Books of 2019, #3
With Wonder Woman Earth One, Vol 2, Grant Morrison and Yanick Paquette double down on everything established in the first volume, whether it’s the shamelessly unsubtle updating of the politics of William Moulton Marston’s era to present day via lengthy conversations or art that toes the line between hot and tasteful. It’s discouraging that the modernization of Marston’s anti-Nazi rhetoric is so easy to do with our current society uncomfortably dealing with the same repressive individuals that he fought against with his work, but it makes for a solid jumping off point.
Morrison’s two villains for this volume — Doctor Psycho, modernized as a pick-up artist working to isolate and manipulate Diana, and Paula von Gunther, programmed as a Nazi worshiping super-being — are pulled straight from the past, but remain appropriate adversaries today. The problem is that the author condenses them into what feels like an awkward middle chapter of a grander story, reducing both of their impact by trying to wrap them up quickly. The latter, especially, leans hard into the hysteria that her character was originally established, but the comic seems unsure of what point it’s making with her, relegated her to use for plot convenience. Where the first volume was a complete work that stood on its own, this struggles at accomplishing all it sets out to do because of the inherently unfinished quality of its ongoing storytelling. It all hinges on what the third, and presumably final, volume holds for the reader.
Where Morrison succeeds is in exploring modern gender politics, not simply through Doctor Psycho’s attempt at dominating a woman whose intent is to show the world that mutual submission can and will be our salvation, but in the way that Diana herself comes face to face with a world of ever-shifting viewpoints. The feminism of the present day, and probing questions from her audience (comprised of loyal fans and critics alike), befuddles her at times, though she navigates some territory with grace. Her queerness, and that of the women on Themyscira, remains intact—it helps that Paquette has no reservations on peppering sapphic imagery throughout the lovingly lassoed panels — and Morrison reminds the reader that Diana’s brand of feminism is all inclusive; all women are valid and each can be her own Wonder Woman.
