Grant Morrisson has some more thoughts on Wonder Woman

[TimothyLaskey]

Here's a link to the interview (scroll down a bit):

http://robot6.comicbookresources.com...opper-results/


Grant Morrison talks about his Batman books, Joe the Barbarian, and his desire to tackle The Flash and Wonder Woman: “I think one of the things that was lost on the Wonder Woman strip early on was a kind of slightly strange sexuality that the creator, William Marston, brought to the book. So, I think over the years a lot of people have had trouble dealing with the character–you know, she’s an icon, she’s a representation of women, but at the same time there has been a sexuality there that most people don’t want to go near, which is quite understandable. But because the character was so rooted in it, I think she kind of lost a little bit of her ‘sauce,’ you know? [Laughs] There have been great versions — I’m not saying there haven’t been good Wonder Womans over the years, but I think there’s always that little bit of something that Marston took with him, and it wasn’t the same with Superman and Batman. They didn’t rely on that aspect of the character to be successful in the early days. So, that’s my feeling on Wonder Woman: it’d be nice to restore a little bit of that without being purient or sensationalistic.”

I wonder what he's referring to about Marston's Diana and her sexuality? Personally, I don't get any data about it from reading the Golden Age stories, certainly no more than I get from early Superman and Batman tales. She has a boyfriend in Steve Trevor, and like Clark and Lois, the presumption is that they will consummate their relationship, if they haven't already. In the mind of an adult reading the stories, anyway; children not educated in sexual relationships still possess an understanding of loving relationships.

What is so unorthodox about Diana's sexuality? Is it the bondage play with other amazons? I thought that was a visual expression of the concept of "loving submission", ie, devotion to the peaceful ways of Aphrodite.

Any thoughts?

[AaronJ]

Grant is a god.

He's ready to take on WW in a way that no one else is. Thank god. If only.

[TimothyLaskey]

Well if he does take a shot, I hope editorial doesn't hobble his story, in the way that they've done to pretty much every run on WW that I've enjoyed.

He sure does owe the character some recompense after the shoddy treatment he gave her in Final Crisis!

[carabas]

What is so unorthodox about Diana's sexuality? Is it the bondage play with other amazons? I thought that was a visual expression of the concept of "loving submission", ie, devotion to the peaceful ways of Aphrodite.

Any thoughts?

I think you're confusing Marston's text and subtext. He IMO put the bondage stuff in because, well, he liked that stuff and lived that lifestyle with his wife and live-in mistress.
"Loving submission" is pretty much code for S&M games and the peaceful ways of Aphrodite is what he used to get it past the censors. Mostly. There were some deeper ideas behind it, but mostly Marstin was a kinky guy who made kinky comics.

[AaronJ]

I see editorial not playing a serious event here.

Morrison is either going to to go, or he isn't. It seems that simple.

[T-Bolt]

Would love to see what he would do with Diana and the Flash, I be they would both be amazing.

[carabas]

Would love to see what he would do with Diana and the Flash, I be they would both be amazing.

They just reprinted his run on The Flash (with Millar).

[TimothyLaskey]

Right, Marston most likely put in some of the bondage scenes for kink value; I like to think that he was using the position he had to shake up the puritanical, heterocentric culture in America at the time.

But it does tie in (pun intended) with the theme of men submitting willingly to Aphrodite's law of love. Men can fight against it all they want; eventually they'll encounter a more powerful force in Wonder Woman who will graciously usher them along. I don't see it in a sexual way, unless that is the reading I intend to do. In a strictly visual symbolic way, the bondage element translates to feminine power, to me.

I don't read Superman leaping tall buildings in a sexual/phallic way. I don't see why that filter becomes necessary for Wonder Woman.

[MartinRedmond]

Bring back Etta Candy and all the Amazons' "games", the Invisible Plane, Steve w/e his name is, etc. AT LAST Morrison back to doing something worth my hard earned dime.

[carabas]

I don't read Superman leaping tall buildings in a sexual/phallic way. I don't see why that filter becomes necessary for Wonder Woman.

Tall buildings and jumping are not (as far as I know, but I'm sure there's a specialised website for it) a sexual fetish. Bondage and submission on the other hand...

I did say that there is some deeper subtext to Marston's work.

[Retro315]

Wonder Woman without the borderline irreverent sexiness is fine ... it really is. But it's like a Superman story that doesn't acknowledge his Apollo/Christ byline ... or a Batman story that doesn't acknowledge the hypocrisy of his decency vs. his night job.

It just feels naive not to acknowledge it. Good stories can be told without including her odd relationship to both men and women alike in "normal" situations. But great Wonder Woman stories need to be told with it.

[DarkKnghtJared]

What is so unorthodox about Diana's sexuality? Is it the bondage play with other amazons? I thought that was a visual expression of the concept of "loving submission", ie, devotion to the peaceful ways of Aphrodite.

I think for most people nowadays, it probably wouldn't be THAT unorthodox, but in the 30s, back when people got arrested for buying actual pornography, it probably was.

And if Morrison wants to bring that back some of that flavor with his book, I say go for it.

[DarkKnghtJared]

Well if he does take a shot, I hope editorial doesn't hobble his story, in the way that they've done to pretty much every run on WW that I've enjoyed.

Well, I remember when Morrison doing a Wonder Woman story was first talked about it was rumored that DC thought it was too "out-there" for the regular DCU, so they were going to treat it like All-Star Superman, uniquely in it's own world. The return to bondage stuff (and courting JMS for his interpretation probably had a bit to do with it) is probably a reason--if only just to test the water a bit.

[Eliseu Gouveia]

Sexuality is always good, but I don´t think it´s the key element that is lacking from those early days.

What I do think is missing is the sense of FUN that those books seemed to have.

[T Hedge Coke]

Sexuality is always good, but I don´t think it´s the key element that is lacking from those early days.

What I do think is missing is the sense of FUN that those books seemed to have.

I think the loss of sexuality was a big chunk of the loss of fun. The control/submission bondage gaming stuff used to put a smile on Diana's face and the pep in her step.