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ogreart's review
3.0
Frankly I was lost. My own fault, I haven't followed the series in years. The story seemed to be pretty tight. It was okay.
cleheny's review
4.0
I’m halfway through my re-read of Gail Simone’s run, and I find that I enjoy Rise of the Olympian more than I did the first-time through. A lot of threads that Simone laid out in her first two arcs (The Circle, Expatriate) really come together in this arc and the next, Warkiller. Not everything is successful, but enough is. I still think Rucka’s runs on Wonder Woman are the best stories I’ve read, but Simone’s take on Diana—strong, funny, compassionate, intelligent, principled, playful---is terrific. Where Rucka outdoes her is in the consistency of the quality of the storytelling; his runs feel intricately developed, everything leading to the climax, whereas Simone’s feel a bit disjointed. So the second volume, The Ends of the Earth, doesn’t pick up much on what the first two arcs started, and the final volume, Contagion, feels a very weak conclusion to the heart of her saga, which is contained in Rise of the Olympian and Warkiller. This may be due to editorial interference; I haven’t read enough of Simone’s other work to know if this approach is evident in her runs on other books.
The Circle’s antagonists—Alkyone and her fellow guardswomen/fanatics—resurface, though they fill a more ancillary role. It is the gods, in particular Zeus, who take center stage and drive the plot. At the beginning of The Circle, Diana was cut off from Themiscyra, the Amazons having been exiled and their memories wiped as punishment for the events of Amazons Attack! Hippolyta lives alone, remembering everything, and her only human companions the four imprisoned traitors. In order to save her mother from the Neo-Nazis sponsored by the Secret Society, Diana transfers her allegiance to the Polynesian god, Kane Milohai, another point that becomes critically important in this arc.
Zeus, to fulfill a promise to Athena, creates the Olympians, resurrected male Greek heroes, who are given their own island, Thalarion. Their leader, resurrected from fire and a brutal act by Zeus, is Achilles. Their purpose is to assume the mission of the Amazons and Diana. Because Zeus is arrogant and misogynistic, his plan to “honor” the Amazon’s thousands of years of sacrifice is really the ultimate disrespect—to strip them of who they are. This isn’t his motivation, he does “mean well,” but, at least in Wonder Woman stories, Zeus will always be a self-satisfied idiot who causes far more harm than he prevents.
But before Diana faces the first consequences of Zeus’ plan, she must confront the villain, Genocide. Genocide is a golem, derived from the corpse of a “magnificent warrior” which is magically infused with all of the hatred, violence, and cruelty of mankind, as captured in the soil of places like Auschwitz and Darfur. She is incredibly strong—as strong as, if not stronger, than Diana; she is unrelentingly ruthless; and she displays increasing levels of sadism as the story progresses. She can (and does) legitimately defeat Diana. In fact, their first fight is so conclusively won by Genocide that it makes it difficult to believe that Diana can eventually defeat her.
Simone enlists allies to support Diana, including Etta, Tom, and the DMA agents. But it’s the appearance of Donna and Cassie, the former and current Wonder Girls, that really moved me. They came together as both sisters and women who know their duty, even in horrific circumstances. The JLA also makes an appearance, although they are mostly there to be Genocide’s punching bags.
There are a few problems with Genocide, however. First, she is one-dimensional. She is nothing but hate and violence. Diana’s reluctance to kill her, therefore, doesn’t make a lot of sense. Genocide is a magical monster, and Diana has unhesitatingly killed those in the past. Here, after multiple acts of brutality and sadism by Genocide, Diana considers it “murder” to kill her. That’s not a logical position. There’s no hope of Genocide’s rehabilitation, and she is incredibly powerful and difficult for even Diana to stop, so killing her in the defense of humanity is justifiable. Second, and probably because she is one-dimensional, she’s not terribly interesting. Diana and the reader may not know what terrible thing she is going to do next, but we know it will be terrible and brutal. There’s not much mystery. Third, her character design is terrible. Several reviewers have described it as (bad) typical 90s’ design, and that’s about right.
Diana’s reaction to Genocide is also a bit problematic. There’s the reluctance to kill her, but, more significantly, there’s Diana’s reaction once she learns Genocide’s true origins. Before that reveal, Diana is feeling guilty and taking the blame for Genocide’s actions, presumably because After she learns Genocide’s origin, however, Diana doesn’t display any of that, only a determination to defeat the monster. That reaction doesn’t make sense, and, in fact, is a major flaw because
I still liked Tom Tresser in this, but I will say that I like him a bit more when he’s interacting with someone other than Diana. It’s not that he’s a jerk with Diana, but that he appears always conscious of his own unworthiness/insecure when with her. When he’s with someone else, his character really comes through, and he’s a really good guy, which is why what Genocide does to him more cruel.
Also, Diana’s predicament at the end of Rise of the Olympian is very effective. After the battle, she is forced to choose between her principles and sense of what is right and her allegiance to her family and the Olympian gods. That choice has devastating consequences for her.
The Circle’s antagonists—Alkyone and her fellow guardswomen/fanatics—resurface, though they fill a more ancillary role. It is the gods, in particular Zeus, who take center stage and drive the plot. At the beginning of The Circle, Diana was cut off from Themiscyra, the Amazons having been exiled and their memories wiped as punishment for the events of Amazons Attack! Hippolyta lives alone, remembering everything, and her only human companions the four imprisoned traitors. In order to save her mother from the Neo-Nazis sponsored by the Secret Society, Diana transfers her allegiance to the Polynesian god, Kane Milohai, another point that becomes critically important in this arc.
Zeus, to fulfill a promise to Athena, creates the Olympians, resurrected male Greek heroes, who are given their own island, Thalarion. Their leader, resurrected from fire and a brutal act by Zeus, is Achilles. Their purpose is to assume the mission of the Amazons and Diana. Because Zeus is arrogant and misogynistic, his plan to “honor” the Amazon’s thousands of years of sacrifice is really the ultimate disrespect—to strip them of who they are. This isn’t his motivation, he does “mean well,” but, at least in Wonder Woman stories, Zeus will always be a self-satisfied idiot who causes far more harm than he prevents.
But before Diana faces the first consequences of Zeus’ plan, she must confront the villain, Genocide. Genocide is a golem, derived from the corpse of a “magnificent warrior” which is magically infused with all of the hatred, violence, and cruelty of mankind, as captured in the soil of places like Auschwitz and Darfur. She is incredibly strong—as strong as, if not stronger, than Diana; she is unrelentingly ruthless; and she displays increasing levels of sadism as the story progresses. She can (and does) legitimately defeat Diana. In fact, their first fight is so conclusively won by Genocide that it makes it difficult to believe that Diana can eventually defeat her.
Simone enlists allies to support Diana, including Etta, Tom, and the DMA agents. But it’s the appearance of Donna and Cassie, the former and current Wonder Girls, that really moved me. They came together as both sisters and women who know their duty, even in horrific circumstances. The JLA also makes an appearance, although they are mostly there to be Genocide’s punching bags.
There are a few problems with Genocide, however. First, she is one-dimensional. She is nothing but hate and violence. Diana’s reluctance to kill her, therefore, doesn’t make a lot of sense. Genocide is a magical monster, and Diana has unhesitatingly killed those in the past. Here, after multiple acts of brutality and sadism by Genocide, Diana considers it “murder” to kill her. That’s not a logical position. There’s no hope of Genocide’s rehabilitation, and she is incredibly powerful and difficult for even Diana to stop, so killing her in the defense of humanity is justifiable. Second, and probably because she is one-dimensional, she’s not terribly interesting. Diana and the reader may not know what terrible thing she is going to do next, but we know it will be terrible and brutal. There’s not much mystery. Third, her character design is terrible. Several reviewers have described it as (bad) typical 90s’ design, and that’s about right.
Diana’s reaction to Genocide is also a bit problematic. There’s the reluctance to kill her, but, more significantly, there’s Diana’s reaction once she learns Genocide’s true origins. Before that reveal, Diana is feeling guilty and taking the blame for Genocide’s actions, presumably because
Spoiler
Genocide stole the lasso and is using it to psychically injure Diana’s friends and allies, in addition to the physical harm she inflicts.Spoiler
Genocide’s body is Diana’s; Wonder Woman is the “magnificent warrior” whose corpse is used to create the monster. Diana does have a moment of, “I did this,” but Athena is quick to reassure her that, no, Genocide’s real spirit is all Ares—Diana has nothing to do with it. Not only does that seem a cheap absolution, it doesn’t square with Athena’s other statement, that Diana has to accept that Genocide’s body was once Diana, for how else could Genocide wield the lasso made for Diana’s hand? This is problematic, as it suggests that the lasso was designed for Diana’s body, and not her soul. So, anyone inhabiting Diana’s body (evil magical golem, someone who possesses it) can effectively wield the lasso. But, in the Ends of the Earth—the preceding arc, Diana loses her connection to the lasso because her soul is stolen from her body. With that precedent, for Genocide to wield the lasso, she would have to have some piece of Diana’s soul; otherwise, she shouldn’t be able to do anything with it. And both Athena and Diana should realize that, so Athena’s consolation shouldn’t make any difference.I still liked Tom Tresser in this, but I will say that I like him a bit more when he’s interacting with someone other than Diana. It’s not that he’s a jerk with Diana, but that he appears always conscious of his own unworthiness/insecure when with her. When he’s with someone else, his character really comes through, and he’s a really good guy, which is why what Genocide does to him more cruel.
Also, Diana’s predicament at the end of Rise of the Olympian is very effective. After the battle, she is forced to choose between her principles and sense of what is right and her allegiance to her family and the Olympian gods. That choice has devastating consequences for her.
Spoiler
It’s interesting to compare Hippolyta’s reaction to Zeus with Diana’s. Although Hippolyta has suffered greatly at her gods’ hands, and she is now stripped of that which gave her life purpose, she is willing to abide by Zeus’ command and overlook his history of arrogance and wrong-headedness. This, even though the command strips from her and her Amazons all purpose, as well as their way of life. Diana, on the other hand, will not betray the god who helped her help her mother, and she will not sacrifice her life and mission on the say-so of Zeus. This puts mother and daughter into direct conflict, and Diana, by choosing to remain true to herself and her principles, and not the gods who turned their back on her and her family, is exiled from her family and her homeland.haunted_air's review
3.0
I love how Gail Simone writers Diana, her inner monologue and characterization is top-notch. Unfortunately, it's basically the positive I can say about this volume. Well, ok I also liked the art and it was nice to see Donna and Cassie.
The story was hard to follow and felt disjointed. Conflicts and sub-plots pop out of nowhere, often with little to no set-up or explanation. The individuals issues didn't flow well as if there were issues missing from the collection (I suspect some kind of crossover, but it happened too often). Usually, I prefer when comics go easy on the exposition, but there was simply too much going on for me to follow. I read all the previous volumes since the post Final Crisis restart so lack of backstory isn't the issue.
Part of the problem is that I really, really don't care about Diana's love interest or the whole secret agency business. To be fair, the plot doesn't seem to either, we barely spend any time there. Diana gets to set up her own team but it barely lasts more than a couple issues because all the stuff with the gods starts happening. Which was also confusing? Suddenly, Olympus is is destroyed, Athena is dying, Zeus creates amazon rip-offs, somehow Ares is involved. Later, villains from the previous volumes join the party too.
There's also the big bad I could not take entirely seriously, despite the horrible things they left in their wake. Naming a villain Genocide with a goofy costume will do that. I think the concept here is strong just not the execution. It's also one of those cases when the baddie is ridiculously overpowered to show stakes. To be honest, the whole story tried too hard to to that and be epic. The moral dilemma Diana has to face was interesting, although I don't love the "Wonder Woman shouldn't kill" rhetoric. She's a warrior, sometimes she does. In this volume, the issue was more about not giving into vengeance, which is much better, but I'm still angry about how the Maxwell Lord situation was treated.
Rise of the Olympian is definitely worth rearing though. There are standout moments for sure, sadly it just never came together.
Random complaint: while it was great to see Donna and Cassie get their versions of the Eagle armour, why on Earth does Cassie's show her stomach? I get the horrid 2000s crop top is her thing and for whatever reason her costume but you're putting her in armour. What's the point if she can literally be stabbed in the stomach? Who allowed this.
The story was hard to follow and felt disjointed. Conflicts and sub-plots pop out of nowhere, often with little to no set-up or explanation. The individuals issues didn't flow well as if there were issues missing from the collection (I suspect some kind of crossover, but it happened too often). Usually, I prefer when comics go easy on the exposition, but there was simply too much going on for me to follow. I read all the previous volumes since the post Final Crisis restart so lack of backstory isn't the issue.
Part of the problem is that I really, really don't care about Diana's love interest or the whole secret agency business. To be fair, the plot doesn't seem to either, we barely spend any time there. Diana gets to set up her own team but it barely lasts more than a couple issues because all the stuff with the gods starts happening. Which was also confusing? Suddenly, Olympus is is destroyed, Athena is dying
Spoiler
although I did like the later reveal that she faked itThere's also the big bad I could not take entirely seriously, despite the horrible things they left in their wake. Naming a villain Genocide with a goofy costume will do that. I think the concept here is strong just not the execution. It's also one of those cases when the baddie is ridiculously overpowered to show stakes. To be honest, the whole story tried too hard to to that and be epic. The moral dilemma Diana has to face was interesting, although I don't love the "Wonder Woman shouldn't kill" rhetoric. She's a warrior, sometimes she does. In this volume, the issue was more about not giving into vengeance, which is much better, but I'm still angry about how the Maxwell Lord situation was treated.
Rise of the Olympian is definitely worth rearing though. There are standout moments for sure, sadly it just never came together.
Random complaint: while it was great to see Donna and Cassie get their versions of the Eagle armour, why on Earth does Cassie's show her stomach? I get the horrid 2000s crop top is her thing and for whatever reason her costume but you're putting her in armour. What's the point if she can literally be stabbed in the stomach? Who allowed this.
ladydewinter's review
3.0
Hm. I think I liked this one a lot better the first time I read it. The second time, I had quite a few problems, so now it's three instead of four stars.
What I do like about this collection is the introduction of the Olympian. Zeus, deciding that his Amazons have done enough and deserve rest and peace and quiet, grants them mortality and creates Achilles to lead a bunch of men to do what Wonder Woman and the Amazons could never do - finally end all war. I love Achilles, and it was great to see that much of what's to come is already alluded to here.
I did not like Genocide. The fact that her creation was Ares' idea and is tied in with the leader of the Circle is a little more interesting than "just" being the product of yet another villainous society, but at the end of the day Genocide still felt like another of those "unbeatable" and even more terrible foes that so often crop up in comics. And I had some trouble taking Diana's conflict seriously considering what the choices were: kill Genocide or allow her to kill gazillions of people and the people she loves.
That "conflict" - the one that started with Diana's "murder" of Maxwell Lord (I think calling it murder is wrong - yes, she killed him, but she. had. no. choice.) is one I have a bit of a problem with anyway. I can appreciate the way Gail Simone puts it here - it's not the killing that's the problem, but the reasons (revenge would be bad as a motive, for example), but overall the problem is that Diana is a warrior. And warriors do, occasionally, kill people in battle. And to turn that into this huge dilemma is something I don't like, especially the way it's done (just remembering the way Clark and Bruce treated her after killing Max makes my blood boil). It's not an uninteresting conflict, but it's poorly handled, in my opinion.
Anyway, this isn't my favorite of Gail Simone's Wonder Woman books, but despite my niggles and problems, it's solidly written and the art is pretty.
What I do like about this collection is the introduction of the Olympian. Zeus, deciding that his Amazons have done enough and deserve rest and peace and quiet, grants them mortality and creates Achilles to lead a bunch of men to do what Wonder Woman and the Amazons could never do - finally end all war. I love Achilles, and it was great to see that much of what's to come is already alluded to here.
I did not like Genocide. The fact that her creation was Ares' idea and is tied in with the leader of the Circle is a little more interesting than "just" being the product of yet another villainous society, but at the end of the day Genocide still felt like another of those "unbeatable" and even more terrible foes that so often crop up in comics. And I had some trouble taking Diana's conflict seriously considering what the choices were: kill Genocide or allow her to kill gazillions of people and the people she loves.
That "conflict" - the one that started with Diana's "murder" of Maxwell Lord (I think calling it murder is wrong - yes, she killed him, but she. had. no. choice.) is one I have a bit of a problem with anyway. I can appreciate the way Gail Simone puts it here - it's not the killing that's the problem, but the reasons (revenge would be bad as a motive, for example), but overall the problem is that Diana is a warrior. And warriors do, occasionally, kill people in battle. And to turn that into this huge dilemma is something I don't like, especially the way it's done (just remembering the way Clark and Bruce treated her after killing Max makes my blood boil). It's not an uninteresting conflict, but it's poorly handled, in my opinion.
Anyway, this isn't my favorite of Gail Simone's Wonder Woman books, but despite my niggles and problems, it's solidly written and the art is pretty.
kikiandarrowsfishshelf's review against another edition
4.0
So the gods come back and they are not quite happy. Seriously, a story about self, stepping up, and self-determination. Awesome. Hard hitting. Striking. Wonderful.
wyrmbergsabrina's review against another edition
4.0
Well, that was dark.
There is a problem with borrowing books from the library; you don't always get the right books, in the right order in a series. Here is another example of that. Volume five in what seems like a huge, over arching storyline, with characters, choices, history and plot points that I have missed by jumping in here.
Wonder Woman has a seriously tough time, facing the impossible task and several plot lines to solve at the same time. It gets a bit messy in the later half, and just why we have to have so many previous characters dragged into the main story I'm not sure if that makes sense, but to see Diana brought so low is something I've not seen before.
This one certainly ends on a huge turning point, and can things ever go back to how they were before? I've no idea. One thing's clear; the Greek Gods are selfish pigs who really deserve a smack in the face. So much blood and death for the claims of one.
The artwork is pretty cool; there are some great page spreads in here, and the violence is fairly graphic. I actual felt pain at some panels. Characters retain their features across chapters and I felt that the females were well drawn; no obvious sexism on display here.
I might have to track down the rest of the series. Turns out some of these writers have done one of my favourite reboots of Wonder Woman.
There is a problem with borrowing books from the library; you don't always get the right books, in the right order in a series. Here is another example of that. Volume five in what seems like a huge, over arching storyline, with characters, choices, history and plot points that I have missed by jumping in here.
Wonder Woman has a seriously tough time, facing the impossible task and several plot lines to solve at the same time. It gets a bit messy in the later half, and just why we have to have so many previous characters dragged into the main story I'm not sure if that makes sense, but to see Diana brought so low is something I've not seen before.
This one certainly ends on a huge turning point, and can things ever go back to how they were before? I've no idea. One thing's clear; the Greek Gods are selfish pigs who really deserve a smack in the face. So much blood and death for the claims of one.
The artwork is pretty cool; there are some great page spreads in here, and the violence is fairly graphic. I actual felt pain at some panels. Characters retain their features across chapters and I felt that the females were well drawn; no obvious sexism on display here.
I might have to track down the rest of the series. Turns out some of these writers have done one of my favourite reboots of Wonder Woman.
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