Wonder Woman #776 // Review
In pursuit of a god killer, Diana finds herself in the realm of the fairies...where she is promptly placed in prison for murdering the fairy queen in the opening story of Wonder Woman #776. Writer Michael W. Conrad and writer/artist Becky Cloonan continue the journeys of Diana that are beautifully brought to the page by artist Jill Thompson. Colorist Jordie Bellaire lends color to the page while continuing to weave her own captivating story of Young Diana as the “B” feature of a remarkably well-rounded issue. Young Diana’s visual reality is once again beautifully rendered by Paulina Ganucheau, aided as she is by colorist Kendall Goode.
In search of the female half of Janus, Diana and the Asgardian squirrel Ratatoskr find themselves pulled into the land of the fairies. Janus has evidently found her way in first and taken the liberty of killing the fairy queen. Assuming her to be the murderer, Diana is placed in prison. It’s okay: she’s proven to be something of an escape artist over the past 80 years. Meanwhile, in the distant past, a young Diana struggles to understand the significance of the power Circe held in her recent attack and its link to a hidden history.
Conrad and Cloonan whimsically weigh down the page with a hell of a lot of backstory set in the world of the fairy kingdom. Still, since that world is pretty heavily grounded in pre-existing fairy lore, it’s kind of fun and breezy jaunt through another world for Diana. For her narrative contribution, Bellaire gently lowers in a narrative-heavy chapter of the Young Diana story that is surprisingly engaging for a drama that is largely devoid of anything other than conversation. Bellaire seems to place great trust in Ganucheau’s ability to bring that drama compellingly to the page.
Thompson’s art beautifully renders the fairy world in a way that calls to mind the gently curling linework of fan-favorite artist Charles Vess. It’s beautiful stuff with a pleasantly strange and gorgeously soft quality that engages the fairy world quite well. The transfer into the world of humans makes its transit through a vividly different art style courtesy of co-writer Becky Cloonan. It’s a nice effect. Bellaire’s trust in Ganucheau for the “B” story is not misplaced. She’s remarkably subtle with her characterization of the inner intellectual struggles of young Diana and the rest of the Themyscirans. Once again, Goode’s beautiful colors provide the right kind of weight to an atmosphere of young mystery.
Once again, the two-story balance allows a single issue of Wonder Woman to feel that much more substantial than the standard, single 30-page chapter. There’s an enjoyable balance between a seasoned Diana and a Bellaire’s younger coming-of-age Themysciran tale. Bellaire’s doing a beautiful job with Young Diana, who still really needs her own series, but the balance she’s lending the main title with her “B” feature is really appealing.
