Wonder Woman Unbound Page 19

  She was also reckless and regularly ran into dangerous situations despite the warnings of I Ching and her other companions. No matter how many thugs were in her way, Diana dove right in, half-crazed. Her emotions replaced her common sense, and anger dictated her actions. It seems that traits like calmness and rationality didn’t fit O’Neil and Sekowsky’s concept of a normal, identifiable woman. At times, Diana was downright hysterical. The mod revamp was meant to offer a new version of the character, but an irrational woman ruled by her emotions was just a cliché.

  O’Neil and Sekowsky continued to hit all of the stereotypical bases in Wonder Woman #182. Diana was trying on clothes in London with a new beau, and the narration read: “Happiness for any healthy, red-blooded young gal, is bedecking herself in the latest fashion finery … and our Wonder Woman just happens to be a healthy, red-blooded young gal.” Then, overhearing her fellow shoppers discuss a party they were attending that evening, Diana thought, “Imagine me in the same room with London high society! It’s as though I were suddenly dropped into a Cary Grant picture!” Diana Prince, former Amazon princess, charter member of the Justice League of America, and personal friend of the Olympian gods, was ecstatic to be trying on new clothes in the same room as two women on their way to a fancy party. Fashion, and the doors that being fashionable opened to her, was of paramount importance to Diana.

  Diana’s new look brought her a lot of attention. Not only did Steve take an interest in Diana instead of Wonder Woman for the first time, but her new look caught the eyes of many other men as well, who were glad to give her information or buy her gifts. Later, she was able to hobnob with high society and travel the globe on the dime of these new suitors. The attention her new look brought her went over very well with Diana, who found all of it terribly exciting. This focus on her appearance and the many benefits it brought was a big change for the series. As Wonder Woman, the subtext was always that it was good to be strong and caring and heroic; as the mod Diana Prince, the subtext was that it was good to be pretty because boys would like you and you’d be treated better.

  The boys certainly did like Diana, and Diana liked them back, adding fickleness to the growing list of the mod Diana’s new traits. In her fascinating book Reading the Romance, Janice Radway surveyed women who were regular romance novel readers and used their responses to create a template for the ideal romance novel. This ideal romance begins with the destruction of the protagonist’s identity, after which she embarks “on her quest for a new self and new connection.” A key part of this quest is meeting a man who transforms her into “a passive, expectant, trembling creature who feels incomplete without the attention of the hero.” This is a perfect description of Diana Prince.

  After she lost her Wonder Woman identity, Diana constantly had to have the attention of a strong man. Just one issue after Steve’s death, Diana was attracted to her new associate, Tim Trench. Lying in her bed and unable to sleep, she thought, “I’m becoming fond of Tim … very fond! He’s crusty … but he’s also strong, decisive … a man! At times he makes me forget Steve … almost! I wonder if being human means being fickle!”

  Tim was soon replaced by Reginald Hyde-White, who paid for Diana’s London shopping spree. Afterward, Reggie professed his love for her, saying that “in the few hours since we met, you’ve become everything to me!” Diana bought the line and kissed him, but noted afterward that “as an Amazon princess—as Wonder Woman— I had perfect control of my emotions! As plain Diana Prince, I’m human—too darn human!” If Diana was still an Amazon she’d have been able to resist Reggie’s advances and wouldn’t have kissed him scant hours after meeting him, but as a normal human woman she was powerless to control herself.

  Reggie was followed by Patrick McGuire, a pilot who assisted Diana and I Ching on their mission to China. Then came Ranagor, leader of the rebels in Chalandor. The next was Baron Anatole Karoli, an ambassador from Koronia whom Diana protected while he was visiting America. Last was Jonny Double, a private detective. Counting Steve, Diana was involved with seven different men in the twenty-six issues of the mod era. And that’s not including World’s Finest #204, where Diana almost kissed Superman after he saved her from a group of armed goons.* By her own admission, Diana was fickle, as apparently all human women were supposed to be. It was as if she couldn’t exist without the affection and attention of a man, and her reaction to betrayal demonstrated how important having a man was to her.

  The closer Diana got to a man, the more likely it was he would turn out to be a villain. A few of the guys were nice, but it often ended horribly. Baron Kanoli was an assassin sent to kill the president, while Tim turned on Diana for a fortune in diamonds. Tim’s shocking betrayal sent Diana into the arms of Reggie, but Reggie owed Dr. Cyber a substantial debt and had been working for her to capture Diana. A tearful Diana cried out, “You lied to me! You said you loved me!” and began to beat Reggie ferociously. I Ching had to pull her off because he was afraid she would cripple Reggie, to which she replied, “I want to hurt him … I want him to feel what I’m feeling!” Distraught, Diana ran off into the night as the issue ended.

  The following issue began with narration that read, “Diana (Wonder Woman) Prince, hurt, bewildered, angry—no longer insulated (by her renounced super-powers) to shock and emotion, reacts violently! Not a Wonder Woman—but a heartbroken girl runs into the night.” The panel showed a montage of Diana beating Reggie and fleeing the scene, ending with the heartbroken Diana exclaiming, “This being a human HURTS!” Reggie had only been in the series for one issue. In terms of the comic book’s timeline, Diana had known Reggie for maybe twelve hours, yet she was so wounded by his betrayal that she was prepared to cripple him.

  Diana’s other significant relationship was with her martial arts master I Ching, and she was regularly shown to be inferior to her blind mentor. While brawling with villains in a ski lodge, Diana was impressed with her new martial arts skills, thinking, “Karate … judo … kung-fu … whatever I need … I’ve got! I’m as effective as a person can be … without Amazon powers!” However, observing her blind master she then thought, “Still, Ching fights better even though he’s sightless!”

  More important, I Ching always had far better judgment than Diana. When faced with the evil witch Morgana, Diana’s first inclination was to fight, but her physical skills couldn’t handle the metaphysical powers of her opponent. Throughout the battle, I Ching repeatedly attempted to get Diana’s attention, saying, “Diana, wait—I can—” and “Diana—will you listen—” only to be interrupted by Diana again attacking Morgana. Finally Diana stopped and I Ching quickly disabled the witch with his own magical powers, saying, “I tried to tell you, Diana, I could have spared you all this trouble.” I Ching even got top billing on the series’ covers for a short while when for six issues the title read The Incredible I-Ching! And … the New Wonder Woman.

  Acclaimed science fiction author Samuel Delany wrote the last two issues before Wonder Woman got her powers back, and he tried to inject the series with some modern feminist discussion in Wonder Woman #203. The cover declared “SPECIAL! Women’s Lib Issue,” and the story began with Diana’s friend Cathy, all fired up from a women’s lib meeting, attacking a group of men who were trying to hit on Diana. Later, one of those same men offered Diana a job as a spokeswoman for Grandee’s department store, which she gladly accepted despite Mr. Grandee referring to her as “little girl” and “little lady” throughout their meeting. However, Cathy took issue with Diana accepting a job there because Grandee was underpaying his female employees. Diana defended Grandee by spouting this random bit of legalese: “You can’t pay less than minimum wages except in businesses not involving interstate commerce!” As everyone knows, the best way to teach kids about feminism is with long discussions about interstate commerce law.

  When Cathy asked her to attend her women’s lib group, Diana stated, “I’m for equal wages, too! But I’m not a joiner. I wouldn’t fit with your group. In most cases, I don’t
even like women.” An argument followed, culminating in an upset Cathy declaring, “Perhaps I’m incompetent and unsure, but I’m conscious of it and enraged at anyone who says I must stay that way!” and daring Diana to “walk away from my anger!” Diana couldn’t, and the two went to Cathy’s women’s lib meeting. Grandee’s goons soon burst into the meeting to rough up the women because they planned to take action against Grandee’s unfair wages policy. The attack resulted in the city shutting down the store and Diana thinking, “Now I feel I’ve really accomplished something for women’s image!” But then, a group of angry women came into the meeting and accused the group of taking 250 jobs away from women. The victory was tempered with the loss of jobs, and the story was never resolved, because the Amazon Wonder Woman returned in Wonder Woman #204.

  Delany was clearly trying to present a nuanced, thoughtful look at the women’s liberation movement that represented both its possibilities and its difficulties. His intentions were good, but the results were muddled. Superhero comic books don’t do nuance well; they rely on good guys and bad guys and victory and defeat. The issue’s ambiguous ending doesn’t provide this at all, and Delany certainly could have benefited from having another issue to finish his story. As it is, the ending casts the story in a new light.

  For the entire issue, our hero, Diana, was disinterested in and dismissive toward the women’s liberation movement. Women’s libber Cathy was rash and, by her own admission, incompetent. The discussion of the issues surrounding equal pay was technical and legalistic, and most readers likely glossed over it. Ultimately, Diana did side with the activists, only to have their actions questioned because of the job loss that ensued, and Delany made clear that the upset women had a justifiable point.

  The sum total of the issue was that Diana actively opposed women’s lib and its impetuous supporters for most of the issue, and then discovered that it was as likely to harm women as help them. Delany’s issue was the mod era’s sole attempt to engage with the women’s liberation movement, and it was not a success.

  It’s no wonder that Gloria Steinem and other feminists took issue with the mod Diana Prince and rallied for a return to her Amazon roots. Compared to her past incarnations, the rash and fickle Diana was a poor example of the power of women, and compared to her fellow female comic book characters she was very much behind the times.

  Lois Lane

  While sales of Wonder Woman slumped during the 1960s, Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane was one of the industry’s bestselling comic books. It sold more than 482,000 copies per issue, averaging an impressive fifth place for the decade. In April 1970, the series put out its hundredth issue, quite a feat for a series based on a secondary character.

  Lois Lane was a huge success, on the newsstands and in her stories as well. In Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #80, we learned that Lois had won the Pulitzer Prize, journalism’s highest award. However, while 1968 marked the beginning of a new era for Wonder Woman, for Lois it was just more of the same old. Superman continued to submit her to elaborate ruses to teach her lessons, and she still fell in love with every strong man who crossed her path. Nonetheless, there was a subtle shift in Lois’s interactions with Superman, and she became increasingly displeased with his treatment of her. In one issue, she told Superman, “You’ve ignored me, hurt me, humiliated me too many times!” In another, she said, “You’ve had me on the string for years. Now I’m calling off this hot and cold romance!!” Lois always came back to Superman in the end and the old formula remained intact, but cracks were beginning to form.

  In 1970, instead of spending all of her time coming up with schemes to get Superman to marry her, Lois became interested in social issues, particularly race relations. In Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #106, Lois wanted to learn more about Metropolis’ black community, Little Africa, but was called “whitey” and an enemy when she visited.* Undeterred, Lois used a machine to transform herself into a black woman so she could experience firsthand the racism and poor living conditions the community faced. Ultimately, Lois even became friends with Dave Stevens, an outspoken young black man who had shamed her into leaving when she first visited.

  This racial theme continued a few issues later when Lois and Clark visited Santa Fe, New Mexico, where a group of local Pueblo Indians protested a new dam that would block off their sacred river and drown their land. Superman got permission to remove the dam, and Lois ended up adopting a newly orphaned Pueblo baby named Little Moon. When Lois returned to Metropolis, she became the object of slanderous gossip for raising a Native American child, but she defiantly responded to her critics, stating, “It’s you who are blind! My heart and Little Moon’s are the same color!”†

  In the following issue, Lois advocated for Metropolis’s Latino community, who told her, “Por dios, señorita! We all want to help make a better life for our families! But … unless we have day centers to care for our muchachos … children … we cannot go to work!” In Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #114, Lois stood up for women’s rights, giving some tough talk to her black friend, Dave, when she said, “You don’t want to be down-graded because you’re black! Don’t down-grade us because we’re women!” Dave thought that was an excellent point, and the two worked together on improving conditions in Little Africa; the issue also included a two-page spread with biographies of notable black leaders.*

  In April 1972, Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #121 marked the arrival of a new writer, Cary Bates, and a new editor, Dorothy Woolfolk.† In the previous issue, Lois’s sister Lucy died tragically, leading Lois to reevaluate her life. Newly returned to Metropolis after six weeks of soul searching, Lois declared to Superman, “Now that my sister’s gone, I’m going to live my life for her and me … to make up for her death by doing twice as much in my lifetime … and to do my best to help a world so tangled with problems it’s falling apart!” When Superman asked what that meant for their relationship, Lois said, “Sorry, Superman! I’m no longer the girl you can come back to between missions! I can’t live in your shadow—I’ve got things to do!”

  Lois broke up with Superman and quit her job at the Daily Planet to become a freelance reporter and focus on the social justice stories that were important to her. This resulted in a big pay cut, so Lois moved out of her luxury apartment to share a more affordable place with three other women. All four of them worked together on Lois’s dangerous assignments, fighting villains and uncovering stories. They called each other “sister” and refused to abandon Lois, no matter what precarious situations her reporting got them all into. Lois had become a strong and independent woman, and this time it stuck for more than an issue.

  Lois dumping Superman was nothing new, but for the first time it was handled in an intelligent and thoughtful way. It was clear that Lois still loved Superman and that it was hard for her to end things with him, but that she had to do so because her relationship with Superman was holding her back. Superman’s initial understanding response to the breakup soon wore off, and when Lois later restated her desire to do twice as much in her lifetime, Superman replied, “You’re only being twice as stupid!” As he flew off, Lois called out, “Goodbye, Superman! And take your super-male ego with you!” Superman frequently tried to rekindle things with Lois, but she was adamant that nothing would happen unless his attitude toward her changed.

  When Superman told Lois to be a good girl and stay out of trouble while she covered the Olympic Games, she thought, “Be a good girl … oooo! Sometimes he is so conceited.” In another issue, Superman tried to help out Lois and her roommates, but Lois brushed him off, saying, “I’m tired of your super-interfering! We girls are hardier than you think! Leave us alone!” Superman and Lois remained friends, but any hint of male chauvinism from Superman brought a strong response from Lois. She loved Superman, but she knew that so long as he didn’t treat her, and other women, equally, they could never be together. It was a groundbreaking new direction for Lois, though short-lived; the book only lasted another seventeen issue
s before DC Comics rolled Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane and several other titles into one new book, The Superman Family, in 1974.*

  In Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #93, published in July 1969, Lois had actually met the mod Diana Prince. Fearing that Diana was trying to steal Superman from her, Lois learned karate and judo so she could fight Diana and win back Superman. In a dream sequence where she defeated Diana, Lois said, “I-I’m sorry, Diana! But Superman’s my whole life! I-I had to beat you—so you would give him up!” This scenario represented the old Lois Lane in a nutshell: Superman was her world, and she would do anything, however ridiculous, not to lose him.

  The new Lois didn’t need a man at all. While Diana’s entire life was dictated by her desire to avenge Steve and she flitted from man to man, Lois did what Diana couldn’t. She realized that wrapping up her self-worth and her life’s meaning in a man who didn’t treat her well just wasn’t worth it, no matter how much she loved him.

  Batgirl

  The name “Batgirl” suggests a very subordinate, sidekick role. Her symbol was borrowed from a male hero, and she was called “girl” while he was called “man.” You’d expect her to be a female Robin or, even worse, another poor Supergirl, but Batgirl was the most independent and self-reliant female character in DC Comics at the dawn of the Bronze Age. Batgirl first appeared in Detective Comics #359 in January 1967, created by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino.* There had been a Bat-Girl in the 1950s, Bette Kane, but this Batgirl was an entirely new character.

  Her real name was Barbara Gordon, and she was the daughter of Commissioner James Gordon, Gotham City’s head of police. Even without her crime fighting, Barbara was an impressive character. She had a PhD from Gotham State University, where she graduated summa cum laude, had a brown belt in judo, and was the head librarian at the Gotham City Public Library. With her old-fashioned reading glasses and her double bun hairdo, Barbara said, “Everybody thinks of me as a ‘Plain Jane’—a colorless female brain.” Well aware of the image she projected as a librarian, she used her demure appearance and position as cover for her adventures as a vigilante. Barbara also made the most of her library job by using its contents to research crime-fighting techniques and solve cases.