Wonder Woman #770 Review

 

The Land of Ice and Snow

Writer: Jordie Bellaire, Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad

Artist: Paulina Ganucheau, Travis Moore

Cover Price: $4.99

Release Date: March 9, 2021

After what happened to Diana in Death metal and then Infinite Frontier, I was unsure what we would get from a solo Wonder Woman book. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was a Hypolita or Nubia book!  Thankfully, it is not (though I want more Nubia!), and I hope that people give this a shot because this first issue has me intrigued.  Let's get into it...

The issue begins with a cold open for both the reader and Diana.  She wakes up on a battlefield with a handsome guy offering his hand as a huge battle rages around them.  The man is Siegfried, and the place is Asgard, and yea...that's pretty crazy!  I like it, though!

After Death Metal, seeing Diana involved with a whole new Pantheon is so cool.  The best part is, it doesn't feel forced.  Diana chose to ascend and then decided to take her path, and so, there look to be some obstacles in getting to more familiar ground, namely Olympus.  And with that, we haven't had much of the Olympian gods since they packed up and left Olympus years ago.  So, is this tied into that?  It's a mystery I am hoping to see.

For fans of the warrior princess, you get epic sword battles and grizzly deaths, including Diana's.  What what???  Don't worry, this is Asgard, and the dead and alive are reunited in Valhalla every night for drink and song (and more?), only to start up the battle the next day.  It's as if Diana has found her perfect afterlife, right?  Well, something is rotten in Asgard and beyond as she finds out that the Tree of Life, Yggdrasil, is dying and keeps having dreams of someone (Superman?) trying to make her remember who she is.  It's a nice combination of a big problem right in front of her while also dealing with something on a much grander scale. 

Things go from bad to worse when the whole Battle-Valhalla-Battle process gets all gummed up, and Siegfried doesn't make it back for wine, (wonder) woman, and song.  I'm not going to say the cliffhanger had my jaw-dropping, but I will say I want the next issue right now.

We also get a cute story of a young Diana by Jordie Bellaire with fantastic art by Paulina Ganucheau that reminds me a bit of Legend of Wonder Woman (that is a high compliment!), but the winner here is the main story.  I will admit that I was worried after not loving Cloonan and Conrad's Immortal Wonder Woman story in Future State, but they have sold me on this one.  I love seeing various Pantheons and mythology in Wonder Woman books, and with Yara Flor and this, I think I will be delighted.   Add to that the excellent art by Travis Moore, and I am so glad that my doubts were answered in such a big way!

Bits and Pieces:

Wonder Woman #770 was such a pleasant surprise.  While the elevator pitch of Wonder Woman ascending and ending up in Asgard had me worried, I loved just about every minute of it.  Great art, a couple of intriguing mysteries equal a great start, and one of the better Wonder Woman issues in quite some time.

8.9/10