The Art of Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons

“Creativity takes courage.”  – Henri Matisse

“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” -Pablo Picasso

Pop culture is exactly that: culture that is popular, easy to understand and entertaining. High culture, on the other hand, is more sophisticated and challenging. I love when pop culture meets high culture. This is exactly what we have in Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons. For those who don’t know, Historia was published via DC comics’ adult imprint, Black Label. DC Black Label is comprised of miniseries that take place outside of the monthly, mainstream story continuity. The books are printed in Prestige Format, which is a square bound comic book with higher quality paper and printing that uses card stock covers.

Phil Jimenez, the lead artist on this title (with colors by Hi-Fi, Arif Prianto, and Romulo Fajardo Jr.), is, along with George Perez, Nicola Scott, and Liam Sharp, one of Wonder Woman’s defining artists. With Historia he and his associates have created something truly groundbreaking in that they beautifully combine various styles of art to tell the early story of the mythical Amazons, which was wonderfully written by Kelly Sue DeConnick.  

Perhaps the most dominant visual aesthetic is that of 1960s counterculture psychedelic art. Elements of psychedelic art includes surrealistic subject matters, intense depth and stylization of detail, contrasting colors and elements of collage. Psychedelic art was primarily informed by Art Nouveau, but in Historia, Jimenez also draws inspiration from High Renaissance Art, which is informed by the art of antiquity. Jimenez draws individuals in a manner that recall the works of Michelangelo and DaVinci surrounded in a brilliant, surrealistic psychedelic universe. If you look at the images below you can see the influences: on the left we have a poster created in 1967 by Bonnie Maclean as well as the 2014 album cover for the band Blue Pills created by Marijke Koger-Dunham. On the left are two panels from Historia.

Check out the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art 2014 installation of “The Peacock Room.”

While a wide range of animals are portrayed (which I love especially that panther with Hellene), Jimenez depicts the peacock rather prominently in Historia. In ancient Greek and early Christian art, the peacock was considered a symbol for immortality. Notably, in Greek mythology, the tail of peacock feathers are considered the eyes of the goddess Hera. Jimenez definitely did some deep research here as sometimes comic book artists depict Wonder Woman’s homeland of Themyscira in a generic ancient Mediterranean motif more informed by Hollywood than art history. Below on the left is a terracotta volute-krater (currently on view at The Met) that depicts the Greeks battling the Amazons. The ancient Greeks shared myths to convey their history. Greek artists painted scenes from myths on walls, vases, jars, and cups. On the right we have a panel from Historia.

Check out this talk from the Penn Museum on “Great Myths and Legends: Warrior Women: Amazons and the Greek Imagination.”

The Greek philosopher Aristotle, in Sense and Sensibilia, notes sight as the most important of the senses because of color. The significance of color as the ultimate manifestation of sight was fostered in Byzantium, where color was associated with both earthly and heavenly powerfulness.  Color in the aesthetics of late antiquity and Byzantium is closely connected to that of light: light and color combine to emphasize brilliance, glitter, and polychromatism. Hi-Fi, Prianto, and Fajardo embrace and execute this brilliance in superb glory. Below are two mosaics from Basilica of San Vitale of Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora along with two panels from Historia.

Check out this video showcasing the Basilica of San Vitale.

Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons is a seminal work for comic books and a must own. In the spirit of the ancient world depicted in Historia, I would like to conclude this blog entry with some quotes from Aristotle on art.

“Art takes nature as its model.”

“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.”

“Art is a higher type of knowledge than experience.”

www.edwinroman.com

Suicide Squad: Get Joker / Comic Book Review

DC Black Label is an imprint of DC Comics comprised of miniseries that take place outside of the regular continuity. The books are printed in Prestige Format (a term coined by DC Comics that later came into wider use), which is a square bound comic book with higher quality paper and printing that uses card stock covers. I find that they are beautifully produced.

The first series produced under DC Black Label was Batman: Damned, which was written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by the legendary Lee Bermejo, and was nothing short of excellent. Some of the subsequent books published by Black Label have been, for me, varied in their success (Superman: Year One and Wonder Woman: Death Earth were only okay, while Batman: Last Knight on Earth was quite good, though oddly not printed in the Prestige Format). However, I am looking forward to Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons—it looks beautiful!

The latest publication from Black Label is Suicide Squad: Get Joker. In this iteration of the DC Universe, the antihero, Red Hood, is arrested and is serving time for his crimes. Amanda Waller recruits him to be part of the Task Force X, also known as the Suicide Squad, to track down the Joker and assassinate him. Joker has (finally) been branded as a domestic terrorist. Interestingly, the book mentions the January 6^th insurrection. Wild Dog, who is part of this iteration of the Suicide Squad, notes that he is serving time for defecating “on the Speaker of The House’s desk.” Lovely.

The first issue, written by Brian Azzarello, was an excellent set up for a story that will eventually pit Red Hood against the Joker, who once killed him when he was Robin (watch the below video from Variant Comics for an excellent explanation of this). I loved the artwork by Alex Maleev, who has worked on several Batman titles; his artwork has a classic execution with a modern sensibility (it looks good on paper, which is how I read it, as well as electronically).

I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I absolutely recommend this title.

www.edwinroman.com

Recommended viewing:

Wonder Woman, The Movie

If you loved Superman, The Movie (1978), then you are going to love Wonder Woman.

Wonder Woman focuses on the horrors of war, the value of friendship and comic book heroism. The film tells Wonder Woman’s story before she was Wonder Woman — when she was Diana, Amazonian princess and warrior in training. One day, after a fierce training session, a handsome pilot named Steve Trevor crashes off the shores of her hidden homeland of Themyscira and tells of a conflict in the outside world.  Diana leaves to fight a “war to end all wars” (then known as The Great War or to us, World War I), discovering her full powers and ultimately her destiny.

Like the film that launched the superhero blockbuster nearly forty years ago, Wonder Woman sets a new standard, most notably with regards to how timely it is. When Wonder Woman is challenged with propaganda about war, her eyes see the truth in the faces of the wounded soldiers and civilian casualties. She’s horrified by the generals who simply stand back with no consideration for the loss of life. Echoes of Syria can be felt in this film where helping people in need should be placed above religion, race or politics—something Wonder Woman conveys several times in the film. The humanity this fictional character demonstrates stands in complete contrast to the draft dodging, xenophobic “reality” show tangerine Mussolini currently in the White House. As Arris Quinones of Variant Comics noted, “…it is just really an inspiring movie. It actually made me want to go out and do good in the world.” Not surprisingly, the snowflakes at Fox “News” and the New York Post belly-ached at how Wonder Woman’s costume no longer looked “patriotic.” It should be noted that the costume still has many of the recognizable symbols, but largely draws inspiration from the mythical armor that the Amazons have been wearing for centuries (which, like democracy, has roots in Greco-Roman culture). Wonder Woman’s lasso of truth is a breath of fresh air in this time of alternative facts and fake news.

Director Patty Jenkins does a remarkable job bringing the world of Wonder Woman to life. Most notable is the depiction of the Amazons: it was truly page to screen! If you look closely, some of the Amazons were wearing elements seen in different versions of Wonder Woman’s costume.

 

From the pages of The Oddesy of the Amazons.

Robin Wright as General Antiope, Wonder Woman’s aunt.

Gal Gadot, as I noted last year in my review for Batman v. Superman, is nothing short of wonderful. The supporting characters all stand out with kudos to Chris Pine’s portrayal of Steve Trevor. I am looking forward to seeing the Amazons in action in the forthcoming Justice League film.

Wonder Woman should have been made a long time ago, but this film is one that was worth waiting for. It is truly worth seeing, not only because it was directed by a woman and stars a woman, but because it is the best superhero film DC has produced since the Dark Knight trilogy. Like Superman, The Movie and the Dark Knight films, this one will age really well and become a metric for superhero films.

Wonder Woman, 2017.

Directed by Patty Jenkins.

Starring Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, David Thewlis, Danny Huston, Elena Anaya, Ewan Bremner, Lucy Davis, Eugene Brave Rock, Emily Carey, Lilly Aspell, and Saïd Taghmaoui.

RECOMMENDED VIDEOS

The History of Wonder Woman

 

Wonder Woman’s Strongest Moments

 

The Origin of Ares

 

READING RECOMMENDATIONS

 

DC has a miniseries about the Amazons, years before the birth of Diana (Wonder Woman), titled The Odyssey of the Amazons. It is the story of a group of Amazons who are traveling the ancient world to find others like them, encountering legendary creatures and beings along the way. An excellent companion would be Wonder Woman Rebirth #8. It is a year one interlude where a young Barbara Ann Minerva (before she was Cheetah and before Wonder Woman arrives) is on an exhibition to prove that the Amazons did indeed exist (an excellent story).

 

What I wore to see the film.

 

edwinroman.com

A Middle-Aged Fanboy Reviews Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice

My love affair with comics began in the late 1970s with the television series Wonder Woman: it was because of Lynda Carter that I picked up a comic book! I remember the first issue I ever read where Wonder Woman said things like, “Great Hera” and “Merciful Minerva.” This intrigued me because I was learning about Greek mythology in school. I became enamored with all things Greco-Roman and read Wonder Woman to find the connections in the architecture of Paradise Island (I had already looked up the Greek column orders in the encyclopedia) or the Greek Gods and Goddesses the Amazons worshiped (I remember noting an inconsistency with regards to how she would sometimes use the Roman names for Greek Gods and vice-versa).

About one year after I started watching Wonder Woman, the now classic Superman: The Movie came out and it cemented my bond with comic books: I can still recall the joy and excitement I felt watching that film in the Valentine Theater on Fordham Road. I then started to regularly read Action Comics, All Star Squadron, Detective Comics, Justice League, Teen Titans and, of course, Wonder Woman. I also became a life long fan of artists like Jerry Ordway and George Perez.

I stopped reading comics when I started college in 1985 because I couldn’t afford the time or the money. I did, of course, see films and television shows based on my favorite comic book heroes. I started to read comics again because of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy and DC’s 2011 reboot of all their titles and characters known as The New 52. Some recommended reading from the New 52 includes the first 24 issues of Batwoman (the artwork of J.H. Williams III is nothing short of thrilling), Earth 2, Gail Simone’s run on Batgirl, Batman (the Court of the Owls story line) and Justice League. Another great read is the graphic novel Superman: Earth One, which clearly had a major influence on 2013’s Man of Steel.

Man of Steel was a good film, but it wasn’t great. I am not sure if it will age as well as the Dark Knight films. I liked the origin story, the portrayal of Krypton and Henry Cavill in the title role, but I agree with critics regarding the over-the-top, Michael Bay destruction of Smallville and Metropolis. Interestingly, this is exactly where Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice starts. (Note: if you have not seen Man of Steel, and intend on seeing Batman v. Superman, you must see the former to understand plot elements of the latter.)

The opening moments of Batman v. Superman recounts Superman’s battle with Zod from the street level. These scenes are quite haunting and bring some much-needed humanity to those over-the-top battle scenes from Man of Steel while effectively setting up the animosity that Batman harbors toward Superman for most of the film. What follows is a relatively action-free hour that explores the film’s central theme: can absolute power (Superman) be trusted? Director Zak Snyder also lightly touches on other themes like media manipulation, money in politics and journalistic responsibility.

Snyder excels with the superhero, comic book come-to-life imagery (as he brilliantly did with Watchmen). He clearly took images and ideas from the pages of the comics that those who don’t read comics may not recognize (see below). However, he does it at the expense of the film’s pacing. There are also too many plot elements and plot holes, which CinemaSins is going to have a real feast with. Some of the biggest plot holes stem from character motivation. I also think it was a mistake to reveal the Doomsday character in the trailers; his reveal in the film would have been a great moment for the collective audience experience.

From the film and from the graphic novel, Damian: Son of Batman

From the film and from the graphic novel, Superman: Earth One

Casting was outstanding. Ben Affleck does an excellent job playing Bruce Wayne and Batman. Affleck’s physique in this film is impressive–he is a walking wall of muscle! Also, watching him use all of the Batman gadgets was a lot of fun. Gal Gadot, who plays Diana Prince / Wonder Woman is a revelation—even when she is not in costume as Wonder Woman, she commands your attention! I overheard a lot of chatter from fellow audience members afterward and everyone loved her portrayal. One of my favorite moments in the film was when Wonder Woman used her golden lasso—it beautifully glowed as it does in the comics! I am really looking forward to the Wonder Woman film next year!

Batman v. Superman is fantastic visually and the action scenes are engaging, but overall the film is not as thoughtful as it could have been. For the upcoming Justice League films, Snyder needs to reel in the action a bit and give the audience more credit for being able to think. After all, Comic book fans are quite thoughtful and imaginative.

I wore my George Perez, Wonder Woman t-shirt to see Batman v. Superman!

Superman: Earth One (Comic Book Review)

DC comic titles employ the concept of a multiverse, which is a fictional intergalactic construct assembling the various universes where the stories take place (click here to read more on the various Earths of the DC multiverse). One recent and popular example is the second season of the hit television series, The Flash, which has recently featured The Flash of Earth 2.

The comic book cover where the multiverse was first introduced and the television series paying homage.

My favorite DC title taking place on one of the alternate Earths is Earth 2. I have long been a fan of the multiverse concept and it was one of the reasons why I purchased a copy of Superman: Earth One (Volume 1) at the 2015 New York City Comic Con.

Earth One presents Superman in a familiar way: rocketed from the doomed planet of Krypton as an infant, landing on earth to be found and raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent. What distinguishes Earth One is how wonderfully grounded it is: we see Superman congruently come to terms with his humanity and Kryptonian nature while trying to save the world from an alien invasion. If this plot seems familiar it is because the 2013 film, Man of Steel, was clearly influenced by this book (published in 2010). What makes Earth One better than Man of Steel are the never-before-seen invading aliens, whose origins were a complete surprise! Bravo to J. Michael Staczynski for brilliantly adding to the already rich Kryptonian mythology. After reading Earth One, I have to again ask: Why do Kryptonians look exactly like Earthlings?

Artist Shane Davis does an outstanding job depicting the well-known characters, Metropolis, the new aliens and all of the science fiction elements of the story. The artwork combines a modern sensibility with a classic color palette.

DC has published two more volumes of Superman: Earth One and has, to date, published two volumes of Batman: Earth One with Wonder Woman: Earth One on the horizon in 2016. If these titles are as good as Superman: Earth One I am going be enjoying some more great comic book reading in the near future.

The Earth One versions of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.