OCR Text |
Show 230 comic strip-but something compels me!"-it has also been suggested that Wonder Woman mirrors her male counterparts a little too precisely. She has been criticized as a staunch if unwitting defender of patriarchal white supremacy. She conforms to hierarchies and represses any rebellious impulses in deference to proven benevolent authority figures. It's been said that she doesn't actively challenge patriarchal notions of how femininity can or should be attractive. Despite being from an exotic island, Wonder Woman has almost always been very white. She knows English instantly and preaches American patriotism, more or less leaving her ethnic identity behind. And so on. I still have trouble explaining why Wonder Woman in particular is so appealing to me; for the most part, I am still bewildered as to how that is a question. For one thing, she is a badass: advocate for democracy and peace, yes; but also author of lines like, "nothing like a good right hook to settle an argument!", and proponent of slamming doors into the teeth of her opponents and saying, "How nice to make your acquaintance!" I have not followed the series as closely since it's moved beyond the Marston era. While I've been away, writers have written Wonder Woman marrying Steve, mourning over the death of Steve, returning to Paradise Island, abandoning her Wonder Woman identity, working as a private investigator, traveling to Hollywood, losing her powers, forsaking her powers, working fast food, and going back and forward through time. Some of these moves have worked better than others. The arc where, under the influence of a spell, Wonder Woman nearly marries a slimy monster in |