This podcast is part of the LGBTQIA+ Fantastika Graphics Symposium.
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Background music scottholmesmusic.com
Podcast by: Charul (“Chuckie”) Palmer-Patel
But Where Do The Babies Come From?:
A Look at Recent Retcons of DC’s Wonder Woman
What happens in a world where there are no men or patriarchs? How are relations formed? And where do the babies come from? These are some of the questions posed in the origin stories of DC’s Wonder Woman (1941-). As a comic book series, one written and rewritten a number of times by a variety of authors, DC’s Wonder Woman (1941-) has a long and complicated history. This podcast will consider three later additions to the cycle, all written by male authors.
While in the original Wonder Woman comics, Hippolyta creates her daughter Diana from clay Brian Azzarello’s retcon (The New 52, 2011-2015) changes this parthenogenetic birth so that Diana is created from the union of Zeus and Hippolyta, reaffirming the role of heterosexual parentage. Although relatively recent, this version has quickly become canonical as the 2016 film adaptation focused on this relationship. Azzarello’s recon is also problematic because, although the original matriarchal Amazonian society is based on peace and serenity, The New 52 presents Amazonians who are more aggressive, warrior-like, and ultimately, portray a ‘man-hating’ view of feminism.
Alan Moore’s Wonder Woman: Earth One (2016-2018), while applauded for its depiction of lesbian relationships, presents relationships that are further sensationalised. Fortunately, Greg Rucka’s retcon (Rebirth, 2016-2017), while still presenting Amazonians as warrior women, undoes this misandrist interpretation of feminism.
While these texts are still fairly conservative (as they do not engage in sustained conversation about transsexuality, intersexuality, pansexuality, etcetera), each narrative still reveals fruitful insights into binary power structures, family dynamics, and female relationships. This podcast will begin this dialogue as the first steps of a larger project examining power and gender roles in fantasy fiction.
About the Speaker: Charul (“Chuckie”) Palmer-Patel (she/her) is founder of Fantastika Journal. Her first monograph, The Shape of Fantasy (2020) investigates the narrative structures of Epic Fantasy, incorporating ideas from science, philosophy, and literary theory. Her next research project, Mothers, Maternities, and Matriarchs examines systems of power and oppression in American Fantasy. You can find out more about Palmer-Patel at www.doc-fantasy.com.
Disclaimer: The information and ideas in these podcasts are the property of the speakers. Fantastika Journal operates under the Creative Commons Licence CCBY-NC. This allows for the reproduction or transcription of podcasts for non-commercial uses, only with the appropriate citation information. All rights belong to the author.
The views expressed in these podcasts do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Fantastika Journal and its editorial board.
This podcast edited by Kerry Dodd