Written by: Tom King
Art by: Daniel Sampere
Colors by: Tomeu Morey
Letters by: Clayton Cowles
Cover art by: Daniel Sampere, Tomeu Morey (cover A)
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: October 16, 2024
Wonder Woman #14, by DC Comics on 10/16/24, finds Wonder Woman grappling with overwhelming grief when the Sovereign commits a savage act of violence.
Is Wonder Woman #14 Good?
At this point in the series, I'm firmly convinced Tom King has no idea where to go or what to do. If you look at the events that have transpired since issue #1, the only reasonable conclusion you could draw is that Tom King is making up shocking events on the fly and filling in a loose script around each.
Wonder Woman #14 gives you one shocking event and a revelation that comes out of the blue, intermixed with painfully tedious narration from the Sovereign. That pretty much describes every issue of Wonder Woman since Tom King took over, so at least you know what you're getting.
When last we left Diana in Wonder Woman #10 (before the Absolute Power event), Wonder Woman and Cheetah escaped a deserted island after fighting each other for days. Why were they there? Because the Sovereign, in his own words, couldn't think of anything else to do to break Wonder Woman.
In Wonder Woman #14, the Sovereign kills Steve Trevor. That's it, and that's all for the majority of the issue. Why did the Sovereign kill Steve Trevor? Trevor's death was the last thing the Sovereign could conceive that would hurt Wonder Woman. In other words, it was a senseless, shocking act of violence born of spite.
What are we doing here? Is Jim Gordon going to die in a drive-by to pump up the floundering Detective Comics numbers? Is the Flash going to accidentally going to run over a baby in a stroller? Is Superman going to accidentally hurl a car on top of a little old lady crossing the street? Has DC run so dry of imagination that all they have less is pointless shock value? Oy!
The majority of the comic centers on Sovereign tediously ponderous narration as he explains why he killed Trevor, what he feared (hoped?) Diana would do in retaliation, and what his allies suggested he do for the eventual backlash.
Meanwhile, assorted members of the Justice League expressed their sympathies, first during Steve's disappearance and then later as Diana goes off the grid once Steve's fate is confirmed.
The issue ends with Diana using the threads of Fate from her life and Steve's to create a baby out of clay - Lizzie.
What's great about Wonder Woman #14?
In truth, the moments of tenderness between Steve and Diana are well done. King gets a lot of things wrong, but he has a masterful handle on interpersonal exchanges.
What's not great about Wonder Woman #14?
This issue confirms that Lizzie does not belong to the missing, pregnant Amazon we haven't seen since the beginning of the arc, which means we have to make sense of yet another Tom King bait-and-switch.
Honestly, what's the point? Why bother introducing a rogue Amazon who killed a bunch of men in a pool bar (remember her?), only to do nothing with her and forget anything is happening? Remember how the Sovereign magically turned the American government against the Amazons? Remember the Amazon who killed a bunch of people and disappeared? Does Tom King remember anything he's written into the arc? Does anyone care?
Looking at the sales trends for this title, probably not.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Final Thoughts
Wonder Woman #14 pulls yet another infamous Tom King bait-and-switch paired with a shocking yet pointless act of violence. King is truly turning into a one-trick pony by killing a longtime character for shock value and confirming that a central plot point since the beginning of this run turned out to be a fakeout.4/10
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