New Wonder Woman costume

[Podmark]

I haven't really read anything JMS has said about it, but I imagine this new take probably isn't meant to last long term. It's probably just something he wants to try for a while. What little I know it sounds like a pretty drastic change so I can't imagine DC thinks this is going to last forever.

[murs47]

They should just give her the same body as Jessica Rabbit and cover her nipples with golden stars, give her the tiara and bracers...call it a day. Highest selling comic for at least a year.

Call if you're interested in generating more sales, DC. 1-800-MURS-047

[John Jr.]

I haven't really read anything JMS has said about it, but I imagine this new take probably isn't meant to last long term. It's probably just something he wants to try for a while. What little I know it sounds like a pretty drastic change so I can't imagine DC thinks this is going to last forever.

Unfortunately, JMS is not as wise as you, Pod...

Nrama: I'm sure you can understand that, after years of seeing alterations (although usually more minor) to Wonder Woman coming and going, it begs the question of how permanent this change really is. Or are you admitting up front that it's temporary, since she's trying to put the timeline back in order?

Straczynski: Putting the timeline back in order doesn't mean that some changes don't stick, especially if some of those changes end up being popular or well accepted. It'd be a shame to reboot a character and make her popular only to later throw it all away and go back to what wasn't working as well as it should've.

[Previsionary]

Having read some of JMS's responses now (Linkara did a response to it as well that you can find here), it reads to me like he barely knows WW and came up with every excuse he could to change it. That'd annoy me more if I cared about this character at all.

The WORST thing to me is his insistence on removing WW's very small (active) supporting cast. He did that once... on Spider-man. We saw how well that worked out for him. People complained about the lack of a supporting cast in the main book, and Spidey and his family had the most depressing 2 year period ever. You'd think he'd learn from that mistake.

[Podmark]

I haven't really read anything JMS has said about it, but I imagine this new take probably isn't meant to last long term. It's probably just something he wants to try for a while. What little I know it sounds like a pretty drastic change so I can't imagine DC thinks this is going to last forever.

Unfortunately, JMS is not as wise as you, Pod...

Nrama: I'm sure you can understand that, after years of seeing alterations (although usually more minor) to Wonder Woman coming and going, it begs the question of how permanent this change really is. Or are you admitting up front that it's temporary, since she's trying to put the timeline back in order?

Straczynski: Putting the timeline back in order doesn't mean that some changes don't stick, especially if some of those changes end up being popular or well accepted. It'd be a shame to reboot a character and make her popular only to later throw it all away and go back to what wasn't working as well as it should've.

Yeah like I said, I've barely read anything he's actually said about the new take. Wonder Woman isn't a character I'm interested in. Still that quote basically says "if people end up liking it then we'll keep using it!" which is a pretty sound way to do it. JMS probably doesn't plan to write the old take, but at some point his run will end (early if the new take fails) and the next writer may very well revert things back.

The WORST thing to me is his insistence on removing WW's very small (active) supporting cast. He did that once... on Spider-man. We saw how well that worked out for him. People complained about the lack of a supporting cast in the main book, and Spidey and his family had the most depressing 2 year period ever. YOu'd think he'd learn from that mistake.

Yeah that was probably the main reason I ended up dropping his Spidey run. To me Spidey's at his best when he's interacting with a good sized supporting cast. Current Spidey is pretty decent about that, that's actually one of the things that pulled me back in.

[Podmark]

Just saw this at Bleeding Cool:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/06/wonder-whedon-how-diana-might-have-looked-in-the-movie/

Supposedly designs commissioned by Joss Whedon back when he was working on the Wonder Woman film. I kinda like all of them to a certain extent but most would probably look pretty skanky on a real woman, though the second one would be a pretty big departure from the norm.

[cmdrkoenig67]

I haven't really read anything JMS has said about it, but I imagine this new take probably isn't meant to last long term. It's probably just something he wants to try for a while. What little I know it sounds like a pretty drastic change so I can't imagine DC thinks this is going to last forever.

Then they really shouldn't let him do it in regular continuity...It should be an elseworlds tale...DC's continuity is a freaking mess as it is, why are they letting writers screw it up more?

I also have to add, I'm glad I'm not a fan/collector of the character...But this sort of thing just makes me feel bad for the fans, who have to wade through this nonsense or like Steamteck's daughter...Wait till the character they love returns.

Dana

[murs47]

Just saw this at Bleeding Cool:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/06/wonder-whedon-how-diana-might-have-looked-in-the-movie/

Supposedly designs commissioned by Joss Whedon back when he was working on the Wonder Woman film. I kinda like all of them to a certain extent but most would probably look pretty skanky on a real woman, though the second one would be a pretty big departure from the norm.

I like the bottom right.

[cmdrkoenig67]

Just saw this at Bleeding Cool:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/06/wonder-whedon-how-diana-might-have-looked-in-the-movie/

Supposedly designs commissioned by Joss Whedon back when he was working on the Wonder Woman film. I kinda like all of them to a certain extent but most would probably look pretty skanky on a real woman, though the second one would be a pretty big departure from the norm.

I like the first (which is close to the traditional look) and I kind of like the third and fourth (except for the exposed midriffs)...The black dress (2nd) is awful...I also don't like the stars on the bracelets...I know they did it for the tv series, but some artists/costume-designers tend to over-do the star aspects of the costume (on the briefs and tiara, but some do the bracelets and sometimes even star earrings)

Dana

[Kenn]

So, my folks just got back in the country, over the weekend, after a couple week cruise.  Dad went to pick up his comics today, and we were talking comics as we do sometimes.  I told him about the change.  Then I pulled up the picture.  He stared with a disturbed look on his face for several seconds and finally said "that's ugly."

And he agrees with me on the increased sluttyness of the new outfit.

[DrMike2000]

I'm not seeing the "sluttiness" or "skankiness" of the new costume or the Whedon designs. Is a bit of cleavage that offensive?

And can we get through the rest of this discussion without using these words? The sexual politics behind them is pretty abyssmal.

[GhostMachine]

I picked up my comics this week, including Wonder Woman #600.

The costume change is bad enough, but I don't like the reboot. From the looks of the oracle (NOT Barbara Gordon; I'm talking mythological), they're trying to modernize the look of everything. (The oracle is a blonde dressed like she belongs in a dance club with a live dj, more or less) And apparently Hippolyta died when Diana was a kid (the story says `fifteen years ago'), so she was raised by other people.

Definitely glad I filled out a drop form and dumped Wonder Woman from my subscriptions at the comics shop before I left.

[daglob]

That's the sad thing. This is probably a ploy to bring more readers flocking to Wonder Woman, but they are alienating some of the present readers.

If things are that bad, then cancel Wonder Woman and let her guest star in other comics for awhile, then publish a WW mini series or special periodically to test the market. Don't give us Streetfighter Woman and call her Wonder Woman and figure that the long time readers don't care what they get it it's got the right name.

[Talavar]

That's the sad thing. This is probably a ploy to bring more readers flocking to Wonder Woman, but they are alineating some of the present readers.

If things are that bad, then cancel Wonder Woman and let her guest star in other comics for awhile, then publish a WW mini series or special periodically to test the market. Don't give us Streetfighter Woman and call her Wonder Woman and figure that the long time readers don't care what they get it it's got the right name.

If I'm not mistaken though, DC has to publish a regular Wonder Woman book - if they go a certain amount of time without doing so, the rights revert to the estate of her creator.

[GhostMachine]

I believe that's the case. Its also one of the reasons Marvel does a new Captain Marvel series every so often; if they don't they'd eventually lose the rights and DC could actually use the name as a comic title.

And if I've heard right, this reboot isn't actually meant to be permanent. Issue #600 does hint that there's a sort of `out' that they could use to change everything back.

Oh, and of those Whedon commissioned designs, I like the top left and bottom right (though the belt on the bottom right looks awful). The top right is Wonder Goth, not Wonder Woman. But Wonder Woman in pants just seems wrong. Put her in bicycle shorts or boyshorts, if you must, but NOT pants!

[AfghanAnt]

The Whedon draws are ok. I actually liked the little tweaks Jim Lee made to Wondie's classic costume for his Superman run.

Spoiler

Though if I had my way the Just Imagine costume would be the version she would wear. It's classic armor with a superhero twist without make it look impractical. Though I would incorporate the WW into her chest plate. I also thought that costume would play well with Superman primary colors and Batman dark colors.

[lugaru]

That just imagine costume is pretty rad. I flipped through the book on the stand and the costume looks good on the page, just not great for her. The rest of the issue was real sweet too, if it is still on stands I might pick it up when I go back next week.

[GhostMachine]

The only part of the Just Imagine costume I like is the boots, and they're still too much of a busy design to be part of a regularly used costume; would be a real headache for an artist to draw on a regular basis.

I've got an idea for a WW costume design in my head, but I suck royally as an artist so I won't be drawing it. It removes any blue from the costume at all, but keeps the stars and moves them to a different location.

Basically, imagine the upper part of the regular WW costume with the skirt/loincloth of the Kingdom Come design but armored and recolored red with some gold trim and black (not blue) boyshorts underneath with two white stars on the part of the shorts that peek out from under the skirt/loincloth on each side and boots that go up to her knees, which are covered with engraved gold armored kneepads with a red star (like on her tiara) on each.

[marhawkman]

Honestly my favorite part of that design is the left arm.  it's one of those giant Gladiator style metal gloves.   the boots look good at first glance but then I realize that her feet would have to be TINY inside those boots.  The guy drawing it attempted to draw thick metal greaves as if they were skin tight.  And the torso armor has the same problem.  A wasp waist is okay if the character is waering nothing more than skin tight fabric.  It's stupid if she has body armor.  Oh and there's the metal pushup bra added in.

[BlueBard]

Here's a little comic-commentary on the subject:

http://www.the-gutters.com/comic/15-evan-shaner

[GhostMachine]

Here's a little comic-commentary on the subject:

http://www.the-gutters.com/comic/15-evan-shaner

Heh. I liked it.

Weregeek did a bit about the costume change, too. http://www.weregeek.com/2010/07/12/ (Its two strips long, so take a look at the next one, as well - http://www.weregeek.com/2010/07/14/ )

[thanoson]

Liefeld? LIEFELD!!!!!! Damnations!