Wonder Woman #14 drops us right into the action. Diana’s in the middle of a battle with Ares, who’s interrogating her to try and discover the location of Themyscira. The storytelling is big, grandiose and fast-paced, but it doesn’t sacrifice the much needed character interactions between Diana, Steve and Dr. Minerva. There’s an appreciated sense of, well, wonder to everything going on in this issue. Unlike most versions of the character’s early days that we’ve seen, these people really take the time to deal with the fact that they’re seeing actual mythological gods for the first time.
Diana’s revelation that she no longer knows the location of Themyscira is an interesting one. She didn’t understand the importance of this and didn’t really care about it before. While leaving the island with Steve, going into the outside world and revealing herself, she didn’t really take the time to deal with what any of that would mean to both the world at large and her own people. This is the moment when it becomes clear to her though what she’s actually done. This is the consequence, the sacrifice. Diana has to now live with the fact that not only can she never really go home again, but she can’t be trusted with that kind of knowledge as there will always be people like Ares who will level cities if not worlds to get their hands on it.
As a conclusion to the “Year One” arc, Wonder Woman #14 is pretty great. It feels very much like a superhero movie, and even if it’s completely different than what the actual film coming later this year, that’s perfectly fine. In fact, I prefer that. I like to see different takes on origin stories and there aren’t nearly as many out there for Diana as there are for Superman or Batman. That being said, it does strike me as odd that they only just got around the naming the character now, fourteen issues in when the arc is at its end.
Aside from that though, everything else here is great. The art by Nicola Scott is as expressive as it is dynamic. There are, admittedly, a few moments that don’t match up, with characters out of place or in a mildly awkward stance from panel to panel, but it doesn’t do much to deter from the strength of the overall work. The fight scene between Diana and Ares, in particular, is terrific and the villain is just as menacing as I’ve known him to be. As much as I loved the New 52 run, it was definitely a bit disappointing to see such a different take on the God of War. Thankfully, this version of the character changed that and is the one I’d been wanting to see make a return for some time.
The other thing that’s much appreciated is Scott’s ability to capture the tender moments just as well as the big action beats. There’s a different kind of strength to these little bits between Diana and Steve, but they’re just as if not more important to the overall storytelling than the clash of the titans that opens the book. Overall, Wonder Woman #14 another well done issue and one that brings the “Year One” arc to a more than satisfying conclusion.
