Sometimes no matter of talking will resolve things, especially when a third party continues to act as a spoiler.
What They Say:
FLASH QUESTION: Who really murdered the Queen?
The Review:
The basic idea of the current Flashpoint world with the two major ancient nations at war, each of them suffering losses, has a huge amount of appeal to me. It hasn’t been heavily used in the main miniseries but has been fleshed out in varying ways across all the minis and that’s kept it quite enjoyable since we see so many different views and perceptions of it. The books involving the leaders of each of those nations have been really good in exploring their past connections and the impact on the present as well. With the arranged marriage between Arthur and Diana going back quite a few years and involving them outing themselves to the world at large, it’s been a slow progress piece but one that has worked well until it got to the big payday moment where the attack happened, the Amazonian Queen was killed and the Atlanteans lost Arthur and took all the blame.
With these series, we’ve gotten both material in the present and more flashback pieces that helps to expand it in a really fun way. This issue shows us more of the time that Arthur and Diana spent together after her rescue, with him showing her more of Atlantis and some fun in how she gets to show off that she definitely knows how to use a weapon. It also puts some of the seeded statements out there with Arthur talking a lot about how the two of them together, as a couple and as a nation, can do much to help lead the world to the next age. It’s fairly noble, missing in what the reality of the world is like, and a natural conclusion to come to in order to try and secure their own superior position as well as helping to usher in a new age of potential science and art that can sweep everyone along.
With the book also working through the year before with the fallout from the wedding, showing how both Arthur and Diana wanted to council patience and dialogue to figure out what happened, a lot of others were pushing war and a show of strength that is a huge part of their cultures. Seeing their plans fall through and being the subject of manipulation, though only Arthur is seemingly able to see it, the pair end up at even further odds and Diana’s sense of loss is so profound now that she sees over the end of her country. At least until she can invade another one and make it hers. It’s the kind of series of events you can see happening when strong people are pushed so far and have been used to charting their own course for centuries. The New Themyscria storyline has been engaging to read and see a little more nuance to it here with certain women coming to provide assistance that end up becoming her Furies adds a lot to it. It goes in obvious directions since we’ve had aspects of it covered before, but watching the events unfold still keeps you pretty interested in it even if you know some of the outcomes.
Digital Notes:
This digital edition of Wonder Woman and the Furies from Comixology features just the first printing cover of the issue with no additional extras included in the book.
In Summary:
Wonder Woman and the Furies has definitely been one of the books I’ve enjoyed the most here since it gets into the meat of the main storyline running throughout the Flashpoint universe. While the main miniseries is all about Barry trying to fix things and understanding what’s going on, all the other books have dropped us into this world to see it from their point of view with an altered history and a radically different present that makes for hard choices to be made. Wonder Woman comes across as a strong Amazon here who has to go the distance with the difficult choices and doesn’t back down from it, even as it pains her. She’s more blinded by things, a constant we’ve seen from other books as well, while Arthur tries to find a solution until he’s pushed too far to do that anymore and just wants revenge himself. The dark path both of them walk isn’t easy but they’re continually pushed and pushing each other down it.
Grade: B+
