Wonder Woman FAQ

[glennsim]

Since Wonder Woman has been shown as stronger than car-pressing/hurling since at least the late 40's, it's problematic to scale her down to a weaker power set than the last 60 years of Wonder Woman's portrayal. Her strength has at least been in the "Classic Thing" 70-80 ton range since the 1950's. I personally think that down-sizing Wonder Woman to "Spiderman" levels would insult the character, since she's spent a better part of her existence as a more powerful character. If any superheroine should lift bridges in the DCU, it should be Wonder Woman.

I'm not personally advocating powering her down further than she has traditionally been depicted. I'm advocating RETURNING her to those levels. She is nearly as strong as Superman now. That's too strong.

[glennsim]

So what? JLU Wondy in the comics?

Hadn't thought of it that way, but sure.

[seaflower]

I'm not personally advocating powering her down further than she has traditionally been depicted. I'm advocating RETURNING her to those levels. She is nearly as strong as Superman now. That's too strong.


Why not return Superman to his original power levels while you at it?

Why just Wonder Woman?

What is the deal with her beening the 2nd strongest person in the DCU?

Someone had to be second.

[The Adventurer]

Personaly I'd rather WW not be able to fly and not have an Invisible jet. Just give her a regular jet.

[glennsim]

Why not return Superman to his original power levels while you at it?

Why just Wonder Woman?

What is the deal with her beening the 2nd strongest person in the DCU?

Someone had to be second.

Superman has managed to support quite a few books at his current power levels.

Wonder Woman can barely support one.

Something needs to be done to make the character easier for the average writer to write good stories about her that more people will want to read.

[bfrank]

Superman has managed to support quite a few books at his current power levels.

Wonder Woman can barely support one.

Something needs to be done to make the character easier for the average writer to write good stories about her that more people will want to read.
and once again, reducing her powers won't help that......

[glennsim]

and once again, reducing her powers won't help that......

It might. You haven't given reasons why it mightn't work, you just keep saying it "shouldn't happen". I've given reasons why it might help - by expanding the possibilities for the character.

Not to mention returning her to something the casual audience is more familiar with.

[Ontir]

Periodically, they scale Superman's powers down more or less, to his original level. Limits work, because if the character is too powerful, it's hard to give them any real threat to work against.

I still think Wonder Woman needs her jet, but perhaps referring to it as her Stealth Jet would help.

[Jade_GL]

I'll bite.

I am a huge WW fan. I like all of her incarnations, from the Golden Age to Lynda Carter, to the post-Crisis WW and beyond.

Wonder Woman has had her ups and downs power-wise, but I think her power level right now is fine. What really needs tweaking is how she faces her problems. People do not have a good grasp on the character. Heck, maybe I don't. I just know what makes sense to me as a reader. Having her go street level (not power-wise necessarily, but story-wise) doesn't work. It just doesn't. I have never read a WW story that works that way. Maybe it's personal opinion, but I find her much more compelling when she is dealing with real world issues. Human rights, poverty, war, compassion. She is an abassador to *our* world. She is supposed to give us wisdom that we lack in our everyday lives in this society.

She is the nexus of the ancient world, myth, magic, and technology.

I find myself somewhat perplexed by the talk of her power level. I frankly don't compare her to anyone. If anything, she should be the strongest female in the DCU. Period, end of sentence. Supergirl, Powergirl and Marvel Girl are just female knockoffs of their male couterparts. Why not take them out of the game? They haven't been around as long, don't have as much history, and have had just as many redirections, reboots, and reimaginings as Wonder Woman. I find the focus just on Wonder Woman to be really offputting. She deserves her spot. She started her life in comics as a very powerful figure, she should stay that way. And if some writers can't deal with that, find a writer who can. I like a lot of what has been done with Wonder Woman in recent years. I enjoyed the Jimenez stuff, the Rucka stuff, some of her stuff in past issues of JLA (probably everything up until Golden Perfect.... ugh) and other stuff. I think there have been plenty of ways to exploit, hurt, and defeat her. Writers just don't seem to be able to adequately harness that and perpetuate it throughout a run.

I myself would be disappointed if Wonder Woman was ever depowered. I don't find her to be a Superman clone at all. If anything, it's the bad takes on her character that have led to that opinion I believe. If a writer takes her more to her roots where she is still a powerhouse (as she was first envisioned) but deals with entirely different types of issues and villains than, say Superman, than I think she will do well. Exploit the role of magic and myth and it in the modern setting. Exploit her dealing with issues throughout the world, in the United States but also across the globe. Make her an ambassador to the entire globe, not just the USA. Have her dealing with issues like genocide, poverty, world war, world peace, and have her villains exploit her good nature and love of justice in those situations.

Yes, I know that maybe people just want a beat-em-up comic book, but I think Wonder Woman works better facing much larger and more realistic issues.

And if you focus on that and less on *OMG LOLZ SHE CAN BEAT TEH SUPERMANZ!!!1111!!!* than I think you'll get interesting books.

A sidenote. One of my favorite comics right now is Ex Machina, where a powerful hero literally lays aside his powers to do something for the greater good. He does this by taking up politics and trying to make changes that way on a much smaller scale, and a more human scale. I certainly don't want Wonder Woman to copy this route at all, but I think that the books success should show people that a more thought provoking and politically bent piece can survive on the newsstands in this day and age, and even thrive and grow.

On a side-side note. I think Wonder Woman should be able to fly. To me it seems pretty much a part of the character at this point. Yet I also like her jet too. I really am very ambivalent about this on the whole. I could see her perhaps using the jet to give her the appearance of flying, or even just being able to glide on air currents to the ground from her jet instead of outright flying. Oh well, this is something that I think a good writer could tackle and, with either the flight or invisible jet, make it work.

[The Adventurer]

I'm for a depowered WW. Take her to a level between Superman (strength) and Batman (fighting ability, general skill). She should be a bit more violent then those two, more agressive anyway. Arm her with bladed weapons, make her a warrior. Have her fight on a completely different level then Superman (Planetary) and Batman (City). Have her work on a country wide level, maybe with US milatary support. Not every superhero needs to patrol the planet.

Generaly make her different from the other Big Two, make her special, unique. Give her fresh goals but kept her closer to her orginal consepts.

[seaflower]

It might. You haven't given reasons why it mightn't work, you just keep saying it "shouldn't happen". I've given reasons why it might help - by expanding the possibilities for the character.

Not to mention returning her to something the casual audience is more familiar with.

The casual audience is probably not the biggest comic book reader of any Superhero and would be lost if they tried learn about them from reading their latest book. The casual audience is someone who likes to watch the saturday morning cartoons with iconic superheros and go see a movie about them once in awhile. So why use that excuse only for wonder woman.

Actually if you think about it, the casual audience these days is probably used to Wonder Woman as she is shown in the JLA cartoons, where she is superstrong and can fly. Taking away her strenght and flight now might damage this character for future fans who are used to watching her on JLA.

[Joe Acro]

Actually, wasn't the explanation for Wonder Woman's power something along the lines of "walking on air"--that she couldn't actually fly? (Although, I think writers became a little too loose with this.)

[Mulett]

Actually, wasn't the explanation for Wonder Woman's power something along the lines of "walking on air"--that she couldn't actually fly? (Although, I think writers became a little too loose with this.)

The first time I remember seeing a comic where WW flew was in the early eighties. She said she could 'ride the air currents'. I don't remember how this ability was introduced, or whether it was something she could do naturally or was a gift or something she learnt.

Anyway, the post-Crisis reboot (85 or 86) gave her the power of flight properly. Shame in a way as it made her invisible plane pointless. I bit like if she were made invulnerable it would make her bullet deflecting bracelets pointless.

[tangentman]

Wonder Woman began gliding in the late 50's or early 60's. Back in the Silver Age JLA issues, Wonder Woman was frequently shown gliding on strong wind currents. She rode the jetstream when she fought Super-Woman in the Crime Syndicate's first appearance. The gliding power remained in effect until the Post-Crisis reboot.

If we stick with the origin of Wonder Woman receiving her powers from the Olympian Gods, then it makes sense for her to fly if Hermes remains one of her patrons. Wonder Woman is NOT invulnerable to the degree of being bullet-proof; she can resist blunt trauma and temperature extremes. BTW, that is NOT a new power; Wonder Woman was shown with that limited invulnerability as early as 1943.

Again, reducing Wonder Woman to a Spider-Man/Buffy level isn't the answer. The extremely high power set has long been a feature of the character and well predated the Crisis. Instead of reducing her power level or making radical changes--which has been a long-standing symptom of bad writing in the Wonder Woman series--why not instead utilize the rich history that is there? We have seen that there are still new angles to be explored with mythology, the Amazons, and world politics. The revamps of the rogues' gallery works when writers remember to USE those characters. Let's work with what is available instead of trying to re-invent the wheel yet another time.

[mgs]

If we stick with the origin of Wonder Woman receiving her powers from the Olympian Gods, then it makes sense for her to fly if Hermes remains one of her patrons.
this is one of the only ways i see reasonable as to explain her flight, or some other goddess to grant her this ability.

otherwise, I think it's crappy to give her this, just to allow her faster/easier transportation ability, though I have to say, it was very awesome to see her use this to it's fullest in the latest books when she kills.

[the_red_man]

Personally, being a fan but not particularly steeped in her history I've never compared her to Superman or even Batman. I've considered her to be Wonder-Woman, I knew she could fly but then so can a multitude of characters, so what?

The jet could still have the potential to be effectively utilized but the application always seems to leave a lot to be desired.

I don't believe she should be de-powered as it wouldn't really make that much of a difference to the execution of her character. Superman seems capable of supporting a large amount of titles by different authors, so why is this not possible for Wonder-Woman?

Is it because of DC’s general lack of concrete direction for the character? I personally believe so. Reading through the posts in this thread it’s obvious that she has gone through many different “incarnations” and perhaps this has hurt the character as no-one really seems to know who is the definitive Wonder-Woman.

Perhaps she should get a new perspective of writer? I would very much like to see a female writer take on the title and write it from an ACTUAL woman’s point of view.

Someone like Gail Simone I think could write a believable Wonder-Woman. (As believable as comic books go anyway)

The one thing that does need to be changed about her in my opinion is her costume. However this could be said about a large amount of the female characters, Wonder-Woman does seem to have it the worst though. Would you be able to accept Superman if he ditched the blue suit and just kept the red briefs?

[The Adventurer]

Flight is one of those powers I generaly don't like that much. It's almost cop outish IMO and illogical in many respects. Unfortunatly nearly a century of Superman has made wingless flight pretty much the most indeering super-power superheroes have.

Give me a Superman that jumps, or a Wonder-Woman that needs a plane to fly. That makes for interesting stories.

[Ontir]

An aside -

The PBS Series Secrets of the Dead is going to look at un-earthed historical evidence about the Amazons, which should be interesting. It airs thursday on one of my PBS stations, but you'll have to check your local station(s) for the exact date/time.

[DCKar2nist]

Flight is one of those powers I generaly don't like that much. It's almost cop outish IMO and illogical in many respects. Unfortunatly nearly a century of Superman has made wingless flight pretty much the most indeering super-power superheroes have.


Wow. You find flight unbelievable? I agree that they shouldn't give it to as many heroes in the DC as they have, it kind of cheapens the novelty of it. But unbelievable since when do comics need to be believable, is bending steel or moving planets any moreso?

[Maleficentogre]

flight is believable. planes bugs and birds do it. I do think an awful lot of characters can fly and it's not really all that cool anymore. It's like "look up in the air is it a bird? a plane? no it's . . . . ., oh nevermind it's dr. light." but As far as powers go flight isn't that hard to explain away with the movement of air around you and being able to move yourself against gravity. you're just jumping and not coming down for a prolonged time.

[DCKar2nist]

Have any of you guys seen the episode of Smallville (not a fan either) where Clark flys for the first time, I think he was possesed by his father or something at the time. Anyway, it was unique in that he stoodthere as the air collected under him and propelled him threw the air, just thought I'd mention it, hope they have a similar visual flying effect in the new Superman movie and he's not just floating everywhere like in the classics.


it's not really all that cool anymore. It's like "look up in the air is it a bird? a plane? no it's . . . . . oh nevermind it's dr. light."

And sidenote, that was hilarious

[The Adventurer]

I'm just saying that in the case of Superman flight doesn't really make sense. He's a "Super" man, a better man really. He should be stronger, faster, have sharper senses, and be more durable then an ordinary man. But Flight and Eye powers, they just don't make sense with in the context of what Superman was supposed to be. But as the Golden Age and Silverage wore on Superman, got more and more powerful, with some really silly powers. And while he became the iconic hero of our age, he lost what made him really interesting. If you depowered superman to his original Golden Age level, he suddenly becomes more compelling because he's no longer "Supergod" in terms of shere power.

This is all my opinon of course. Wonderwoman is just one of those characters that I don't see needing wingless flight to be interesting. Captain Marvel can have it, as he's magical and levatation makes sense in his context.

Granted I'm of the opinion that reworking the entire DCU in terms of power and appearance would be a good thing for the industry. Not "Ultimazation" mind, just a push to get rid of all the silly conventions that have stuck around since the Golden Age. Spandex being a big one, it's been a long ass time since 1940s Circus strong men inspired Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel to make Superman's costume.

[Tennoarashi]

This is all my opinon of course. Wonderwoman is just one of those characters that I don't see needing wingless flight to be interesting. Captain Marvel can have it, as he's magical and levatation makes sense in his context.She's magical too. True, she doesn't need flight to make her interesting - but I like her with it. What I didn't like was that we got flight but sacrified Themyscira's technological advancements.

[DCKar2nist]

True, I mean she is gifted with powers from the Gods so flying does make since with her.

[mswood]

Well when DC rebooted after Crisis both characters got weaker, considerable weaker.

70's and 80's WW was stronger then post crisis WW.

50, 60, 70, and 80's Superman was way stronger then post Crisis Superman.

But just like the original characters over the years both characters (not to mention many, many others) got more and more powerful.

Now I have no problem with a general depowering of the DC universe.

Have all the near god like superheroes go down a huge chunk.

A Wonder Women who can lift several hundred tons, and superman who might be able to carry 1000 tons, ect. Compared to characters who can lift millions upon millions of tons.

And if WW was a solo title only, then any loss of powers or change in story format would be no problem (if done well), but if she is still conntected with the main body of DC, with such characters as Troia (who as Wondergirl was said to be able to move 747's (several hundred tons, and easily lifted 70 plus ton tanks) or the new wondergirl or be a member in the Justice league. Then I don't want to see her drop in ability unless all the other powerhouses do as well.

Because it does truely hurt all their abilities in telling great stories.

As for the writers main problems I have had with WW over the years. My biggest complaint is her rogue's gallery.

Sure Perez revamped Ares (not to mention her mythological adversaries, my favorite part of her character), he also revamped Cheetah and Silver Swan to her level at the time of the reboot.

But she has a piss poor rogues gallery of human or alien villians. and that isn't easy to change. Most writers create villians by the dozen that generally suck. On this area she needs a lot of work.

And it has nothing to do with power levels, I hate 95% of her rogues gallery.

[Ontir]

I seem to recall a great deal of discussion post Crisis, that they were going to amp her up to Superman level, which is most certainly what Perez tried to do. He also thought it was a good idea to get rid of all technology, which remained gone, until Byrne hit the book.

What they needed to do, was to pick up at the point in Crisis when the Earth -1 Diana reverted to clay, and just merge the Earth - 2 Diana and her daughter Lyta, with Earth - 1's Donna Troy, and move forward from there! Wonder Woman, Wonder Girl, and Fury, all connected, and all tied to the JSA, JLA, Teen Titans and Infinity Inc.. Instead, they chose to blow holes in the continuity, leaving paradoxical characters floating around with generally weak stop-gap retcons.

[Parrotheadpress]

The bracelets weren't always a moot point. When the character was originally created, the bracelets were to serve as a reminder of the tyranny of men and what happens when a woman lets herself get sucked into that as the Queen of the Amazons was hoodwinked by Hercules. The Amazons then gave the bracelets a useful purpose, i.e. bullets and braclets. The Amazons had a competition to see who would take Steve Trevor back to the U.S, and Diana won obviously. My point in this though is that the runner-up was injured when she wasn't quick enough to deflect a bullet shot at her by Diana during the final portion of the competition. This is a long way to say that the bracelets once had a purpose and originally, Diana could have been hurt by bullets.

Here's the thing, for some, facets of Wonder Woman are considered outdated, thus we decide to change it up a bit. She's made invincible, thus she doesn't need the bracelets to protect her from bullets, but she uses them for that purpose anyway. She originally had the invisible jet, which was really a technological masterpiece made by the Amazons, who were scientifically advanced. It wasn't always cheesy. At one time, it was a marvel. Now she can fly, just like other heroes.

There are certain aspects that make a character stand apart. Yes, characters have to evolve and grow, but they shouldn't be changed completely. There are certain things that make a character unique, Diana's heritage being one of them. There are simply some things that you shouldn't mess with. This being said, I have no problem with the character being tweaked. She's always been a strong female, and I think the thought of her being a powerhouse is awesome. She's female, hear her roar. :)

[mswood]

Ontir

Actually Perez didn't amp her strength.

It took until issues 19 (might be off on the number when she took down Axion) before we saw WW lift anything more then a tank.

In that issue she was said to be stronger then Axion who lifted a wooden frigate with hand. WW carried it into the bay before throwing Axion into Martha's vineyard.

A Wooden frigate, if equiped is hundreds of tons compared to a tank that is 50-80 tons depending on which one.

Before Crisis WW was doing such feats and more.

Hell pre crisis Wondergirl was shown to be stronger then people who were throwing tanks at her. And again she mentions mvoing a 747 (which is farely comparable to the weight of a frigate) and this was wonder girl. Wonder Women was stronger.

Again though at this time (post crisis) the most we saw Superman lift was a huge oceanlinear.

It was after Perez and Byrne left WW and Superman titles respectively that both of their strengths shot way the hell up.

The stronger one got, the other shortly went up in strength.

And it seemed that the JLA had some of greater feats of strengths for both.

Just think that years after Perez left WW. In Titans/Jla ten heroes were used to move the Moon (which also featured a greater mass due to the objects around it0.

But a couple years later WW, Superman and Martian Manhunter were able to move the planet.

[mswood]

Parrotheadpress

Well post crisis WW can be hurt by bullets. And in fact anyother amazon most likely would be killed by the "flashing thunder"

And certainly the bonds remain on all the amazons as reminders of their captivity by heracles.

And while I wasn't reading comics in the 40's, not that old sorry.

I started in the 70's, and I always found it highly unlikely that the isolated amazon's would develop the technology they had. Just didn't fit the setting and environment that they lived in.

I always thought her mental radio, plan, and purple ray (along with many others) was incredible lame.

[Jade_GL]

I have no problems with tweaking her and maybe messing with some of her stuff a bit.

What I have a problem with is taking her down to a level that she was never intended to be. She has always been a powerhouse, she's always been ablr to stand toe-to-toe with other powerful MALE characters. I see that depowering her serves no purpose and would ruin what makes her interesting. Also, it would take away a large part of her history.

Just look at when they have significantly changed her (White jumpsuit, Kung Fu WW). It didn't work then, and she got changed back. What makes anyone think that the same thing will work now, even though it's been tried, and it failed.

Just write her better. Get a writer that gets what makes the character so great in the first place.

[Parrotheadpress]

Parrotheadpress

Well post crisis WW can be hurt by bullets. And in fact anyother amazon most likely would be killed by the "flashing thunder"

And certainly the bonds remain on all the amazons as reminders of their captivity by heracles.

And while I wasn't reading comics in the 40's, not that old sorry.

I started in the 70's, and I always found it highly unlikely that the isolated amazon's would develop the technology they had. Just didn't fit the setting and environment that they lived in.

I always thought her mental radio, plan, and purple ray (along with many others) was incredible lame.

I wasn't reading comics in the 1940s either. I was born in '81 and started reading my older brother's comics when I learned how to read. Well, actually I just looked at the pictures and then finally decided the words might be interesting too. ;)

I was basically giving some background because I have read some of the old Sensation Comics and all that. And no, it might not have totally fit the environment of the Amazons, but they were blessed by the Gods, so who's to really to say what they could come up with.

I suppose to each his or her own.

[Apathy Boy]

I don't get why so many people get stuck on this whole "why does she use the bracelets?" thing. She's nigh-invulnerable, but that doesn't mean she can't feel pain. I would imagine that Diana finds it irritating to get shot, like getting bit by a mosquito. So she blocks the bullets rather than letting 'em hit her.

Oh, and my ideal Wonder Woman is as powerful as Superman, flies in an invisible jet and has a secret identity.

[Tennoarashi]

Just look at when they have significantly changed her (White jumpsuit, Kung Fu WW). It didn't work then, and she got changed back. What makes anyone think that the same thing will work now, even though it's been tried, and it failed.Funny. It actually did work, originally. People loved it.

It's the fact that the writing got REALLY BAD on the title that it was given up. The Diana Prince Wonder Woman was pop-u-lar. It have her a HUGE sales boost.

[DCKar2nist]

I disagree with the depowering of the iconic super heroes wouldn't that lessen their almost God like stature in the DCU. Their like forces of nature and should have powers reflecting that.

Though they should get rid of a lot of those worthless heroes, kind of like how marvel depowered like 90 percent of their "mutants". There are just to many heroes in the DCU.

[The Adventurer]

I disagree with the depowering of the iconic super heroes wouldn't that lessen their almost God like stature in the DCU. Their like forces of nature and should have powers reflecting that.

Though they should get rid of a lot of those worthless heroes, kind of like how marvel depowered like 90 percent of their "mutants". There are just to many heroes in the DCU.

See and I think that's stupid. Having the big guns be overly defined by thier powers restricts them as characters.

And nuking your Tier 2 and 3 population gets rid of all your interesting characters, since most of them are already defined by their personalities and not powers.

[DCKar2nist]

You have a point, Batman being the exception (no powers).

Anyway, I just think their are too many active heroes on one earth (and on that not, one country)

[The Adventurer]

You have a point, Batman being the exception (no powers).

Anyway, I just think their are too many active heroes on one earth (and on that not, one country)

Batman may not have superpowers in the regular "Lasers Coming out of your fists" way. But he's Super-Skilled, which in fiction amounts to the same thing. Batman is as defined by his abilites as Superman is.



I will agree with the point that there are A LOT of DC heroes running around their earth. But it just seems like that, because the only time you see half of them is when there is a big teamup event. If they each had their own seperate book and didn't do a lot of crossovers, they'd seem much more spread out.

[Zeta]

I will agree with the point that there are A LOT of DC heroes running around their earth. But it just seems like that, because the only time you see half of them is when there is a big teamup event. If they each had their own seperate book and didn't do a lot of crossovers, they'd seem much more spread out.

At least DC heroes ARE spread out across the globe, instead of crammed into one city just because most of the writers and artists happen to live there . . .

Marvel, I'm looking in your direction! New York City in the Marvel-verse must have it worse than Tokyo in Godzilla's universe.

[Parrotheadpress]

Batman may not have superpowers in the regular "Lasers Coming out of your fists" way. But he's Super-Skilled, which in fiction amounts to the same thing. Batman is as defined by his abilites as Superman is.



I will agree with the point that there are A LOT of DC heroes running around their earth. But it just seems like that, because the only time you see half of them is when there is a big teamup event. If they each had their own seperate book and didn't do a lot of crossovers, they'd seem much more spread out.

True, Batman may not have super strength or x-ray vision, but he is still comparable in the DC universe. His skills, technology, brains, etc. make him a worthy adversary.

[Tommy]

Also, the jet isn't an amorphous blob, anymore. When Diana stopped a tidal wave early in Greg Rucka's run, the lifeform that constituted the jet "died," leaving the jet intact but without any shape-changing capabilities.

Although it may not be around anymore now that Paradise Island blinked out of existence.
So the Jet can't change shape any more?

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I could go either way with Wonder Woman flying. It doesn't strike me as a fundamental part of her character. I mean, as long as she has the Invisible Jet (whatever incarnation it may be), the ability to fly doesn't seem all that necessary.

To me, the only things Wonder Woman absolutely needs are the braclets, the lasso of truth and the abilities she's had from the beginning...y'know, beauty of Aphrodite, wisdom of Athena, strength of Hercules, swiftness of Mercury.

The rest, flying, talking to animals, invunerability...I don't think they really need to be there. The invunerability bit always struck me as odd since it made the braclets completely redundant.

[davids]

Batman's complaint when her jet wonder dome ran amock and trapped WW bats and Supes in a fantasy world were she and kal fell in love and had a kid on the way!'

Also in DK2 that WW didn't fly and she got along all right. Even got laid and pregnant in mid air with that superman's help! :evilsmile

[Mulett]

I agree on the invulnerability/bracelets point.

More broadly, I do think WW needs to be a powerhouse rather than simply a warrior with magically enhanced weapons. It's interesting reading some of the JLA stories from the sixties where she's seen (for instance) casually matching the Flash's speed.

When I read WW in the early eighties, she was certainly never portrayed as being that powerful - especially when you consider how powerful the likes of Superman, Flash and Green Lantern were shown to be. I always thought of her as being somewhere between Batman and Superman, using skill and intelligence where power was lacking. But now it seems her powers have gone up and down over the decades pretty much in line with who was writing her, regardless of reboots or new origins.

Even in recent history, think how powerful she seemed when Byrne took over her comic for a short time, compared with how she was before and (to an extent) after.

So I hope the new series gives some continuity to her power levels.

[mswood]

I could go either way with Wonder Woman flying. It doesn't strike me as a fundamental part of her character. I mean, as long as she has the Invisible Jet (whatever incarnation it may be), the ability to fly doesn't seem all that necessary.

To me, the only things Wonder Woman absolutely needs are the braclets, the lasso of truth and the abilities she's had from the beginning...y'know, beauty of Aphrodite, wisdom of Athena, strength of Hercules, swiftness of Mercury.

The rest, flying, talking to animals, invunerability...I don't think they really need to be there. The invunerability bit always struck me as odd since it made the braclets completely redundant.


Sorry but it absolutely makes no sense for an Amazon (A Greek myth) to be blessed by the Roman Gods (even if they are in fact a mythology that was created as a copy of the Greeks).

[glennsim]

Sorry but it absolutely makes no sense for an Amazon (A Greek myth) to be blessed by the Roman Gods (even if they are in fact a mythology that was created as a copy of the Greeks).

It's funny how many hoops they'll go through to avoid having to call Hercules "Heracles" when retelling the Greek myths, since Hercules is the name most people are more familiar with. Same with Mercury.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Herculoes/Heracles, Mercury/Hermes...its all the same to me.

[mswood]

It's funny how many hoops they'll go through to avoid having to call Hercules "Heracles" when retelling the Greek myths, since Hercules is the name most people are more familiar with. Same with Mercury.


Yeah but you see they don't not since the reboot. The names have been proper based on the original Greek myths.

Now I can see the characcters in "Man's world" saying Hercules and such. BUt they Amazons, who have been sheltered away from everyone and everything. It makes absolutely no sense at all.

[phantom1592]

I am in favor of De-powered Wonder Woman. To a point. She should Lose the invulnerablity, that's stupid if she has the braclets. She should be FAST (as a speeding bullet, or the bracelets would be worthless) She should be strong. Not Beat up superman strong, but Easily lift cars and such. Like Spiderman strong. :) Keep the Lasso, the belt, etc. Highly skilled. etc.

Her power level right now kind of makes the whole "Contest" the Amazons did kind of Pointless. The Average Amazon doesnt' have all those powers, It would have been like Superman in the olympics :rolleyes:

[jimmyboy]

Yes, I love the fact that she can stand on her own with the big boys.
I loved JLA: League of One.
This showed more her smarts than her brawn, though of course she needed brawn. She did more what Bruce did in "Tower of Babel" (or did by proxy), which was to incapacitate the JLA.

Having her fly is a good thing, I think, but I do agree that she has become little more that Superwoman.

Another thing I don't think I agree with (though I'm really not sure what to think, sometimes) is that we need female strong-men, someone who can stand up to the Big Boys and duke it out with them. If you think about it, that's not how the real-world works or should work. Women should not and generally do not take on men in a physical way, out-brawning them. If you're talking about role models, do we really need females that bash and brawn their way to success? For that matter, do really need male role models that rely on bashing and beating to win a moral victory?

What we need, instead, are smart female characters. Think about it some more and you'll see that we need someone more like Batman, not Superman, to be the female heroes; someone who's primary weapons are her brains, her heart, her determination, and her integrity. One thing I do like about Diana is that they do sometimes (sometimes) show her female side and strength, which is to be empathetic and compassionate, and a source of an alternate perspective on a matter. We don't see much of that (if at all, really) from other female heroes. They're mostly just prettier versions of the male heroes, and/or they're there as romantic interests. Not very creative IMO.

[Hellcow]

I'm new to Wonder Woman, so please... be gentle....

I just read Trinity (which was kinda fun).

Now I read on hear that the latest version of the invisible jet was some sort of Alien artifact.

But what I want to know is, say in a story like Trinity, doesn't anyone think its stupid that Wonder Woman has access to technology like an invisible jet, but the rest of her people are still throwing spears?

[Bradpinder]

Could she always fly?

[Tom]

Could she always fly?
No, only since her reboot in 1986. Prior to that she could "glide on wind currents."

[Mulett]

Could she always fly?

Bit of a tricky one this. Historically, Wonder Woman relied heavily on her invisible plane to get around and so could not fly under how own power.

Later on (I remember this being early eighties, but some fans say it was during the 70s) she started being shown to fly. However, this was not flying in the way Superman can fly. She was shown to 'glide on the air currents', so it was a skill she learnt rather than a power she actually had.

However, as time went on it became obvious that more and more writers were letting her simply fly rather than glide (there is a difference, I promise!) so it got a bit muddled.

When she was rebooted from scratch in 1986, the power of flight was one of the powers bestowed upon her by the Gods so for the past 20 years she has been able to fly, properly.

[Bradpinder]

Thanks guys. Im looking to getting the new Wonderwoman series, and just always wondered about that.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I think having Wonder Woman fly makes the oh so cool Invisible Jet kinda redundant. I prefer the flightless WW who could jump really, really high.

[RawShark]

they should make her only be able to fly for short distances and at a "slower" speed. Also, they should show her with bugs in her teeth whenever she does fly, especially in tropical settings, unless she keeps her mouth shut, and we all know there isn't a superhero out there that can't launch into a monologue whenever the opportunity arises...

That way the plane isn't redundant as she would use it for long distances and speed.

:rolleyes:

[Shellhead]

Did Donna Troy start flying before Wonder Woman? During the Perez/Wolfman era of Teen Titans, it seemed like Wonder Girl was flying a lot, and always under her own power.

[Ontir]

Officially, Donna was "riding the air currents," but yearh, she flew. All the women in the New Teen Titans flew!

[Shellhead]

Officially, Donna was "riding the air currents," but yearh, she flew. All the women in the New Teen Titans flew!

Kind of like how only the female mutants could fly during the Claremont/Cockrum/Byrne issues of the X-Men.

[Deus ex Chris]

I think having Wonder Woman fly makes the oh so lame Invisible Jet kinda redundant.

You had a typo, so I edited it for you. ;)

[Ontir]

Kind of like how only the female mutants could fly during the Claremont/Cockrum/Byrne issues of the X-Men.


:p I ALMOST put that in my previous post!!!

I still assert that the Invisible Jet is in no way lame, the problem is, that as the ability to better represent it arrived, the visual interpretation of this cool item was not updated. The thing that was great about the plane/jet, is that it showed progress on the part of the Amazons. They weren't lotus eaters, lying about navel-gazing, they were continuing the quests of the axial age: Intellectual, philosophical, spiritual, and physical development. They were a truly advanced society, which produced something greater than the technology available in the outside world. As we move further into the era of stealth aircraft, in a post-Star Trek/Romulan Cloaking Device Sci-Fi world, the jet becomes more probable, and better understood. Is the jet invisible on the inside? Probably not. Can you see "a beautiful brunette, squatting at 20,000'? I don't think so. The jet needs to be explored, and to some extent, explained how it achieves its invisiblility. The thing that I found so fascinating about the original Wonder Woman, was that she was the height of human physical perfection, aided by technological and mythological tools. That needs to be fully restored, because without that base, the chracter doesn't work!

[Grazzt]

:p I ALMOST put that in my previous post!!!

I still assert that the Invisible Jet is in no way lame, the problem is, that as the ability to better represent it arrived, the visual interpretation of this cool item was not updated. The thing that was great about the plane/jet, is that it showed progress on the part of the Amazons. They weren't lotus eaters, lying about navel-gazing, they were continuing the quests of the axial age: Intellectual, philosophical, spiritual, and physical development. They were a truly advanced society, which produced something greater than the technology available in the outside world. As we move further into the era of stealth aircraft, in a post-Star Trek/Romulan Cloaking Device Sci-Fi world, the jet becomes more probable, and better understood. Is the jet invisible on the inside? Probably not. Can you see "a beautiful brunette, squatting at 20,000'? I don't think so. The jet needs to be explored, and to some extent, explained how it achieves its invisiblility. The thing that I found so fascinating about the original Wonder Woman, was that she was the height of human physical perfection, aided by technological and mythological tools. That needs to be fully restored, because without that base, the chracter doesn't work!

That might be the most eloquent defense of the invisible jet I've ever heard.

[Ontir]

Thank you very much!

[Magneto_X]

What issues and/or trades did WW not have her powers in for a while?

IIRC it took place in the 70's. She wore a white costume (similar to what she had on in WW #1-2 [Vol.2]).

[shaxper]

Pretty sure that was the late 1960s/early 1970s, as the women's rights movement was happening at the time and Gloria Steinem was an intrumental voice in getting Diana's powers returned.

[CarolStrick]

http://www.carolastrickland.com/dpindex1.html

[Magneto_X]

Thanks, Carol.

[marshal99]

Still , it couldn't escape the classic wonder woman bondage . :D

http://www.moviepoopshoot.com/comics101/images/2004/may5/ww196.jpg

Oh , trevor , i got a bigger gun than yours. ;)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/1/19/180px-WonderWoman1970s.jpg

[Knightmare10880]

I was wondering if anybody can help me with this question. A friend and myself where talking about different characters and their weaknesses like Superman and kryptonite and Green Lantern having trouble with anything yellow, but neither of us could remember what in the worl Wonder Woman's weakness is, can somebody please help me, I've been searching through fansites and haven't found anything on the subject.

[Karl O'Neill]

They say she is indestuctible.

but someone like superman or damage could kill her using brute force.

if ww hadnt snapped maxwell lords neck, superman would have killed her.

Telepaths like Dr psycho could kill her.

some people think allan heinbergs writing could kill her too.

[Kid Kyoto]

Poor sales and inconsistant characterization.

Nah just messing with you.

IIRC in the Silver Age (50s to early 80s) if she was bound by a man she would lose her powers.
In the 70s TV show she lost her powers if she lost her belt.
Since the 80s she has not had those weaknesses. Hurting or killing her requiires being more powerful than she is.

[Nights]

She has no secret identity or real connection to humanity whats so ever. She always has to preach and preach about well everything. She more argonaut than Batman ever been cause she talks to gods she knows best and she doesn't seem to do anything to really change the world.

[marshal99]

The pre-crisis wonder woman suffers from bondage weakness. You tie her up and she goes weak as a kitten. :D

BTW , i don't think green lantern has that yellow weakness anymore , not since the dumbass rebirth mini. A green lantern can now overcome that yellow weakness by facing up to the stupid yellow fear monster.

[Nights]

OT: There is still a yellow weaknesss but but now you can break threw it of you believe in love or have no fear.. Green Lantern is such a mess..

[carabas]

She more argonaut than Batman ever been cause she talks to gods she knows best and she doesn't seem to do anything to really change the world.

Batman and Wonder Woman have been many things, but neither of them were ever an Argonaut.

[Schornforce]

IIRC, during Byrne's run, I think Darkseid or Desaad mentioned that since Wonder Woman was tied to the earth, electricity hurts her nicely. I believe the JLA comic used that when the league fought Polaris. Maybe it was all just to explain why in the world Storm beat her in DC/Marvel.

She also could be absorbed by Ultimate Clayface.

She's able to be affected by powerful magicks (Circe, Mxyzptlk, etc.).

Poisons and toxins affect her (Cheshire and Poison Ivy managed to affect her).

These aren't weaknesses, per se. Not in the kryptonite sense, as it won't automatically weaken WW. But these are about as close as I can figure for the modern age WW.

[CarolStrick]

Wonder Woman's weaknesses, like her strengths, varies from writer to writer. DC doesn't care enough about her to define her.

Pre-Crisis if you took off her bracelets she sometimes went mad (sometimes she was able to control herself with some effort). She was subject to being bound by her lasso, same as anyone.

Post-Crisis poisons: She has sometimes used her power of super-prayer to get herself healed. For instance, during the Gotham arc in the PJ run, she prayed to the god of healing as well as Athene after she'd been poisoned by magically-enhanced Joker venom, and was able to snap out of it within about two panels.

[rick]

The pre-crisis wonder woman suffers from bondage weakness. You tie her up and she goes weak as a kitten. :D



Marston was just a total freak wasn't he?

Still, as bad as the current strip is, and has been for about 50 years now, a little bondage couldn't hurt.

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/5569/toporbotxu7.jpg

[DoctorDoom]

Marston was just a total freak wasn't he?

Still, as bad as the current strip is, and has been for about 50 years now, a little bondage couldn't hurt.

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/5569/toporbotxu7.jpg
Mmmmm....indeed

[Damo]

It varies with the mind controller (and author) but actually she seems to be immune to many forms of mind control (she sees right through Dr. Psycho's illusions and he can't control her).

The "she has no connection to humanity" seems a bit odd, seeing as how she's a human, not an alien like Superman. She definitely comes from a different culture.

She was never an Argonaut. But she's closer to one than Batman, I suppose. :p

[Eliseu Gouveia]

Magic, blunt force, bullets and arrows and knives, oh my.

[Clear]

She's not indestructible. She doesn't have some hokey achilles heel-type thing, but enough physical damage will do her in.

She blocks those bullets for a reason, right?

[Sijo]

I *really* hate the idea that Diana's transformation from clay to human is a spell that can be reversed rather than a permanent transformation. It means that she's not truly human, but only thinks she is. It's one thing to call on Gaea for healing, but not because she's made of clay.

Maybe she sould just be rewritten as Hercules' daughter after all.

And yes, Pre-Crisis, bonding the bracelets together cancelled her strenght (originally, only if bound by a man, but someone caught on to the sexual undertone of that and changed it later) and removing them caused her to go berserk. This is because the bracelets were symbols of submission to the gods. I do not miss these weaknesses.

[Eliseu Gouveia]

And I "really" hate the fact that she can take a punch from PLANET-busters like Superman or Doomsday but a bullet will harm her.

The whole "blunt damage VS piercing damage" mess.

[filthysize]

I miss the bondage stuff. They need to bring it back. Feminism is a lousy concept anyway. I want submission.

[DDM]

The pre-crisis wonder woman suffers from bondage weakness. You tie her up and she goes weak as a kitten. :D

More specifically, this weakness belongs to the Earth-2 or Golden Age Wonder Woman who married Steve Trevor & gave birth to Lyta Trevor, Fury.

I don't recall the Earth-1 Wonder Woman possessing this weakness.

[mattx110]

I miss the bondage stuff. They need to bring it back. Feminism is a lousy concept anyway. I want submission.

man, i saw the topic and when i realized it was 2 pages in i figured all the good sick stuff was covered involving bondage...

anyway, when she first started blocking bullets with the bands, she wasn't as strong as she is now. she might just use the bracelets out of habit, but i don't think bullets can do much damage.

[Brian "Vash" Ashby]

They need to bring the bondage thing back

If only because DC shouldnt be taking away their heroes weaknesses. I mean, can you even kill green lantern with a banana anymore? Blasphemy.

Whats next, superman not being hurt by kryptonite?

[Knightmare10880]

Wow, thanks guys I greatly appreciate it.

I do have another question thought, her powers and her suit; what exactly is the connection? From going through various fansites they all mention Diana's powers being gifts from the Gods, but which gifts are specific to her and are some specific to her costume. I know that Hippolyta when she was Wonder Woman had similar powers to that of her daughter but so do Wonder Girl and Donna Troy.

But the sites also mention specific powers that Diana has and the others don't so what exactly is the deal with powers and their relationship to her costume?

[Eliseu Gouveia]

Her powers have nothing to do with her clothing, it´s just something she wears.

Her powers are gifts from the gods, namely (excerpt from Wikipedia):

Diana possesses a host of superhuman powers granted to her by the gods and goddesses of Olympus, gifts which have been stated to be equal to their own abilities. [7] Primary among these are superhuman strength and stamina, which she draws from a mystical link to the Earth itself granted by Demeter.

Diana is one of the strongest superheroes in the DC Universe. Her stamina affords her an incredible degree of resistance to blunt force trauma. 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 or arrows).

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 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 heroes.

Like the Earth, Diana is constantly renewing herself, allowing her to quickly heal. In cases where she is gravely injured or poisoned, Diana has shown the ability to physically merge with the earth, causing whatever injuries or poisons she has incurred to be expelled from her body as it regains shape. This ability is shared by all the Themyscirian Amazons and is considered a sacred act, so is not used often. Diana possesses incredible speed and reflexes and is commonly seen deflecting bullets with her bracelets.

Diana is the finest warrior ever born to 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 practiced by the Amazons. Because those martial skills are not practiced outside of Themyscira, Diana is extremely difficult to defeat in open battle, unless she is fighting beings whose strength and durability surpasses her own, such as Superman, Darkseid, and the Olympian gods. However, even in those cases, her martial prowess has enabled her to garner some of her victories.

The goddess Artemis has granted Diana the "Hunter's Eye" which gives Diana enhanced senses, as well as unity with the animal kingdom and the ability to tame wild beasts. Shortly before Infinite Crisis, Wonder Woman was blinded; her sight was later restored by Athena. Since then, she has possessed the sight of Athena, or the gift of increased insight. Consequently, Diana can detect others' emotions, and is now fully immune to Doctor Psycho's illusions.

Diana possesses great wisdom and intelligence, and has exhibited heightened proficiency with languages, being able to speak her native Themysciran, Ancient and Modern Greek, English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese (she expressed "difficulty" with the tones of Cantonese during an interview with Lois Lane), Russian and Hindi.

Wonder Woman is an accomplished strategist and tactician, practiced in the arts of leadership, persuasion and diplomacy. For a short time during the George Pérez and William Messner-Loebs run on the comic, Diana was shown to possess the ability to astrally project herself into various lands of myth in order to interact with or seek advice from creatures there. [8] In some cases, she has shown the ability to place individuals into a state of sleep while under the power of her golden lasso. [9] However, this ability might be a common technique prevalent in Amazonian society, since Hippolyta used this technique on Diana herself during the Our Worlds at War event.

[Knightmare10880]

That's cool, I was just wondering about that. The Justice League/Unlimited version of made it a little confusioning, because it seeming pointed to her costume having something to do with her powers especially the Hawk and Dove episode; when Diana goes to Hephstaus to learn the secret of the armoured monster that he had created for Ares and Hephstaus(sp) ask her if she wanted himt to reviel her secrets while tapping her own her belt.

[Brian "Vash" Ashby]

I think one of her weaknesses is attractive women. Turns her knees into jelly and sets her loins aflame with Prometheus fire.

[Big Red Spider]

Not to change the subject, but does DC offer the golden age adventures in a Trade?

[davids]

Still think if Lois was gone...?

Golden age bad weakness all that bondage crap. Lose her powers if a man chains her. No powers off pardise island if she loses her girdle.

Good Golden age weakness= no bracllets goes ape, runs amok a real berserker!

bad Golden and silver age weakness= steve trevor...what a loser!

today= not totaly invunerable, she can take a lot of punishment, but she is not supergirl or superman.:evilsmile

[Damo]

She's completely vulnerable to bullets.

Except when she was shown being bulletproof. *COUGHS.*

[Sijo]

I'd like to point out that the powers section of the Wikipedia WW article only covers the current version of Wonder Woman (and includes some powers that writers after George Perez gave her, including references to one-time-only events that aren't necessarily permanent powers; see the discussion page of that article for details.) In any case, the powers of the Silver Age Wonder Woman were:

Strenght of Hercules, Speed of Mercury, Beauty of Aphrodite, Wisdom of Athena. She also could glide on air currents (not fly) and had a "mental radio" (telepathic communication- not sure if this was her power or the tiara's.)

Her magic lasso was indestructible, infinitely elastic, and compelled those trapped in it to obey the holder's commands (not just to tell the truth.) She also used it to change from her normal clothes to her uniform.

The bracelets were invulnerable (once blocking even Superman's punches). And yes, the Earth-1 WW also had the same bracelet limitations stated above.

Her tiara could be thrown like a boomerang, and it was very sharp.

Her girdle didn't have any special powers; that was Hyppolita's girdle, that made the wearer stronger than Hercules.

This is all from my personal recollections of the Pre-Crisis WW comic, mind you. :P

[Sanagi]

Marston was just a total freak wasn't he?

Still, as bad as the current strip is, and has been for about 50 years now, a little bondage couldn't hurt.

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/5569/toporbotxu7.jpg
Yeah, at least it was interesting. Weird, but interesting.

[Super-Skrull]

The harsh and unyielding deadlines of a bi-monthly schedule

[marshal99]

Secretly , Wonder woman loves to be tied up. ;)

http://www.superdickery.com/images/other/277_4_219.jpg

http://www.superdickery.com/images/bondage/bindme.jpg

[Brian "Vash" Ashby]

Im not sure thats a big secret

Why else does she carry around rope with her?

[PretenderNX01]

Her one and only weakness is she's largely undefined as a character. :p All that was asked was "Who is Diana?" and its taken half a year to figure out no one knows.

Not to change the subject, but does DC offer the golden age adventures in a Trade?

I don't think its in trades but I know its in hardcover collections:
Wonder Woman Archives, Vol. 1 (http://www.amazon.com/Wonder-Woman-Archives-Archive-Editions/dp/1563894025/sr=1-7/qid=1171703020/ref=sr_1_7/105-0341589-1805218?ie=UTF8&s=books)

[Patient Boy]

She has no secret identity or real connection to humanity whats so ever. She always has to preach and preach about well everything. She more argonaut than Batman ever been cause she talks to gods she knows best and she doesn't seem to do anything to really change the world.

OT: It took me a couple of minutes to figure out what word that actually was supposed to be.

[carabas]

Yeah. I'm guessing that it was so horribly miss spelled that that is all that his spellcheck could make of it.

[Big Red Spider]

Her one and only weakness is she's largely undefined as a character. :p All that was asked was "Who is Diana?" and its taken half a year to figure out no one knows.



I don't think its in trades but I know its in hardcover collections:
Wonder Woman Archives, Vol. 1 (http://www.amazon.com/Wonder-Woman-Archives-Archive-Editions/dp/1563894025/sr=1-7/qid=1171703020/ref=sr_1_7/105-0341589-1805218?ie=UTF8&s=books)

Thanks

I totally agree. Her character is so undefined. She needs more of humanity to her. Give her a secret identity. Give her a boyfriend. Kill off her boyfriend. I don't know. Give her a reason to be.

[bannermanonemillion]

What kind of weaknesses do you think WW should have?

Me, I think it should be something relating to gods. Let's say she's only immune to god-weapons.

You could say that gods from various pantheons are still carrying out old grudges and conflicts and are always coming up with new weapons to either use directly or to give to humans and use them as foot-soldiers.

Let's imagine that a weapon created directly by a god an hurt/kill Diana, in which case, she'll have to use her brains to survive.

Just a thought.

[Damo]

Thanks

I totally agree. Her character is so undefined. She needs more of humanity to her. Give her a secret identity. Give her a boyfriend. Kill off her boyfriend. I don't know. Give her a reason to be.

Ugh. I'm sorry, but I hate this kneejerk reasoning. "I don't know much about her, so her character must be undefined. I know and can relate to Spiderman and Batman, and they have secret identities, so give her one. I don't know or understand her reason for being, so she musn't have one."

I've been following her on and off for years, have a good chunk of the run, and never found myself confused as to who she is or her reason for being until "Who is Wonder Woman" showed up and claimed that things that were clear to me actually weren't clear at all.

[gianluca790]

Doesn't being a woman in a man's world qualify as a weakness? It still is, you know. Hard to be take seriously if you're dressed like a hooker.

[bannermanonemillion]

Ugh. I'm sorry, but I hate this kneejerk reasoning. "I don't know much about her, so her character must be undefined. I know and can relate to Spiderman and Batman, and they have secret identities, so give her one. I don't know or understand her reason for being, so she musn't have one."

I've been following her on and off for years, have a good chunk of the run, and never found myself confused as to who she is or her reason for being until "Who is Wonder Woman" showed up and claimed that things that were clear to me actually weren't clear at all.

Damo, you are leagues ahead of me then.

Exactly who is Diana?

Can you sum her up in one sentence?

Why exactly is she here?

[Eliseu Gouveia]

A phrase?
I can distil her into two words:

"Amazon princess."

[del gorky]

Damo, you are leagues ahead of me then.

Exactly who is Diana?

Can you sum her up in one sentence?

Why exactly is she here?

Since the Perez reboot post-Crisis, it's been to teach the world the ways of Amazon peaceful co-existence and kick ass when others get in the way of her mission. Since post-IC and the new Heinberg regime, it beats the hell out me what's going on. I do know the book isn't coming out and that's never a good thing. But it not coming out is still better than Flash which has come out on time and flat out sucked.

[Fenix]

Damo, you are leagues ahead of me then.

Exactly who is Diana?

Can you sum her up in one sentence?

Why exactly is she here?

Wonder Woman Spirit of Truth by Paul Dini and Alex Ross, there you find answers to all your questions
One sentence :eek::D

[Darth Joker]

Wonder Woman is a character that intrigues me.

She has a lot of things going for her.

1. She's gorgeous.

2. She has Superman-esque powers, but with no easily exploitable in-continuity weakness.

3. Her character design, and outfit, is lovely and timeless.

However, while she is one of DC's 'Big Three', she enjoys nowhere near the success, or the publicity, of the other two... the other two being Batman and Superman.

The surest sign of this is in the number of Batman and Superman movies and video games vs. the number of WW movies and video games.

I'd love for Wonder Woman to become a stronger force in the DCU, and to become a more popular character overall.

In my opinion, the following hurts Wonder Woman...

She herself is surprisingly not all that well fleshed out as a character. What we conclussively know about post-crisis Wonder Woman can probably be summed up in a paragraph, or two. We know that she worships the ancient Greco-Roman gods. We know that she is an accomplished amazonian warrior, and is by a considerable margin the most willing to use lethal force against villians of DC's big three (with Superman greatly against it, and Batman also against it to the degree that Joker is still alive). We know that she's generally a nice person, though somewhat an archetype character. A listing of her powers, and supporting cast and rogues gallery aside, that's all we know about her.

Her sexuality is completely up in the air. She could concievably be a virgin. She could be a lesbian like most of her fellow Paradise Island amazons. She may have had sex with a man 'off-camera'. She could be bi-sexual. We honestly have little to no idea.

Compare that to Batman and Superman. We know that Batman's been with Catwoman, and Ra's daughter, if nothing else. We know that Superman's been with Lois, of course.

The lack of a lasting, serious, reasonably well-known, romantic interest for Diana hurts the character a bit, I think, as well as her popularity. It's not that there's anything wrong with being signle, it's just that the presence of an established long-standing romantic interest adds a nice edge to the character's comics that can be otherwise lacking (i.e. watching the romance unfold, and endure - or perhaps fail ? - through various conflicts and trials).

Look at all of the other most popular heroes and heroines in DC and Marvel. They *all* have recognized romantic interests - along with Batman and Superman, there is Spiderman and MJ, Reed and Sue, Cyclops and Jean Grey... heck, even Daredevil and Elektra.

I think that Diana needs to be fleshed out a bit more here. I think that she could use a romantic interest (Steve Trevor doesn't really count for the current incarnation of WW).

Secondly, Diana lacks both that classic villain like Luthor and the Joker, and also that good physical opponent like Zod and Bane. Superman, and Batman, have both.

Circe is a good villain, but she's a magic-user, not a punch-out-their-lights type. Nor does she enjoy the (in)famous stature of a Luthor or Joker.

Darkseid was a good WW villain, but he's more JL/Superman material now than a WW villain.

Wonder Woman needs that Zod-type to give us good fights, and a classic long-standing archenemy like a Luthor or a Joker.

In fact, if DC wanted to create a brand new villain, and propel him or her to instant stardom within the DCU... just make a good new arch-nemisis for Wonder Woman. There would be your new star character.

Diana also needs a tighter supporting cast. She needs people with names that stick out... like "Perry White", and "Commissioner Gordon".

So... what do you guys and gals all think?

What can be done to make Wonder Woman a more popular character?

Indeed, just who IS Wonder Woman?

[PretenderNX01]

Wonder Woman Spirit of Truth by Paul Dini and Alex Ross, there you find answers to all your questions
One sentence :eek::D

As I recall Dini has Diana out of costume alot and learning from humanity by living as a human. Damo forbid we should include that in a Wonder Woman comic- oh wait thats the direction they're going now ;)

Secondly, Diana lacks both that classic villain like Luthor and the Joker, and also that good physical opponent like Zod and Bane. Superman, and Batman, have both.

The only villain that comes to my mind is Cheetah, mainly because of the Superfriends show, but I noticed that the sort-of-Wonder Woman, She-Ra, has a feline villain in Catra. Maybe they were on to something.

Now of course which Cheetah to use- mutated cat woman or the lady in a cheetah costume. And what should be her story? Why does she hate Wonder Woman?

[the4thpip]

Chocolate.



And no, that was not a Trevor Barnes joke.

[carabas]

As I recall Dini has Diana out of costume alot and learning from humanity by living as a human. Damo forbid we should include that in a Wonder Woman comic- oh wait thats the direction they're going now?

No, that's the direction they ditched after Infinite crisis.
The current direction has a Wonder Woman who doen't even have a costume (or a brain, powers, willpower... for that matter), and doesn't seem to even exist apart from her government job.

[CarolStrick]

The modern WW in one sentence? DC has no clue (obviously), but here's my take:

Wonder Woman is the princess of an ancient, peaceful, techno-magick Amazon nation who epitomizes the search for positive empowerment in both herself, others and the world by striving to help in whatever ways she can.

[Fenix]

No, that's the direction they ditched after Infinite crisis.
The current direction has a Wonder Woman who doen't even have a costume (or a brain, powers, willpower... for that matter), and doesn't seem to even exist apart from her government job.

Thank YOU. As I see it, the alter ego is not the problem, the problem is to set that as part of a lie to conceal her entire life/purpose drive.

The modern WW in one sentence? DC has no clue (obviously), but here's my take:

Wonder Woman is the princess of an ancient, peaceful, techno-magick Amazon nation who epitomizes the search for positive empowerment in both herself, others and the world by striving to help in whatever ways she can.
Beautifully expressed.

Darth Joker
In my opinion, the following hurts Wonder Woman...

Her sexuality is completely up in the air. She could concievably be a virgin. She could be a lesbian like most of her fellow Paradise Island amazons. She may have had sex with a man 'off-camera'. She could be bi-sexual. We honestly have little to no idea. See, that´s the kind of reasoning that hurts the character in your mind.
(Please don´t get me wrong, I don´t want to be offensive. I´m just using your reasoning to state my opinion.)
With that type of reasoning, Superman could be cheating Lois off-camera, and Batman could be gay. See the problem here, right?
I tend to believe that "truth/cannon" is what we see on screen.
She could be "everything" is you think of it, but if you stick to what you know-not what you want her to be-she could be only one thing.

Superman cheating Lois is stupid because:
a.Never mention even as a possibility
b.Against his characterization
c.Never show, not even a hint, in 60 years of Superman history.
d.We see how much He loves her everytime no matter what.
The same method of reasoning could be applied to WW.

Show me proof that she is NOT straight.:)


The lack of a lasting, serious, reasonably well-known, romantic interest for Diana hurts the character a bit, I think, as well as her popularity. It's not that there's anything wrong with being signle, it's just that the presence of an established long-standing romantic interest adds a nice edge to the character's comics that can be otherwise lacking (i.e. watching the romance unfold, and endure - or perhaps fail ? - through various conflicts and trialsRelationships always work good and fuels the drama, but only if it serves the character and if it is well pace. Doing it just for the sake of it, ruins everything. Phil Jimenez attempt was horrible, rushed, out of the blue, and unfortunately one thing that was utterly stupid. Introduce a character in order to make her loose her virginity is a dumb idea, and doomed from its very begging.

Look at all of the other most popular heroes and heroines in DC and Marvel. They *all* have recognized romantic interests - along with Batman and Superman, there is Spiderman and MJ, Reed and Sue, Cyclops and Jean Grey... heck, even Daredevil and Elektra.
Excellent point.
Those characters were around for how long before becoming a romantic interest? besides, they were characters to begin with, not just "extras" with dialogs :p

I think that Diana needs to be fleshed out a bit more here. I think that she could use a romantic interest (Steve Trevor doesn't really count for the current incarnation of WW). Agreed, but only in the right, thoughtfully and well pace manner.

Secondly, Diana lacks both that classic villain like Luthor and the Joker, and also that good physical opponent like Zod and Bane. Superman, and Batman, have both. Really? what about the Greek Gods? Is there anything more classic than that?
Physical opponents? Demons, Gods, nuts, Cheetah, Circe, Dr. Psycho, Giganta, The man´s world, even her peers, etc...

Circe is a good villain, but she's a magic-user, not a punch-out-their-lights type. Nor does she enjoy the (in)famous stature of a Luthor or Joker. That´s basically because those are well known by you or anyone who follows Batman or Superman.
As you said, WW is a complex character very difficult to grab for the majority of comic readers.

Darkseid was a good WW villain, but he's more JL/Superman material now than a WW villain.There´s plenty of Darkseid for everyone:p

Wonder Woman needs that Zod-type to give us good fights, and a classic long-standing archenemy like a Luthor or a Joker.Rucka tried that with Veronica Cale and a lot of fans said they don´t want to see another Luthor... food for thought eh?


Diana also needs a tighter supporting cast. She needs people with names that stick out... like "Perry White", and "Commissioner Gordon".
Agreed.
She needs to be written with some extra consistency on some areas, just to patch rough things up.

[Damo]

As I recall Dini has Diana out of costume alot and learning from humanity by living as a human. Damo forbid we should include that in a Wonder Woman comic-

Damo would love to have her out of costume on a regular basis, talking to others, sharing thoughts. But not lying and pretending to be something she's not. I loved seeing her in jeans and a shirt talking about her day, and actually having the conversation be about her day not a tissue of lies meant to keep people from knowing who she is. Superman and Batman were raised to be "Clark Kent" and "Bruce Wayne". Wonder Woman was raised to be Princess Diana. however much truth there may or may not be in "Bruce Wayne" and "Clark Kent", "Diana Prince" is nothing more than an invention, a lie.

I'd give a shot at summing her up in a sentence, but Carol did a wonderful job.


As for villains?

Luthor? Circe.
Joker? Dr. Psycho.
Darkseid? Ares.

[carabas]

So... nobody caught her blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance in this week's '52'?

[bannermanonemillion]

As I recall Dini has Diana out of costume alot and learning from humanity by living as a human. Damo forbid we should include that in a Wonder Woman comic- oh wait thats the direction they're going now ;)


Now I read SOT, and I loved it. I loved the ending that showed her stepping out of a phone booth, with shades, black clothes, looking up into the sky and NOT flying off (take that Neo!) but instead walking into the crowd.

I also enjoyed seeing her using a number of civilian guises like a member of the bombsquad who has to defuse a land mine, carefully as opposed to simply smacking it as Wonder Woman.

If SOT was in-continuity, we probably wouldn't have all these "Who I Wonder Woman" discussions.

[Darth Joker]

See, that´s the kind of reasoning that hurts the character in your mind.
(Please don´t get me wrong, I don´t want to be offensive. I´m just using your reasoning to state my opinion.)
With that type of reasoning, Superman could be cheating Lois off-camera, and Batman could be gay. See the problem here, right?

Superman's loyalty to Lois is surpassed only by Superman's fear of killing people.

In other words, it's beyond question. ;)

Batman's actually been with some women before, so that probably rules him out as gay.

Diana, OTOH, ...

I tend to believe that "truth/cannon" is what we see on screen. She could be "everything" is you think of it, but if you stick to what you know-not what you want her to be-she could be only one thing.

Superman cheating Lois is stupid because:
a.Never mention even as a possibility
b.Against his characterization
c.Never show, not even a hint, in 60 years of Superman history.
d.We see how much He loves her everytime no matter what.
The same method of reasoning could be applied to WW.

Show me proof that she is NOT straight.:)

During the War of the Gods storyline in DC back in the late 80s/early 90s (yes, my mind is a bit foggy on it), there were a lot of scenes of Diana hanging out with her fellow amazons, and there was some... sexual tension there, in my view.

Ambiguous, of course, but there.

I mean, if you don't like to think of Diana that way, fine... but wouldn't it be better if her sexuality was firmly rooted by in-canon examples of a serious romance?

Relationships always work good and fuels the drama, but only if it serves the character and if it is well pace. Doing it just for the sake of it, ruins everything. Phil Jimenez attempt was horrible, rushed, out of the blue, and unfortunately one thing that was utterly stupid. Introduce a character in order to make her loose her virginity is a dumb idea, and doomed from its very begging.

I sometimes think that Wonder Woman is hurt by the fact that she's a gorgeous, 30-plus year old female virgin. In a lot of people's eyes... that's just weird. It would be different if she was a nun like how Nightcrawler of the X-Men was a Priest... but she's not; she's pagan/wiccan.

So... since she's gorgeous, athletic, fit, had brief flings with Superman and Batman (but no more than that in regular continuity), and no longstanding male-female romance... many might think she's lesbian.

Which I actually wouldn't have a problem with, especially since she grew up on an Island of largely lesbian amazons.

It's the ambiguity I don't like. If Wonder Woman is a proud, out-and-out virgin... that brings in certain fans. If she's a proud, out-and-out lesbian... THAT brings in certain fans. If she's in a solid straight relationship... that brings out certain fans.

As is? The ambiguity just makes her seem a bit weird, and perhaps hard for female fans of her to relate to her, I'm afraid.

Excellent point.
Those characters were around for how long before becoming a romantic interest? besides, they were characters to begin with, not just "extras" with dialogs :p

Agreed, but only in the right, thoughtfully and well pace manner.

Really? what about the Greek Gods? Is there anything more classic than that?
Physical opponents? Demons, Gods, nuts, Cheetah, Circe, Dr. Psycho, Giganta, The man´s world, even her peers, etc...
That´s basically because those are well known by you or anyone who follows Batman or Superman.

Circe is cool.

Dr. Psycho had his moments.

Giganta's Ok.

Cheetah consistently seems out of her league to me, though.

Well, I'll say this - her rogues' gallery is better than Flash's, and better than most DCU heroes. As one of the big three, though...

As you said, WW is a complex character very difficult to grab for the majority of comic readers.

There´s plenty of Darkseid for everyone

LOL :D

Rucka tried that with Veronica Cale and a lot of fans said they don´t want to see another Luthor... food for thought eh?


Agreed.
She needs to be written with some extra consistency on some areas, just to patch rough things up.

Well, I'm glad that we agree on this last point, anyway.

[Fenix]

Darth Joker
Ambiguous, of course, but there.
I mean, if you don't like to think of Diana that way, fine... but wouldn't it be better if her sexuality was firmly rooted by in-canon examples of a serious romance?It depends on how they´ll do it as I tell you before. One could say that Phil Jimenez was aiming to do that. Result, again for most comic readers is: vague or an utter fail. It´s interesting how, an apparent subtext is more convincing than the image itself within certain context.
But the key question would be:
It would be better if DC set this up once and for all?
Aside from my personal opinion that I stated above, the evidence turns out to answer that question with a very straight: NO.
See how much interest and devotion brings, publicity and as you said:
If Wonder Woman is a proud, out-and-out virgin... that brings in certain fans. If she's a proud, out-and-out lesbian... THAT brings in certain fans. If she's in a solid straight relationship... that brings out certain fans.and yes, if you´re ambiguous... you brings out all types it seems.
I Know gay fans and straight fans love her character equally, and from the other thread in this forum about her sexuality, it could also be estated, judging only by it, that WW could be a hit :)
Paul Newell
Congratulations! I have now merged the 20th thread, pondering Wonder Woman's sexuality/virginity/love life, into this megathread.
It is now, officially, the most dreamed about topic on the DC Boards.

I sometimes think that Wonder Woman is hurt by the fact that she's a gorgeous, 30-plus year old female virgin. In a lot of people's eyes... that's just weird. It would be different if she was a nun like how Nightcrawler of the X-Men was a Priest... but she's not; she's pagan/wiccan. Weird? Yes. But under concepts like majority=Normal, Minority=Different, One=Weird (general cultural parameters) In other times, it could be weird what you call today "normal".
Anyway, to me, she´s unique. I´m not afraid of unique. In fact, if she were a real person, I would find her awesomely interesting.

It's the ambiguity I don't like.I understand completely. But you know what? Let´s imagine DC says she is lesbian. Do you think that her book will be an instant hit? I seriously doubt that.
She will still have the same problems if not, even more.
I could see her completely establish, married for example, but do you think comic fans would like that?
I´m tired of reading things like Lois should die, Pete should leave MJ, and all that kind of things. Just imagine what it would be like...sometimes I think DC is doing a great job :p

WW is a very difficult character to grab and basically that is because she´s very difficult to relate with, everything that sides with the word perfection and truth is difficult to relate with, imagine a gorgeous woman 30+ virgin with a truth lasso who fires every inner physique phantom and desire... wohhh. I better shut up now. ;)

[Stanlos]

Could she always fly?

No, she did not fly straightaway.

Her first flight was during a Marston issue where Steve is about to discover her identity. Later she flies in outer space during a Space Pterodactyl story. Finally in the 50s and 60s she is regularly doing it and they give the explanation of "gliding on wind currents" though clearly more would be assumed to be at work. Finally in 86 relaunch, they got off the pot and she flies.

[Eliseu Gouveia]

So she did start flying during the Marston run, it wasn´t something later writers added to the character.

[Stanlos]

So she did start flying during the Marston run, it wasn´t something later writers added to the character.

So far I only have counted two instances during his. One was on the planet and the other was in outer space (where, of course, there are no winds).

He also had her leaping from planet to planet, sometimes with a . . . "Space Kanga". All the outerspace stuff seemed to feature a bubble helmet for breathing but no other protections were needed (which of course kind of strains the whole "all powers from Amazon Concentration" business).

[Eliseu Gouveia]

I think it´s safe to say that Marston wanted her to be on pair with Superman.

Which is why it gets to my nerves nowadays when Supes is able to effortlessly break her wrists or "snap her like a twig".

[witchboy]

I liked the way the plane was reimagined during John Byrne's Hippolyta in the JSA era .
I like the plane , and it should be used , when WW has passangers or needs to go into space , but for everyday travel she should be able to fly on her own imo.

[NightBirdFlying]

The thing that I found so fascinating about the original Wonder Woman, was that she was the height of human physical perfection, aided by technological and mythological tools. That needs to be fully restored, because without that base, the chracter doesn't work!

Ok, Wonder Woman isn't human.

Also i gotta disagree i like her gifts from the gods, i love the greek gods in wonder woman, it sets her apart from the other heroes.

Also while im a big fan of WW i dont really think she's ever had much of a character, the only time in my reading experience of WW shes had much of a character is Rucka's run.

In which she always seemed human in the same way that supes seems human, which i liked.

In the new series she seems to be developing a chracter although i do think that the 'Who is Wonder Woman?' thing has gone on for far to long.

I don't understand why DC have never just let WW be the Kind, caring, gentle woman that Diana is and the Cross me or my friends and ill smash you, warrior that WW is.

[chemicalx]

How strong is she? They say she is second to only superman does that mean that both Kara and Power Girl are stronger than her or no? I get confused about who is more powerful with these three.

[Pink Bat Max]

How strong is she? They say she is second to only superman does that mean that both Kara and Power Girl are stronger than her or no? I get confused about who is more powerful with these three.

Depends on who's writing her. Sorry to say, there's no one, consistant answer. If it helps, I think it was Byrne who showed her lifting a tank over her head and tearing it in two.

[The Great Grape]

While she can vary some,she's pretty strong overall.A class 100 on the Marvel scale,so to speak(albeit not an upper class 100.)

She's not as strong as Superman or his virtual equals(like Black Adam.)About as strong as the Martain Manhunter,I'd say.And stronger than someone like Power Girl.At least this would be my take on events up to this point.

[chemicalx]

thanks guys. I get confused since PG is supposed to have the same powers as superman and thus should be the same power level same goes for SG so wonder woman should be #4 at least but i guess it doesnt matter

[Tyr]

Does it really matter how strong she is or what her power level is? I suppose if this was DBZ....

In my opinion if she can rip a tank in half, then she's pretty darn strong.

But if we really must rate her....

I think both Power Girl and Sups are stronger, or at the very least they can take more punishment then she can. However what she's lacking in terms of their strength she more then makes up in training and experiance.

Batman has the skills. Superman has the muscle. Wonder Woman has the skills and the muscle, she's the best of both worlds.

[chemicalx]

Does it really matter how strong she is or what her power level is? I suppose if this was DBZ....

In my opinion if she can rip a tank in half, then she's pretty darn strong.

But if we really must rate her....

I think both Power Girl and Sups are stronger, or at the very least they can take more punishment then she can. However what she's lacking in terms of their strength she more then makes up in training and experiance.

Batman has the skills. Superman has the muscle. Wonder Woman has the skills and the muscle, she's the best of both worlds.



i understand what you are saying i was just trying to figure it out because they say she is offically second only to superman but i was wondering where the other two ladies fell

[The Great Grape]

Ah,sorry I didn't more address the comparison to SG & PG before.

Anyway,Wonder Woman's body isn't as durable to sharp objects(like bullets)as Supergirl's or Power Girl's.OTOH,her blunt force durability is pretty fine.For example,she took a punch from Superman,while fighting in space,that knocked her all the way back to earth.Was reawakened by reentry.Hit the planet leaving a large crator.And got up shortly after to continue the fight.

Supergirl was getting a God push upon her reintro and I think is still above Diana physically.Though she recently armwrestled Lobo(who I feel is class 100 but not Superman's equal these days)evenly and eventually lost(though being distracted)in Brave & Bold.I still tend to see Supergirl as stronger than Diana.Albeit not massively so.Power Girl was re-awarded Krypt status last year but nothing that notable has come out of it since.And her resume isn't as good as Diana's otherwise.

As for second to Superman.Eh,she has showings that can back that.But typically,I'd say no.Closest guy to that,normally,might be Captain Marvel.Though he's the new Wizard right now and at a different level.But usually,I'd say he's 1A to Superman's 1,so to speak.

[artemisboy]

How strong is she? They say she is second to only superman does that mean that both Kara and Power Girl are stronger than her or no? I get confused about who is more powerful with these three.

In the Batman/Superman comic Diana was shown to have easily restrained Kara/Supergirl. Granted Supergirl is rumored to now be stronger than Superman, but that still gives Diana a lot of clout in that Kara couldn't budge Diana's hold.

- Peter

[Knightmare10880]

I've got a couple of questions;


1) Exactly how long has Wonder Woman been in "Man's World"?

2) In the older comics what exactly was the connection between Wonder Woman's costume and her powers? I know about the thing with her braclets, but I keep hearing that in the old days she'd lose her powers if she lost her belt; is that true?

3) Ok, Batman as the Joker, Superman has Lex Luthor but who is Wonder Woman's big bad, is it Circe or Cheetah? And where does Giganta fit in the schemes of Wonder Woman villians?

[Mia]

I have found the only places I have liked her are in 'All Star Batman and Robin' by Frank Miller, Justice League Unlimited and 'Superman For Tomorrow' by Brian Azzarello. Otherwise she has always struck me as a bit a 'Pollyanna'.
Which is the most accurate portrayal of WW?

[Kage Kisaragi]

How strong is she? They say she is second to only superman does that mean that both Kara and Power Girl are stronger than her or no? I get confused about who is more powerful with these three.

I would say Diana is stronger than Kara by a good margin. In the only time they have ever exchanged blows to my knowledge, Diana was merely turned a step back from Kara's punch. Yet when Diana punched Kara in return she went upward as if blasted. Recently Power Girl and Wonder Woman had a little fight, but I believe PG had the upper hand because Diana didn't necessarily want to fight her, so in the first round PG looks to be stumping WW but good. In the second encounter though Diana isn't so generous and seems to easily take Power Girl down, even knocking her out for a few seconds I think.

[Spiffy]

I would say Diana is stronger than Kara by a good margin. In the only time they have ever exchanged blows to my knowledge, Diana was merely turned a step back from Kara's punch. Yet when Diana punched Kara in return she went upward as if blasted. Recently Power Girl and Wonder Woman had a little fight, but I believe PG had the upper hand because Diana didn't necessarily want to fight her, so in the first round PG looks to be stumping WW but good. In the second encounter though Diana isn't so generous and seems to easily take Power Girl down, even knocking her out for a few seconds I think.
While the comics have been inconsistent on this, due to different writers, I think logically Diana is weaker than any Kryptonian.

That said, she's also an infinitely better trained fighter, short of someone digging up a Kryptonian with years of military training under their belts.

[Crisis]

2) In the older comics what exactly was the connection between Wonder Woman's costume and her powers? I know about the thing with her braclets, but I keep hearing that in the old days she'd lose her powers if she lost her belt; is that true?

False: that was only on the tv show. what was like it in the comics (pre-crisis on earth 1 and 2) is if her braclets were chained by a man she would loser her powers. Or if her mother had the girdle of venus (i think its venus) taken away from her.

[Pixie_Solanas]

OK, so why is Diana wearing non-heeled boots? Are we supposed to believe a bad-ass Amazonian princess needs archsupport from orthopedically sound flats?

An asskicking looks soo much more impressive when delivered in stiletto heels.

[pariah-1972]

My roomate says that Wonder Woman gained the ability to fly in some "war" were the heroes were magically powered up...
Is any of this true?

[CaptainCanada]

No; post-1987 Wondy got flight as part of her package of Olympian-granted powers (it came from Hermes, as does her speed).

[celticguy]

I the first issue of Trinity Superman say something along the line of Wonderwoman loses her powers out of costume? What up with that?

[CaptainCanada]

That's not true; her powers are innate.

[IvCNuB4]

IIRC, at the end of Heinberg's run, Circe cast a spell that removed Diana's powers when she was Diana Prince. She is only powered when she is Wonder Woman ....

[ZNOP]

Repost in the DC Universe under "Does DC have super materials?"