{"id":27647,"date":"2023-03-07T18:34:46","date_gmt":"2023-03-07T18:34:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=27647"},"modified":"2023-03-07T18:34:46","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07T18:34:46","slug":"wonder-woman-the-golden-age-volume-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2023\/03\/07\/wonder-woman-the-golden-age-volume-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Wonder Woman: The Golden Age volume 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy William Moulton Marston <\/strong>& Harry G. Peter<\/strong> & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-4012-7444-3 (TPB\/Digital edition)<\/p>\n

We can\u2019t get too far into a month of comics by and\/or about women without acknowledging the greatest role model of all time\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

Wonder Woman<\/strong> was famously created by polygraph pioneer William Moulton Marston – apparently at the behest of his formidable wife Elizabeth – and illustrated by Harry G. Peter in a well-intentioned attempt to offer girls a positive and forceful role model. Her spectacular launch and preview (that\u2019s the comic book superstar, not Mrs. Marston) came in one of the company\u2019s most popular publications: an extra feature inside All Star Comics<\/strong> #8, home of the immortal Justice Society of America<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

One month later the Perfect Princess gained her own series – including the cover-spot – in new anthology title Sensation Comics<\/strong>, and was a huge and instant hit. She won her own eponymous title in late Spring of that year (cover-dated Summer 1942).<\/p>\n

Using the nom de plume Charles Moulton<\/em>, Marston scripted all the Amazing Amazon\u2019s many and miraculous adventures until his death in 1947, whereupon Robert Kanigher took over the writer\u2019s role. Venerable co-creator H.G. Peter illustrated almost every WW tale until his own death in 1958.<\/p>\n

Spanning December 1941 – February\/March 1943, this superb full-colour compilation (also collects that seminal debut from All Star Comics<\/strong> #8, and her every iconic adventure from Sensation Comics<\/strong> #1-14 and Wonder Woman<\/strong> #1-3, plus the first outing in anthological book of (All) Stars Comics Cavalcade<\/strong>.#1<\/p>\n

Naturally, we begin with \u2018Introducing Wonder Woman\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

On a hidden island of immortal super-women, an American aviator crashes to Earth. Near death, US Army Intelligence Captain Steve Trevor <\/em>is nursed back to health by young Princess Diana<\/em>. Fearing her growing obsession with the man, her mother Queen Hippolyte<\/em> reveals the hidden history of the Amazons to the child. Diana learns how her people were seduced and betrayed by men but rescued by the goddess Aphrodite<\/em> on condition that they thenceforward isolate themselves from the rest of the world and devote their eternal lives to becoming ideal, perfect creatures.<\/p>\n

However, after Trevor explains the perfidious spy plot which accidentally brought him to the Island enclave, divine Athena <\/em>and Aphrodite appear, ordering Hippolyte to assign an Amazon warrior to return with the American to fight for freedom and liberty.<\/p>\n

Hippolyte diplomatically and democratically declares an open contest to determine the best candidate and, despite being forbidden to participate, Diana enters and wins. Accepting the will of the gods, the worried mother outfits her in the guise of Wonder Woman and sends her out to Man\u2019s World\u2026<\/p>\n

A month later the story continued where the introduction had left off. Sensation Comics<\/strong> #1 declares \u2018Wonder Woman Comes to America\u2019<\/em>, seeing the eager immigrant returning the recuperating Trevor to the modern World. She also trounces a gang of bank robbers and falls in with a show business swindler\u2026<\/p>\n

One major innovation here is the newcomer buying a secret identity: that of lovelorn Army nurse Diana Prince<\/em>, elegantly allowing the Amazon to be close to Steve whilst enabling the heartsick medic to join her own fianc\u00e9 in South America\u2026<\/p>\n

Even with all that going on, there was still room for Wonder Woman and Captain Trevor to bust up a spy ring attempting to use poison gas on a Draft induction centre, before Steve breaks a leg and ends up in hospital again, where \u201cNurse Prince\u201d is assigned to tend him\u2026<\/p>\n

Sensation<\/strong> #2 introduced deadly enemy agent \u2018Dr. Poison\u2019 <\/em>in a cannily crafted tale which also debuted the most radical comedy sidekicks of the era\u2026<\/p>\n

The plucky fun-loving gals of the Holliday College for Women<\/em> and their chubby, chocolate-gorging Beeta Lamda sorority-chief Etta Candy <\/em>would get into trouble and save the day in equal proportions for years to come: constantly demonstrating Diana\u2019s – and Marston\u2019s – philosophical contention that girls, with correct encouragement, could accomplish anything that men could\u2026<\/p>\n

With War raging and in a military setting, espionage and sabotage were inescapable plot devices. \u2018A Spy at the Office\u2019 <\/em>finds Diana arranging a transfer to the office of General Darnell<\/em> as his secretary so that she can keep a closer eye on the finally fit Steve. She isn\u2019t there five minutes before uncovering a ring of undercover infiltrators amongst the typing pool and saving her man from assassination.<\/p>\n

Unlike most comics of the period, Wonder Woman employed tight continuity. \u2018School for Spies\u2019 <\/em>in #4 sees some of those fallen girls murdered by way of introducing inventive genius and Nazi master manipulator Baroness Paula von Gunther<\/em>. She employs psychological tricks to enslave girls to her will and sets otherwise decent Americans against their homeland.<\/p>\n

Even Diana succumbs to her machinations\u2026 until Steve and the Holliday Girls crash in\u2026<\/p>\n

America\u2019s newest submarine is saved from destruction and cunning terrorists brought to justice in \u2018Wonder Woman versus the Saboteurs\u2019 <\/em>before issue #6 has the Amazing Amazon accepting a \u2018Summons to Paradise\u2019 <\/em>to battle her immortal sisters in Kanga-riding duels before receiving her greatest weapon: an unbreakable Lasso of Truth<\/em> which compels and controls anyone who falls within its golden coils.<\/p>\n

It proves quite handy when Paula escapes prison and uses an invisibility formula to wreak havoc on American coastal defences\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2018The Milk Swindle\u2019 <\/em>is pure 1940s social advocacy drama, with homegrown racketeers and Nazi von Gunther joining forces to seize control of America\u2019s milk supply with the incredibly long-sighted intention of weakening the bones of the country\u2019s next generation of soldiers.<\/p>\n

Closely following in Sensation<\/strong> #8 is \u2018Department Store Perfidy\u2019 <\/em>wherein the Amazon goes undercover in the monolithic Bullfinch emporium to win better working conditions and fair pay for the girls employed there.<\/p>\n

There was a plethora of surprises in #9 with \u2018The Return of Diana Prince\u2019 <\/em>from South America. Now Mrs Diana White<\/em>, the young mother needs her job and identity back until her inventor husband can sell his latest invention to the US army. Luckily, Wonder Woman and an obliging gang of saboteurs help to expedite matters\u2026<\/p>\n

The next major landmark was the launch of the Amazon\u2019s own solo title. The first quarterly opens here a text feature on the Amazon\u2019s pantheon of godly patrons in \u2018Who is Wonder Woman?\u2019 <\/em>after which comic action commences with a greatly expanded revision of her first appearance in \u2018A History of the Amazons: The Origin of Wonder Woman\u2019<\/em>. This precedes a beguiling mystery tale as \u2018Wonder Woman Goes to the Circus\u2019 <\/em>wherein Diana solves the bizarre serial murders of the show\u2019s elephants before Paula von Gunther rears her shapely head again in \u2018Wonder Woman versus the Spy Ring\u2019 <\/em>wherein the loss of the Golden Lasso almost causes her demise and ultimate defeat of the American Army\u2026<\/p>\n

The issue ends with \u2018The Greatest Feat of Daring in Human History\u2019 <\/em>as Diana and Etta head for Texas, only to become embroiled in a sinister scheme involving Latin Lotharios, lady bullfighters, lethal spies and a Nazi attempt to conquer Mexico\u2026<\/p>\n

Back in Sensation Comics<\/strong> #10 (October 1942) \u2018The Railroad Plot\u2019 <\/em>celebrates Steve and Wonder Woman\u2019s first anniversary by exposing a sinister plan devised by Japanese and German agents to blow up New York using the labyrinth of subway tunnels under the city, whilst \u2018Mission to Planet Eros\u2019 <\/em>debuts the Princess\u2019 long line of cosmic fantasy exploits. The Queen of Venus requests Diana\u2019s aid in saving an entire planetary civilisation from gender inequality and total breakdown, before \u2018America\u2019s Guardian Angel\u2019 <\/em>– from Sensation<\/strong> #12 – sees the Warrior Princess accepting an offer to play herself in a patriotic Hollywood movie, only to find the production infiltrated by the insidious Paula and her gang of slave-girls\u2026<\/p>\n

Preceded by an illustrated prose piece about \u2018The God of War\u2019<\/em>, Wonder Woman<\/strong> #2 comprises a 4-part epic introducing the Astounding Amazon\u2019s greatest enemy in \u2018Mars, God of War\u2019<\/em>. He apparently instigated a World War from his HQ on the distant red planet but chafes at the lack of progress since Wonder Woman entered the fray on the side of the peace-loving allies. He now opts for direct action, no longer trusting his earthly pawns Hitler<\/em>, Mussolini<\/em> and Hirohito<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

When Steve goes missing, Diana allows herself to be captured and ferried to Mars. Here she starts disrupting the efficient working of the war-god\u2019s regime and fomenting unrest amongst the slave population, before rescuing Steve and heading home to Earth. \u2018The Earl of Greed\u2019<\/em>, one of Mars\u2019 trio of trusted subordinates, takes centre stage for the second chapter, with orders to recapture Steve and Diana at all costs.<\/p>\n

As the duo attempt to infiltrate Berlin, Greed uses his influence on Hitler to surreptitiously redirect the German war effort, using Gestapo forces to steal all the USA\u2019s gold reserves\u2026<\/p>\n

With Steve gravely injured, the Amazon returns to America and whilst her paramour heals, uncovers and foils the Ethereal Earl\u2019s machinations to prevent much-needed operating funds from reaching Holliday College<\/em>, where young girls learn to be independent free-thinkers\u2026<\/p>\n

With Greed thwarted, Mars dispatches \u2018The Duke of Deception\u2019 <\/em>to Earth, where the spindly phantom impersonates Wonder Woman and frames her for murder.<\/p>\n

Easily escaping from prison, the Princess of Power not only clears her name but also finds time to foil a Deception-inspired invasion of Hawaii, leaving only \u2018The Count of Conquest\u2019 <\/em>free to carry out Mars\u2019 orders.<\/p>\n

His scheme is simple: through personal puppet Mussolini, the Count tries to physically overpower the Amazing Amazon with a brutal giant boxing champion, even as Italian Lothario Count Crafti<\/em> attempts to woo, seduce and suborn her. The latter\u2019s wiles actually worked, too, but capturing and keeping her are two different things entirely and after breaking free on the Red Planet, Diana delivers a devastating blow to the war-machine of Mars\u2026<\/p>\n

This issue ends with a sparkling double page patriotic plea when \u2018Wonder Woman Campaigns for War Bonds\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

Sensation Comics<\/strong> #13 (January 1943) claims \u2018Wonder Woman is Dead\u2019 <\/em>when a corpse wearing her uniform is discovered, and the astounded Diana Prince discovers her alter ego\u2019s clothes and the irreplaceable magic lasso are missing\u2026<\/p>\n

The trail leads to a diabolical spy-ring working out of Darnell\u2019s office and an explosive confrontation in a bowling alley, whilst \u2018The Story of Fir Balsam\u2019 <\/em>in #14 presents a seasonal tale concerning lost children, an abused mother and escaped German aviators. All was happily resolved around a lonely pine tree, after which the Immortal Warrior celebrated her next publishing milestone\u2026<\/p>\n

The 1938 debut of Superman<\/strong> propelled National Comics to the forefront of their fledgling industry and a year later the company was licensed to produce a commemorative comicbook celebrating the opening of the New York World\u2019s Fair.<\/p>\n

The Man of Tomorrow prominently featured on the appropriately titled New York World\u2019s Fair Comics<\/strong> among such four-colour stars as Zatara<\/em>, Butch the Pup<\/em>, Gingersnap<\/em> and The Sandman<\/em>. In 1940 another abundant premium emerged with Batman<\/strong> and Robin<\/strong> added to the roster, and the publishers felt they had an item and format worth pursuing commercially.<\/p>\n

The spectacular card-cover 96-page anthologies had been a huge hit: convincing editors that an over-sized anthology of their pantheon of characters, with Superman and Batman prominently featured, would be a worthwhile proposition. Thus, the format was retained for a wholly company-owned, quarterly high-end package, retailing for the then-hefty price of 15\u00a2.<\/p>\n

Launching as World\u2019s Best Comics<\/strong> #1 in Spring 1941, the book morphed into World\u2019s Finest Comics<\/strong> from #2, beginning a stellar 45-year run which only ended as part of the massive clear-out and decluttering exercise that was\u00a0 Crisis on Infinite Earths<\/strong>. During the Golden Age, however, it remained a big blockbuster bonanza of strips to entice and delight readers\u2026<\/p>\n

At this time National\/DC was in an editorially-independent business relationship with Max Gaines that involved shared and cross promotion and distribution for the comicbooks released by his own outfit All-American Publications. Although technically competitors if not quite rivals, the deal included shared logos and advertising and even combining both companies\u2019 top characters in the groundbreaking All Star Comics<\/strong> as the Justice Society of America<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

However, by 1942 relations between the companies were increasingly strained – and would culminate in 1946 with DC buying out Gaines, who used the money to start EC Comics.<\/p>\n

All-American thus decided to create its own analogue to World\u2019s Finest<\/strong>, featuring only AA characters. The outsized result was Comics Cavalcade<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n

Cover-dated December 1942-January 1943 – and following Frank Harry\u2019s gloriously star-studded cover to Comic Cavalcade<\/strong> #1 – Wonder Woman\u2019s fourth regular star slot began with the company superstar solving the \u2018Mystery of the House of the Seven Gables\u2019 <\/em>(as ever the fruits of Marston & Peter\u2019s fevered imaginations) wherein Diana Prince stumbles upon a band of Nazi spies. All too soon, the Amazing Amazon needs the help of some plucky youngsters to quash the submarine-sabotaging brutes\u2026<\/p>\n

Wonder Woman<\/strong> #3 then dedicates its entirety to the return of an old foe; commencing with \u2018A Spy on Paradise Island\u2019 <\/em>as the undergrads of Holliday College for Women<\/em> – and Etta Candy – are initiated into some pretty wild Amazon rites on Paradise Island. Sadly, the revels inadvertently allow an infiltrator to gain access and pave the way for an invasion by Japanese troops\u2026<\/p>\n

Naturally Wonder Woman and the Amazons prevail on the day but the sinister mastermind behind it all is exposed and strikes back in \u2018The Devilish Devices of Baroness Paula von Gunther\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Whilst the on-guard Amazons build a women\u2019s prison that will be known as \u201cReform Island\u201d, Wonder Woman – acting upon information received by the new inmates – trails Paula and is in time to crush her latest scientific terror: an invisibility ray\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2018The Secret of Baroness von Gunther\u2019 <\/em>offers a rare peek at a villain\u2019s motivation when the captured super-spy reveals how her little daughter Gerta<\/em> has been a hostage of the Nazis for years and remains a goad to ensure the genius\u2019 total dedication to the German cause\u2026 Naturally, the Amazing Amazon instantly determines to reunite mother and child at all costs after which \u2018Ordeal by Fire\u2019 <\/em>confirms the Baroness aiding Diana and Steve in dismantling the spy network and slave-ring the Nazis had spent so long building in America\u2026 but only at great personal and physical cost to the repentant Paula\u2026<\/p>\n

Much has been posited about subtexts of bondage and subjugation in Marston\u2019s tales – and, to be frank, there really are lots of scenes with girls tied up, chained or about to be whipped – but I just don\u2019t care what his intentions (subconscious or otherwise) might have been: I\u2019m more impressed with the skilful drama and incredible fantasy elements that are always wonderfully, intriguingly present: I mean, just where does the concept of giant war-kangaroos come from?<\/p>\n

Exotic, baroque, beguiling and uniquely exciting, these Golden Age tales of the World\u2019s Most Famous female superhero are timeless, pivotal classics in the development of comic books and still provide lashings of fun and thrills for anyone looking for a great nostalgic read. If that\u2019s you, you know what you need to do\u2026
\n\u00a9 1941, 1942, 1943, 2017 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By William Moulton Marston & Harry G. Peter & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-4012-7444-3 (TPB\/Digital edition) We can\u2019t get too far into a month of comics by and\/or about women without acknowledging the greatest role model of all time\u2026 Wonder Woman was famously created by polygraph pioneer William Moulton Marston – apparently at the behest … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Wonder Woman: The Golden Age volume 1”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[76,299,127,48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dc-superhero","category-feminism-sexual-politics","category-nostalgia","category-wonder-woman"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-7bV","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27647","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27647"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27647\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27649,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27647\/revisions\/27649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27647"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27647"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27647"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}