Wonder Woman #791: Friends Before Bureaucracy

Writers Michael W. Conrad and Becky Cloonan have done what Wonder Woman fans have been begging for DC Comics to do: revamp and revitalize Diana’s rogues gallery. Over the span of their run, we’ve seen Doctor Psycho, Gundra, Janus, Doctor Poison, the Duke of Deception, and plenty more. But you know who has been suspiciously absent? Wonder Woman’s archenemy: The Cheetah! That’s no longer the case as this “Feral” story arc promises to bring Cheetah into Wonder Woman’s life once again. However, that promise isn’t exactly fulfilled in this first chapter.

Despite the cover, Cheetah doesn’t appear for the majority of this issue. And that’s unfortunate, because when fans see this really cool cover (or the horrifyingly stunning Liam Sharp variant), they’ll expect to jump into a classic showdown between these iconic rivals. I do wish that DC had used a different illustration, maybe one featuring Diana with the Esquecida, as this one feels misleading. That’s no knock on any of the creative team, just a questionable choice by DC’s editors.

The cover is the only problem I’ve had with the issue, however. Cloonan and Conrad continue to pump out the best Wonder Woman stories of the past five years, and joining them for this story is the incomparable Marguerite Sauvage. Sauvage’s art is some of the most beautiful and whimsical artwork seen in modern comics. Diana, Philippus, Etta, all of the Esquecida… everyone is breathtakingly expressive and colorful. I’d love to see Sauvage as a permanent addition to this creative team, as her illustrations have a feminine slant that works perfectly for the Wonder Woman franchise.

As for the story, I loved seeing Diana go undercover for this mission. Sauvage depicts Diana with a very fashionable explorer outfit that I’m living for. There were moments that felt a bit convenient and rapidly-paced in terms of Diana breaking into a facility, but as a Cheetah superfan I’m just eager to see our favorite feline supervillain show up. I have the utmost confidence in this creative team to deliver an amazing Cheetah story.