Review: Trinity #4

Quick Summary

Pros: The story is another great examination of what makes a member of the Trinity tick. It also shows how the rest of the trio react to that very well. Also, once again, the artwork is great and matches the work excellently.

Cons: This story shies away from the main plot in order to finish up featuring each member of the Trinity’s mind. This makes this introduction to the series feel a little too long.

Overall: This story is a great look into the internal turmoil that Wonder Woman is going through at this point in time. It also does great in showing what the rest of this series has shown, the Trinity interacting with each other at their most vulnerable. However, with this being the fourth entry in what is now feeling like an overly long introduction, this series is definitely starting to feel the strain.

Story

This story, by itself, continues to do what the rest of the series has done correctly: showcase a member of the Trinity at their weakest and then have the rest of the group react to that. This issue preforms very well in this regard and definitely does not disappoint. It ends up being a little better than the Batman issue but not as good as the Superman one. However, when reading this after reading the rest of the series, this issue starts to drag.

(spoilers start here)

Wonder Woman is the focus of this issue in the conclusion of these trips into the trio’s mind. It was great to be able to see Wonder Woman confront the issues she is currently facing about her past and her people. However the real treat is getting to see her do this with others. In her own series, much more time and effort is given to detailing how Wonder Woman is currently dealing with what is going on in her life, yet Trinity has something that Wonder Woman does not. Seeing how Superman and Batman react to her life is something absent from Wonder Woman but is finally shown here. This makes for some rather rewarding exchanges, especially at the issue’s conclusion when a heartfelt “thank you” is nearly given from the usually stoic Batman was nice to see.

This issue ends up outperforming last month’s because of the unique quality of Wonder Woman’s story. Unlike last issue, which revisited a topic that has been seen numerous times, this issue is dealing with some fresh wounds to Wonder Woman’s life. However, as these issues are being fleshed out much more thoroughly in Wonder Woman, this issue does not end up reading nearly as well as the Superman issue. Overall though, this offers a satisfying conclusion to this journey through the minds.

The problem with this issue is that the series is starting to feel slowed down by these visits into the Trinity’s minds. The series started off strong by throwing the heroes into peril and showing that some dark force was behind it. Since then, not much more has been done with this; the focus has been on showcasing each member of the Trinity’s desires and insecurities rather than the main plot. This makes these first four issues feel like an introduction to the real story rather than a story on their own. Overall, devoting an entire issue to each member of the Trinity’s leads to this introduction dragging and can leave readers feeling exhausted. Hopefully, with next issue being focused on the main plotline, the series is ready for an adrenaline shot really soon.

(spoilers end here)

Art

This issue features a beautiful shift in the artistic tone from last issue. Here we see white sandy beaches and stunningly bright colors. While last issue was great for its depiction of darkness, this issue shines from its use of light. It fits with the idea that Themyscira is Paradise Island and should thus be depicted. Overall, while not the best art in the series so far, this issue still manages to look beautiful as this series knocks another one out of the park in terms of art.

Continuity

There are not too many connections in this issue that were not present in the first issue, which really just explains how the character’s got themselves into this situation. To see those check the Continuity section of ComicBookWire’s Review of Issue #1.

• Wonder Woman’s inability to return to Themyscira and her quest for the truth are detailed in Greg Rucka’s Wonder Woman Rebirth series, collected in Wonder Woman Vol. 1- The Lies.