“You Let That Little Thing Tell You What To Do?”
In the aftermath of the beach battle, the surviving Amazons question Steve Trevor using the Lasso of Truth, and learn about World War I (also known as “the war to end all wars”). Diana is immediately filled with the compulsion to go to Man’s World and help to end the conflict – which she believes has been caused by Ares, the arch-nemesis of the Amazons. Against the backdrop of this debate, Steve Trevor is allowed to recuperate from his crash in an Amazonian pool.
Diana, who has never encountered a man before, enters the chamber as Steve is stepping out of the pool. He’s naked, and embarrassed, but Diana regards him with curiosity. She asks whether he’s considered to be an average example of man, to which Steve replies that he’s “above average” – a welcome moment of humour after the drama of battle. But the real joke is the one that follows, as Diana looks toward Steve and asks, “What’s that?” The naked Steve is flustered, before realizing that Diana is asking about his watch, and he explains that it’s used to tell the time and ensure that he knows when he should be doing things.
Glancing down, Diana simply asks, “You let that little thing tell you what to do?”
In both Diana’s reference to the watch, and Steve’s modesty about his ‘manhood,’ the audience knows that the answer is a resounding “yes,” in both circumstances, and that this scene is another perfect skewering of the male gaze we’re used to seeing in superhero movies.
“Men Are Essential For Pro-Creation, But Are Not Necessary For Pleasure”
Diana and Steve Trevor are heading for Man’s World in a sailing ship – just the two of them. As they bed down for the first night of their journey, we enjoy a brief interlude between them, in which we’re privy to their conversation. Steve Trevor has to explain to Diana why the social etiquette that’s informed his behaviour in Man’s World dictates that he must sleep in an uncomfortable spot elsewhere, as opposed to sleeping next to her. It makes no sense to Diana, because sexual politics are an absurdity to her.
They discuss the man-made concept of marriage, and the social attitudes that go with it, and Diana begins to discuss her understanding of “the pleasures of the flesh.” She describes a series of books she’s read on the subject, and Steve says he would have like to have read them too. Diana informs him that he wouldn’t enjoy them, because they conclude that, “men are essential for pro-creation, but are not necessary for pleasure.” And Steve is unable to argue otherwise.
