Another "Wonder Woman" show now in early development

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by Chris3123, Sep 6, 2012.

  1. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    Didn't Supes have to take a millennia long nap in the Sun prior to 1,000,000?
     
  2. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I thought he built a house in there, but yes, he had been on Sol for thousands of years which might explain his nigh immortality, but then he was perfectly aware of this future and had to stay on the sun so that Solaris could be boxed when it was. Predestination paradox and all.
     
  3. Mars

    Mars Commander Red Shirt

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    Yet when they are part of a greater struggle such as World War II they seem to have greater consequence. In a World War II comic book setting the bad guys are usually working for the Nazis. So could you imagine Cheetah working for Hitler? Ares would love Hitler, as war is his specialty, once the war starts however he doesn't really care who wins, just so long as there is a war and the prospect for another war in the immediate aftermath. If Hitler won, then Ares would become the resistance leader's "friend", because he wouldn't want a peaceful Third Reich either. Superman would fit well in a World War II setting, especially if the Germans create their own "Uberman" for him to fight.
     
  4. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    Right. A lot of people don't understand this. The Amazons of myth were not Greeks -- they were enemies of the Greeks, coming from some distant land beyond the fringes of the civilized world. The whole idea was that the Amazons were barbarians, aliens, both geographically and culturally as far from being Greek as you could get. The myths of Amazons may have been inspired by Central Asian horse-nomad cultures, in which women tended to be more equal than in agrarian societies and were even trained in combat. The ancient Greeks, being profoundly misogynistic, could have expressed their disdain for that custom by exaggerating it into their myths of Amazons. By having Greek national heroes like Herakles and Theseus conquer those uppity Amazons, kill their queen, and take their warriors as slaves, the myths reaffirmed Greek values of manly men keeping women in their place.

    And in DC, the Amazons were a separate nation founded by women who fled the oppression of the Greeks and others; in the post-Crisis continuity, they were a multicultural nation populated by women from all over the world.

    So no matter which way you slice it, the very last thing you should expect the Amazons to be is Greek.
     
  5. the G-man

    the G-man Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Meaning, technically, she should still be on Paradise Island.

    So, basically, this again. Wonderful. :rolleyes:


    Actually, a "Xena" style Wonder Woman that doesn't take itself too seriously and has a knowing sense of humor (think Whedon Buffy, not camp) could be great. Sadly, however, these days (post GL) DC/WB seems to have only two styles for their TV and movie projects: Nolan/Nolan lite (Batman, Man of Steel) and Smallville low budget.
     
  6. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    No, because it said "budding superhero." She didn't become a superhero until she came to the US. "Young" doesn't have to mean "teenaged." It can refer to early adulthood. Heck, in some contexts, like, say, candidates for high political office, people in their 40s are considered young. It's a relative term. In this context it could simply mean that she's at the start of her superhero career, that she's inexperienced and learning.


    One more time: That is only the reporter's interpretation. It is not a direct statement from the show's developers themselves. Reporters are not infallible. They make guesses, they make assumptions, they make mistakes. This is purely one person's speculation, not factual information. So don't take it too seriously. It's always a good idea to read defensively, to make sure you distinguish between what's actually a quote from the source and what's filtered through the reporter.

    As for the 1974 Wonder Woman TV pilot, that's actually not the same situation as Smallville. From 1968-73 in the comics, Wonder Woman lost her powers and became an Emma Peel-style secret agent and karate expert. So at the time the Cathy Lee Crosby pilot was being developed, it was faithful to what Wonder Woman was in the comics. The change back to the superpowered Amazon in the star-spangled bathing suit happened in 1973, before the pilot aired, but they were already locked into what they were doing. So it wasn't like the Smallville situation, a show that deliberately downplayed the superhero aspects of the comics. It was a faithful interpretation of what the comics were doing at the time it was developed, although the comics had changed by the time it was broadcast.
     
  7. the G-man

    the G-man Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Good point. I was reading it more as "superhero in training," and since her training occurred on Paradise Island I made that comment.

    As for the 1974 Wonder Woman TV pilot, that's actually not the same situation as Smallville. From 1968-73 in the comics, Wonder Woman lost her powers and became an Emma Peel-style secret agent and karate expert...[/QUOTE]

    That may be, but it wasn't very enjoyable. To me, WW (like Thor) need to be about myths and gods and crazy costumes and lots of action. I didn't enjoy 1974's attempt at a down to earth WW and I don't find myself at all enthusiastic about DC trying it again.
     
  8. JD

    JD Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I think it's worth pointing out that the article I read did say the show's creator, who's name I'm forgetting, has written WW comics. So he (I think it's a he) is familiar with the comic book version of the character. That doesn't mean he won't change things, but I would think it would mean it's less likely that he'll make huge drastic changes.
     
  9. Gov Kodos

    Gov Kodos Admiral Admiral

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    Allen Heinberg, he's done quite a bit of work on a TV and started off the 3rd volume of Wonder Woman which tried to make her something akin to the TV version. I didn't like it at all, it tried to keep too much of the 2nd volume (Max Lord fall out for instance) and the addition of Diana Prince (spygirl) just didn't work for me. Azzarello and JMS both did better reboots of the character by completely reworking her world. Perhaps, Heinberg will get a similar freedom to re-imagine the character here.
     
  10. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    Yeah having WW's secret ID be the "Emma Peel" version of Diana Prince was an odd choice. I suppose in a way it calls back to when Diana Prince worked or Military Intelligence. Though IIRC she was a secretary. of course before that she was a nurse! Suffering Stereotype!! ;)

    I've always liked the non-powered, karate kicking Diana Prince, though. I bought a few issues of WW from that era as a kid. DC should think about separating Diana Prince from Wonder Woman and giving Di her own title. (With I Ching of course)
     
  11. Gov Kodos

    Gov Kodos Admiral Admiral

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    Those depowered Wonder Woman years were the first I bought long ago in a used bookstore. They were a lot of fun. I particularly liked the story 'Them' (I think it was) about a gang of mod hoods. I even enjoyed the Cathy Lee Crosby version which came out around the time of the depowered years. The Heinberg version just didn't work for me since the idea of the depowering was to help her be more in touch with humanity, which she supposedly didn't understand. How they thought making her a superspy would do that, I don't know. Her job was basically WW without the powers. Strange choice.
     
  12. Mars

    Mars Commander Red Shirt

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    What is a depowered Wonder Woman anyway, just a karate expert?
     
  13. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    She also runs a boutique.
     
  14. Dream

    Dream Admiral Admiral

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    Xena as played by Lucy Lawless. :p
     
  15. Sindatur

    Sindatur The Gray Owl Wizard Admiral

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    To ask it another way, what is non-depowered Wonder Woman? The Wonder Woman I know is pretty much like the Lynda Carter WW. Fast enough to use the bracelets, can leap high and run fast and very accurate aim. But, these don't seem like Supernatural powers, just extremely well developed everyday skills. Not very much different from Xena.
     
  16. Christopher

    Christopher Writer Admiral

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    Actually the Wonder Woman of the TV series did have superhuman strength, though more on a par with Steve Austin or Jaime Sommers than her comics counterpart, and attributed to her magic belt rather than being an innate ability (or at least, she had superstrength while on Paradise Island but needed the belt to retain it in the outside world). They presumably toned down her powers for budgetary reasons, and because of the pressures at the time to tone down violence on TV. In the comics, Wonder Woman was always portrayed as superstrong -- more so than a hundred of the best human athletes, according to her debut appearance -- able to run at 60 MPH, and durable enough to jump off a tall building. Like Superman, she accumulated more powers over the decades -- limited telepathy, panlingualism, the ability to glide on the winds, microscopic vision, superbreath, Flash-style dimension-shifting, etc.

    The Wonder Woman of the modern comics is nearly as powerful as Superman -- she's the strongest woman in the DC Universe, can fly under her own power and survive in space, is nearly as fast as the Flash, has superhuman stamina and agility, is highly resistant to injury and quick to heal (although less so than Superman, hence the need for deflecting bracelets), has enhanced vision, hearing, and smell, is an empath who can sense emotions and commune with animals, and can even astral-project herself to other dimensions. As well as being one of the finest warriors and strategists in the world and a natural leader.

    In short, Wonder Woman has always been pretty much the female counterpart to Superman, with powers comparable to his in type, range, and magnitude.
     
  17. Mars

    Mars Commander Red Shirt

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    You ever try jumping up to the roof of a building from the ground level? I don't believe any human can, not even the best Olympic atheletes can jump 10 feet up in the air from a standing position, that is superhuman, and you can't train to have those abilities, no matter who your training master is. There is no amount of training that will allow you to see bullets coming and place a wrist bracelet in front of their paths so as to deflect them.
     
  18. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    You just don't go to the right dojos.
     
  19. Silvercrest

    Silvercrest Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Sure, do it all the time. I was about to get rid of my ladders until I discovered it wasn't any easier to hang Christmas lights.

    Plus my wife keeps complaining about debris drifting down from the ceiling.
     
  20. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    My wife used to say that too.

    When I realized she was talking about my hair, I had a good cry.