Wonder Woman #1

Wonder Woman #1

Originally released in 1942

Written by William Moulton Marston

Art by Harry G. Peter

I haven't read Wonder Woman's earliest appearances; while this issue isn't her first appearance, it's still one that's written by her original creator, so I wanted to see what it would be like.  Much like Captain America #1, this is about sixty pages; I'm not sure if it was just the style at the time and comic books have gotten shorter as the decades have passed, or if they did this because it was the first issue of her self-titled comic.

The first story goes over Wonder Woman's origin - Steve Trevor washes up on Paradise Island while chasing after a spy, Wonder Woman nurses him back to health, and Wonder Woman wins a competition to travel with him to the outside world.  The versions that I'm familiar with leave out some details, though.

For starters, I knew that the Amazons had a Purple Ray, a sort of healing technology.  I was unaware, however, that Wonder Woman built it, and that it can raise the dead. (Steve was declared dead, only for the ray to bring him back to life)

Secondly, I didn't know that the competition involved Amazons fighting while riding those famous Amazon horses: kangaroos!  I was aware that the final competition was Bullets and Bracelets, where the competitors have to deflect bullets, though it does raise the question of where the Amazons got a gun.

Diana wins, brings Steve to the outside world, and gets a job as a nurse in a military hospital (and later Steve's secretary) surprisingly easily. (it happens off-panel; I can only assume that they were so desperate for help that they would take anyone and wouldn't even bother with background checks)

Wonder Woman also drops a document that goes over the history of the Amazons, including a conflict with Ares and Aphrodite (who represent men and women, or war and love), along with Hercules enslaving Hippolyta and the Amazons. (Hercules comes across as being as much of a rapist as the Golden Age would allow)

Rather than compelling the person who's ensnared by it to tell the truth, Wonder Woman's lasso compels the person that's tied up with it to obey the user's every command. (Marston was not subtle about inserting kinks into the story, by my understanding, and the truth of that was quickly made apparent)

The second story in the issue involves a circus that's running a fundraiser for the US military, only for its elephants to be poisoned.  There's a cult involved whose depiction is so racist that I don't feel comfortable including images of them; while not the worst that I've seen, it's still rough.

Before the cult is revealed, there are several suspects, including a mobster who throws around racial slurs and Dom Carney, a carnival worker who is incredibly insensitive to the woman that he loves.  Wonder Woman also disguises herself as a baby elephant.

The third story involves Nazi agent Paula von Gunther, who's in prison. (I'm assuming she's already been introduced in Sensation Comics) She might as well not even be in prison at all, thanks to a Nazi base beneath the prison and a guard who will betray his country to the Nazis in exchange for... the occasional $5 bribe. (or maybe it's meant to be $5000)

She gets her hands on Wonder Woman's lasso due to a kid knocking over Diana's luggage and wanting to use the lasso to play cowboys.  While trying to get it back from a guard who took it from the kid, she is almost immediately accused of murder.

While she's seemingly cleared of it (as Paula von Gunther gave the guard a poisoned drink), she's still arrested.  Her reaction to not being allowed in a cell near Paula is pretty funny.

Paula is dealt with surprisingly quickly (in the span of about two or three pages), though the shot of Wonder Woman leading a cavalry charge still holds up well, reminding me of the No Man's Land scene from the movie.

The fourth and final story focuses on Etta Candy, whose brother-in-law was attacked by spies. Diana goes with her to Texas to question him, with the train trip involving a depiction of a black man as a porter on the train that's even more racist than the portrayal of Asians from earlier.  Diana tries to convince Etta not to eat so many sweets, but Etta doesn't seem too keen on the idea.

The plot involves a Japanese attempt to conquer Mexico, with neither the Japanese or the Mexicans being portrayed particularly well. Steve doesn't come across as being very competent either; he means well, but it feels like most of his supposed accomplishments are things that Wonder Woman does but she gives him credit for.

The stories were entertaining, though their depictions of different races DEFINITELY haven't aged well. Some of it can be chalked up to the war effort, and the comic being used to encourage readers to help out with the war however they can (the third story ends with an ad for war bonds), but primarily, it shows how much attitudes evolved in the twenty years or so between World War 2 and the start of the Fantastic Four. (Some early Marvel comics had rough depictions of Asians, but they weren't anywhere near this bad from what I recall) Wonder Woman's supporting cast seems to be one that's heavily in flux depending on the era - in these comics, I liked Etta Candy, though Steve wasn't all that memorable.