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A review by dr_matthew_lloyd
Wonder Woman: Ends of the Earth by Gail Simone
4.0
I have an aversion to apocalypse stories. Watching the trailer to Thor: The Dark World I couldn't help but be left feeling that if Thor didn't save the world, that forthcoming Avengers sequel wouldn't have very much to do, would it? Of course, Age of Ultron is written by Joss Whedon, who made his name mocking the apocalypse trope on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, where I probably learned my cynicism: "When I saw you save the world from, you know, ending, I just figured that was a big week for you. Now I find myself wondering what the plural of apocalypse is..."
Ends of the Earth promises apocalypse. The monster Stalker describes will destroy all universes unless Wonder Woman can gather together several heroes of legend to help him destroy it. Fortunately, if Gail Simone doesn't love Buffy, it can only be because she hasn't watched it, surely? The world destroying power takes second fiddle to Diana's internal conflict between her reticence and withdrawn personality when in her secret identity and the warrior willing and able to kill that she has become.
Gail Simone is a good writer capable of inserting fun into dramatic scenarios - my main worry about the apocalypse trope is when it is taken too much in earnest; the episode of Buffy "The Zeppo" is a fantastic undermining of this - and so one gets the lack-of-emotional turmoil of Diana without failing to enjoy what's going on. The palate-cleansing story which follows is another fine example of how one must have a sense of humour in comic books. It is a timely (I'm sure at the time, but also now) attempt to turn Wonder Woman into a film: "Waiting a while for a GOOD movie is better than having a TERRIBLE one TODAY" (please don't let funless misogynist Zach Synder make the first Wonder Woman film. Of course, one wonders how far this is an excuse - and if the makers of Batman and Robin were ever concerned by that quotation . Throughout, the gorillas are particularly fine examples of this sense of humour.
While this volume takes the dubious mantle of being the best Wonder Woman comic book I've ever read - the others being the generally good [b:Wonder Woman: Love and Murder|1142008|Wonder Woman Love and Murder|Jodi Picoult|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1292061034s/1142008.jpg|1129347] and the execrable [b:Amazons Attack|20408100|Amazons Attack (Wonder Woman)|Will Pfeifer|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388548601s/20408100.jpg|29063145] - the quality of art was certainly high in these inter-crisis comic books. I've never really got on with Wonder Woman's costume in isolation, but in context it always looks so much better. Perhaps this isn't a great Wonder Woman book to read in isolation, but it was quite a good story and I think I could have got behind this as a continuing series.
Ends of the Earth promises apocalypse. The monster Stalker describes will destroy all universes unless Wonder Woman can gather together several heroes of legend to help him destroy it. Fortunately, if Gail Simone doesn't love Buffy, it can only be because she hasn't watched it, surely? The world destroying power takes second fiddle to Diana's internal conflict between her reticence and withdrawn personality when in her secret identity and the warrior willing and able to kill that she has become.
Gail Simone is a good writer capable of inserting fun into dramatic scenarios - my main worry about the apocalypse trope is when it is taken too much in earnest; the episode of Buffy "The Zeppo" is a fantastic undermining of this - and so one gets the lack-of-emotional turmoil of Diana without failing to enjoy what's going on. The palate-cleansing story which follows is another fine example of how one must have a sense of humour in comic books. It is a timely (I'm sure at the time, but also now) attempt to turn Wonder Woman into a film:
While this volume takes the dubious mantle of being the best Wonder Woman comic book I've ever read - the others being the generally good [b:Wonder Woman: Love and Murder|1142008|Wonder Woman Love and Murder|Jodi Picoult|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1292061034s/1142008.jpg|1129347] and the execrable [b:Amazons Attack|20408100|Amazons Attack (Wonder Woman)|Will Pfeifer|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388548601s/20408100.jpg|29063145] - the quality of art was certainly high in these inter-crisis comic books. I've never really got on with Wonder Woman's costume in isolation, but in context it always looks so much better. Perhaps this isn't a great Wonder Woman book to read in isolation, but it was quite a good story and I think I could have got behind this as a continuing series.