Graphic Novel Review: Wonder Woman: Historia

Posted on November 12, 2024 at 6:32 am by Gene Ambaum

Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons by Kelly Sue DeConnnick (writer), Phil Jimenez, Gene Ha, and Nicola Scott (artists) and others. DC Comics, 2023. 9781779521354. Contains #1 – #3.

The story of the Amazon starts with seven goddesses who gather in Olympus because they’ve seen enough of the subjugation and abuses of men, and of their crimes against women. Six of them take action together despite Zeus’s idea of justice; each gives something of themselves to the original Amazons. The warriors they create are more than mortal., and they are doomed.

The story of Hippolyta, a mortal who will eventually become queen of the Amazons, begins with her abandoning an unwanted baby girl in the woods. When she tries to return to save her, she’s discovered by four men who do not intend to help her. The Amazons save her, and she longs to join them. Hippolyta sets off in pursuit of them and a different life.

The art in the book is spectacular, both realistic and otherworldly. My favorite thing is the pacing, though — the way the art, layouts, and lettering moved the story forward perfectly, panel to panel and page to page. The graphic novel’s oversized format makes it all more enjoyable.