@djd187.81432 No problem! You’re always welcome 
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I am not so invested in these side players, but I like that they add a little dimension to Vanessa’s life.
I believe the annual has Julia and Vanessa’s trip to Themyscira.
Now that I’ve finished Metal and No Justice, I am now contemplating starting Justice League and/or Justice League Odyssey to see what else is going on since the League broke the multiverse (We have Justice League Dark covered).
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Yeah, looks like the Annual will go over that. I wonder if it will cover whatever the heck that thing was that was following people and giving them glowing eyes. I’m not sure what was happening. Was it possessing them?
I did always want to check out those books. I just haven’t been following any of those characters in years and felt I might be way too lost.
I thought it was making itself look like other people. i should look it up.
I just jumped in. Whether or not i do start on either of those would depend on how much i am reading now and if either title is featured in a future book club.
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Okay, that’s what I thought happened with the guy. I just wasn’t sure what happened with the woman that I’m guessing was an Amazon, but that’s most likely what happened as well. Which, I’m hoping we get more of what that woman was up to.
I don’t see Odyssey on here yet. I might start reading it too. We can discuss it on the comic’s individual issues comments section.
Odyssey will hit the one year mark next week. No Justice was a quick read. I was out of the comic book reading game for a while, but it’s not unlike riding the proverbial bicycle.
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I just really enjoyed issue #20. This panel where Diana has just found out how Myndi died and she’s in front of the broken glass shows how her perceptions of the world have been shattered. This issue felt like it could have been a sister issue to Gotham Central.
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@AntLeon Yup, No Justice was pretty quick. I like that we see the Tree of Wonder in the JLD series. I forgot that Odyssey didn’t come out at the same time as JLD last year.
Sorry for being a little late on this – Borderlands 3 has been kind of taking up a lot of my free time.
First, overall I really liked these issues. The Mindi Mayer story was an intimate, well crafted story, and the stuff with the Gods and opening up Themyskira is really fascinating. It’s going to be hard to wait to read the next issues of these Perez issues.
The issue by Orlando is also awesome – great finale to this part of the story, and ACO’s art and panel layouts and storytelling is just stellar.
As for the discussion questions:
“What are your thoughts about who really killed Myndi and Myndi Mayer as a character overall in this series?”
She’s a tragic character – in the beginning, she seemed shrewd and enterprising, but she did what Diana asked her to do to the best of her ability and seemed like a good person underneath it all. Which makes her being wrapped up in drugs and crime after falling for the wrong guy all the more heartbreaking. She had a unique perspective in this series and it’s a shame to see her go.
That said, in writing this down, I realized that while a lot happens in between the three issues, it’s odd to see Diana so mournful and crestfallen by the end of the first issue and then so elated and joyful by the third. It kind of feels like Myndi was forgotten in the book as soon as she died. Speaking of why Diana was joyful…
“What is your opinion on whether or not mankind should set foot on Themyscira?”
I think if Diana/Themyscira is serious about wanting to help create peace in the world, it’s a necessary step. Diana is an excellent ambassador to the ways of the Amazons, but she is still only one woman. Cultural exchange on a free and consensual basis typically makes all cultures stronger. That said, the rules of fiction tells me that this will not go off without a hitch.
“How are you feeling about Julia and Vanessa as supporting characters?”
I like them – they give Diana a normal cast to bounce off of and learn from and give Diana a good connection to the world she’s here to help. Perez has written this where I want to see where their story goes as much as I want to see the star of the book. That’s some talent!
️ “Did your opinions of any of the characters change from issue #52 to now?”
Not really – Diana and Artemis were badass, as per usual, and Aztek and Atlanna are just…kinda there. Like they’re not bad, but nothing in these past two issues made me want to read more about them.
“What was your favorite moment from this issue?”
That said, Aztek hacking the Bow of Ra so that Diana and Aretmis can hold and shoot it together to wound the Shadow God’s metaphysical self was BAD. ASS.
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On whether #20 fits as a Wonder Woman story, I think it still works. What’s interesting is that the book even says as much, with how Diana stands out in an environment full of uniformed or plain-clothed police officers. Speaking of which, the panel where the detective was describing Diana like a femme fatale in a noir novel was kind of weird but also kind of hilarious.
I think the thing with the best comics characters (especially characters like the Trinity of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman) is that you can plop them into any kind of story and they still work. You can put Batman in a supernatural setting and have a compelling story of him using his wits and strength to find reason and answers in an unreasonable situation. Likewise, Diana in a gritty crime story gives the story an extra tragic edge, because of her naivete born from being born outside this culture and her intense compassion and love for those around her.
I too also wanted to see the scene where Julia has to call the teacher to reschedule. I wonder if he thought she had sudden cold feet, or if it was just weird and crazy enough to be true.
I can kind of see what you mean, @nu52, about Artemis being a bit egotistical. I wonder how much of her have you read? I think for me part of what makes this great with her is seeing her in the past both with the other Amazons as well as on her own in books like Red Hood & The Outlaws. The second arc of that where it goes to Bana Mangell and really introduces the Bow of Ra does show why the moment in this issue was pretty momentous.
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Sorry! I’m late too!
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What are your thoughts about who really killed Myndi and Myndi Mayer as a character overall in this series?
Well, as I mentioned before, this is my favorite issue in Pérez’s run as far as I’ve read. It’s a bit PSA-ish, but Pérez managed to make the twist work without hitting you over the head with it. I liked that Myndi was nuanced, obviously being someone with a lot of vices but who also genuinely wanted to help. If I have one issue with this story, it’s that we lose Myndi’s presence for future stories. -
What is your opinion on whether or not mankind should set foot on Themyscira?
It’s a pretty logical step, giving the world-peace mission. The Amazons’ apprehension is logical, but if they were to swoop in and tell everyone how to get along while also not trusting them enough to even let anyone visit, it would look pretty hypocritical. -
How are you feeling about Julia and Vanessa as supporting characters?
Occasionally, their subplots drag a little, but giving Diana a more mundane family is still a good contrast to the superhero stuff and the large-scale politics. Overall, I like them.
Now, for #53, it’s time to break out BluntJamags again.
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Did your opinions of any of the characters change from issue #52 to now?
I’ve gone from finding Artemis bland to finding her really annoying. She just won’t shut up about how much she doesn’t like Amazons (and thinks Aztek has a silly hat), but then, she doesn’t do anything actually helpful that doesn’t require Wonder Woman and Aztek to do most of the work to keep her from killing herself. Then she has the gall to keep insulting them afterwards. I was begging for someone to just deck her. -
What was your favorite moment from this issue?
I guess there was some good tension when Aztek was doing the calculations to shoot the bow, though even then we didn’t really get a sense of what she was actually doing (and I know, it’s supposed to be too advanced for a mortal mind to comprehend, but that just means that narratively, all we know is that a thing might be happening maybe) and I haven’t read the bow’s backstory so the fact that it was being successfully shot had no impact for me.
As for the rest, I still found the pacing to be ridiculous. You’ve got this big scary evil god with a massive army who is infinitely scarier and more powerful than any other god forever to the max, bro, and then these three just curbstomp him and go home after a single fight scene, but not before he assures us that he definitely still is totally the most scariest ever (also I’m like 80% certain two of the people fighting him on page 16 of the reader are naked from the waist down - the one on the bottom right could be wearing tan-ish pants, but top left is definitely pantless).
Honestly, I’m surprised Grant Morrison didn’t write this because this tell-don’t-show school of villain hyping is something he did incessantly in his JLA run. Morrison villains just love talking about how dangerous they are for pages at a time, and this guy certainly lives up to the tradition.
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@Jay_Kay No worries! I get it. Video games are extremely addictive
I hear you. These issues of the Pérez run were very strong.
That’s probably the worst part about Myndi’s death. She really was a good person underneath it all. I get that she was flawed and had a bunch of demons, but when she found out what Boyd was doing and how he was using her contacts, Myndi was going to put a stop to it. The panel where Boyd tell Myndi to powder her nose was really sad because you knew she wasn’t going to be able to resist. I like that her death was a human cause. In the middle of all of the magic and gods, what takes out Steve’s friend is gunfire and what takes out Mydni is her drug usage. Boyd dies from the electric fence. The “realistic” deaths are definitely the ones that stick out the most.
I could see that. For me, it felt like Diana was putting her out of mind. If Themyscira knew about Myndi and what mankind’s world really is like, would they have gone through with letting outsiders on their shores? Diana does say she wasn’t as close to Myndi, but I bet she would have taken Myndi to Paradise Island. Perhaps I didn’t notice the book had “moved on” from her because I still haven’t?
I’m hoping Themyscira and the rest of the world intermingling again has a positive outcome. I could see it go either way. You’re right, that one representative, no matter how wondrous, won’t suffice. That’d be cool if we get more of the Amazons coming to Man’s World.
I’m right there with you about Julia and Vanessa. It’s a very ordinary story, but somehow it works well. I’m interested in where these two supporting characters go and what will end up happening in their lives. I wonder why they’re not bigger players in current canon.
I did forget Atalanta was even in the story while Wonder Woman, Artemis, and Aztek were fighting the Shadow God. With Aztek peacing out and us going to pay a visit to the Bana-Mighdall in the next issue, I can see there being more of a focus on Atalanta. She must be in top form to have spent all of that time fighting Tezcatlipoca’s horde of baddies.
It was awesome seeing Tezcatlipoca’s shell get pierced.
Gosh, that detective was smitten! I was laughing at how he was describing every detail about her, but also the art was great and actually conveyed Diana’s beauty in such a way that you got where he was coming from. I actually enjoyed that the story was from his perspective. That’s probably why it reminded me of Gotham Central. I did still feel like it was a Wonder Woman story though. The individuals in DC’s Trinity really are strong enough to carry stories in any kind of genre. It’s part of what I love about DC. You see many iterations and variations on the same characters.
Julia was so up front about her intentions with the teacher, I’d think he’d believe her. I could see him thinking she was coming up with an excuse to cancel had she not been as honest with him in the first place. I bet they have their date when Julia returns.
I don’t really know much about Artemis outside of her animated appearances. I might have to look into Red Hood and the Outlaws, because that Bow of Ra scene was a highlight for sure. I just didn’t think there was anything she was doing prior to that that was far better than whatever Nayeli and Diana were doing that warranted her comments.
@BatJamags You’re not late, we were all just early
Yeah, that’s my biggest issue too. The loss of Myndi is going to be felt. I’m surprised with all of the reboots and Elseworlds/alternate retellings, etc., we haven’t seen more of this character. At least, I haven’t.
True, it would look hypocritical. Then again, do the Amazons have a mission of world peace or is that just Diana? I guess now it is all of them. It’s also not necessarily easy for people to get to Themyscira.
I appreciate their mundanity. It also adds stakes to the story having them around since I know nothing about them really (have some prior knowledge of Vanessa) and don’t know what could happen to them.
BluntJamags could have another meaning 
I agree with Jamags, the Blunt! Artemis didn’t show anything in this issue that justified her arrogance and pompousness. The Bow of Ra scene was cool, but it required all three of them. Aztek’s helmet seemed way more amazing than the bow anyway.
I did want to know more about how Aztek was hacking the bow. I like that it hints at the different pantheons being much more closely related than I thought.
They did dispatch the Shadow God rather easily, but I liked the detail that even just touching the deity burned their flesh. Nayeli using that Android #17 shield was also pretty cool. There is only so much you can do with these Power Ranger giant sized baddies when your heroes are regular sized. Also, you may be right about one of them, but she could have one of those old school Wondy bikinis that used to give her wedgies. The other one definitely has pants as the material is a different color from her skin.
Could be that this deity is insecure since he’s been trapped this whole time and while other gods exist in one place at a time in the multiverse, he’s got a whole bunch of other versions of him out there across all Earths. He’s not so special and has to talk himself up.
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@BatJamags Honestly, I didn’t get a PSA vibe from the issue. It felt more like that was used to open up Diana’s eyes to what mankind is capable of and that people are really complex. Even the ones that she likes and admires have dark secrets. Either way, Myndi was dying because Boyd was coming back to shoot her. The reality was more of a gut punch to Diana than a, “Drugs are bad, mmmkay.”
Speaking about the mundane aspect that Julia and Nessie bring, I really liked the scene where Diana lifts their car and they don’t notice for quite some time until they’re way above the other cars. At first, I thought that they had made a mistake showing Diana in a previous panel because Julia and Nessie were so oblivious to her being there. I actually missed it at first when the car was shown as being slightly above the others. You only see Diana in the mirror for a split second.
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