I… just realized, and maybe this has been there for a while, maybe from the beginning, but I just realized that the “bondage”/’S&M” elements that riddled the original Wonder Woman stories by creator William Moulton Marston are back in full effect in this series. (I need to go back and reread a few issues.)
Well, anyway, this issue opens with Apollo torturing First Born, breaking his back (again) with the great hulk chained up to a sinister device, oozing blood from every opening.
Zola and Zeke are in Provence with Dionysus when his Eurotrash socialite friends show up and they go hunting for truffles. But that takes a supernatural twist.
Dio attracts the attention of Cassandra who needs a god so she can get to Olympus and free First Born.
Wonder Woman seeks assistance in finding Zola from Artemis and they spar with Diana surrendering in “loving submission” (a phrase that I think was used verbatim in an early ‘WW’ comic).
Finally, a character appears at the end of the story decked out in full leather bondage wear.
The bondage elements were most intriguing because a lot of people enjoy those elements and think they help give Wonder Woman something to differentiate her from any other character. It’s something that they tend to spend a lot of time dwelling on in documentaries and books about the character. I’m a little indifferent. I’m not into S&M sex myself. (Overshare?) But the fact that I noticed those elements in this comic, I was actually impressed and thought it was interesting and a nice homage.
The art is beautiful as usual, with Cliff Chiang back as the regular artist. His fill-ins are fine and do a good job of matching his style, but no one can top the original. A sequence of Hera crying is particularly lovely.
While this was a bit of a slow issue, it read interestingly enough, especially the throwback to Marston’s original concepts. And the art was excellent.
WONDER WOMAN #27
Written by Brian Azzarello
Art and Cover by Cliff Chiang
