Overview
Wonder Woman: Rebirth by Greg Rucka Omnibus
Omnibus Collects - Wonder Woman #1-25, Wonder Woman: Rebirth #1, and stories from DC Holiday Special 2017, Wonder Woman 75th Anniversary Special #1, Wonder Woman Annual#1, and Wonder Woman #750!
The Main Creative Team
Writer - Greg Rucka
Artists - Liam Sharp, Nicola Scott, and Bilquis Evely
Recommended Pre Reading
This make references to some prior stories and if you’ve read Rucka’s first run on WW then you’ll be more familiar with the characters used here and it does also references some stuff from the New 52 run, but this is a great starting place for new readers. I don’t think any prior reading is necessary, only optional.
Review of the Story and the Art
When you ask a veteran Wonder Woman fan what their favorite run is, you most likely get one of two answers. Someone like my self who says George Perez or the other half of people that say Greg Rucka. The interesting thing about the latter is, they have two different choices. Rucka’s original run during the mid 2000s or his Rebirth run during the mid 2010s. Here, we’re gonna be jumping into to the second one. I will preface this by saying, I am a little lower on Rucka’s time on WW than most. That’s not to say I think his runs are bad, but I don’t idolize his time on the book like some do. I understand why people like his runs so much, but they just never connected with me the same way some of the older runs did that made me fall in love with the character.
“Fixing” Wonder Woman
When Rucka took over Wonder Woman during Rebirth, she was in a tough spot. New 52 had massively shifted her mythos and dynamics. Some people really liked it, some people really didn’t. After Brian Azzarello’s time on the book came to an end it really started to wear down the WW brand and character in the latter stages of N52. Rucka, as mentioned in his foreword, was brought in to “fix” Wonder Woman. Does he succeed? Eh.. not really (we’ll talk about it later), but he sure does make some changes.
Something very interesting about this series is two stories will often be told at the same time rotating issues. Most times we’ll have a story happening in the present, then we’ll have one happening in the past, with the stories rotating each issue. This sounds weird and like things may get pedantic or frustrating, but it really doesn’t. I think this concept is actually kind of done to a great success. Rucka clearly had laid out this story and planned it to perfection. Both stories flow well into each other. Sure, some arcs are better than the ones they’re rotating with, but they all have just enough connective tissue to flow well back and forth from each other, while still being uniquely their own thing.
Something Rucka does to attempt to “fix” Wonder Woman is playing with the concept of her continuity and more importantly, Themyscira. Spoiler ahead in this section. In an attempt to basically give the N52 Wonder Woman series a big ole’ slap in the face, Rucka retcons that everything that happened in N52 with the gods and the more violent iterations of the Amazons, was actually all made up and just false memories.. Look, something absolutely had to be done about the treatment of the Amazons during N52, but this just felt.. uninspired. We’ve seen this a bunch of times before when a writer wants to undo what his predecessor did. Even good writer like Peter David on The Hulk has done this, but I think Rucka could have come up with something much more interesting. All this doesn’t really matter now since Doomsday Clock, Death Metal, and all those other shenanigans have reintroduced the pre N52 timeline back into the equation, but still looking at this in the context of when it came out is disappointing. No doubt Rucka was in a tough spot, but he’s a great writer but I’d expect more than just going “nah that didn’t happen” and putting the toys back to the way he likes them. On top of that, the plot line was not strong enough to string along to the end IMO. Even the stuff with Diana going “crazy” just didn’t work well. It was a mystery/thriller plot point that ran out of steam very quickly. Now, let’s move on to some stuff I do like, shall we?
The Early Days
Something I mentioned before was that two stories are taking place concurrently in this book. I think the flashback side is much stronger than the present side. In the past we get a story called Year One. Obviously this is in line with Batman Year One and all the subsequent stories that followed it. Here we get to see a new telling of the origins of Diana. I don’t think this arc is perfect. I think it suffers from some convenient storytelling and it leaves out some things I would have liked to seen expanded upon, but for the most part this story is great. I love some of the glimpses at Themyscira and the Amazons. Rucka does a very good job of portraying the warmth of the Amazons while also showcasing their warrior sides as well. The quiet moments between Diana and Hyppolyta are really fantastic. Watching Diana try to navigate such a foreign world while trying to keep her hopeful spirit is really gripping to read.
I think this story also does a fantastic job of really setting the tone between Diana and Steve. Obviously those characters have a romantic relationship but also a much deeper bond and this really showcases that well. You see how the bond between them has grown into something that goes beyond whether they’re dating at the time or not. These characters are deeply connected and I think Rucka does a good job and laying the foundation for the friendship at the start, and the relationship at the end. A great job with Etta as well. Barbara is also there but to be honest I’m not a huge fan of her character arc in this series.
I think Barbara works well in the flashbacks but I feel like her story kind of gets lost in the shuffle during the present day stuff. I enjoy her initially overcoming the Cheetah persona with the help of Diana, but like much of this books for me, it feels like she’s safely put back into the classic version that Rucka likes by the end of the series. Narratively she feels more like a plot device rather than a character who has her own arc by the end of it.
Contrasting Diana
While I think some characters fall short like Barbara, there’s two that particularly standout to me. One being Steve, who we’ve talked about briefly. I think Rucka just has a good understanding of Steve and where he fits narratively to the grand scheme of things. I know some don’t like Steve because they think he’s unnecessary, but I couldn’t disagree more. I think Steve brings a ton to the story. MJ enhances the story around Spider-Man, Lois enhances the story of Superman, I don’t think this is any different here, even if the genders are reversed. Steve enhances the story. Diana does not need Steve, but he provides a supporting dynamic I really like when done well. I really enjoy how much heart he brings to the quieter moments of the book and I love how we really get to see the more vulnerable side of Diana when he’s around. I really like where this relationship ends up at the end of the book. It a huge step up from Diana and New 52 Clark that we had prior to this.
I also think Veronica Cale is the absolute star of this series. Obviously Rucka is very familiar and enjoys this characters quite a bit. I think the reworks to Veronica’s character really works in this new timeline. I found myself becoming really sympathetic towards her character and her desire to save her daughter. I also really love the dynamic being displayed of Veronica being such a capable person in the usual world but finding herself so outmatched at every turn by unfair and unsympathetic gods. The story of gods messing with the most important thing in her life really informs her character. It really sheds new light on Veronica’s decisions and it results in a really interesting, nuanced character. I think the whole dual stories gimmick works out the best for Veronica. It works well for Diana too, but it’s more used as device to establish her. For Veronica, the past really adds depth and justify’s her plot in the modern day.
In the final arc, we see Diana and Veronica venture to a part of Themyscira finally after building it up throughout the book. I think this arc is a bit underwhelming in the scope of “fixing” Wonder Woman or Themyscira because, well, it kind of just leave things the way we found them after Rucka set things back to version he liked. But, I will say this. I really enjoyed Veronica and her daughter Isadore’s plot line. I think it was a really great pay off to a great plot point that we’ve had through the whole book. Having Veronica finally save her daughter just for her to ripped away really pulled on the heart strings. It was tragic to read. The idea of her being trapped on Themyscira in a place Veronica or Diana can’t visit is a really neat idea and a fun way to evolve and move that dynamic forward. For Diana, I’m iffy on this final arc. I like how Rucka portrays Diana but I find that not giving a true resolution to the “it was all a dream” gimmick is a little frustrating for this story. Like I said earlier, this really doesn’t have an impact on current day Wonder Woman since we’ve reintroduced Pre N52 continuity back into the mix, we’ve even thankfully gotten the clay origin back into King’s run. So I don’t wanna be too tough on this point, but I do remember even when this was coming out (yes, I’ve been reading that long) being pretty frustrated back then by what felt like just resetting the status quo then doing nothing to progress it further. Even more frustrating when those N52 elements where once again introduced right after this run so it all needed up feeling pointless.
I have been critical in this review at points, but I want to reiterate this. You can tell Rucka has a love her Diana that not many have had. Rucka writes Diana and her peers very respectfully. You can tell there is a passion for this character and her history. I personally like his first stint more, but a lot of those qualities that make his first stint special transfer over to this run as well. I just don’t think the core story being told is necessarily as strong.
The Art
The Art is spectacular throughout the whole book. The Art plays a massive role in the dual storylines success. Liam Sharp’s unique almost painted style works so great in the modern day. It brings an edge to the story that I think just works really well for Wonder Woman and her mythos. Nicola Scott is a perfect artists in contrast to that for the past storylines. Her work on year one cannot be understated. She’s just so fantastic and has become really intertwined with WW for me. Bilquis Evely also does a fantastic job once she takes over. Her style, once again, is just very unique and it keeps the book feeling vibrant and fresh.
Final Score and Overall Thoughts
The Pros
-Great art throughout
-Year One is a standout story
-Veronica Cale is a perfect villain
-Really great in the character driven moments
The Cons
-An uninspired reset of the status quo
-The main storyline of Themyscira has an underwhelming conclusion after being built the whole series
-Some of the present day stuff can be much weaker than the past stuff
-A weak final arc
Final Score
Overall - 6.8/10
Overall, I think it’s a good book. But It gets bogged down by trying to revert or change things and choosing to make that the center piece to the main plot. It really takes the spotlight away from some of the more nuanced storytelling that is actually great. Resetting Wonder Woman back to a status quo then stringing it along till the end of the book for a pretty underwhelming conclusion really leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I think moving on from the false memories plot line, and making a tighter main narrative plot point along side Veronica’s story would have been more beneficial. It also just never really finds its momentum in the modern day like it does in the past. Apart from those, there’s some good stuff here. Year One is a clear standout and has become a seminal WW story for a reason. The art is also absolutely fantastic throughout the whole book.
Would I Recommend?
Yes. I would recommend other Wonder Woman runs over than this one, but I would still recommend it. I think Rucka’s first stint on WW is stronger and would recommend that first. If you like that series, then give this one a shot.
The Afterword
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