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WONDER WOMAN Title By FRANK CHO? Artist Said He's 'In Negotiation' With DC
DC Has ‘No Current Plans’ For a Frank Cho Wonder Woman ProjectFrank Cho was announced as "Rebirth"'s lead Wonder Woman cover artist earlier this year, and although he left prematurely the artist has said there's plans for him to return - writing and drawing Wonder Woman after current series writer Greg Rucka leaves - whom, coincidentally, Cho points to as the reason he's no longer doing Wonder Woman covers.
"We’re in negotiation. It’s almost there, pretty much," Cho told Fumettologica of the reported negotiations with DC Comics. "Yeah, I mean, let’s be honest, it’s gonna happen. You know, I have a huge fan base and I have the story already written."
DC has not confirmed Cho's claims, but the cartoonist says he's already written the story - a "pretty much genderless" superhero action story. Although Cho declined to say what the plot was, the way he described it seemed to be in response to other recent Wonder Woman stories.
"I can’t tell you that, but it’s not gonna be an origin story because I hate origin stories. Every single Wonder Woman book that you pick there’s a goddam origin story where nothing happens. I’m going to treat Wonder Woman as I treat all superheroes, as a superhero," said Cho. "It’s pretty much genderless, she will be fighting bad guys, it’s gonna be action, non-stop action from start to finish. And all these female political agenda I’m not even addressing that. She’s Wonder Woman, where there’s a bad guy she’s gonna fight the bad guy and beat him. That’s all it is. That’s what comic books should be."
On his brief tenure as cover artist for the "Rebirth" Wonder Woman title, Cho describes what happened and his plans to return to the title.
"DC recruited me to do the Wonder Woman covers originally and that didn’t work out because of the writer, but they want me back to Wonder Woman as soon as possible, as soon as the writer is gone," sad Cho. "So that’s why I’ve already written a Wonder Woman story to go so that as soon as the writer is gone and I’m pretty sure DC and Marvel want me to draw and it makes sense. It really all the projects kind of play to my strengths as an artist, but at this point of my life I want to write and draw my own stuff. So that’s why I pitch the Wonder Woman story to DC and they really liked it and they said 'All right it’s not an origin story, it’s actually a fun action story' so that’s why they picked it up right away. Or they will."
Despite a report stating otherwise, a DC Comics spokesperson tells CBR there are “no current plans” for a Wonder Woman project by Frank Cho.Comment
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Wonder Woman #16 Cover by Bilquis Evely
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AND YOU PEOPLE WERE WORRIED ABOUT NICOLA LEAVING!!!!!!
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I've enjoyed what Rucka has done with the book since returning overall but this latest issue...meh.Comment
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True, but I have some hopes that the conflicting timelines will resolve interestingly.Originally posted by Hypo View Post
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DC CANCELS LEGEND OF WONDER WOMAN’S SECOND VOLUME
The Mary Sue Article That Killed Wonder Woman
I enjoyed the book but man if you're going to publicly disparage your employer you gotta expect to be fired.Comment
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Grant Morrison gets 3 volumes because he's Grant freaking Morrison.Comment
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Wonder Woman writer and artist dropped by DC over 'challenging relationship'
Legend of Wonder Woman Creative Team Responds to Reports Surrounding CancellationThe critically acclaimed, Eisner-nominated comic series The Legend of Wonder Woman has been cancelled by DC Comics, because of what a spokesperson for DC called “a challenging relationship” with the husband and wife team behind the series.
Artist Ray Dillon and writer Renae De Liz had created nine issues of The Legend of Wonder Woman, telling the story of the Amazonian from her origins on the planet Themyscira to arriving on Earth to become a superhero. A digital-first series, a collected edition was released in hardback on 13 December.
DC had previously announced that the series would continue with a second part to come out in 2017. De Liz told Nerdist.com as recently as last week that more work was coming, saying it would be about a Wonder Woman who “still struggles with trying to find her place beyond the hero in her new world”.
Since the cancellation was announced, fans have been wondering whether it was due to poor sales, or studio sexism towards Wonder Woman. However, the DC spokesperson told the Guardian that though “we loved the book and we were very excited to work on the collected volume”, the studio was concerned about Dillon’s public comments about other teams at DC on social media.
In a series of now-deleted tweets, preserved online on Bleeding Cool, Dillon criticised the writing in another DC series, Wonder Woman: Earth One, and complained when DC approved future volumes of Earth One while he was waiting to hear about the future of his own series.
On hearing the news that Kevin Grevioux had been confirmed to write a series about the Amazonians, titled The Odyssey of the Amazons, Dillon alleged that he and De Liz had already pitched a similar idea to DC but had never heard back about it. De Liz also complained, tweeting that while she was happy the series would happen, she “felt I could have added a lot as a female creator”.
It is an unfortunate situation. We tried hard to make it work,” the DC spokesperson said.
Dillon said: “I wish no negativity on anyone, and support DC and the people who work there 100%. I’m just looking forward to getting through the hurdle of sudden loss of finances during a crucial time and moving forward to an exciting, productive new year.” He said that he and De Liz were now focusing on their creation, the superhero Lady Powerpunch.
When the cancellation was announced on Thursday, De Liz took to Twitter to say she was “surprised and devastated” the series had been cancelled. She also revealed that she is pregnant with her fourth child, tweeting that the announcement had fallen at a difficult time of year, just before Christmas.
After being encouraged by fans on Twitter, De Liz set up a GoFundMe page to accept donations for her family. It has already raised more than $5,000 (Ł4,000) at time of writing, exceeding its initial $2,000 goal in less than 24 hours. More than 400 fans have signed a petition on Change.org, demanding that DC reinstate the series.
In an update, De Liz thanked supporters and said the money would not only help her family at Christmas, but also gave her and Dillon more creative freedom. “No matter what we do, I’ll always be pushing for creating adventures for all ages that are uplifting, fun, and full of examples of diverse, strong characters, especially for young girls to look up to, and show them that they too are capable of doing anything,” she wrote.
DC has historically been sensitive to public criticism from their creators. In 2009, Justice League of America writer Dwayne McDuffie was fired after making comments on a DC Comics discussion board about his frustrations with the project, while Fairest writer Chris Roberson was told specifically that he had lost his role on the DC title for “one tweet which questioned the ethics of the company”.
It has not been a good week for the comic-book character, who turned 75 this year: Wonder Woman also lost her job as the UN ambassador for empowering girls and women after less than two months. More than 45,000 people signed a petition criticising the appointment, saying: “It is alarming that the United Nations would consider using a character with an overtly sexualised image at a time when the headline news in United States and the world is the objectification of women and girls.”
ollowing last week’s news that DC Comics had cancelled a planned second volume of acclaimed digital-first series “The Legend of Wonder Woman,” reports circulated online that it was due not to sales or the quality of the book, but to what DC characterized as a “challenging relationship” between the publisher and its creative team, writer/artist Renae De Liz and colorist Ray Dillon. De Liz has since responded to the reports, calling the assessment of a challenging relationship “fair from both sides.”
“DC stated ‘challenging relationship’ as the cause for the end of LoWW, which I feel is fair from both sides,” De Liz said in a statement issued to CBR and posted on her Facebook. “I want LoWW readers to know, never once did I knowingly cross any lines, or felt I risked LoWW in any way, which is why I was so shocked by the turn of events. I am a very careful person, and would never have risked it.”
RELATED: DC Cancels Legend of Wonder Woman’s Second Volume
The “challenging relationship” was alleged in an article published Tuesday by The Guardian, attributed to an unnamed DC spokesperson. In the article, the DC spokesperson is quoted as calling the cancellation an “unfortunate situation,” and that while DC “loved the book,” the publisher was worried about negative comments towards the company made by the creative team on social media. DC Comics did not comment on the record when reached last week by CBR.
As documented by Bleeding Cool, Dillon had criticized DC Comics in since-deleted tweets for greenlighting a Wonder Woman-related “Odyssey of the Amazons” series written by Kevin Grevioux, saying that De Liz had pitched a similar series. Dillon also took issue with the content of the recent “Wonder Woman: Earth One” graphic novel, and De Liz herself expressed disappointed that an Amazons series was happening without her involvement.
“My couple tweets seen in most articles were relating feelings and not intended as a negative towards DC,” De Liz said in her statement. “I didn’t recognize it was viewed so harshly, and I apologize for any harm they did.”
“I appreciate DC and everyone we worked with there,” Dillon added, in a statement to CBR. “Thrilled to have the chance to work on our vision of Wonder Woman and we hope someday to revisit these characters that we love. Thank you to all the fans who have supporting our work.”
After news of the cancellation hit late last week, fans of the series took to social media to lament the loss of “The Legend of Wonder Woman,” including petitioning for the return of the series. De Liz and Dillon, who are married, started a GoFundMe campaign to help their family recoup the loss of income following the book’s cancellation; in five days, it’s made $5,180 from a $2,000 goal.
Additionally, critics of DC Comics has used the end of “Legend of Wonder Woman” as another example of perceived hypocrisy from the company. An editorial published this week on Comics Bulletin questioned why De Liz and Dillon’s book was cancelled due to public criticism of the company, while longtime DC Comics editor Eddie Berganza, who has been at the center of sexual harassment allegations, remains employed with the company.
The news of the end of “Legend of Wonder Woman” and the reasons behind it has also brought out fans and professionals who report less than favorable experiences working with De Liz and Dillon, largely citing unfulfilled commissions and Kickstarter rewards. Dillon has responded to some of these concerns in a Facebook thread started by a fan seeking a $400 refund based on the money raised via GoFundMe; as seen in the comments, Dillon has now refunded $400 to at least one fan.
In both De Liz and Dillon’s statements, they make it clear they’re looking to move on from this situation and “The Legend of Wonder Woman,” with the duo now working on a creator-owned series titled “Lady Powerpunch.”
“The Legend of Wonder Woman” debuted digitally in November 2015, with its print run starting a couple months later. The series, which presents a new version of Wonder Woman’s origin story, was nominated for Best Digital/Webcomic at the Eisner Awards this year, and has appeared on multiple year-end best-of lists.
Renae De Liz’s complete statement follows in full:
“There’s seems to be a ton of articles on LoWW at the moment, and wild ideas of what happened, and misconceptions of who we are, so let me say a couple things to clarify so we (and DC) can hopefully move on from this. 🙂
DC stated “challenging relationship”as the cause for the end of LOWW, which I feel is fair from both sides. I want LoWW readers to know, never once did I *knowingly* cross any lines, or felt I risked LoWW in any way, which is why I was SO shocked by the turn of events. I am a very careful person, and would never have risked it.
My couple tweets seen in most articles were relating feelings and not intended as a negative towards DC. I didn’t recognize it was viewed so harshly, and I apologize for any harm they did.
In the last week I’ve lost a dream project, been uplifted by the comics community, been accused of being horrible things, while dealing with a threatened pregnancy.
We are not bad people, we didn’t know we were…er…”poo-ing” where we ate and weren’t roving around DC like a couple ungrateful, mindless rebels. We just missed information somewhere which led to us choosing honesty when perhaps we shouldn’t have been.
So I hope now news sites will give my family peace through the Holidays, because we sorely need it, especially for baby soon-to-be. There is no ill will to DC, and no crazy story to tell. It’s just the way things worked out this time.
I will be forever grateful for my time with Wonder Woman, and to the readers who supported it. I’ll always be right here, continuing to support the works of DC’s wonderful creators, and I hope everyone does the same.
”
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Two things:
- The Absolute Wonder Woman volume that came out recently is a gorgeous book. Video review, not by me, is here for those that are interested.
- Bilquis Evely is a better artist than both Liam Sharp and Nicola Scott.
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This June, fans can experience the world of Wonder Woman on more than just Hollywood’s silver screen as DC announces a special one-shot story WONDER WOMAN: STEVE TREVOR #1. This tale from writer Tim Seeley (NIGHTWING, GRAYSON) and artist Christian Duce (DETECTIVE COMICS, BATMAN & ROBIN ETERNAL) introduces a new adventure for the first man who stepped into Wonder Woman’s world in Themyscira.
“Steve and Diana’s longtime friendship, despite their coming from separate worlds, is inspiring. But in this story, we’ll get a chance to see Steve come face to face with a villain from Wonder Woman’s past, who he’ll have to overcome without her help, ” says Seeley. “I’m excited to dive back into the life of Steve Trevor, and give him a new and crazy adventure of his own.”
They have been friends and lovers, but more importantly they have been there for each other over the decades. From Steve’s first moments on Paradise Island to the day that Diana left her home to join Man’s World, they have worked together and fought to protect humanity. But now, Steve Trevor will be forced to face an ancient foe, and he’ll have to do it alone. Where is Wonder Woman? And what will become of Steve Trevor? Find out in this thrilling, action-packed story.
WONDER WOMAN: STEVE TREVOR #1 is on sale June 7.Comment
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