Trial of the Amazons: Wonder Girl #1 // Review
Themyscira doesn’t feel right to Yara Flor. There’s so much of its spirit that doesn’t seem right to her. Why worship a pantheon of gods when you can claim your own power? Questions such as these are the least of Flor’s concerns in Trial of the Amazons: Wonder Girl #1. The fourth chapter in the multi-title Amazon crossover series is written and drawn by Joëlle Jones with color by Jordie Bellaire. Jones offers a fresh perspective on the emerging contest between the Amazons and an investigation into the murder of Wonder Woman’s mother Hippolyte--the former queen of Themyscira.
The Esquecidas were attacked by a wild boar. This should NOT have been a big deal. It wouldn’t have been any threat at all were it not at least a couple of stories tall with radiant eyes. A couple of people died defeating that boar. There was only one place the boar could have come from Doom’s Doorway. Yara Flor and a small delegation of Esquecidas have come to the Themyscira to compete over the honor of defending the doorway. A former queen has fallen. Esquecida ally Wonder Girl Cassie Sandsmark, has been tasked with investigating the murder. She questions the most obvious suspect and gets a predictable response.
Jones had so much of this issue already handed to her from the Trial of the Amazons crossover. She could have simply followed the path set down for her and let the story lay on the page between one major event and the next. Instead, Jones allows Yara Flor a bit more insight into her past while giving Cassie a fun, little bit of investigation to get into. Jones doesn’t try to force too much of her own story into the issue. She knows exactly how much new story and character development to place between a couple of covers that must also continue the momentum of the multi-title crossover.
Jones’ distinctively atmospheric art makes its mark on Themyscira. The shadowy nature of the story is amplified in lots of screens of Ben-Day dots. The shading has a personality all its own--one that feels weirdly pleasant and effervescent. It would run the risk of clashing a bit with the solemness of the story were it not executed so well. Bellaire’s colors take really clever cues from Jones’ shading to help craft depth into the mood that is being presented on the page. Of particular note is Bellaire’s work with the red, black, and gold of the Esquecidas, which had a power and a poise all its own.
Flor’s series is over. This issue and the following chapter could be an exciting launching point for an entirely different Amazon series. An anthology of one-shot stories that might explore Nubia, Cassie, Yara, and Artemis (among others) could be an intriguing approach to a non-Wonder Woman series set in and around Themyscira. The Trial of the Amazons shows considerable potential in the rest of Wonder Woman’s world. The recently-announced Nubia: Queen of the Amazons series that has been scheduled to debut in June is a step in the right direction.
