You may already be familiar with DC's line of AME-COMI toys where they take their popular DC ladies and with a little inspiration from Manga and Anime, they redesigned them. What we get is a mix of the two styles -- and they usually turn out looking very pretty. DC must have recognized how popular their line of AME-COMI figures was because they decided to launch an AME-COMI digital first comic available every Monday through the DC Comixology app.

We caught up with Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray (ALL-STAR WESTERN) to take about the AME-COMI comic that will be launching this coming Monday, May 28th. We got the full details from the guys writing it as well as an exclusive first look at some of the pages from the first issue.

Comic Vine: First off, I have to say I am really looking forward to reading your AME-COMI series, and the art for the first issue by Amanda Conner is really great. Aside from the obvious costume differences, can you tell us a little about Wonder Woman in this series? How is she different from the character we see in the New 52?

Justin Gray: Thank you, we’ve been keeping quiet about this project for a long time and it hasn’t been easy. This incarnation of Wonder Woman is somewhat rebellious toward her mother and duties as a princess. She is a natural born leader just not as seasoned as we’re accustomed to seeing.

Jimmy Palmiotti: We are big fans of Brian’s take of Wonder Woman, but we are starting the series off from an earlier time period of her life and its more of an introduction of who she is and where her place in the world is going to be. This princess has a lot to learn and we follow her along the way.

CV: We have seen a lot of changes made to Wonder Woman's character in the New 52, and that could be attributed to the creative team having a lot of input on the changes made to her character. Would you say that you have had creative control with the character in this series? If so, how much flexibility have you had on making the AME-COMI Wonder Woman your own?

JG: The beauty of Ame-Comi is that exists separately from the main line so we have no conflict of interest in how she is portrayed. We looked at the history of these characters and cherry picked certain elements we found interesting as well as branching out in different directions. Greek myth isn’t as important as who she is and how she (reluctantly) brings her culture and worldview to America.

JP: The beauty of the series is we were asked to give our take on what we see as a universe featuring these very cool characters, so as Justin said, we looked at what we loved at its core about Wonder Woman and created vision. We think no one will have even a second’s hesitation in identifying her unique voice.

CV: Sum up her personality in your series in one word.

JG: I have never met any woman of any age that could be summed up in one word, but I’ll go with brave.

JP: Plucky.

CV: Were you able to choose Wonder Woman out of all the other AME-COMI girls? If so, why did you choose her out of the rest?

JG: Wonder Woman was the most obvious choice if we were going to feature a series starring heroines of the DCU.

JP: Start the series with one of the oldest and most respected character in the history of comics, and work from there. That and we knew we were starting off the series featuring the art of Amanda Conner and Paul Mounts, and as everyone knows, Amanda loves to draw Wonder Woman.

CV: What got you guys interested in AME-COMI line, and why did you feel that you could make stories out of characters inspired by DC's collectibles line? What makes these stories so different?

JG: Love of the designs and the open ended creativity we’re allowed to have. We looked at the whole of the DC Universe, the designs and even some of the animated series that offered inspiration for different views of these characters. This branched out further when we looked at Krypton and Earth as sharing a common birth. The idea that Jimmy Olsen is a different person without Superman, the idea that Batgirl and Robin don’t have to be gothic and dark, Green Lantern can be completely different and so on.

JP: For me, it was the freedom D.C. was giving us to go crazy with the concepts and the chance to work with some amazing artists as they model the characters from the highly successful line of Ame-Comi statues. Everything seemed to come together when we all met and discussed the possibilities of this format and working alongside the contagious energy of Jim Fletcher and Jim Chadwick day to day made this a dream job all around. We really get to do some insane stuff in this series that we could never do in the mainstream books.

CV: The series will be launching with Wonder Woman, but will feature other DC ladies as well; how will the story come together in the end? With so many creators on the series (Tony Akins, Sanford Greene, Ted Naifeh and many others) how did you guys come up with a direction for this series? Did you work together as one big creative team, or are you each telling your own stories?

JG: There was a lot of planning involving several men named Jim. Jim Lee, Jim Chadwick, Jim Fletcher and Hank Kanalz were all instrumental in how the series would be published and the look of it. What we all came up with in the end was to feature chapters with specific characters like Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Duela Dent. As we introduced these characters there would be an underlying plot that ultimately brings them together as a team.

JP: The behind the scenes on hos this came together and everyone’s input was a pretty amazing process and I am glad to say with the help of everyone Justin listed above, we have come together to create something I consider very unique in comics. This story works in separate parts and the bigger picture story creates and forms a world with endless possibilities.

CV: The series will be launching digitally on Monday, May 28th. Is there a chance that we will eventually see this series collected in print?

JG: That’s an internal decision at DC. We’d love for Ame-Comi Girls to reach as many people as possible and hope it gathers a large enough digital audience to warrant print publication.

CV: Based on the image you guys provided, it appears that Wonder Woman will have her very own Pegasus! What's the story behind her horse? How much of her story has been inspired by Greek mythos?

JG: There isn’t a heavy reliance on Greek mythology with our interpretation of Wonder Woman, it is part of her life, but it ‘s kind of like her mom’s thing. Kids rebel against their parents and the things their parents consider fundamental to their identities, interests or culture. Diana is a princess and she loves her sisters, but she’d rather be fighting on a battlefield as opposed to attending parties and performing her diplomatic duties. She does have a Pegasus. She uses it to make an impression on the president.

CV: Does that mean a new issue will be released every Monday?

JG: yes and may the gods be with us.

JP: for what you are getting…such amazing artwork, it really is a bargain, and we hope that it becomes a regular part of peoples schedules, to download each chapter, each week.

CV: As far as this new series goes, what are you most excited about?

JG: All of it from top to bottom, there are a lot of crazy ideas being thrown around and a lot of character development. We have a universe spanning canvas to work on so you’ll be reading these epic stories intertwined with smaller more personal tales. Duela Dent’s three-part story is one of our favorites as well as getting the chance to play in a limitless sandbox.

JP: The best part for me is we are getting to work on some of the greatest characters in comics. Wonder Woman is a dream for me…getting to revisit Powergirl was a blast, Duela is just downright Insane and so on…we have so many characters coming…all I have to do is look at my shelve of Ame-Comi characters and the brain is going wild with the possibilities…that and we are able to create some new ideas and put the new characters coming into the series. Its going to be an exciting ride!

So you want to start reading AME-COMI, or any of the other digital first titles from DC Comics, but you don't know where to go to download the book? Just go to read.dccomics.com/comiXology or open up the DC Comics app – which is available on iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices, download and enjoy. Each episode is 99 cents, ten pages per episode. What do you think of AME-COMI?

Awesome! Wonder Woman should be looking like this in the new 52. I will check it out when its in print.

Lol at JG's answer:"I have never met any woman of any age that could be summed up in one word" thats nothing but the truth

Can't wait to see the other ladies pop up in the series. The toys always looked cool

I like the way she looks, like a warrior, with her sword, axe and shield. And it seems that she can't fly in the new 52 which is good. Now she won't be labeled as a female version of Superman.

Awesome. Just one question. Will Superman be in this?

Nice.

Gotta love Conner's art, its amazing! This looks great...

I love the Ame-Comi statues. Though I only have the Batgirl one. I really dig the way they're designed. Definitely going to check this out.

Amanda Conners does a great job it seems. Wont be getting it in digital due to a lack of a way to read digital stuff and stick with trades.

Looks great, will deffo pick this up....or download it or whatever

I am sooo gonna buy this

@JKnight77: she is a female superman

But now she can't fly. And I think her strength is lower now too. And it seems like she is relying more on skills rather than just flying into her enemies like superman does.

Love how it's coming out on Monday. Something to brighten up an otherwise lame day.

But now she can't fly. And I think her strength is lower now too. And it seems like she is relying more on skills rather than just flying into her enemies like superman does.

@spiderbat87: Ahh I thought she can't fly cause if you read the new 52 Justice League 5 on page 20, when they were flying you can see green lines around WW. That green line came from GL(obviously) when he carried those superheroes that can't fly. But in JL 8 she was flying. Maybe it is because he doesn't know her abilities when they first met. But anyways I don't really like that. I don't want her to be called "female superman" this time around.

Maybe she can only leap a tall building in a single bound? :)

This whole digital first nonsense is another reason why digital comics need to die. They had my interest in this title with the premise, and it grew when I saw Amanda was involved, but I now have to wait potentially months before I can buy the real comic... Digital distribution is fine for newspapers and things that need to be timely, but it needs to die a swift death for comics.

I dont mind it so long as they put donna troy in it as constantly recurring character

@wolfmangideon said:

This whole digital first nonsense is another reason why digital comics need to die. They had my interest in this title with the premise, and it grew when I saw Amanda was involved, but I now have to wait potentially months before I can buy the real comic... Digital distribution is fine for newspapers and things that need to be timely, but it needs to die a swift death for comics.

considering the convenience of digital comics for people who don't have a local comic shop nearby and who can't afford to go driving thirty miles every Wednesday in order to buy them, they won't be going anywhere. I myself barely ever buy a hard copy anymore, mostly due to the whole distance issue, as well as storage. All my comics are digital now, aside from maybe the the occasional trade ordered online.

@rasx said:

Awesome! Wonder Woman should be looking like this in the new 52.

Well, there are certain elements of this look I like more than others but overall, I like how this WW design embraces the warrior look more than the Earth-1 version.

I wish the Earth-One version had that sword, not as big though.

I love, love love this art.

I look forward to this series. :)

I'll definitely give this a chance; can't wait to download issue #1 tomorrow!

I love AME-COMI look for Wonder WOman and Donna Troy i hope they use Donna plzzzzzzzzzzz she looks so cool

I like this artwork, but I don't know if fits Wonder Woman well :-P

I like the idea of Wonder Woman's concept being expanded upon, but I don't think the artwork is appropriate with the current concept of Wonder Woman. It appears too much like a cartoon for my liking.

With that said, I truly enjoy the costume with the exception of the loincloth.

I can almost hear the 'die-hard fans' scream before the soundwave hits :)

Her underwear is too thongy

@Ravager4 said:

@wolfmangideon said:

This whole digital first nonsense is another reason why digital comics need to die. They had my interest in this title with the premise, and it grew when I saw Amanda was involved, but I now have to wait potentially months before I can buy the real comic... Digital distribution is fine for newspapers and things that need to be timely, but it needs to die a swift death for comics.

considering the convenience of digital comics for people who don't have a local comic shop nearby and who can't afford to go driving thirty miles every Wednesday in order to buy them, they won't be going anywhere. I myself barely ever buy a hard copy anymore, mostly due to the whole distance issue, as well as storage. All my comics are digital now, aside from maybe the the occasional trade ordered online.

same with me.... i hope digital comics are here to stay, in fact with the advent of tablets...i think digital comics have become pretty convenient to read..anyway i bought this issue.. it felt a bit short but the issue was good....and the artwork was awesome..this is my favourite wonder woman costume now...and i think $ 0.99 is a good deal...

I hope this comes out in print, it looks seriously awesome!

@Primmaster64 said:

Awesome. Just one question. Will Superman be in this?

It's possible. Ame-Comi is known for it's statues which is predominantly depicted as women. Even steel is depicted as a woman. However, there was one figure done of Batman.

So knowing that Batman has been done it is possible that we could see a Superman Ame-Comi in the future though we are more likely to see Supergirl and Power Girl first.

@Delphic: So knowing that Batman has been done it is possible that we could see a Superman Ame-Comi in the future though we are more likely to see Supergirl and Power Girl first.

No Can't we have something only for the girls. Batman and superman been done a billion times, I like the Girls only comic line.

@wonderW said:

@Delphic: So knowing that Batman has been done it is possible that we could see a Superman Ame-Comi in the future though we are more likely to see Supergirl and Power Girl first.

No Can't we have something only for the girls. Batman and superman been done a billion times, I like the Girls only comic line.

It is much more likely that Ame-Comi will be all female, anyway. There was only one male Ami-Comi figure ever done, and I don't believe it sold very well. On the other hand Ame-Comi has been known to gender swap characters such as Steel and Robin:

Characters like Batman and Superman though are probably Iconic enough that Ame-Comi will not gender swap them, and it is just probably less likely we will see them. So you have nothing to worry about. Ame-Comi will pretty much be nothing, but all girls all the time, and if you ask me I don't have a problem with that. I just can't wait to see PG and Supergirl

they have a girl steel and robin their has always been girl a robin here and their.

But I can't wait to see all the DC girls.

They have to include Green Lantern or I'll be pissed.

this sounds really exciting, I'm especially looking forward to the Batgirl and Duela Dent stories.

@sethysquare: well thre is a statue of Arisia, so chances of her appearing is high. and Jade has a statue too

@cloudzackvincent:

Looking good, WW with some muscle tone, lol. Some one says that shes Superman, huh, no; first, Superman will never try to kill some one, unless its for a good reason. Second, WW thinks like the old world, meaning, she has a sense of duty and honor. The mind set was totally different from what is today, to serve in the military or government was the big thing and not to look at the dark arts, like acting or comedy. Yeah, its funny the Greeks would worship the goddess athen, but not allow a women to serve in the military, I think was bunch of BS if you ask me.(off-topic)

Really, I think they should make her the 300 or something, or some form, where she fights alot and has a master plan to defeat her rivals, mahah.

Anime, does some kindness to the females and make them strong, where some one from over here would make them stupid.

Most of the pic I see, she has very long hair. I'd always think of a Greek (cough) Amazon should look like.

I read issue #1 last night & could not help but wonder why this was not the Wonder Woman we got in the DCnU. I like what Azzerello is doing but I can not help but feel it will all be undone sooner than later & we will return to the more fanatical version of Diana that has survived for 70+ years... or maybe that is just me fan boy dreams!

Why not feature Batwoman? I don't like the artwork, but I tend to like more realistic depictions so it's moreso a matter of taste.

@PhoenixoftheTides: after 3 issues of wonder woman, they will feature another character but i am not sure if batwoman has a ame comi figure, but batgirl does have one so i am pretty sure we will see her soon

by the way i love azarello's run...

@Baddamdog said:

Looks great, will deffo pick this up....or download it or whatever

haha=P

Where is all the outrage over her looking to sexy? Whenever there is an article showing Red Sonja, Vampirella, of Dejah Thoris its comments section is flooded with the utter "disgust" of how the artists are over sexualizing the characters or that they are showing way to much skin. Is this because its Amanda Conner drawing it or because you only want to complain about characters that don't get the lime light all that often and this is your precious Wonder Woman so the only time she is drawn "wrong" is when she's wearing pants.

@Nova`Prime`: Please don't make this an issue.

@Static Shock: *whiny voice* But I really wanted too!

read issue 2 ..turns out it is not as faithful to the classic version as we thought.... ;)