Wonder Woman: Bitter Rivals (Wonder Woman (DC Comics Paperback)) [Paperback]

Greg Rucka (Author), Drew Johnson (Illustrator), Shane Davis (Illustrator), Stephen Sadowski (Illustrator), Ray Snyder (Illustrator), Andrew Currie (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: February 1, 2005 | Series: Wonder Woman (DC Comics Paperback)

When Darrel Keyes, head of the anti-Wonder Woman group "Protect Our Children," was murdered on the steps of the Themysciran Embassy, the ensuing riot was just one of a torrent of crises facing Diana. Now, with the changes that befell her island home drastically altering her responsibilities in the DCU, Diana doesn't have the time necessary to focus on the murder. Wonder Woman needs help... and who better to solve a mystery than the Dark Knight Detective? Batman quickly discovers the connection between Keyes's death and another murder, one orchestrated by well-respected businesswoman Veronica Cale. Is Wonder Woman finally going to learn that the Texas billionaire is the villain behind so many of her recent troubles? Or will another deception muddy the waters even further?

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 9-12. Rucka continues his inventive effort to make Wonder Woman relevant to a generation whose grandparents may not have been born when she first appeared in 1941. The venerable superheroine now uses her role as ambassador from the Amazons' island, Themyscria, to spread her people's message of equality and unity. She faces protesters' hostility as well as physical attacks by superpowered villains, unaware that her opposition is orchestrated by businesswoman Veronica Cale, who has hired a PR firm to discredit the Amazon and instigated the reappearances of arch-foes Silver Swan and Dr. Psycho. When the protest leader is assassinated on the steps of the Themyscrian embassy, Wonder Woman turns to Batman to solve the crime. Rucka moves smoothly between multiple plotlines (another involves the gods of Mount Olympus) without neglecting dialogue and characterization. The implicit contrast of Wonder Woman's nobility and idealism and Cale's jealous deviousness is particularly effective. Several artists contribute fluid though straightforward visuals, with primary illustrator Drew Johnson's work shining a bit brighter than the others'. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics (February 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401204627
• ISBN-13: 978-1401204624
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.2 x 10.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #122,524 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The author of four novels about professional bodyguard Atticus Kodiak -- Keeper (nominated for a Shamus Award by the Private Eye Writers of America), Finder, Smoker, and Shooting at Midnight, Greg Rucka has been writing since he was eight years old, and hopefully is improving with age. A longtime comics fan, his first graphic novel series was the suspense thriller Whiteout, published by Oni Press and nominated for three Eisner Awards in 1999. Since that time he has been a contributing writer for DC Comics and an active participant in the Batman series of titles.
Born and raised in California, he earned his undergraduate degree at Vassar College and his MFA at the University of Southern California. He currently resides in Portland, Oregon. Mr. Rucka has two tattoos, and rides a motorcycle.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars It is slow, but give it a chance... December 20, 2005

By M. Castro

Format:Paperback

Bitter Rivals is the follow up to Down to Earth the first Wonder Woman volume written by Greg Rucka. Reading Down to Earth is not mandatory to understand this volume, but it helps a LOT. As Bitter Rivals starts we find Wonder Woman under attack from multiple fronts.

Wonder Woman has come under attack by the Silver Swan, she is being attacked in the press and she finds a murder at her doorstep. She has made a powerful enemy who is aranging the pieces on the board against her, even if, as we see with Dr Psycho, they are not always entirely controlable. Her enemy does come across as a female Lex Luthor, which struck me as rather peculiar, but I was able to move past it.

Meanwhile, as they say, things are not at all well in the world of the gods as Paradise Island has suffered a cataclysmic event and a newly freed Circe helps resurect an ancient threat.

Rucka builds his story slowly, very slowly. He first shows us Wonder Woman in her element, as more than just a superhero, but also a crusader and an ambasador. We get to see the forces that gather against her build and then strike, and we see Wonder Woman fight back and call on her allies for assistance. Rucka is pushing Diana towards a breaking point we will see later in the build up to Infinite Crisis and IC itself. Rucka s run on Wonder Woman is he road to IC.

Bitter Rivals is a middle chapter in his Wonder Woman saga and thats why it has some issues standing on its own. Its why I cannot give it five stars. It is great, but should be read as a part of the greater whole.

4.0 out of 5 stars Rucka makes Wonder Woman matter!! August 10, 2010

By S. Penrose

Format:Paperback

Yes, I know its too late to matter but Greg Rucka's Wonder Woman matters. In the past few years she hasn't but what he does here, weaving action, political intrigue, mythology, and science into an amazing title that is unique in a cluttered market. The art here was fantastic making Diana both sexy and powerful and making the supporting characters recognizable. Overall, this was a really good read.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars My first Wonder Woman book may be my last! April 2, 2011

By N. Beitler VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Title: Wonder Woman: Bitter Rivals
Publisher: DC
Writer: Greg Rucka
Pencilers: Drew Johnson, Shane Davis, Steve Sadowski, Linda Medley
Inkers: Ray Snyder, Andrew Currie, Linda Medley
Collects: Wonder Woman #200-205
Price: $12.95

How do you write about a character with mythical origins, put her into a contemporary setting, try to include dozens more mythical characters, gods, and monsters from ancient myths, and have everyone interact in an interesting and likeable story? Greg Rucka, I don't envy you your job.

This is the first Wonder Woman story I've ever read, and it could very well be the last. This just doesn't work for me. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm no fan of magical beast and characters unless they are in a fantasy world setting. I think sci-fi and fantasy are like oil and water. They don't mix well at all. One of the DC universe's biggest weaknesses is their incredibly large pantheon of gods, goddesses, and magical characters. There are simply too many to handle. They step on each other's toes and their powers and origins are contradictory. Who's really in charge? Who really has the authority? Who is the real deity and who are the pretend ones? Who has the power to create? Who can grant immortality? Where does the power come from? It just doesn't make sense. If you're not one for deep thoughts or care little about spiritual matters or the purpose of life, these things may not bother you, but I have a problem with it. The DC universe's spiritual realm is more of a disaster than Marvel's. Magical or mythical characters just don't work in contemporary settings. That's why, for me, if they ever made a live-action version of Avengers, it just wouldn't work for me unless Thor and Scarlet Witch were excluded....

Anyway, back to the story. This story focused on Wonder Woman's attempts to save one of her friends from a terrible tragedy, her hidden foe plotting against her, an old enemy from the past rising back to life to threaten her at some point in the future, and lots of women running around scantily clad. The story included, blood, profanity, sex, and violence - not really what I was expecting from the book - especially since the first few pages seemed to be aimed at a younger audience.

Rucka puts forth an admirable effort at trying to incorporate the supernatural and magical elements on the Wonder Woman mythos into a believable, real-world setting, but it's all just too implausible. I can't swallow that, and that takes all the fun out of the book for me. Still, I applaud his efforts. This book has got to be one of the toughest books DC has, in terms of writing the character. If he was writing stories of Wonder Woman set strictly in Themyscira, I could genuinely enjoy it. This book and this character just don't work for me.

And why are there four artists and three inkers for a six issue story arc? Can't we get a single person for at least one arc? I hate it when editors have to do this or choose to do this. I much prefer story arcs written and drawn by a single duo, not a big group. That's one of the things I disliked about Outsiders - a book that continues to do things like this. Ugh. Although the artwork was strong throughout the book, I didn't keep track of who was doing which pages, and I have no desire to.

Are you getting the feeling I didn't like this book? You're right. I thought it was a waste of good talent. Any one of the people who worked on this book could have been put to better use on something else. The whole cast seems talented enough, so why not put them on something worthy of their talents. In fact, let's just cancel this title altogether.

This review is just hard to write. It's pretty rare when I like the entire creative team's efforts but don't like the book. I guess what this boils down to is that I really dislike this character, so it's hard to like much about this book. Great talent, wasted efforts.

Writing: 7/10
Artwork: 8/10
Overall: 7.5/10

Hmm. Look at that! A 7.5 score, but I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. Read more ›

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection October 23, 2009

By Dora

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Gotta love Rucka's Wonder Woman- she had a solid sense of honor and purpose, something Gail Simone's Wonder Woman is severely lacking. If DC wants to know why WW title sales are down, G.Simone is the reason. Bring back Rucka!