Wonder Woman: Rebirth #4 Review

‘Wonder Woman: Rebirth’ #4 cover by Romulo Fajardo Jr & Nicola Scott

• Written by Greg Ruka
• Pencils & Inks by Nicola Scott
• Colours by Romulo Fajardo Jr.
• Cover by Romulo Farjardo Jr & Nicola Scott

“Wonder Woman Year One” part two! Paradise has been breached, Ares stirs, and the Amazons must answer with a champion of their own…one who is willing to sacrifice her home amongst her sisters to save a world she has never seen.

Pickup your copy of ‘Wonder Woman: Rebirth’ #4 at Comixology now!

Call me cynical but isn’t it interesting that DC Comics choose now to do a ‘Year One’ story for Wonder Woman. What with her first film coming out next year this is the perfect time to introduce readers to a definitive back story.

For fans who have been reading ‘Wonder Woman’ for some time this is a more familiar version of the origin. The New 52 era origin famously twisted her past to make it something epic and fans were not happy. ‘Rebirth’ has once again stripped that away and brought back original elements which were lost.

This issue focuses heavily on the trials choosing the representative of Themiscyra to travel to man’s world with Steve Trevor. It’s very familiar territory but still joyous to read. Ruka is able to inject some much needed lightness in to the DC Universe which, of late, has even very heavy.

Written by Greg Ruka this series is alternating between its ‘Year One’ and ‘Present Day’ storylines. The two are yet to intertwine in an ‘Arrow’ like fashion. Instead existing as two entirely separate entities.

Very successfully ‘Year One’ is evoking not just the legacy of comics past but also the hugely successful TV version of ‘Wonder Woman’. It’s a clever move on the part of DC Comics. Marketing the character in line with her most successful past incarnations in time for her newest.

There is also a great parallel between the two alternating stories. ‘Year One’ is bright and colourful. ‘The Lies’ is by contrast dark and very shadowy. The two counterbalance each other in subject matter and aesthetic. It’s worth noting that both are written by Ruka.

Nicola Scott and Romulo Fajardo Jr. provide art on the ‘Year One’ story whilst Liam Sharp and Laura Martin work on ‘The Lies’. Scott and Fajardo have so far only been tasked with providing an updated look to the Themiscyra landscape. They’re able to craft a mythical landscape which evokes a feeling of power and legacy without overpowering the story.

It will be interesting to see how they handle Diana’s impending move to the American landscape.

Faces are a little inconsistent at times, in a landscape full of female characters it’s sometimes hard to tell them apart. It’s not a huge issue but one that has always bugged me in modern comics. The cover of this issue is one of the best covers in recent years. It’s a very true-to-form Wonder Woman portrait fitting of the characters 75th anniversary.

Verdict

‘Wonder Woman: Rebirth’ #4 is storytelling triumph. A modern retelling of a classic story. Well written and executed with strong artwork to back it up. Well worth a read.

4 stars