So I picked up Wonder Woman 101 in a dollar box the other day (well, a 3 for $5 box but I digress). It's the first issue of John Byrne's 3 year run on the title, and it was 1995-1998, so in my opinion, Byrne's best days were behind him at this point. I say that, btw, as a HUGE fan of his work from his early days all the way through the 1980s.
I have to say I was underwhelmed at best. The art seemed sketchy - he did both pencils and inks here - and it's not a very interesting story until we get to the last page.
I'm really on the fence about tracking down further issues. Maybe y'all can change my mind. What do you guys think of this run?
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Replies
I haven't read it in ages. I remember liking it, but thinking Byrne was pretty bullheaded in reverting certain characters (the Demon, particularly), to where they were when he first encountered them, and I didn't like the way he shuffled off the existing supporting cast (Julia and Vanessa Kapetelis, in particular) to give us a similar supporting cast (Professor Sansmark and her daughter Cassie, who would become Wonder Girl).
The stories themselves were fine...but Byrne had certainly done better work in the past. If you pick up just one story, I'd look into late in the run, where the book focuses on Hypolyta's stint with the Justice Society.
Agreed completely. I also remember him bringing Egg Fu back in this run, which I found actually pretty interesting.
Honestly, I would say this is the lesser of his revivals as well. Of course, I am a huge fan of Byrne's much-reviled run on Doom Patrol, and I also loved his Demon series. So, take my opinion for what it's worth!
Rob Staeger (Grodd Mod) said:
I agree with replies John. I think the run was okay and engaging enough but his writing was past his best and his art certainly was.
I also liked the Hypolyta-with-the-JSA and thought that worked well.
What did not work was his attempt to sort out Donna Troy. What was he thinking ? Awful.
If you divide Byrne's run into thirds, I agree with Rob and Jeff and Richard above that his latter work on the series (with the JSA and Hypolyta) was the best of the run.