Sensational Wonder Woman #5 // Review
Diana is only trying to do her best for a world perpetually plunged in danger. There are enough breakdowns and natural disasters in any major city to keep her constantly busy saving lives. The fact that she possesses the beauty of Aphrodite means that she’s also a symbol of human potential...and a potentially huge marketing draw as she’s chased around by an eager publicist in Sensational Wonder Woman #5. Writer/artist Colleen Doran does a brilliant job of framing a fun look at an angle on superhero activity rarely given serious non-jaded treatment on-page or screen.
There are sharks in the water. Wonder Woman saves a man from a few of them just in time to find herself accosted by a shark of a different kind on the beach. A young publicist has dreamed of representing Wonder Woman, and now she has a chance to propose a business arrangement with her live and in person. She’s going to put herself in danger to do so as Wonder Woman has a hectic schedule that includes pulling people out of a collapsing building. If she’s going to be successful, she will have a hell of a time catching Diana’s attention.
Doran brings a fun, witty energy to the page re-introducing a character created by George Perez for the post-Crisis reboot of Wonder Woman back in 1987. Doran has a thoughtful perspective on the character that updates her for a modern era of social media. The story is told entirely from her perspective as she chases around Diana. Somewhere in the middle of the elevator pitch from hell, she actually makes an excellent point that Wonder Woman decides to consider in an enjoyable update of one of Perez’s most memorable and sophisticated creations. Doran frames hero and publicist perfectly into the frame and a very, very brief one-shot story.
This is a gorgeous issue visually as well. Doran draws Diana beautifully throughout an issue told from the perspective of a publicist who is absolutely obsessed with her. The clever framing of the early panels quite literally from the perspective of the publicist serves as a strong introduction to a story punctuated by big splashes of Wonder Woman in action. Doran draws human drama around the edges of the panel with heartbreakingly authentic expressiveness. Wonder Woman herself shines through a gallery of different emotions as she aids first responders.
Publicist Mindi Meyer was such a fascinating character when Perez debuted her in the ‘80s. She died in one of the more complex storylines in mainstream comics of the Copper Age of comics. Anyone who would try to bring her back would have to do so sharply and stylishly. Doran has accomplished that fairly brilliantly here in what stands as one of the better one-shot Wonder Woman stories of the past year. A simple premise animates the center of a story populated around the edges with very, very serious tragedy. A story of the modern media that so sharply captures its many, many flaws.
