Wonder Woman #798 Review

   

Written by: Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad
Art by: Amancay Nahuelpan
Colors by: Tamra Bonvillain
Letters by: Pat Brosseau
Cover art by: Yanick Paquette, Nathan Fairbairn
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: April 18, 2023

Wonder Woman #798 brings the conflict between Diana and the Olympian gods to a head when Hera arrives on the battlefield to settle her personal grudge against the greatest Amazonian.Is It Good?

Wonder Woman #798 is just okay. It should be more exciting, more riveting, than how it comes across, but as far as telling a big Wonder Woman adventure from Cloonan and Conrad, this is as good as it's going to get before the writing duo rolls off the book in a few months. That may sound like faint praise, but it's still praise.

When last we left Diana and her wondrous allies in Lazarus Planet: War of the Gods #2 (I don't know why this story split into a second title, and it probably doesn't matter at this point), all the combatants converged in Washington D.C. to end the Olympian invasion or die trying. Diana now calls Hera out for a mano-a-mano match to end the war, and Hera accepts. The fight doesn't end cleanly; surprisingly, it's not Hera's fault.




What's great about this issue? There are some big developments in this issue regarding the status quo of at least two characters. Mary Marvel gets a downgrade, Wonder Woman gets an upgrade, and their collective shifts in status even the playing field against Hera. The setup leads to a promising cliffhanger heading into the arc's finale.

What's also great is Nahuelpan's and Bonvillain's art. The action is energetic, the linework is gorgeous, and Bonvillain's color selection/application is excellent.

What's not so great? The issue feels rushed. The previously mentioned changes are sandwiched between many small developments, and Conrad and Cloonan are in a hurry to get to the finish line. Also, the war has become significantly compressed compared to where it started. If you recall, it's not just the Olympian gods invading Earth but every god from every culture worldwide. Now, the bigness of that development seems all but forgotten in favor of a standard "Wonder Woman versus the Olympians" fight we've seen a hundred times before.


About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

Follow @ComicalOpinions on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter



Bits and Pieces:

Wonder Woman #798 sets up the players for the penultimate issue in the War of the Gods arc with a status quo change for Diana and Mary Marvel and plenty of bare-knuckled brawling to get you pumped for more. The 'war' feels smaller now than when it started, and splitting the arc into two titles is needlessly confusing, but the net result is a reasonably good Wonder Woman action comic.

7/10