Future State: Immortal Wonder Woman #1
- WRITER
- Becky Cloonan, L.L. McKinney, Michael W Conrad
- Artist
- Jen Bartel, Alitha E. Martinez, Mark Morales
- Letterer
- Becca Carey, Pat Brosseau
- Cover Artist
- Peach Momoko, Jen Bartel
- Publisher
- DC Comics
- Price
- 5.99
- Release Date
- 2021-01-19
- Colorist
- Emilio Lopez, Jen Bartel
While Yara Flor may be the most prominent Wonder Woman to appear in the alternate timelines of Future State, the Brazilian superhero is far from the only character to wear the mantle as the Amazons' champion. The latest Future State miniseries Immortal Wonder Woman features a pair of tales starring two different Wonder Women, both delivered with expert craftsmanship by the creative teams as the superheroes defend two divergent visions of the DC Universe with varying intensity. And while things may be looking grim for the DCU, the future appears to be very bright for the legacy of Wonder Woman.
The main feature, written by Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad and illustrated by Jen Bartel, takes place in a post-apocalyptic future where many of the DCU's biggest icons have long since fallen defending their world from evil. As Diana Prince continues to lead and inspire the survivors of her world, Darkseid arrives on Earth for a grand battle against the remaining heroes after an unstoppable threat drives the God of Evil from Apokolips. A back-up story, written by L.L. McKinney and illustrated by Alitha E. Martinez and Mark Morales, follows Nubia, the original Themysciran champion, daughter Hippolyta and sister of Diana, as her superhero activities outside of Paradise Island are revealed.
One of the most striking things about both stories in this issue is that both writing teams completely nail the emotional heart of their respective protagonists. Cloonan and Conrad follow a Diana Prince in mourning of all that the price of heroism and the apparent end of the world has cost her yet she continues to fight on. By contrast, Nubia is a character that has been away from Paradise Island for so long but still maintains her Themysciran mission and ideals as she moves to defend and improve it however she can. The lead story is a bit more tightly paced while McKinney has to deliver plenty of exposition to introduce this new Wonder Woman to the DCU but all the dialogue here feels earned and necessary it's just especially noticeable after an action-packed start to Nubia's story.
After illustrating a jaw-dropping line of covers for a variety of publishers and co-creating the acclaimed Image Comics series Blackbird, Bartel makes her debut as an interior artist for DC and her work here is as breathtaking as ever. Delivering her signature vibrant color palette and clean line work, Bartel crafts a beautiful vision of the end of the world, with deft use of light and dark tones as she alternates between Earth and Apokolips. Martinez, perhaps best known as the co-creator of the Humanoids series Omni, works with inker Mark Morales and colorist Emilio Lopez. The team previously worked together on a short story in Dark Nights: Death Metal's anthology special The Last 52 and, thankfully, get even more room to stretch out and cut loose here. While the art team is particularly effective in their story's slam-bang opening, they manage to keep even the more dialogue-driven sequences captivating and their design for Nubia gives the character power and strength all her own.
It bears repeating that across DC's line of Future State titles, the creative teams have consistently been knocking their stories out of the park in terms of quality and intriguing directions for the DCU and its extensive cast of characters to go next in the upcoming Infinite Frontier era. Immortal Wonder Woman is no different, keep DC's winning streak going as not one but two different Amazons share the superhero mantle with Yara Flor; the familiar Diana Prince and the new character Nubia. Come for the introduction of Nubia and the teased impact on Infinite Frontier, stay for the expert work by both creative teams as they build an impressive, new future for the Wonder Woman legacy.