Classic Comic Compendium: ABSOLUTE WONDER WOMAN – “THE LAST AMAZON” deserves its Eisner

1 hour ago 2

“Once upon a time there was a princess.”

After almost a year, I think it’s safe to say that DC Comics’ All In initiative, and the Absolute line that came out of it, was a resounding success. It reignited interest in the DC Universe as a whole and bore out on of the most intriguing new branches of the multiverse that we’re still finding out about. A universe where it seems like things have gone awry, but not quite to the level of something like the Dark Multiverse. All of the books have been engrossing. With one book shining like a crown jewel amongst them. One that you might not have expected.

That being Absolute Wonder Woman by Kelly Thompson, Hayden Sherman, Jordie Bellaire, and Becca Carey. With the first five issues forming the first arc, “The Last Amazon”. Earning it at this year’s Eisner Awards a win for Best New Series and Bellaire herself a win for Best Colouring (Thompson and Carey also earned nominations for Best Writer and Best Lettering, respectively).

“This world is not prepared for what is coming for it. And you will need my help.”

Each of the Absolute books give a bespoke twist to each of the characters. Their origins are familiar, but not the same as their mainline DCU counterparts. Something has seemingly gone awry with this universe’s genesis, it’s darker and more melancholy, and they have to work through various forms of adversity. Here, Wonder Woman is taken away from her home in Themyscira as a baby and deposited to the care of Circe in hell. Her heritage ripped from her and the very word “Amazon” decreed anathema. The creative team splitting this opening arc between a modern day crisis arriving at Gateway City and through Diana’s childhood.

Like in Absolute Batman and Absolute Flash, it’s an interesting twist on expectation, especially for the villains, and it gets to the heart of Diana’s character. Early on in the arc, we see her befriending salamanders, like a Disney Princess in a hellscape. A nice bit of Kelly Thompson’s whimsy and humour shining through in the story. While being in the hands of a traditional villain and in a literal hell, you’d think it would change Diana for the worse, but it doesn’t. While she is perhaps a more hardened person, it’s more her light that raises up those around her. I think it’s a brilliant interpretation of the character.

The book leans heavily into its mythological themes, for Diana’s invocations of the gods, the skeletal Pegasus, and use of magic, but also in a clever way with the incorporation of what we’d consider modern myth, like the appearance of a kaiju in the Tetracide. The latter also kind of a nod to Lovecraftian horror. It all allows Hayden Sherman the opportunity to really show us what they can do. Sherman’s completely levelled up from their already solid storytelling here. The art on this book is phenomenal. You’ll notice that immediately in the character designs and the wholly captivating page layouts. I was especially taken with the use of a Greek urn to tell the myth of the Tetracide.

This mix of myth with the story also manifests itself through Circe’s narration about Diana, giving Becca Carey the opportunity for some interesting dialogue boxes.

“I’ve had a very big idea for you. You’re going to love it.”

Like Sherman’s line art, Jordie Bellaire’s colour work here is a large part of what makes this book visually stunning. The colour scheme here is interesting with a running approach of using a muted, often grey base for backgrounds, leaving a wider colour palette for the foreground characters. There are also often washes and spot colours of red and green for the flashbacks to help them stand out and a nice bit of glow for weapons and magic. But the one thing that you’re going to notice most throughout is the blue of Diana’s eyes. Especially when they’re sometimes red.

On top of Absolute Wonder Woman, her nomination for this year’s Eisner and win was also due to her colour art on Birds of Prey, Hellblazer: Dead in America, The Nice House by the Sea, W0rldtr33, The City Beneath Her Feet, GI Joe, Duke, and The Exorcism at 1600 Penn. Showing that Bellaire’s work is astounding not just for its quality, but also how prolific. She sets a high standard across the industry.

“Wonder Woman, hero of Gateway City.”

The Absolute line has been one of the most consistently great groups of comics in the past decade. I can heartily recommend every single book in the line, each having its own unique take on this world that has apparently wended its way from justice. At its peak, this is a wonderful tale of the transformative power of love in Absolute Wonder Woman by Thompson, Sherman, Bellaire, and Carey. It gets to the very heart of what makes Wonder Woman special, even if the face of adversity, banished to hell, and raised by someone who otherwise would have been an enemy.

This modern myth-making will see its first collection in a little over a week. It will feature this first five issue arc as well as the following two issues, with art by Mattia De Iulis. It’s well worth your time.