“The Wild Hunt – Finale” (W) Steve Orlando; (A) Jesus Merino; (I) Vicente Cifunetes; (Col) Romulo Farjardo Jr; (Let) Pat Brosseau
The current story line comes to a close, with Diana , Cheetah and Hera all along for the ride. Orlando has been doing OK with this story line. In fact, the story reads better than the majority of his Batwoman run. Through the confrontation, both Diana and Cheetah have their respective moments of reflection, leading to a probably changes of purpose, at least for Diana. Jesus Merino is quite capable for large parts, though there are minor inconsistencies of frame that annoys. Larger panels, or splash pages are, seemingly, used to move the reader past such problems. Farjardo’s colors are bright, which I would come to expect for a character based in light and hope.
Once that story is out of the way, the true celebrations begin. There are a raft of top tier Wonder Woman creator’s on hand to deliver their take on every ones favourite amazon. These include for the writers, Gail Simone, Greg Rucka, Marguerite Bennett and Scot Snyder who are joined by Kami Garcia, Mariko Tamaki, Shannon Hale and Dean Hale and Vita Ayala to add a newness to the ongoing establishment. Of the stories, I found The Interogation by Tamki and Never Change by Rucka to be the most enjoyable reads.
On the art side, along with a plethora of pin-ups from people like Liam Sharpe and José Luis-GarcÃa López, the various stories include work from Coleen Doran, Elena Casagrande, Nicola Scott, Phil Hester, Riley Rossmo, Laura Braga, Amancay Nahuelpan and Bryan Hitch. Form those, Nicola Scott rules the roost and shows just what DC are missing without her on this book. There are a variety of styles in use, which cater to the whole range of audiences to whom Wonder Woman appeals, so there is plenty to enjoy for every one.
Finally, as is the norm nowadays, there a number of covers available, all from some of the fantastic artists who have graced Wonder Woman in the past. It is of course buyers choice, but I am fond of the Jim Lee, Adam Hughes and J Scott.Campbell covers, though if truth be told, the Joelle Jones one is gorgeous; I only wish her Catwoman stuff was as good.
At $9.99 the book is at a high price point. But, in fact, due to the high page count, it actually works out cheaper per page than the standard issue. Coupled with the high quality of pin-ups, this is a sure fire hit for any Wonder Woman fan! Remember though, to keep an open mind as not every story will be aimed at you.
Overall – 5 Stars
(W) Vita Ayala, Marguerite Bennett, Kami Garcia, Dean Hale, Jeff Loveness, Steve Orlando, Greg Rucka, Gail Simone, Mariko Tamaki, Various Others
(A) Elena Casagrande, Colleen Doran, Jesus Merino, Gabriel Picolo, Others
(CA) Joelle Jones
Author Profile
-
I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow
Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network
Latest entries
