Superman’s Freaks of the Week: The Best Smallville Villains

Trailers appear in this article for every season of Smallville. Across 10 seasons, The CW set Smallville offered its own take on many criminals from Superman’s broad rogues ‘ museum and also introduced its own special characters into the mix. Clark Kent ( Tom Welling ) and his allies battled a]…] from season-long antagonists to freaks-of-the-week.

The best smallville villains from Superman’s Freaks of the Week appeared first on Den of Geek.

The Man of Steel is n&#8217, t the only DC hero who is getting a new look in James Gunn&#8216, s universe. Gunn revealed that a new Wonder Woman movie is in the works as part of his press tour for Superman. This is n&#8217, t a great surprise. After all, Wonder Woman&#8217, s arch-enemy Circe and the hero&#8217, s home island Themyscira were a big part of Creature Commandos, the first official part of Gunn and DC Studios co-head Peter Safran&#8217, s new DC Universe. A television series in the vein of Game of Thrones has also been mentioned by Gunn as one of the first batch of DC Universe projects.

cnx. cmd. cnx ( playerId:” 106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530 ), ) -push ( function ( ). render ( “0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796” ),.

Still, this is the first time Gunn&#8217, s confirmed that Diana will be back on the big screen. We’ll likely have to wait a while for specifics because Gunn hasn’t yet provided any details and he’s always been clear that movies only begin filming once they have a script in place. However, we are aware that Gunn enjoys drawing inspiration from comic books. That can be a good thing and a bad thing.

A lot of boring to downright bad comics have been made about Diana for such a fundamental character in the DC Universe. Even the Golden Age stories have all the racism one would expect from the era, as well as too many jokes about sidekick Etta Candy &#8217, s weight, and best represent creator William Moulton Marston&#8217, s belief that Wonder Woman comics could teach the world about the joys of loving submission to a powerful woman. Even worse are the stories that came after Marston, which could treat Diana as either a mindless innocent ( see ignominious run by famed author Jodi Picoult ) or as a cruel violent warrior ( see&#8230, too many to count ).

However, Wonder Woman’s best stories feature in the best comic books ever produced. Wonder Woman, an ambassador of peace and love who places compassion first, violence last, is a completely unique character among superheroes in these comics. If Gunn follows these stories, five of which are listed here, then we&#8217, ll have a great Wonder Woman movie to enjoy.

Twelve Labors of Wonder Woman — DC Comics photo.

Wonder Woman# 212-222, The Twelve Labors, 1974-1976.

The Silver Age was n&#8217, t the best time for Wonder Woman, perhaps best demonstrated by the infamous story when she loses her powers and becomes a martial arts expert/secret agent. However, The Twelve Labors, starring Len Wein, Cary Bates, Elliot S. Maggin, Curt Swan, and others stands out as a positive sign in a dull time.

The idea isn’t great, in fact. The Justice League of America needs to reevaluate Wonder Woman&#8217, s status and eligibility, so they put her through a series of tests. Given that Wonder Woman ( in this continuity ) has existed since World War II and that the League is primarily made up of men, that &#8217 is a pretty ugly story. However, surprisingly many Silver Age DC stories feature superheroes playing pranks on one another, so it’s not entirely nefarious as it might seem.

Despite whatever ickiness the premise evokes, The Twelve Labors mostly consists of various members of the League challenging Diana and losing. The narrative more than just a power fantasy helps to set Wonder Woman apart from other superheroes by illustrating how she can use her might, her wits, and her accessories to accomplish tasks &#8212 without relying solely on, let’s say, super-speed or a power ring.

Wonder Woman# 1–14, The Princess and the Power, 1987 –1988 )

Much has been written about Crisis on Infinite Earths and the comics that redefined major characters around that time, particularly Batman: Year One and Man of Steel. Too frequently people forget about the incredible reboot that George Pérez, a writer and painter, did with Wonder Woman. With the exception of Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang’s disastrous New 52 reimagining, Pérez and co-writer Greg Potter&#8217, s reinvention were largely associated with their interpretation.

It&#8217, s easy to see why Pérez &#8217, s run endures. Pérez focused on the key hook that contributed to Wonder Woman’s popularity during the Golden Age. She is an outsider from a mythical paradise who has come to the world in a more effective way. Pérez &#8217, s Wonder Woman comes from the worlds of Greek gods far more than she does superheroes, which raises the stakes of her stories while also separating her power set from that of others. Additionally, she is an ambassador, one who doesn’t fully belong in &#8220, Man&#8217, s World. &#8221,

Under Pérez, Wonder Woman felt truly exceptional, even when she entered a world populated with people in capes flying around. She wasn’t naive either, but she wasn’t. She didn’t. She didn’t. She didn’t. She didn’t. She didn’t. This balance was apparent in the Patty Jenkins films ‘ best moments. Even though Gunn will be going his own direction from Jenkins &#8217, films, he would do well to follow her lead and consult the Pérez books.

Wonder Woman Down to Earth — DC Comics photo.

Wonder Woman# 195–200, 2003–2004, Down to Earth, 2003 ).

Greg Rucka, the author of Wonder Woman, rivals that of Pérez, not because he rebooted or reimagined the character, but because he took Pérez ‘ stories to their logical conclusion. In Rucka&#8217, s first arc, &#8220, Down to Earth, &#8221, penciled by Drew Johnson, Wonder Woman is still an ambassador to the rest of the world, which means that she must serve a political purpose by representing Themyscira in the United Nations.

Rucka leans into absurdity rather than being embarrassed by the inherent absurdity of an Amazonian princess hanging out with diplomats wearing suits and ties. In the office, there is a minotaur. Diana misses meetings to fight Doctor Psycho. In Veronica Cale, a PR whiz who uses Wonder Woman’s own words against her, Rucka also plays her own Lex Luthor.

Rucka also encounters conflict in the way Diana’s idealism and the rest of the world interact. The scenes in the new Superman trailer, in which Clark gets mad about being called out for stopping a war, feel like they come from Rucka&#8217, s Wonder Woman more than they do any Superman comic. Rucka’s comics, however, have a significant difference: Diana is aware that she represents her island, and that this reciprocates with any dignitary, even if that means engaging in combat with hostile countries.

Wonder Woman: Earth One, 2016-2021

This is a debatable pick, and some Wonder Woman fans will likely head straight to the comments. Even though Grant Morrison completely comprehends Superman and Batman, they frequently stumble when writing Wonder Woman. According to their own admission, Morrison removed Wonder Woman from the board early in 2005’s Final Crisis simply to avoid having to deal with her.

The three Earth One graphic novels do not prove that Morrison, working here with artist Yanick Paquette, has finally cracked Diana. In an oft-shared panel where she asks Black man Steve Trevor, a Black man in this universe, to let her chain him up, there are A LOT of odd moments in the narrative. However, Morrison tries to get at the function of Wonder Woman even in that odd bit of dissonance, which, it should be noted, isn’t ignored as Trevor explains to Diana why her request is so offensive and she listens.

William Moulton Marston created Wonder Woman in 1941 to spread his worldview, one built on the belief that society functions best if men enter into &#8220, loving submission&#8221, to powerful women. In early Wonder Woman comics, there is a lot of bondage, which serves a philosophical purpose more than a sexual purpose. Most contemporary Wonder Woman tales have left out that aspect, but Morrison was right to include it even if they did so imperfectly.

Wonder Woman: Outlaw, Wonder Woman #1-26, 2023–present

Another contentious choice, yes. Tom King‘s in-universe ongoings are a head-scratcher and his miniseries fantastic because of his blend of philosophical inquiry, in which superheroes are just as likely to discuss their trauma via a quote from Kant as they are to punch a bad guy, and shocking shifts in status quo ( looking at you, Ric Grayson ). Yet King and artist Daniel Sampere’s work on Wonder Woman is the best continuation of Rucka&#8217, s approach that we&#8217, ve yet seen.

Wonder Woman confronts the United States when she refuses to give up to American authorities an Amazonian sister who has apparently slaughtered citizens in the first few issues because she has crossed paths with the true King of America, who uses the country as his playground.

Since Gunn has King in his writing room and because the upcoming Supergirl movie is based on King and Bilquis Evely’s miniseries Supergirl: The Woman of Tomorrow, King &#8217, is probably close to Gunn&#8217, s take on Wonder Woman. In fact, the Sons of Themyscira, the men&#8217, s rights dorks who show up in Creature Commandos, feel like something out of King &#8217, s run. As is frequently the case, King’s story doesn’t work for everyone. Wonder Woman makes some off-the-wall choices, and the Sovereign’s role is more important than the Sovereign. But it &#8217, s a stark reminder that Wonder Woman is not an American and that she&#8217, s willing to cross the USA when her moral code demands it.

Absolute Wonder Woman deserves special mention.

Absolute Wonder Woman is the best of DC&#8217, s reimagined Absolute line, in my opinion. Writer Kelly Thompson somehow makes Wonder Woman sweeter and more noble within this darker reality and Hayden Sherman&#8217, s art is nothing short of stunning. It is a significant departure from the typical Wonder Woman story, and it actually takes place in a completely different world from the one Gunn is creating on the big screen. Absolute Wonder Woman is undoubtedly a better comic book and story than some of the others on this list, but it isn’t always a good movie guide.

The post Wonder Woman: 5 Comic Book Stories James Gunn’s Reboot Could Adapt appeared first on Den of Geek.