Wonder Woman: Paradise Lost

Rating:
Summary: First seven issues of Phil Jimenez's run - Wonderful!
Review: ...This book reprints issues 164-170 of the ongoing Wonder Woman series and the "Who is Troia?" story from Wonder Woman Secret Files #2. It includes the four-part "Gods of Gotham" story line with Batman (also separately issued), the two-part "Paradise Island Lost," and the one-shot "A Day in the Life," featuring Lois Lane, which is actually my favorite story of the set. It leads up the "Our Worlds at War" story line, which will probably be collected with the other books from that three-month multi-title cross-over series.The story and art are by Phil Jimenez, and is uniformly excellent. The art is very dense and detailed, and reflects more realism than we are seeing in D.C.'s titles these days.The "A Day in the Life" issue has Lois Lane interviewing Diana (Wonder Woman), but also wrestling with some jealousy issues about Wonder Woman's relationship with Superman. This will become significant during the "Our Worlds at War" crossover, and its aftermath, in the Superman titles.This is an excellent book, and is the beginning of an (ongoing) excellent run by Phil Jimenez. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Sappho Seldom Suffered Such
Review: As much as this Wonder Woman fan appreciates ANY exposure for the character outside her monthly comic title, this collection of stories does neither WW nor her fans any favors. The entire first part is a shameless repackaging of material that has already been offered in a TPB, called "Gods Of Gotham." The next section (from which the TPB got it's name) is a rushed, vainglorious two-part nightmare. As if that isn't enough to make some readers wish the book ended there, there's a followup 'Day In The Life' story, which is indigestion-inspiring. This book's one bright point is a thematic re-hash of the original Wonder Girl, Donna Troy. It's a sad but telling commentary on the brutal way that WW has been treated under Jimenez, that Donna Troy (with her messed up origins) is treated with much more care and consideration.

Despite guest appearances from Batman, Nightwing, Robin, Huntress, Donna Troy, Wonder Girl and Artemis, the "Gods Of Gotham" saga is much ado about nothing. Originally spread out thin over four WW issues, it re-introduces a trio of evil greek gods (Eris, Phobos and Deimos) from WW, placing them in the earthly bodies of three Batman foes (Poison Ivy, Scarecrow and Joker, respectively). The creative team behind this story had strict limitations imposed upon them, in regard to their use of Batman and his supporting cast, so the action never strays from a Gotham City church and has almost no impact upon Batman's continuity. (With the exception of a minor villain's death.) The interaction between heroes is of slight interest, but again, with so little appreciable characterization for Batman OR Wonder Woman it plods along to a predictable outcome.

The second part of this book is even worse; it portrays an Amazonian civil war which pushes a big body-count in a matter of two issues. It's also an excellent example of destroying tradition in favor of something contemporary, or palatable to impressionable minds. In this case, Jimenez & Co. decide that Paradise Island/Themyscira's matriarchy is outdated and un-PC, and go about abolishing it with typically bloody results. So after sixty years in her role as the Princess of the Amazons, Wonder Woman becomes simply the ambassador of Themyscira, and Paradise Island has chaotic democracy thrust upon it.

A 'Day In The Life' is presented in the context of an interview; Lois Lane follows WW around for a day which includes trans-oceanic travel, singing to dying African children, and a trip to a local pool hall. Oh, there's certainly MUCH more to Wonder Woman's day, be sure. Just don't count on getting much of a "feel" for Diana's personality...she's too busy to have one! This story's sole grace is the (apparent) understanding reached between Diana and Lois. Few of WW's personal relationships can boast that kind of surety, under Jimenez.

While the stories contained in this volume are NOT the worst examples of what Jimenez and his co-plotters have done during their tenure on WW, they still make for dismal reading. I wish that Mr Jimenez had stuck with drawing stories (which he is very good at) instead of writing them. Even with input from past WW scribe George Perez, "Paradise Lost" is a potent reminder that style usually triumphs over substance in comics. The great visuals here provide an excellent distraction from the book's severe tone. It doesn't matter that WW's supporting cast is given abundant exposure, or even that a handful of thematic loose ends are tied up: if the stop-start pacing doesn't put you off, the re-writing of Amazonian (and Comics) tradition should.

Bat-fans and WW initiates will probably like this book, or at least be unaware of how much it undercuts the WW mythos. Longtime fans are much more likely to object to WW's ineffectual presence and stilted dialogue. In the end, if you are simply looking for a single collection from this period, this book is a reasonable buy, with plenty of pages. But don't look for anything particularly "wondrous" in this uneven, depressing book.

Rating:
Summary: All hail George Perez's heir!
Review: For too many years since George Perez revitalised her in 1986, Wonder Woman, Princess Diana of the Amazons and heir to the throne of Themyscira, has been treated shabbily, turned into a sex goddess, and denied her uniqueness as a character firmly rooted in Greek mythology. Phil Jimenez tries hard to remedy years of mistreatment and return Wonder Woman to greatness. He largely succeeds, crafting stories that involve the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece within the often underrated context of comic book super heroics. "Paradise Lost" reprints his first seven issues as the writer and artist of the monthly Wonder Woman comic book, and opens with a four-issue story arc that involves the War God, Ares, and his children, Deimos (Terror), Phobos (Fear) and Eris (Strive). Ares' three children have descended upon the earth and taken possession of the bodies of three of Batman's worst enemies, namely the Joker, the Scarecrow and Poison Ivy. The mad gods plan to bring Ares' reign of terror back to earth by raising the Areopagus right in the middle of Gotham City with the help of Maxie Zeus, a small-time criminal purporting to be descended from Zeus himself. Diana intervenes despite Batman's warning for her to stay away from his city, and the supporting casts of both superheroes (Troia, Wonder Girl, Artemis, Nightwing, Robin and the Huntress) soon get into the action. The adventure gets off to a jolly good start with guest appearances by two monsters from Greek mythology, the Chimaera and the last surviving Gorgon, Stheno. After the first story arc, Jimenez crafts a short story that explains the origin of Diana's twin sister, Donna Troy (Troia, named by the Titans of Myth after the city of Troy). Next, trouble hits Paradise Island as Ariadne returns to exact vengeance on the Amazons by manipulating rival factions into starting a devastating civil war. (Note: Ariadne was the daughter of King Minos of Crete, who betrayed her father by helping Theseus to defeat the Minotaur. Theseus later abandoned her on the island of Naxos on his journey back to Athens, and married Antiope, Queen Hippolyta's sister. Ariadne hates the Amazons with a passion for this slight.) The closing story shows us what a day in the life of Diana is like, and introduces a potential love interest in the form of UN humanitarian aid worker, Trevor Barnes. Jimenez excels at handling a large number of characters at the same time but his writing is often uneven. For example, it is difficult to believe that the characters would talk so much in the middle of a battle - in some cases, they make whole speeches about duty and honour and other some such nonsense. However, there is no question that he is a wonderful artist - he started off in the early 1990s imitating George Perez, but has since developed his own similar, yet distinctive, style. Diana and her supporting characters have never looked better. Jimenez's two-year run on the monthly Wonder Woman comic book ended recently, and he will be sorely missed.

Rating:
Summary: Sensory Overload ala' Perez!
Review: I got both volumes of Phil Jimenez's "Wonder Woman" stories on the same day and read them back to back. After that I had to lie down for three days. The work here in "Paradise Lost" and in the second volume, "Paradise Found", is a feast for the eyes. You'll spend days gazing into the details of each panel that you'll literally suffer from sensory overload after that. That wasn't a complain. In fact, I absolutely LOVE Jimenez's art in this book. He's the closest thing to having George Perez draw this book again (and in many ways, Jiminez's art is even better). We live in a time where big-panels and in-your-face, action-oriented splash pages are the norm. In fact, I'm one of those who complain about how expensive comicbooks are and how short a time it takes to read one these days. Not so with Jimenez. His "Wonder Woman" takes *forever* to read. There's just so much to savour in his 12-16 panels-per-page comics.

This first volume contains three storyarcs. The first has the return of Ares' children to Earth - this time taking over the bodies of Poison Ivy, Scarecrow and Joker. The Wonder-Woman-Family and the Bat-Family team up to take them down.

The second story is a civil-war, politically-heavy story that finally ties-up all the long-standing issues from George Perez's previous run on the title. Phil Jimenez successfully balances the "super-heroic" Byrne version of Wonder Woman with the myth/politics-heavy Perez version in these stories. We finally see the resolution to the whole Themyscrican/Bana-Mighdall conflict. (There's also a short insert featuring a more streamlined origin of Donna Troy that served as a kind of Prologue to this arc.)

The third story is the best of the bunch. It features a day in the life of Diana, as chronicled by Lois Lane. Joe Kelly co-writes this tale and brings much-needed "humanity" to our beloved Amazon.

Despite the whole story being rather "continuity-heavy", I'd still recommend this book to a new reader. The beauty and obvious passion of the work is enough to suck anyone in.

Rating:
Summary: Sensory Overload ala' Perez!
Review: I got both volumes of Phil Jimenez's "Wonder Woman" stories on the same day and read them back to back. After that I had to lie down for three days. The work here in "Paradise Lost" and in the second volume, "Paradise Found", is a feast for the eyes. You'll spend days gazing into the details of each panel that you'll literally suffer from sensory overload after that. That wasn't a complain. In fact, I absolutely LOVE Jimenez's art in this book. He's the closest thing to having George Perez draw this book again (and in many ways, Jiminez's art is even better). We live in a time where big-panels and in-your-face, action-oriented splash pages are the norm. In fact, I'm one of those who complain about how expensive comicbooks are and how short a time it takes to read one these days. Not so with Jimenez. His "Wonder Woman" takes *forever* to read. There's just so much to savour in his 12-16 panels-per-page comics.

This first volume contains three storyarcs. The first has the return of Ares' children to Earth - this time taking over the bodies of Poison Ivy, Scarecrow and Joker. The Wonder-Woman-Family and the Bat-Family team up to take them down.

The second story is a civil-war, politically-heavy story that finally ties-up all the long-standing issues from George Perez's previous run on the title. Phil Jimenez successfully balances the "super-heroic" Byrne version of Wonder Woman with the myth/politics-heavy Perez version in these stories. We finally see the resolution to the whole Themyscrican/Bana-Mighdall conflict. (There's also a short insert featuring a more streamlined origin of Donna Troy that served as a kind of Prologue to this arc.)

The third story is the best of the bunch. It features a day in the life of Diana, as chronicled by Lois Lane. Joe Kelly co-writes this tale and brings much-needed "humanity" to our beloved Amazon.

Despite the whole story being rather "continuity-heavy", I'd still recommend this book to a new reader. The beauty and obvious passion of the work is enough to suck anyone in.

Rating:
Summary: THE SECOND HALF WAS BRILLIANT, THE FIRST TERRIBLE
Review: I have mixed feelings about this collection. If Gods of Gotham wasn't included I would have given it the full five stars, but the aforementioned storyline was one of the worst I ever read. The plot, in which Greek gods take over the bodies of three Batman rogue gallery members, is just silly. Its something you would expect to read in a 50s comic or the Superfriends TV show. And when Batman's body was taken over, I wanted to puke! Also, the dialogue is corny and it seems the point of the story is just to show how much Wonder Woman and Batman respect each other and how noble, fearless they are, etcetera, etcetera. Also, the Batman villains have almost no personality since its they are mindcontrolled for most of the story. I also object to the use of the Joker. This is a great character which is already overexposed. When there is a Joker appearance, we should say "Hey, cool! Joker". Now its like "Oh no, not again!" His appearances should mean something and he should really be sinister, not just a naughty clown, as so often seems to be the case. We don't need, on top of that, to have him appear in comics where he doesn't even have a personality. Having said that, some of the interactions between characters was well-handled. Putting Huntress with Artemis was a great idea. I can't beleive no one thought of it before! I'd like to see them together again. Also, Troia and Nightwing work well together, as ever. But there were just too many characters! Here is a roll call. Wonder Woman (of course), Hippolyta, Batman, Troia, Nightwing, Wonder Girl, Robin, Oracle, Artemis, Huntress, Ares, Deimos, Phobos, Eris, Joker, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, Maxie Zeus, Harley Quin, Stheno and extras. See what I mean? There is no way that enough time can be devoted to all these characters. This feat was pulled off in stories like Crisis, Legends and Zero Hour, but that was with the support of crossovers. Here it just fails miserably.

OK, enough critisism. Phil Jimenez, with help from Devin Grayson, finally finds his footing with the story Who is Troia? Its a good retelling of Troia's origin and also serves as a good prologue to the next storyline, Paradise Lost. This is an epic tale, reminiscent of the ones George Perez used to tell when he wrote the book. In fact, Perez, contributes plots to part of the storyline, which depicts a battle between the two Amazon tribes. The ending is very climactic, with relevations and major changes for the Amazons. There is also an interesting love story sub-plot between the Amazons Iphthime and Anaya, who are of different races and different tribes also. I won't ruin the story by saying any more on that.

The last story, serving as an eplilogue to Paradise Lost, is good character development for both Wonder Woman and Lois Lane (and indirectly, Superman too).

As for the art, its some of the best I have ever seen by any artist. Its better than his previous work, but he seems to have become more derivitive of Perez. Jimenez is one of the most detailed and versitile pencillers around, however. I approve of all the character depictions here. He draws great monsters, beautiful women, detailed backgrounds (when needed) and his panel layouts, like Perez, are some of the best. Most pages have around ten panels each while most artists can only manage the standard six or even less.

And the cover gallery in the end, by Adam Hughes, is also beautiful. At least two of them are among my favourite covers of all time.

Whew! I never wrote such a long review before, but Wonder Woman is one of my favourite characters so I'm a bit passionate about her.

Rating:
Summary: Writers who don;t know how to write about Wonder-Woman
Review: The two writers, Phil and J.M. DeMatteis really do not know how to write Wonder-Woman. The story was long and boring and having Diana meet up with the Batman group in Gothom made for very boring reading. Wonder-Woman is a great heroine, but she's always get;s the worst writers to write the monthly comics and this has been going on for several years. Enough already DC.

Rating:
Summary: Writers who don;t know how to write about Wonder-Woman
Review: The two writers, Phil and J.M. DeMatteis really do not know how to write Wonder-Woman. The story was long and boring and having Diana meet up with the Batman group in Gothom made for very boring reading. Wonder-Woman is a great heroine, but she's always get;s the worst writers to write the monthly comics and this has been going on for several years. Enough already DC.

Rating:
Summary: Phil Jimenez and Wonder Woman-what could be a better match?
Review: This book collects the first 7 issues of Phil's run of Wonder Woman and as a bonus it also has the "Who is Troia" from the Wonder Woman Secret File a couple years back. Phil works his magic and helped turn Wonder Woman into a must read book! From a team up with the Batman Family to a day in Wonder Woman's life, Phil truly show you what a wonderful and powerful character Wonder Woman really is! You can't go wrong with this book, very highly recommended! Phil Jimenez is one of the best creators around, with his name attached to any project, you will not be disappointed!

Rating:
Summary: Finally ... Wonder Woman the way she should be written
Review: This trade paperback collects Wonder Woman #164-170, and a Donna Troy bio from Wonder Woman Secret Files #2.

Phil Jeminez's interpretation of Wonder Woman is the best I have read thus far. Ever since John Byrne completely destroyed her (making her into a sex object with nothing much to say), Wonder Woman has slowly been reconstructed into that DC icon that stands for innocence, truth, respect and honor. Jeminez's interpretation of her, along with the art of Andy Lanning, is still very sexy, but she is sexy not because she wears skimpy clothing and because she frequently sticks her breasts and rump in the readers' faces, but because she is very intelligent and witty and just downright beautiful. She has poise.

The first story collects the "Gods of Gotham" storyline. This is, without a doubt, the most intelligent and the most exciting Wonder Woman story I have ever read. Jeminez, already keen on Wonder Woman, proves that he can write Batman just as well. At the end of the story, there is excellent dialogue between the two heroes, and Batman shows a lighter (or shall I say, less dark) side of himself to Wonder Woman. It is very sweet. The pairing of the Huntress with Artemis was downright ingenious. Artemis and Huntress verbally spar on the faith and God issues, but everything ties back to something Wonder Woman said in the beginning: "Faith, in the end, [is] our greatest weapon."

The "Paradise Island ... Lost" storyline is very short, but still very exciting. It's really only exciting if the reader understands a lot of the Wonder Woman folklore, but the bios at the front of the trade help out somewhat.

The greatest moment in the trade is the last story featuring Lois Lane's interview with Diana. Lois, I suppose, resolves her issues with Diana and her former relationship with Superman. They come to a full appreciation of one another.

Jeminez has sculpted Diana (another "made from clay" pun) into a great role model for any boy or girl. She's honest, strong, compassionate and kind, but she, despite her godhood, is still a woman with very human feelings. And this makes her sexier than any previous T'n'A interpretation of her. This is a very intelligent read with wonderful art and colors. If one were to read any Wonder Woman trade, I would recommend this one. Bravo!