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Wonder Woman Doesn’t Ditch The Mice, But It Leaves The Biggest Flaws In The Dust (Review)
Wonder Woman’s The Island of Mice and Men moves into its fourth chapter, and while I was a bit apprehensive after the book’s flawed third chapter, Wonder Woman #26 thankfully takes a big step in the right direction. While the story doesn’t ditch the mice, their importance to the story becomes much clearer, and does so without the constant repeated dialogue that dragged down the past few issues. With the additions of a formidable foe for Wonder Woman and a substantial raising of the stakes, the story has left some of its biggest flaws in the dust, and hopefully, they can stay in the rearview mirror as the story crosses the finish line.
Writer Tom King takes a step into the past to add key context to Mouse Man’s tyrannical control over this island and how his reign was set into motion, and stepping outside of the moment-to-moment events on the island helps refocus the series immensely. It’s a welcome change of pace overall, but when we get to the collision we’ve been waiting to see, that context comes back into play in truly surprising ways, and it seems like the story is now moving full speed ahead as opposed to filling time further establishing its world, which has been holding back the bigger story at play.
Rating: 4 out of 5
| PROS | CONS |
| A Formidable Adversary | Elements of Mouse Man’s Story Still Need Clarity |
| Daniel Sampere and Tomeu Morey’s Wonder Woman Always Shines | This Story Still Feels Like an Odd Detour |
| Limiting Repeat Phrases (And They Actually Matter) | Wonder Woman Vs Mice Isn’t a Marquee Showdown |
Wonder Woman Leaves Its Biggest Flaws in the Past
One of the biggest flaws of the past few issues was in the repeated dialogue. While it sought to set a tone and establish the tyranny of this mysterious place, and in fact, it very much accomplished that, it also became a chore to get through. The point was made well before the book stopped actually making it, but thankfully, Wonder Woman #26 moves forward and reveals key insight into those phrases and where they originated from. With that mystery out of the bag, we now get to see how that affects the present day, and the issue seems intent on moving the story forward at a quickened pace.
Now, while Wonder Woman vs giant rats wasn’t on my bingo card for thrilling throwdowns, the sequences we do get here are full of motion and carry impressive weight. Truth be told, Sampere and Morey could have Wonder Woman battling a parked car, and it would look awesome, but the action really shines when it’s Diana vs Mouse Man, including a stunning splash page that feels like Wonder Woman took suplex lessons from Becky Lynch. Seriously, that page rules, as does most of the Mouse Man fight, and it was a welcome change of pace from what’s come before.
While the action towards the latter half of the issue is a big step up, it’s the twist at the end that really ties it all together, as now there are true stakes for Wonder Woman as well as a bigger mystery revolving around Mouse Man’s abilities. If chapter 5 hits the ground running like chapter 4, we could be in for even better things to come.
- Published By: DC Comics
- Written By: Tom King
- Art By: Daniel Sampere
- Colored By: Tomeu Morey
- Lettered By: Clayton Cowles
Wonder Woman #26 is in comic stores now.
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