Fan-favorite writer Greg Rucka has only a few issues of Wonder Woman left to bring his story home. Rucka has limited space to wrap up the loose threads of the comic and tie up the greater mysteries of the series that have been dangling since the beginning of Rebirth. While Rucka has been spinning an excellent narrative thus far, his greater plans for Wonder Woman don’t feel anywhere near complete.
This is the penultimate issue of the present day storyline and only so much can be done in a few chapters of the title. Does “Wonder Woman” #23 even have a chance at evoking any sense of finality?
Written by Greg Rucka
Illustrated by Liam Sharp
Colored by Hi-Fi
Lettered by Jodi Wynne“The Truth” part five! The conclusion to Diana’s search for the truth takes her on a journey into darkness. But the price of understanding may be one sacrifice too many for Wonder Woman…
Like most issues of the series, “Wonder Woman” #23 is methodical in the sense that this chapter is loaded with narration. Thankfully Rucka’s strong understanding of language and tendency not to jam a ton of words on the space of one page still makes this comic a joy to read. The story focuses in on the backstory of Ares before showing how all the information that unfolds in his life directly pertains to Wonder Woman. The approach is a nifty narrative device that plays on the New 52 era of the character with a certain understated style of grace.
Under Rucka, Wonder Woman has always had a certain majesty in terms of narration and characterization. This issue brings that huge, epic scope but still makes the conflict feel personal by honing in on the supporting cast members of the series. Ares quickly becomes more than just a god driven by blind rage, Veronica Cale has achieved her greatest desire and readers get to see a duo of Wonder Woman rogues in a whole new way. On top of all those big story beats, the journey tying the story of Cale and Prince together feels completely organic.
With inventive page layouts and hyper-detailed figure work, Liam Sharp continues to shine in “Wonder Woman” #23. The lines fleshing out the cheek-bones of Ares and the tepid look on Wonder Woman’s face cements the greatness of Sharp’s style. His cluttered panels and darker backgrounds make this comic stand out from others on the rack, further adding to the grand sense of scale that this story is trying to evoke. When Rucka’s script calls for big moments like flesh ripping off or a majestic look at nature Sharp delivers. Sometimes, the artist depicts too much detail on a single panel and Prince looks different from one panel to the next in this issue but a comic like this becomes more than the sum of its parts considering Wonder Woman as a whole.
“Wonder Woman” #23 sets up a big storyline to close the series out on, but does more than you might think in the span of just one issue. Rucka’s approach to both fight scenes and character has always been interesting, but a huge, sweeping action scene in this book is anything but. The plot of the story takes a left turn, inverting and changing expectations to become something more intimate. The tale brings together numerous character moments that feel like Rucka has been waiting since the beginning of the series to get to. Also, getting a payoff for a group of villains that annoyed Wonder Woman for countless issues is a cathartic way to start putting the pin in this comic.
This book does miss the mark in terms of pacing. I expected something that would have been more cohesive or led into upcoming chapters more smoothly. Instead, this story could have almost closed out the series as it has a touching finale that this entire series has seemingly built up to. However, wrapping up the major plot threads in the penultimate chapter of the story makes the structure of this comic feel a bit too loose. I have no idea what to expect in upcoming chapters and am not currently convinced that Rucka had a full tapestry or some message at the end of the book to layout. This comic does have some of the strongest supporting casts in any DC book currently on the stands. This story has a full arsenal of greatness at to deploy, but lacks the focus or cohesive nature to even start to summarize what Rucka and Sharp’s greatest messages or moments for this character are.
“Wonder Woman” #23 is a strong outing for the series but makes Rucka and Sharp’s endgame for the series feel just out of reach. The tale continues to excel with the great fantasy-tinged command of language from Rucka and the commitment from Sharp to get every detail of the series looking just right. Even with pacing oddities, “Wonder Woman” 23 is a bold, inventive story that closes up an important subplot with grace.
Final Verdict: 7.7: “Wonder Woman” #23 delivers quality narrative and visuals but is a structural oddity.
