Review – Wonder Woman #21: Treachery on Olympus
Wonder Woman #21 cover, via DC Comics.
Ray: Tom King is great at using small bridge arcs to really drive home the themes he's working with, and this two-parter was the perfect follow-up to the battle with the Sovereign. While still mourning the death of Steve Trevor, Diana is summoned to Olympus. Ares has been murdered, Hippolyta is the chief suspect, and Zeus intends to strip her of her immortality. Diana brings Batman to help solve the mystery – but Zeus demands collateral, and Batman's life will be forfeit if the crime isn't solved in time. Making things worse, as the two of them investigate the Gods, someone is out to get them – with one of Zeus' thunderbolts being used to target Batman and take him out of commission. With him recovering, Diana is left to handle the interrogations, and a twisted tale starts to unravel between Hephaestus, Aphrodite, and Dionysus – some of Olympus' biggest power players. Evidence. Via DC Comics.
Tom King has obviously done his research on the Greek Gods, because this group is every bit violent, mercurial, petty, and dramatic as they are in mythology. And soon, a secret dalliance is revealed, turning one of the more gentle Gods into a raving maniac, while one of Ares' deepest secrets – stemming from his long rivalry with Wonder Woman – comes to light. And over it all, Zeus gleefully waits for the clock to tick down so he can claim Batman's life. It's cruel even for him, which neatly plays into the resolution. The mystery is great, but I have to say the real highlight here is some of the quiet conversations Diana and Bruce have as she continues to grapple with the death of Steve Trevor and her impulsive decision to become a mother as a tribute to him. Bruce, obviously, is no stranger to grief and the long healing process, and this story is a fantastic character spotlight for their bond.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
a day ago
- CTV News
Prince Harry explored changing surname to Spencer, says Guardian report
Prince Harry waves as he leaves the Royal Courts of Justice in London, Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) LONDON - Prince Harry and his wife Meghan explored the idea of changing their family name to Spencer amid months of delays in their two children receiving British passports, the Guardian newspaper reported on Wednesday. Harry, the Duke of Sussex, believed that the passport delays were the result of British officials blocking the applications over the use of the Sussex surname and HRH titles (his or her royal highness) for his children, the newspaper said, citing an unnamed source. A source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters that the prince had a meeting with his late mother Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, to discuss the family name. The source also said other media reports which said Spencer had advised Harry against changing his surname and that the legal hurdles to doing so were insurmountable, were inaccurate. Harry, the younger son of King Charles, stepped down from royal duties in 2020 and moved to California, where he lives with Meghan and their two children, Archie and Lilibet. Since leaving, he and Meghan have been highly critical of the royals in TV documentaries, an explosive interview with U.S. chat show host Oprah Winfrey and most notably in Harry's best-selling biography 'Spare.' The prince is barely on speaking terms with either his father or his elder brother, heir to the throne Prince William. In a BBC interview last month, Harry said he wanted reconciliation with the British royal family, but that his father King Charles will not speak to him over a separate row about his security. Reporting by Michael Holden and Sachin Ravikumar; editing by William James, Reuters
Geek Dad
a day ago
- Geek Dad
Review – Absolute Green Lantern #3: Hunger in the Dark
Absolute Green Lantern #3 cover, via DC Comics. Ray: Al Ewing has turned Green Lantern into a full-fledged horror story, and like every horror story, it has some classic inspirations. Fans of Stephen King will obviously see the influence from Under the Dome here, as the mysterious alien judge Alan Scott has created a green energy field over part of the city – trapping Jo Mullein, Hal Jordan, John Stewart – and John's friend Todd Rice, who enters the story this issue. While the story jumps back and forth in time, we see more this issue of the earlier segment, as the crew tries to figure out the strange new world they find themselves trapped in. It's John who takes the lead here, with his strategic mind discovering that the field reacts a certain way to metal – or anything it perceives as metal – and starts trying to break it down. But this attracts Abin Sur's attention, and the inscrutable alien proceeds to cast his judgement over John. Lockdown. Via DC Comics. We know from the earlier issues that the power will wind up vested with two of these characters – Jo with the Green Lantern ring, and Hal with the Black Hand. What we didn't know until now is that those powers are diametrically opposed, with the Black Hand trying to consume the green automatically – and anyone it's attached to. This is the first take on Green Lantern that portrays these powers not as superpowers, but as something terrifying and bizarre, that would be beyond the average person's ability to comprehend. Al Ewing has worked a lot with cosmic powers before, and his books are often deeply haunting, but part of the credit here goes to the great Jahnoy Lindsay. Their art is deeply unsettling in places, creating a sense of just how powerful these elements are. This is the most mysterious of the Absolute line so far, and it has me incredibly intrigued by what comes next. To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week. GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!
Geek Dad
a day ago
- Geek Dad
Review – Absolute Superman #8: Showdown in Smallville
Absolute Superman #8 cover, via DC Comics Ray: For the last few issues, we've been teased about what happened in Smallville. One emotional issue showed us the few weeks Kal-El spent in the small town, being found by Jonathan and Martha Kent when he was a teenager. You could see that they would have shown him the same love they did if they found him as a baby – but then Lazarus Corp came, hunting him, and Kal was forced to flee. And all these years later, that's still the only place he ever felt safe. But this isn't the Smallville he left. The town has been fully taken over by the shadowy corporation, turning the farmers into modern serfs. Jonathan Kent is long gone, and Martha Kent languishes in a memory care center. Kal tries to visit, but she doesn't recognize him. And so he prowls the streets of Smallville – along with Lois Lane, and Omega Man Jimmy Olsen. Put to the test. Via DC Comics. The three main players have been in opposition from the start, with Lois not sure she can fully turn her back on her father's army yet and Jimmy not trusting anyone associated with them. And Superman, of course, stuck in the middle. But now, the Peacemakers are about to enter the fray, led by the mad and cybernetically-enhanced Agent Smith, turned into a raging monster. The action in this issue is intense, but as usual with the Absolute Universe, there's a great emotional underpinning to every issue. And then there's the main villain, Ra's Al Ghul. Whether he's the true big bad of this series or Brainiac is, it's hard to tell. But after last issue's spotlight for Brainiac, what we see of Ra's here is no less terrifying. Here more a mad warlord than the utopian we often see him as, he's further gone – and plays a key role in introducing Kryptonite to the world of Superman, raising the stakes even higher. To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week. GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!
