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Wonder Woman #614 - The Odyssey, Part 14: The Return

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After 14 issues of journeying to find herself, Wonder Woman finally finds her voice and reverts to her former self in the final issue of her series before the DC revamp.

It only took 14 issues of finding herself, but Wonder Woman has finally done so in this final issue of Wonder Woman -- the culmination of her 600 plus issue ongoing series ends here, tying all loose ends nicely before her book is relaunched by DC this September. Beware spoilers below.

The Good

I missed Wonder Woman, a lot. The self assured, confident character of Wonder Woman I always could find in her self titled series has finally returned -- only to restart all over again. The story of The Odyssey and her battle with Nemesis is finally at an end. The issue has very good pacing, picking up in the heat of her battle with Nemesis, and making a turn for the worse. Little dies Diana know that she will do precisely as Nemesis wants, and Nemesis quickly takes her over. The switch doesn't last however, and Diana doesn't stay the "Wielder of the Flashing Blade" for very long.

The writers tie up all the loose ends very nicely, bringing the character we are familiar with back to the spotlight. Diana knows who she is, where she comes from, and what it means to be a hero once more.

The Bad

The final issue is well written, there is no doubt about that, but the scene where Diana actually becomes Nemesis is something I felt could have been drawn out. I think that would have been interesting to see. I would have liked to see Wonder Woman react to becoming possessed by the "Flashing Blade," but instead she doesn't not struggle at all. I know that the complaints of many readers might be that they might feel slightly cheated. Why did we read the last 16 issues of Wonder Woman trying to find herself when everything just reverts to normal in the end? Had the story been consistently better (from the beginning, I noticed a significant improvement in the title when Phil Hester came on board) I would look at it slightly differently.

The Verdict

Like I stated above, you do feel slightly cheated as a reader knowing that the series simply comes to an end all of a sudden, and everything goes back to normal, but it's written well. Additionally, the issue ties all the loose ends in the series and leaves the character ready for the September revamp.

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kenseven

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Edited By kenseven

that first cover looks pretty awesome. maybe DC should have committed to this restyled costume with the new 52, after all.

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FoxxFireArt

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Edited By FoxxFireArt

Her outfit looks so much better once they lost that 90's era leather jacket. I don't know why Jim Lee loves that leather jacket with the sleeves rolled up look. It just feels weird that they end this run with her finally back. Only to completely reboot her. Possibly without any explanation.

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JonesDeini

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Edited By JonesDeini

Glad this mess is over. Wonder how they'll treat Diana in the DCnU. Hopefully much better than they have recently. 

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LoganRogue24

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Edited By LoganRogue24

diana returns yay. i kind of like the idea of diana trying to find herself again.
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Abriel

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Edited By Abriel

...and we conclude the series with the end of a storyline that was a big fat waste of time with no point.  This all just felt very rushed to me, and to me it seemed like the whole "Diana had to find herself" bit was DC scrambling to pick up the pieces after fans reacted badly to the whole "darker and edgier" trope they threw Wonder Woman in. 
 
It might have felt more "she found herself", more real, if they had ended the issue with her flying around in her old duds, but instead the last panel with her flying had her in that costume. While it does look better without that 90s era Superboy jacket it's just not Wonder Woman. 
 
I hope DCnU treats her better.
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doordoor123

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Edited By doordoor123
@JonesDeini said:
Glad this mess is over. Wonder how they'll treat Diana in the DCnU. Hopefully much better than they have recently. 
Really? This arc has been great. You obviously havent been reading it.
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JonesDeini

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Edited By JonesDeini
@doordoor123 said:
@JonesDeini said:
Glad this mess is over. Wonder how they'll treat Diana in the DCnU. Hopefully much better than they have recently. 
Really? This arc has been great. You obviously havent been reading it.
After the first 4/5 issues or so you'd be correct. Because after that I lacked the ability to care anymore. It didn't interest me on any level. Gave it a chance, didn't work. Glad Diana has a clean slate going into Azzarello's book.  
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azza04

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Edited By azza04

I love the cover art :)

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No_Name_

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Edited By No_Name_

@doordoor123 said:

@JonesDeini said:
Glad this mess is over. Wonder how they'll treat Diana in the DCnU. Hopefully much better than they have recently.
Really? This arc has been great. You obviously havent been reading it.

I don't think it was great. Only after Hester took over did it improve.

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JonesDeini

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Edited By JonesDeini
@Babs:  
Agree I was in and out during Hester's run and it did seem to have a much tighter focus. But with this DCU ending and me already not being engaged by JMS stuff I just couldn't find enough to make me see this as a necessary or enjoyable read. 
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Bestostero

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Edited By Bestostero

I'm really looking forward to picking this up in trade, i dropped this title pretty early on, so can't wait to see if i made the right choice or not lol

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Press Oblivion

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Edited By Press Oblivion

Wonder Woman makes mention of feeling a "change coming" foreshadowing the new series out in Sept.

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mbembet

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Edited By mbembet

thank god this ridiculous arc ends.