If you’ve been hoping for a spotlight on Aphrodite, and her family, then Wonder Woman #70, written by G. Willow Wilson, with art by Xermanico, and colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr., is the issue for you. Previously, while searching for the missing Amazons, Diana and Aphrodite discovered a town going mad with amorous couples, and desire unchained. Determined to get to the bottom of the matter, they found that the cause for all of the citizens’ lusty behavior was none other than Atlantiades, Aphrodite’s own child. Now, Wonder Woman and the Goddess of Love must find out why Atlantiades has taken over a small town, and convince her to loosen her grip on its population.

Since Wilson took over the writing chores for Wonder Woman, one of the more enjoyable aspects of her run has been the inclusion of Aphrodite as a supporting cast member. It’s taken a couple of story arcs to get around to it, but the Goddess of Love is finally getting her spotlight. Not only is Wilson digging into what makes her tick, but also giving the readers a look into her past, via the inclusion of her child Atlantiades as the antagonist. As usual, when it comes to Greek Gods, there are two kinds: the responsible ones, and the ones who casually wreck the lives of humans. With Aphrodite re-examining her own life after her unwilling relocation to Earth, she most definitely fits into the “responsible” category, but her child couldn’t have swung harder the other way. The clash of the two personalities makes for an exciting read, especially when Aphrodite has to scold Atlantiades for reminiscing about the good old days of having her own personal cult.

While Atlantiades is presented as a complex character, the story around the child of Aphrodite is pretty aimless and straightforward. After an early exchange of words of disapproval, the younger god blows off Wonder Woman and company, leaving them to wander the town. Diana does some soul searching, while Aphrodite looks into Atlantiades’ house for answers. In a scene that seems forced, and out of character for Wonder Woman, she deals with her insecurities about her relationship with Steve Trevor, and then once more confronts Atlantiades. Then, just when the readers are shown just how effective the god (dess) of Union and Desire’s methods can be, they are shown to be severely flawed, and short-sighted, as well.

Xermanico gives his all to breathe life into this light and breezy story and succeeds in providing beautiful, expressive art. He is the best artist this book has seen in a while and is undoubtedly on the way to more books with this importance if he keeps up this level of quality in his work. Fajardo, the longtime colorist of the Wonder Woman title, turns in fantastic work, as usual, with his unique palette designed, and especially suited for, a book with strong fantasy elements.

Overall, this isn’t an issue that is densely packed with plot, but it’s a fun read, and it’s populated with interesting characters that you want to spend time with. Hopefully, the next chapter gets to the point of the story a little quicker, but as a setup issue goes, this one did its work just fine.

Grade B