Review: Wonder Woman Vol. 3- Iron

December 14, 2016 ComicBookWire

Quick Summary

Pros: Characterizations and relationships star in this volume as individuals get even more interesting. Also, Wonder Woman becomes even cooler, yet more sincere than she has been all series.

Cons: The #0 issue is not really that good. There are a lot of subplots going on here, almost to the point where it can feel a little scattered at times.

Overall: This volume continues to bring the same positives that the volumes before it brought, while also managing to improve on the negatives. It also introduces some new elements and concepts that could end up paying off in a very interesting way in the near future. But above all, this volume nails the interactions between characters and gives them a sense of charm and family that anyone will find endearing.

Story

This book is another win for the Azzarello-Chiang creative team as the story here continues to be just as good as it was when this series started. Specifically in Wonder Woman Vol. 3: Iron, a lot of good is done to show off Wonder Woman and to show the interactions between all of the characters that have been introduced so far. On top of this, another side story is built up here which introduces a new villain in the mix, something which could pay off greatly in future volumes. Basically, if you have enjoyed the series so far, then you will enjoy reading this volume just as much, if not more.

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This book, at its core, is really a story of two parts of the same family: the gods on Mount Olympus and the gods helping Wonder Woman. The action in this book is great and the story is captivating, but the truly fun scenes are when Azzarello brings this family to the forefront. Wonder Woman’s rag-tag group of Olympian rejects has grown and evolved by adding Hera, Orion, and even War to the party. Meanwhile, the First Born is carving out his own piece of the family as he literally takes on hell and high water, both of whom seem to arbor secret aspirations of their own. Oddly enough the deceit, lying, alliances, and hesitant trust make this family seem straight out of a soap opera rather than Mount Olympus; yet it is the smart writing that makes it interesting and keeps it from becoming too much.

These family matters also lead to some really fun moments between characters. Zola and Hera are a trip to watch in a story that feels like the Country Mouse meets the City Mouse; plus the fact that they both want to kill each other just adds another layer to the mix. I also really enjoyed seeing the Wonder Woman and Orion together because of how well it makes sense, despite not being very present before this time. Both characters are an odd type of foreigner in their land and both possess a great deal of raw strength and power that they try to suppress. This makes seeing them work together all the more satisfactory.

Another thing that this volume, and the rest of the series, does well is simply Wonder Woman herself. I have yet to talk about her because, honestly, she is simply one of many characters in this epic. However, I think this collection really gave her an opportunity to shine as her own character and explore her motives a little more. We get to see her rush fearlessly into battle and achieve a very tactical victory against Hermes but then also get to see her overcome with nerves before she goes and talks to her friends. The dichotomy of a brave yet insecure Wonder Woman is extremely interesting, as it makes her much more of a “human” character rather than the all out warrior seen in the first volume.

The biggest flop from this collection is almost definitely the #0 issue. This starts out nicely with a pretty creative homage to the silver age of comics but then ends up tripping over this very homage. It starts out hopeful and true and almost feels like a silver age comic, yet by the end devolves into a lackluster story where Wonder Woman adds random exclamations to the end of her sentences. It simply was not that great of a story and masking it in a silver age filter did not save it.

Another small problem comes with this story’s ever expanding plotline. What was once a straightforward story about Wonder Woman fighting gods to get a baby back has now been splintered. Now the New Gods are involved, an examination of Wonder Woman and War’s relationship is launched, and the First Born is off doing his own thing. It just seems like the creative team may be throwing a little bit too much out there in order to extend the length of this arc. However, it is not quite at a point where it is too scattered yet and hopefully will not become so in the next volume.

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Art

There is not much to say about the art here that was not said in ComicBookWire’s review of Wonder Woman Vol. 2: Guts (Review). The same positives are still present here and the unique depictions of the Greek gods are still popping up. If you have not read our prior review, then simply know that the art here is not only good but it matches the theme of this series remarkably well.