The future is here and with that comes the new Wonder Woman, Yara Flor, as she is on a mission to the Underworld to bring back an Amazonian sister’s soul. Spoilers for Future State: Wonder Woman #1 follow.
Coming off the back of Dark Nights: Death Metal, the DC Universe is looking to the future with its “Future State” line and with that comes new versions of almost all of their characters, Wonder Woman included. Now, who is this new Wonder Woman? Well, she’s none other than Yara Flor, the daughter of an Amazon and a Brazilian river god (and she already has a tv show in development), who has taken over the mantle from Diana. But, in her first appearance, does she stand out as a particularly interesting character? Well, yeah, she very much does. This issue isn’t perfect, but it’s a great introduction to the character with some gorgeous art.
It’s often very hard to bring a new character into an iconic mantle, which is why there are very few times where it feels like it’s actually succeeded. In fact, the only time in recent memory where it has is when Laura took over the mantle of Wolverine in All-New Wolverine. Yet, writer/artist Jolle Jones has managed to bring Yara into the fold in an incredibly fun fashion. It takes a bit for this issue to really begin to show Yara’s personality, but when it does, she’s a Kate Bishop-level disaster character which is wonderful.
Arguably really, the best thing about this issue (besides the art, more on that later) is Yara’s personality. We get to see her as a badass fighter at the beginning of the issue, but as it goes on, we get to see that she’s more than just that. She’s impatient, inquisitive, and quirky which makes her very different from Diana, which is great. However, they share a very important characteristic, which is that they both deeply care and will go to any length to help those that they care about. That’s a defining characteristic that Wonder Woman should have, no matter who carries the mantle, and it’s great that we can see that, even if briefly in this issue. It was weird when she said the word “youie” though.
As for the story of the issue, it’s something we’ve seen relatively often in various fantasy stories throughout the years. It’s a very basic “someone I care about died, is in the afterlife, and I’m going to get them back” story set-up. However, where it differs, and elevates this issue, is Jones execution of Limbo. Instead of treating it as a simple gateway, Jones makes it an appropriate depiction of what Limbo would feel like. She makes it an airport terminal with turnstiles, membership passes, and everything. It helps make this world feel more alive before arriving at Charon, which sticks to the classical vibe of the ferryman of Hades. It’s a really great way of keeping a relatively mediocre story premise interesting.
But, Jones’ art, with Jordie Bellaire’s once again excellent coloring, is the true selling point of anything that Jones works on. No matter the character, setting, action, or story, Jones’ art is absolutely sublime. Throughout this issue, she channels her Lady Killer and Catwoman experience and combines them to create something incredibly unique to this book. Every single page is gorgeous and would tell the story even if there weren’t any words on the page. Jones is one of the top-tier artists working in comics today and it shows every time she releases anything new. Her style is so unique as well that it’d be impossible to mix her up with anyone else.