surrender to enjoy her company however briefly in some fashion.

After Marston

In 1947, William Moulton Marston died, leaving Wonder Woman to be written by Robert Kanigher. While H.G. Peter still illustrated the stories, Wonder Woman became less of a feminist and more of a traditional American heroine. Peter remained on the title through #97, when the elderly artist was fired. Peter died soon afterward.

In later stories, her abilities expanded. Her earrings gave her air to breathe in outer space, her "invisible plane" (originally a propeller driven fighter that looked like either a P-40 Warhawk or P-51 Mustang, but soon upgraded to a jet aircraft, given that era's level of aviation technology progress) was given an origin, her tiara was found to be an unbreakable boomerang, and a two-way wrist radio like Dick Tracy's was installed in one of her bracelets allowing her to communicate with Paradise Island.

Dr. Wertham and the Silver Age

In 1954, Dr. Frederic Wertham wrote his controversial book Seduction of the Innocent, which expounded on his anti-comic book views, and is seen by many comic book historians as the death of the Golden Age of Comics. Facing likely government censorship, the comic book industry established the Comics Code Authority. In the era of the Code, Wonder Woman no longer spoke out as a feminist, and was left to moon over Steve Trevor, and as time wore into the Silver Age, she also fell for Merman and Birdman.

Wonder Woman experienced many changes through the mid-1950s and throughout the 1960s. With the replacement of artist Harry G. Peter with Ross Andru and Mike Esposito in 1958, Wonder Woman's origin was revamped, with her powers instead being derived from a combination of the Greek and Roman deities. In retrospect, this point (specifically issue #98 of the first series) is generally considered to be the point where Earth-1 Wonder Woman stories begin. (See Multiverse.)

In the 1960s, regular scripter Robert Kanigher adapted gimmicks which had worked for Superman under the editorship of Mort Weisinger. As with Superboy, Wonder Woman's "untold" career as the teenage Wonder Girl was chronicled. Then followed Wonder Tot, in which the infant Amazon princess in her star-spangled jumper went on improbable adventures with a genie she'd rescued from an abandoned treasure chest. The next step for Kanigher was to team all three ages of Wonder Woman in what were labeled "Impossible Tales", with her mother, Hippolyta joining in the adventures as "Wonder Queen".

Writer Bob Haney — apparently unaware that Wonder Girl was not a separate character — included her in his new team the Teen Titans, consisting of sidekicks Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, and, joining shortly thereafter, Speedy. Some years later, an origin was provided in which Wonder Girl was revealed to be Donna Troy, an orphan that Wonder Woman saved and given super powers by the Amazons' healing Purple Ray. Post-Crisis, however, with the elimination of Diana's Silver Age career, it would be stated that Donna Troy received her powers from the Titans of Myth, although years later, when John Byrne took over the title, a story revealed that Donna had originally been born as a magically created twin and biological sister of Diana, only to be captured by the villainess Dark Angel and be reborn in the body that would meet Diana years later.

The Diana Prince era and the Bronze Age

1970s
At the end of the 1960s, Wonder Woman surrendered her powers to remain in "Man's World" (partly to assist Steve Trevor, who was facing criminal charges) rather than accompany her fellow Amazons into another dimension so they could "restore their magick."

Now a mod boutique owner, the powerless Diana Prince soon came under the wing of a Chinese mentor known as I Ching. Under I Ching's guidance, Diana was trained to use her body as a weapon, learning martial arts and weapons skills, and proceeded to undertake secret agent-style adventures.

The new format of the comic book was strongly influenced by the Emma Peel era of the then-popular British spy series The Avengers. It also bore some similarities to the later TV series Kung Fu, with Diana being an inexperienced student to I Ching's master. Diana Prince also resembled the golden age Black Canary, who ran a flower shop by day, fought crime by night, and had a detective boyfriend, while Diana Prince ran a boutique, fought crime, and had private detective allies in Tim Trench and Jonny Double. Soon after the "new" Wonder Woman began, the editors removed one-by-one her connections to the superhero world, most notably killing off Steve Trevor (though the character would later be revived). One exception was a one-on-one confrontation with Catwoman.

This period of the comic book has its supporters and its detractors. Some critics welcomed the change from campy super-heroics to more serious, "topical" storytelling in the wake of the Batman TV series. Others felt that the comic had abandoned its history. Storylines included secret agent-style plots, as well as some occult tales. One controversial cover showed Diana Prince brandishing a machine gun and firing at an airplane; contrary to the traditional depiction of Wonder Woman, the updated version of Diana Prince was not against killing in order to defend herself or others.

The revised series attracted some writers not normally associated with comic books, most notably science fiction author Samuel R. Delany, who wrote two issues.

This storyline lasted for some five years, with Wonder Woman finally being restored to her powers and costume in 1973 with issue # 204. Part of the credit for the revival of Wonder Woman as a superhero was due to a campaign in which feminist Gloria Steinem — who was offended to see the most famous female superhero depowered — had a hand. The 1972 first issue of Steinem's Ms. Magazine featured Wonder Woman in her 1940s costume on the cover, and contained an essay in appreciation of the character. Ironically, the change in format was originally an acknowledgement of the Women's liberation movement. The I Ching era, despite the controversy, would continue to resonate for some years to come, both in the comic book and in live action adaptations of Wonder Woman a few years later. The 1974 Cathy Lee Crosby telefilm and the three seasons of Lynda Carter's popular series (see below), would borrow heavily from the characterization of Diana Prince in the early 1970s.

The return of the "original" Wonder Woman to the comic books was executed by the returning writer-editor Robert Kanigher. He would stay on for the next year, mostly relying on rewritten and redrawn stories from the Golden Age. Following that, a major two-year story arc (largely written by Martin Pasko) consisted of the heroine's attempt to be readmitted to the Justice League of America, the organization she had quit after giving up her powers. To prove her worthiness to rejoin the JLA, Wonder Woman voluntarily underwent 12 "trials" (analogous to the 12 labors of Hercules), each of which was monitored in secret by a different member of the JLA. Towards the end of this era, Steve Trevor was brought back to life by Aphrodite. He adopted the identity of the brunette Steve Howard, and worked alongside Diana Prince (now knowing her true identity) at the United Nations.

Wonder Woman had barely won readmittance to the JLA when DC Comics ordered another format change. The popularity of the Wonder Woman TV series, which was initially set during World War II, resulted in DC setting the comic book in this era as well (this was made possible due to DC Comics' multiverse concept, which maintained that the 1970s Wonder Woman and the 1940s original version lived on two separate, yet parallel, worlds: The 1970s version on "Earth-1," and the 1940s version on "Earth-2"). A few months after the TV series changed its setting to the 1970s, the comic book returned to Earth-1. Soon after, when the series was written by Jack C. Harris, Steve (Howard) Trevor was killed off yet again.

1980s
Wonder Woman fought a series of "epic" battles through the 1970s and early-mid 1980s. Yet despite some fine stories, the series never sold well. In 1980, under the pen of Gerry Conway, Steve Trevor was effectively brought back to life a second time. After a dispirited Diana gave up her title (temporarily, it turned out), a version of Steve Trevor from another, undisclosed portion of the Multiverse accidentally crossed into Earth-1. This effectively amounted to a mini-revamp. With Diana's memory wiped out by the Mists of Nepenthe, the new Steve again crash-landed off Paradise Island. After once again reclaiming the title of Wonder Woman, she returned with Steve as Diana Prince to Military Intelligence, with classic supporting characters Etta Candy (now in Military Intelligence, and also Diana's roommate) and General Darnell back in the cast.

In the special preview in DC Comics Presents #41 January 1982, with writer Roy Thomas and penciller Gene Colan on board, Wonder Woman acquired a new symbol on her bodice, a stylized "W," to replace the eagle. A new villainess was introduced, the Silver Swan, who would return in various incarnations over the next two decades. After the departure of Thomas in 1982, Dan Mishkin took over writing chores. Mishkin wrote Diana with more confidence than had been seen in years, and stories often took surprising and challenging turns. Yet sales contintued to decline, perhaps owing in part to the unpoular artwork of Don Heck. Shortly after Mishkin's departure in 1985 (and a 3-issue run by Mindy Newell), the series ended with issue # 329, dated February 1986. In the final issue, penned by Gerry Conway, following a battle involving the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor finally marry. Yet due to external events, this marriage was to be short-lived.

Wonder Woman was thought to have been slain during Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1986. But in reality, she had been thrown backwards through time, devolving back into the clay from which she had been formed (and in one of the great comic book retcons, erasing all existing continuity in the process.) Thus setting the stage for her revamping.

Before the second series began, a four-part miniseries was released by Kurt Busiek and Trina Robbins called The Legend of Wonder Woman. The series paid homage to the character's Golden Age roots, though it seemed to be set in the dying Earth-1 (i.e. Silver or Bronze Age) continuity.

Post-Crisis

1987 reboot

Post-Crisis, Wonder Woman was rebooted in 1987. Writer Greg Potter, who previously created the Jemm, Son of Saturn series for DC, was hired to rework the character. He spent several months behind the scenes working with editor Janice Race on new concepts before being joined by writer/artist George Pérez. Potter dropped out of writing the series after issue #2, and Perez became the sole plotter with help from writer Len Wein, who wrote the series' finished dialogue.

Consistent with the better runs of the character, Pérez and Potter gave her a pro-woman personality, and Perez's extensive research into Greek mythology seemed to give more depth and verisimilitude to Wonder Woman's world than in her previous incarnation. The consistent incorporation of Greek gods and villains helped to better define Wonder Woman, added a richness to her Amazon heritage and set Wonder Woman apart from other DC powerhouse heroes.

In her new incarnation, Wonder Woman was Diana, a princess and an emissary from Paradise Island (called Themyscira) to Patriarch's world (read: man's world). She possessed incredibly stunning beauty, a gift from the goddess Aphrodite. From Athena, she received the gift of wisdom; from Demeter, the power and strength of the earth; from Hestia, sisterhood with fire; and from Artemis, unity with beasts and the instincts and prowess of a hunter. Finally, from the god Hermes, she received the gift of speed and the power of flight.

Wonder Woman did not keep her identity a secret, and she was not at first a "superheroine." Indeed, her character was in many ways that of a babe in the woods, innocent and without guile. Diana spoke only Themyscirian, a variation of ancient Greek. She had to learn English when she arrived in America, rather than knowing the language intuitively. Nonetheless, Diana was trained as a warrior and had no compunction against using deadly force when called for. Through Pérez's tenure on the book, Diana dealt with war, injustice, inequality, death, and conflicts involving the Olympian Gods.

The supporting characters of the comic were altered as well. For instance, Steve Trevor was changed into an Air Force officer considerably older than Diana's apparent age, thus sidestepping the traditional romance between the two. Instead, Trevor became involved with Etta Candy, who herself became a mature military officer of good standing and a large, but realistic physique. The Greek war god Ares and the Greek witch Circe eventually were written to become two of Diana's greatest enemies. Diana's enemy list also included the Cheetah a woman who could transform into a powerful and ferocious feline-humanoid creature, and the Silver Swan, a once deformed radiation victim granted beauty, wings and deafening sonic powers through genetic engineering.

Wonder Woman fans were generally enthusiastic about the changes Pérez made to the character. Many fans and critics consider Perez's 60-issue run to be the definitive version of the Amazon champion, the first to establish her as a complex and rich character. But some feel the new incarnation was too idealized and less relatable. Humanizing elements such as her Diana Prince alter-ego and romance with Steve Trevor were gone, and some feel the "ambassador" concept was poorly defined. Others think these changes added much-needed grandeur and resonance to DC's premier female hero.

Post-Perez

After Pérez left the series, other writers and artists tried to follow in his footsteps, with varying degrees of success. William Messner-Loebs wrote the character respectfully and the series sold well, but the artwork done by Mike Deodato portrayed the Amazon in skimpy outfits and sexualized poses, which drew criticism from feminists, and also portrayed all the Amazons (with the exception of Phillipus) as exclusively Caucasian — including Euboea, who was already established during Perez's run as being of Asian descent. His most remembered contribution to the title though was the introduction of the red-headed Amazon Artemis, who eventually took over the title of Wonder Woman for a short time. John Byrne later tried a "back to basics" approach with mixed reviews, including a period with Diana's mother Hippolyta as Wonder Woman. It was during this period that her old Amazon ally Nubia was re-introduced as the newly renamed Nu'Bia. Nu'Bia first appears in Wonder Woman vol. 2 Annual #8 (1999).

Phil Jimenez produced a run which was likened in some ways to Pérez's, particularly since Jimenez' art bears a striking resemblance to his.

After Jimenez's absence the title was briefly written by comic veteran Walt Simonson. During his brief stint on the comic he paid homage to the white jumpsuit Diana, having her powerless for the first half of his run. Once Simonson's storyline was over the writing on the series was passed on to Greg Rucka, whose initial story arc involved a book Wonder Woman had written which caused controversy. The initial arc was full of political subtexts, but the trail end of his storylines revolved mostly around mythology. One of the main changes he provided the comic with was an alternate view on the Greek and Egyptian gods. Instead of the classic toga-wearing and desert dressed deities he modernized them with brief cases, lap tops, designer clothing and modern hairstyles. In addition he altered the already established heiarchy of the gods according to modern belief and practices. As such he dethroned Zeus and Hades, replacing them with Athena and Ares as rulers of the Gods and underworld. As the new ruler over all, Athena placed Wonder Woman to be her personal champion and most honored above all. While some greeted the changes as a fresh look at old characters, others did not take well to the changes, especially the mass slaughter of Amazons on Themyscira.

Infinite Crisis

Wonder Woman took a dark turn during 2005, particularly in the final portion of the four part "Sacrifice" storyline, one of the major lead-ins to Infinite Crisis. Issue #219 of the current Wonder Woman title ("Sacrifice," Part 4) ended with Diana breaking the long-standing do-not-kill code of DC superheroes. While under the mind control of Maxwell Lord, Superman brutally beat Batman and engaged in a vicious fight with Wonder Woman, thinking she was his enemy Doomsday. During the fight with Superman, she realized that even if she could somehow beat Superman the problem would not be solved, because he'd still be under the absolute mental control of Max Lord. She created a diversion that lasted long enough for her to race back to Max Lord and demand he tell her how to free Superman of his control. Bound in her lasso of truth Max replied, "Kill me," and Wonder Woman snapped his neck. (See The OMAC Project for more about this storyline.)

The ramifications of this action are expected to resonate in the future; her relationships with both Superman and Batman are seriously strained. (The cover of #220 shows Wonder Woman being arrested by police; however, no such event actually occurs within the issue itself. Wonder Woman voluntarily surrendered to the authorities in issue #222.) The status of Wonder Woman amongst the other heroes and the public at large is uncertain; in the final pages of The OMAC Project, the Brother Eye satellite (the deranged Artificial Intelligence controlling the OMACs) broadcast the footage of Wonder Woman murdering Maxwell Lord, preceded by the word MURDER, to media outlets all over the world.

This isn't the first time Wonder Woman has been shown "crossing the line." In Mark Waid and Alex Ross's mini-series Kingdom Come, Wonder Woman is also shown taking a life, albeit in battle and directly in order to save the life of another. However, it should be noted that Kingdom Come takes place in an alternate reality's future, and is therefore not canonical.

In Issue #221, Wonder Woman defended herself from several OMACs who attacked her in her own home. Having repelled the assailants, she was delivering an injured boy to the hospital at the close of the issue and saw a broadcast of the damaging video on the waiting room's television. She witnessed first-hand how people viewing the footage reacted with fear and revulsion; Brother Eye had managed to kill the faith the world had in her. At the start of Infinite Crisis, Batman and Superman distrust her: the latter can only see her as a coldblooded murderer, the former sees in her an expression of the mentality that led several members of the League to decide to mindwipe their villains. (When he tried to stop the League from mindwiping Dr. Light after the villain brutally raped Sue Dibny, Batman's memory was also altered.)

To make matters worse, in Infinite Crisis #2 Brother Eye, acting out of vengeance for the murder of Lord, initiated the final protocol Truth and Justice which aims at the elimination of all Amazons. A full-scale invasion of Themyscira is set into motion, utilizing every remaining OMAC. Diana and her countrywomen, now isolated and alienated from the outside world, are fighting for their lives. In Infinite Crisis #3, the Amazons prepare to destroy the OMACs with a powerful new weapon. However, Wonder Woman realizes that Brother Eye is watching and transmitting, and that unleashing such destructive violence would only exacerbate the effects of her killing of Maxwell Lord. After the weapon (the Purple Ray of Death) is used once, Wonder Woman convinces the Amazons to shut it down. She then calls upon Athena, who transports Paradise Island and the Amazons remaining on it to another dimension. Wonder Woman chose not to join them, and was left to face the OMACs alone. It was shown the departure of the Greek gods had a detrimental effect on the powers of the new Wonder Girl, Cassandra Sandsmark, but the affect it had on Diana, if any, was not revealed.

In Infinite Crisis #5, as Diana is forcefully breaking up a riot in Boston, she is interrupted by a woman she initially believes is Queen Hippolyta. However, the intruder identifies herself as the Earth-2 Wonder Woman, Diana Prince, who has voluntarily left Mount Olympus in order to provide Diana with vital information and guidance. She advises her Post-Crisis counterpart to be "the one thing you haven't been for a very long time... human," and, more importantly, strongly urges Diana to intervene in the fight between the Modern Age Superman and Kal-L. Having left her version of Mount Olympus, and with her gods' blessings gone, Diana Prince then seemingly faded away.

After the end of the Crisis, the history of Earth is left modified again as a result of the reality shifting involved in the chaos, and it has been noted that Wonder Woman is again, as in the Silver Age, a founding member of the Justice League.

Wonder Woman (volume 2) was among several titles which were cancelled near the conclusion of the Infinite Crisis storyline. Issue #226, released in February 2006, was the final issue.

One Year Later

In conjunction with DC's One Year Later event, the third Wonder Woman comic series was launched with a new #1 issue on June 7, 2006, featuring Allan Heinberg as writer and Terry Dodson as artist. This issue opens with Donna Troy having already taken up the mantle of Wonder Woman, after a year in which Diana had been missing. However, the end of the issue saw the return of the familiar guise of Diana Prince, secret agent, complete with an updated version of the white jumpsuit from the early 1970s. Whether this Diana Prince is truly Princess Diana has yet to be revealed.

Powers and abilities

Super powers and skills

Diana possesses a host of superhuman powers granted to her by the gods and goddesses of Olympus. Primary among these are vast superhuman strength and stamina, powers that she draws from a mystical link to the Earth itself. She is typically portrayed as being the second-strongest being in the DC Universe: usually she is shown to be second only to Superman (but there has been editorial inconsistency in comparison to Captain Marvel, who is also sometimes portrayed as second to or equal to Superman in strength). Diana is literally as strong as the earth because of her link to the planet granted to her by Demeter. She is quite possibly capable of lifting anything on earth. Diana's stamina gives her incredible resistance to blunt force trauma, capable of shrugging off punches from beings such as Superman and Captain Marvel. However, Diana's skin is not totally invulnerable and can be pierced by sharp projectiles with sufficient force distributed over a small surface area (such as bullets).

Born of the clay of Themyscira, and given life and divine powers by the gods themselves, Diana has heightened resistance to magical attacks. She is highly experienced in battling foes who use sorcery as a weapon. As a divine creation herself, she is less susceptible to manipulation by magic than many of her fellow powerhouse heroes.

Like the Earth, Diana is constantly renewing herself, allowing her to quickly heal. In cases where she was gravely injured or poisoned, Diana showed the ability to physically merge with the earth, causing whatever injuries or poisons to be expelled from her body as it regains shape. Diana also possesses incredible speed and reflexes, gifts of the god Hermes, and is capable of unassisted flight at supersonic speeds (frequently generating a sonic boom). On the ground, Diana is easily fast enough to deflect bullets with her silver gauntlets. In addition, she possesses great wisdom and intelligence, though the degree varies from author to author. She is among the most intelligent members of the Justice League of America, along with the Martian Manhunter and Batman.

Diana is the finest warrior ever born among the Amazons of Themyscira. She is a master of armed and unarmed combat, proficient with nearly every weapon ever made (especially the bow and the javelin) and the exotic martial arts styles of the Amazons. Because those martial skills are unknown outside of Themyscira, it is almost impossible to defeat her in battle. Her blessing from the goddess Artemis grants her the "Hunter's Eye" and enhanced senses, as well as unity with the animal kingdom and the ability to tame wild beasts. Shortly before Infinite Crisis, Wonder Woman was briefly blinded, then had her sight restored by Athena. Since then, she has had the sight of Athena, a power that apparently grants increased insight. (For example, Diana can often detects others' emotions, and is now so fully immune to Doctor Psycho's illusions that she usually is not even aware of what illusions he is attempting to project).

Diana is also an accomplished strategist and tactician, trained in the arts of leadership, persuasion and diplomacy, and possesses a great deal of courage as well.

Weapons

Diana has several weapons at her disposal, but her signature ones are her indestructible gauntlets and the Lasso of Truth. The gauntlets were formed from the remains of Zeus's legendary Aegis shield, and were re-forged for her use by Hephaestus. Diana's superhuman reflexes enable her to use the gauntlets to easily deflect projectiles (such as bullets) and powerful energy blasts from beings such as Ares and Darkseid. She is even fast enough to protect herself from multi-vector attacks. At close-range the gauntlets block blades, weapons and punches. In some stories, Diana has used the gauntlets as a dual defensive/offensive weapon, redirecting energy blasts back to their point of origin or other targets. When crossed, the gauntlets generate a remnant of the Aegis itself, forming an impenetrable barrier just in front of them which allows Diana to protect herself and those behind her from area attacks. Diana's golden tiara also doubles as a throwing weapon, as it is razor-edged and can cut through most substances. Her most notable use of it resulted in the decapitation of Deimos during their first meeting.

The Lasso of Truth, forged from her aunt Antiope's Golden Girdle of Gaea, is Diana's greatest weapon. The divine Lasso is absolutely unbreakable and has restrained beings as powerful as Superman, Captain Marvel, and the gods Ares and Hades. The Lasso burns with a magical aura called the Fires of Hestia, forcing anyone within the Lasso's confines to speak the absolute truth. The Fires can restore lost memories, dispel illusions, renew the wielder's body, protect those encircled by it from magical attacks, and even cure insanity. Some writers have established that no one but Diana can wield the Lasso, due to its divine nature. Advances in the coloring processes used in comics have given artists the ability to depict the Lasso as a genuinely fiery weapon, coursing with power. Artists such as Howard Porter frequently draw Diana wielding the flaming Lasso with absolute control in elaborate and serpentine configurations.

Diana once used of the Sandals of Hermes to cross a dimensional impasse between Themyscira and the outside world, but they have since been passed on to Artemis, and later to Wonder Girl. Passed on along with the Sandals was the Gauntlet of Atlas, which magnifies the physical strength of the wearer by a factor of ten. Diana used the Gauntlet several times, most notably to destroy a clone of the Superman-killer Doomsday, but it raised her already-superhuman strength to a level that she found difficult to control.

Wonder Woman has at her disposal a small lightweight disc of alien (Lansinar) technology that, when triggered by her thoughts, transforms into a transparent version of whatever object or vehicle is appropriate for her needs. The device has been used for several purposes, including a communication device, but is most frequently used by Wonder Woman in the form of an invisible jet plane, thus reintroducing this vehicle for the first time in post-Crisis continuity. She has also used the amorphous disc in partnership with Green Lantern's power ring, to hold Earth's moon together while shifting its orbit.

Wonder Woman occasionally uses a variety of different weapons. She uses ceremonial golden armor complete with golden wings, warskirt and chestplate, and a golden helmet in the shape of an Eagle's head. She uses many American themes such as an American Flag sort of cape/sword holster. Additionally, she uses a golden shield with American symbols and themes. She also uses a long spear, a labrys (a doubled-sided Amazonian axe), and a magically forged sword that was a gift from Hephaestus himself, so sharp that it can carve the electrons off an atom. In the non-canonical Kingdom Come, Superman was cut by this sword while running his fingers down the blade.

Just Imagine Stan Lee

Marvel Comics' living legend Stan Lee and artist Jim Lee reimagine Wonder Woman as Peruvian María Mendoza in Just Imagine Stan Lee with Jim Lee Creating Wonder Woman. Mendoza is reborn as a Peruvian Warrior who wields a staff forged by Incan gods. Lee got involved in the project after he joined Batman creator Bob Kane at the premiere of one of the Batman movies. Comic fanatic Michael Uslan, an executive producer of the movies, takes credit for the idea. "At one of the premieres," he said, "we got into a discussion on how Stan might have created Batman differently. So I started thinking, 'What if Stan Lee, instead of working at Marvel all those years, was working at DC?'"

Graphic novels

The 1986 - 2006 Wonder Woman series is collected in several graphic novels:

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Wonder Woman".

Home Page • arts • business • computers • games • health • hospitals • home • kids & teens • news • physicians • recreation• reference • regional • science • shopping • society • sports • world