Grimlock ♥ Ultra Magnus

Buddy read with Troy.   He told me it was kosher to post when I was done as he was going to take his time and savor this.  I couldn't stop flipping pages, though, so...

So, this is part of Troy's suggestions which are really all about luring me to the DC side of comics.   I doubt I'll ever forget my nostalgia for Marvel, or drop them because I truly believe they are doing a lot not only to diversify their cast of characters, but are telling good stories while they do so. 

I also had known for a long time why I didn't enjoy DC as much as Marvel: Marvel had more human characters, while DC tended to go more for archetypal characters.   Which I do enjoy on occasion.  I love myths, for example, particularly Greek myths which means I never really understood why I didn't get into Wonder Woman.   (Part of it is my introduction to comics was when I was younger, and dating a boy which didn't last long.   He handed me a She-Hulk, and when I discovered X-Men, I decided he was giving me girly things to placate me, and had underestimated me in believing I wouldn't be into 'man' things, or things he liked.  I called him a jerkface, or something along those lines, to his face, then dumped him, and carried on merrily with X-Men and without the extra baggage.)

But going back to the differences between Marvel and DC, and why myths sometimes don't work for me in comics.   I read myths for different reasons that I read comics.  I liked the real world sensibilities of the Marvel characters along with the flashiness of their superhero world.   I didn't get it with DC; I didn't get that little tingle in my brain.  Why not? I didn't overanalyze back then, but rather shoved gobs of money at Marvel and devoured their stories. 

Troy is a DC fanboy and I'm a Marvel fangirl.   But I figured now I had a DC guru.   Maybe he could lure me?   I enjoyed Burton's Batman - sorry, Troy! - and the old Batman Animated.   (Did I redeem myself with that one?)   I also liked the Marvel/DC mashups in Amalgam comics, like Dark Claw, and JLX. I liked what I'd seen of Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy in particular, and my sister was fond of them as a pairing. Obviously some parts of DC's world and fandom could keep my attention,  just not really many of the comics until now. 

Getting the highlights from an expert?   That works.   I knew little about Wonder Woman, and more about Batman, whom are featured on this book's cover.  Might I be a little into Batman/Wonder Woman now that I've seen how dominating she looks on the cover?  Yup.   Of course, the cover is striking, all the while pretty minimalist for a graphic novel cover, and all the more appropriate when reading the story, which was to me pretty stripped down.   It was slim, and it got to the heart of the matter quickly and ruthlessly. 

Of course, there were some twists, some complications, but at the root of this story is the conflict between Wonder Woman's old-world, Greek laws and sensibilities and the Batman's hardcore need for justice as the modern law sees it.   One woman, whom Batman is pursuing, runs to Wonder Woman for help: this woman, Danielle Wellys, knows Greek laws, has studies them, and uses them to bind Wonder Woman to her.   Her life is in Wonder Woman's hands, and yet Wonder Woman has a sacred duty to care for and protect this woman now.   

Batman is righteous in his pursuit, but Wonder Woman is righteous in her protection of this girl.   And the conflict is further compounded by the strict morals and codes these characters follow; Batman can no less stop his pursuit of Danielle than Wonder Woman can help protecting her.   There are two laws at play here, each one sacred to each character, and as the noose tightens around them both, they are inevitably pitted in a conflict neither can truly win. 

But perhaps the most striking thing about this book is what strikes me about the cover as well.   From far off, without taking a close look at the cover, it looks simpler than it is.   No description or synopsis or review can really do justice to just how much Rucka crams into this story.   More than a simple story of supplication of old and the modern laws of men, he allows Diana to ruminate on the nature of tragedy, on how she fits into this modern world, and what she was and sometimes wishes to be versus what she truly is right now. 

This struck me at how character defining it was.   One could argue that nothing new, or epic happened, that it was a rather quiet story as far as superheroes go.   But for me, as somewhat of a newcomer to the DC universe, this pitting of hero versus hero more clearly defined how differently Wonder Woman see and deal with the world around them.