A review by nickpalmieri
Wonder Woman: Paradise Found by Brandon Badeaux, José Marzán Jr., Marlo Alquiza, Travis Moore, Lary Stucker, Andy Lanning, Phil Jimenez, Kevin Conrad
4.0
Jimenez's art remains the highlight. Still as detailed and easy to follow as ever, he knows just how to draw characters to make them appear both real and other-worldly. There's a small section at the beginning and a small story at the end that are drawn by others, but the switch in art does not detract from the story.
Story-wise, it's a shame the series had to tie in with a crossover, but there's still some good work here. The first three chapters all tie in to a big event called "Our Worlds at War" (OWAW), which ran through major DC books at the time. Jimenez approaches each of these three chapters differently: The first is mostly unrelated and sets up a later story, but it gets the characters in place for the crossover; the second drops us directly into the middle of the world of the crossover, but gives us enough information and such a personal story that the fine details of the crossover don't matter; and the third issue is intimately tied to the event. In the first chapter, readers are brought up-to-speed on an old character who is brilliantly redefined and used well. The second is very focused and personal, resulting in a wonderful, emotional issue. But the point I got lost in the OWAW events was in the final chapter, as it had to play the double-duty of catching readers up to speed and acting as the concluding chapter of OWAW. So much expository information is thrown at the reader, only for everything to end ten pages later. The whole thing would have seemed futile if not for the unexpected team-up, the great moment with the Themyscirans, and an event that pays off in the final chapter. The OWAW chapters were somewhat uneven, but they are enjoyable if you look at each chapter separately and accept what you don't know.
The next three issues are a major Circe story. The first issue, the set-up issue, picks up on threads from the first issue of this collection. I'd imagine this first chapter works very well for readers who only jumped on at "Paradise Lost." Then the second issue is the all-out fight. This issue is for those of you who like things like Infinite Crisis, JLA/Titans, Gods of Gotham, and other Phil Jimenez stories with slow-motion action in extreme, painstaking detail. For me personally, this chapter contained so many characters that even I- a huge DC fan for about a decade- had no idea who a lot of them were, and as a result it didn't hold my interest too well. The final chapter is the personal "final battle" with Circe, containing major payoff for those who have been following her development throughout the Wonder Woman series. Unfortunately, most of that development hasn't been collected, so I'm sure a lot of this was lost on readers, too.
The final issue and the epilogue chapter after it conclude the threads introduced in Paradise Lost and undo some of the damage done since then. A solid end to the story, and while I haven't yet read the other 11 (uncollected) issues of Jimenez's run on this title, this works as a very satisfying conclusion.
Overall, if you enjoyed Paradise Lost, I'd recommend this book as well. Even with all the unevenness here, it's still entertaining and worth it to see the variety of storytelling tactics on display and the conclusion of the threads introduced in that first book.
Story-wise, it's a shame the series had to tie in with a crossover, but there's still some good work here. The first three chapters all tie in to a big event called "Our Worlds at War" (OWAW), which ran through major DC books at the time. Jimenez approaches each of these three chapters differently: The first is mostly unrelated and sets up a later story, but it gets the characters in place for the crossover; the second drops us directly into the middle of the world of the crossover, but gives us enough information and such a personal story that the fine details of the crossover don't matter; and the third issue is intimately tied to the event. In the first chapter, readers are brought up-to-speed on an old character who is brilliantly redefined and used well. The second is very focused and personal, resulting in a wonderful, emotional issue. But the point I got lost in the OWAW events was in the final chapter, as it had to play the double-duty of catching readers up to speed and acting as the concluding chapter of OWAW. So much expository information is thrown at the reader, only for everything to end ten pages later. The whole thing would have seemed futile if not for the unexpected team-up, the great moment with the Themyscirans, and an event that pays off in the final chapter. The OWAW chapters were somewhat uneven, but they are enjoyable if you look at each chapter separately and accept what you don't know.
The next three issues are a major Circe story. The first issue, the set-up issue, picks up on threads from the first issue of this collection. I'd imagine this first chapter works very well for readers who only jumped on at "Paradise Lost." Then the second issue is the all-out fight. This issue is for those of you who like things like Infinite Crisis, JLA/Titans, Gods of Gotham, and other Phil Jimenez stories with slow-motion action in extreme, painstaking detail. For me personally, this chapter contained so many characters that even I- a huge DC fan for about a decade- had no idea who a lot of them were, and as a result it didn't hold my interest too well. The final chapter is the personal "final battle" with Circe, containing major payoff for those who have been following her development throughout the Wonder Woman series. Unfortunately, most of that development hasn't been collected, so I'm sure a lot of this was lost on readers, too.
The final issue and the epilogue chapter after it conclude the threads introduced in Paradise Lost and undo some of the damage done since then. A solid end to the story, and while I haven't yet read the other 11 (uncollected) issues of Jimenez's run on this title, this works as a very satisfying conclusion.
Overall, if you enjoyed Paradise Lost, I'd recommend this book as well. Even with all the unevenness here, it's still entertaining and worth it to see the variety of storytelling tactics on display and the conclusion of the threads introduced in that first book.