Truth and Consequences Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Art team: Emanuela Lupacchino, Ray McCarthy, Romulo Fajardo Jr. and Pat Brousseau
Covers: Xermanico, and Kamome Shirahama
Release Date: 1/30/19
Cover Price: $3.99
Reviewed by: Jon Wayne
In the last issue of Wonder Woman, the Durovnian civil war ended abruptly. Why you ask? Because the Prime Minister gave a mildly compelling speech. Yeah it wasn’t great, especially considering solicits and the book itself posited the war as the “War to end all Wars,” and apart from a few panels in each issue, we never actually saw this war… Alas, we’re moving on in G. Willow Wilson’s new run on Wonder Woman and I’m hoping we get a little more as we press ahead. Let’s dive in and see if we do!
We start off by getting some answers about the mythical Greek creatures that kidnapped Steve Trevor earlier in the run and then disappeared. In the first few issues they seemed to have been working for Aphrodite, but it was never made clear. And while that wasn’t addressed, what we get with them here is entertaining. Wilson continues using political allegories in her work, as we open to the creatures (minus the griffin? He was kinda mean to Steve I suppose) being questioned by U.S. Customs and Border Protection about their presence in America. The dialogue is witty and the politics – while obvious – are less hamfisted than in the last story arc. The scene ends with them attempting to escape the CBP by jumping through the windows.
Diana appears, rescues them, and then scolds them for not following her suggestions about fitting into American society. We get a little bit of a back and forth before Diana departs to bring someone back to help them adjust. In the meantime, they leave to go hunting! Not really, but they do leave to grab some food and G. Willow gets some brownie points for having them eat at the historic Old Ebbitt Grill, which is an iconic D.C. restaurant across the street from the White House.
While the dialogue here is again light and somewhat fun, there is minimal plot progression. Our new protagonists are clearly being discriminated against in the way many racial minorities are in real life, and some shade is thrown at the elites of Washington D.C. for being snobby, but that’s basically all we get in this scene. Oh, and Maggie the waitress says “yolo!” before leaving work to join them wherever they’re going.
Before you know it – and before Diana returns – we are already on page 17! She brought with her Ferdinand, a Minotaur introduced during Greg Rucka’s run. While that is a fine callback, it doesn’t carry any weight at all. Ferdinand and Eirene – the Minotaur from this current run – hit it off and depart for a nice pasta dinner, with Cadmus the Pegasus, Damon the Faun, and Maggie the Waitress in tow. There is a cliffhanger that clearly leads into the next arc, but I won’t spoil that for everyone.
Art is phenomenal in this issue. I absolutely love Emanuela Lupacchino and she does not disappoint here. Honestly, her work carries the load for my score here because sadly the story does disappoint. On my first read through I did enjoy it, however upon a second and third read for my review, it became clear this was a cool down issue. Generally, I’m fine with those and sometimes they are among the best issues of a series. But the first arc in G. Willow’s run never really heated up enough to warrant a cooldown issue, so I’m perplexed as to why we got one. Still, the story about the Greek gods and creatures being stuck in our realm is a fun enough idea and I want to see where it goes.
Bits and Pieces:
I’m still on board, doubly so if Lupacchino stays on for art, but I need to see more plot progression next time.
6.5/10
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