Posted in: Comics, DC Comics | Tagged: dc comics, diana prince, etta candy, HRL, justice league, Mirka Andolfo, rebirth, Shea Fontana, wonder woman

Wonder Woman #27 Review: A Heart-Wrenching Struggle

After finding a bomb at the wedding of Etta Candy's brother, Wonder Woman covers most of the blast with her body, saving the wedding's attendees. However, Etta is badly hurt, and Wonder Woman takes her back to the UN medical facility and to the care of Dr. Crawford.

Shortly after delivering Etta, Crawford begins to insist on Wonder Woman staying for a checkup, too. Diana is reluctant, but soon finds that Crawford has drugged her. Crawford is sick and has a genetic disease. She thinks that Diana's genetic material can save her. However, it has side effects, and Wonder Woman has to fight Crawford to save her life.

Greg Rucka revitalized the Wonder Woman comic in DC: Rebirth, and Shea Fontana is showing to be more than capable of carrying the torch. This is a powerful and emotional issue that shows how and why Wonder Woman is different from other superheroes and superheroines.

Wonder Woman is not a one-note character, and she cannot be summed up with a single emotion. Batman is known for his rage and brooding, and Superman is known for being stoic and determined. Wonder Woman can't really receive the same treatment. Yes, both can and do show other sides and emotions, but Batman isn't known for being happy. Superman isn't known for being angry.

By contrast, Wonder Woman shows joy, anger, sadness, and determination quite often. They often comingle. Her anger is motivated by love. Her joy is fueled by determination to not let the world take away all that is beautiful in the world.

Diana shows it here by displaying sadness at the devastation at the party. She is angered by the loss of joy. She is determined to bring down those responsible.

Her fight with Crawford isn't an enraged struggle. She desperately wants to help Crawford, but the power of Wonder Woman is overwhelming the doctor.

To move into spoiler territory, Diana is unable to save Crawford. It's a very tragic scene as she succumbs to her disease when the power of the gods leaves her. Wonder Woman feels this sadness and comforts her as she passes.

The means by which the power is removed does raise some questions. The Golden Perfect's ability to bring about truth removes the falsity of Wonder Woman's powers from Crawford's body. This was a genetic alteration, so does that mean Wonder Woman and the Golden Perfect could take away all such alterations. Could she take away the powers of all metahumans? The scene in which she takes the power away still works for the comic and is a great scene, but it does beg a lot of questions with its implications.

The art of this comic is very solid. Mirka Andolfo shows emotion and action very well, which is imperative for this comic to work. That being said, it is very anime-influenced, and it results in Wonder Woman looking very young in many panels. You could peg her at 19 or 20 at times, which is a little odd. The same could be said of Etta and Crawford, too. It still looks great overall, but the extremely youthful faces can be a bit distracting.

The color art is often quite bright. Romulo Fajardo Jr. is a fantastic color artist, and he shows it here. He knows how to tailor a pallet to a comic. Here, the bright colors complement Diana's optimistic attitude. Even when things are bad, she manages to hold onto hope and love.

This is a great comic. Those worried that the book would be greatly diminished by Rucka's departure can breathe easy — Shea Fontana makes sure the comic doesn't miss a beat. It is a great read and comes highly recommended.

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