Quotes / Wonder Woman

Comics

From Wonder Woman

"Not since Heracles first put us in chains has an Amazon been bested War-God! I have been charged by the Gods of Olympus to put an end to your mad scheme...and with their aid, or without it, put an end to it I shall!"

—Wonder Woman (Vo. 2) #6. Written by George Pérez

"If it means interfering in an ensconced, outdated system, to help just one woman, man or child…I’m willing to accept the consequences."

— Wonder Woman (Vo. 2) #170. Written by Phil Jimenez & Joe Kelly

"If the prospect of living in a world where trying to respect the basic rights of those around you and valuing each other simply because we exist are such daunting, impossible tasks that only a superhero born of royalty can address them, then what sort of world are we left with? And what sort of world do you want to live in?"

— Wonder Woman (Vol. 2) #170. Written by Phil Jimenez & Joe Kelley

Wonder Woman: "Don't. Get. Up."

Batman: "...Alright. You win."

—Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia. Written by Greg Rucka.

"There's the door, Spaceman "

—DC: The New Frontier. Written by Darwyn Cooke.

"Great Hera, look at you. Ready to kill or die over something neither of you want. Both of you are better than this."

—DC: The New Frontier. Written by Darwyn Cooke.

We have a saying, my people. Don’t kill if you can wound, don’t wound if you can subdue, don’t subdue if you can pacify, and don’t raise your hand at all until you’ve first extended it.

— Wonder Woman (Vol. 3) #25. Written by Gail Simone

I have travelled far and wide. I have warred with the angels and supped with the devils. I have seen universes birthed into my hands, and men dying with my name fumbling from their lips. I have known cruelty and I have known love. And I chose love.

—Wonder Woman Vol (6) #4. Written by Tom King

Other Characters on Wonder Woman

At last, in a world torn by the hatreds and wars of men, appears a WOMAN to whom the problems and feats of men are mere child's play- a woman whose identity is known to NONE, but whose sensational feats are outstanding in a fast-moving world! With a hundred times the agility and strength of our best male athletes and strongest wrestlers. She appears as though from nowhere to avenge an injustice or right a wrong. As lovely as Aphrodite- as wise as Athena- with the speed of Mercury ^note  That's the Roman name for Greek god Hermes and the strength of Hercules- She is known only as WONDER WOMAN, but who she is, or whence she came, nobody knows!

— Narrator from All-Star Comics #8, Written by William Moulton Marston

"Diana, in this make-believe laminated business of mine, finding true innocence is rare, true honesty even rarer, and true love nearly impossible. Yet you've known it all your life. All the happiness I've ever clawed and fought for, you were simply born into. On that wonderful Paradise Island. What I wouldn't give to know that kind of feeling. To be part of a world of innocence and unequivocal love. To be truly happy. God, what I wouldn't give for that".

—Myndi Mayer, Wonder Woman (Vol. 2) Annual #1. Written by George Pérez.

"Our contest...I wanted you to know...the better Amazon now wears the costume of Wonder Woman".

— Artemis, Wonder Woman Secret Files and Origins Issue #1. Written by Joanna Sandsmark.

"In our community, we simplify Superman and Batman into the LIGHT and the DARK sides of our nature. Wonder Woman encompasses BOTH. COMPLETELY maternal and caring, and all the BEST qualities a person could have… but I’ve seen her at WAR with an AXE in her hand. And that’s where the sweetness STOPS".

— Black Canary, Birds of Prey #68. Written by Gail Simone.

"Her name is Princess Diana. Sometimes she hides her nature and identity, if such a thing were possible, under the name Diana Prince. By combat and contest she was chosen to represent an island nation of Amazon women who claim to be descendants of the Greek Gods. She was one of the first members of the Justice League of America and lives not to fight, but to work for peace. It is a mistake many make to categorize her as a warrior. She is far more than her training and skill suggest".

— Batman, Justice. Written by Jim Kruger and Alex Ross.

Batman: For an operative for a global peacekeeping agency about to face certain death, you sure do seem awfully relaxed, Trevor
Steve Trevor: Call me Steve, buddy boy. Let's just say I got a guardian angel, and I do mean angel, watching over me.

— Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Scorn of the Star Sapphire .

Villains

Circe: Come back home. To New York. I've been making some changes to the Big Apple while you've been here. Turning Men into Animals. Women against Men. Lovers against Lovers. All the things you despise and fight against with a passion.
Wonder Woman: What! Why?!
Circe: Because it's what I do, sweetheart. It's the kind of world I want to live in. And because I hate you.

— Wonder Woman (Vol. 2) #174, written by Phil Jimenez

"I'd love it if you would sign it for me. Something like 'To my archenemy, may you burn forever in Hades.'"

— Ares, Wonder Woman #199 (Vol. 2), written by Greg Rucka

Wonder Woman (1975-1979)

"Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman!
All the world's waiting for you
And the power you possess
In your satin tights
Fighting for your rights
And the old red, white, and blue!

Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman!
Now the world is ready for you
And the wonders you can do
Make a hawk a dove
Stop a war with love
Make a liar tell the truth!

Wonder Woman!
Get us out from under, Wonder Woman!
All our hopes are pinned upon you
And the magic that you do
Stop a bullet cold
Make the Axis fold
Change their minds and change the world!

Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman!
You're a wonder, Wonder Woman!"

—Full lyrics to the theme song of the show

"Hurt you? Where I'm from we try never to hurt people."

— Wonder Woman, played by Lynda Carter, Wonder Woman Pilot

This is the Golden Lasso. Besides being made from an indestructible material, it also carries with it the power to compel people to tell the truth. Use it well, and with compassion.

— Queen Hippolyta, played by Cloris Leachman, Wonder Woman Pilot

Henchman: "Are you the real Wonder Woman?"

Wonder Woman: "Don't make me prove it."

— "The Pied Piper" (Season 2, Episode 6)

[[Lynda Cater]] put more magic into the world of Wonder Woman than any other person on Earth, with the exception of her creator.

—Pete Marston, son of William Moulton Marston

"I think it has a lot to do with Lynda [Carter]’s performance. There’s just something…  She’s stunningly beautiful, she’s empowered, she’s attractive without being too sexy. There’s just a sort of all-American, beautiful, soothing, maternal quality to her. She’s what Wonder Woman should be. She encompasses everything great and powerful about being a woman, and Lynda took it all seriously. There was no judging the fact that she was playing a super hero. She took it as seriously as if she was playing Florence Nightingale or Eleanor Roosevelt. It was a role and she threw herself into it, and it shows. It’s what makes it have so much impact and such timelessness. People tend to get spoiled reading those lists of the fifty super hero movies coming out in the next five years. Back in the day, until Tim Burton’s Batman changed everything, super hero stuff was few and far between, and most of it erred on the side of being really silly. So to have something that spoke to a character in a way that was fun, accessible and respectful, that really stood out and it continues to do so—it’s one of the best performances in super hero film and television."

— Marc Andreyko, author of DC Comics' Wonder Woman '77, in an interview by Tim Beedle for dccomics.com/blog, Jan. 8, 2015

"The Wonder Woman TV show, particularly its first season, captured a sense of Wonder Woman perfectly, and what I mean by that is that Lynda Carter, the lead who played Wonder Woman, understood very clearly what that character was and what she was about, which was peace, which was about equality, which was about challenging gender norms, which was about power through strength, but strength of will."

— Phil Jimenez, Superheroes: A Never-Ending Battle

"For my generation, and many generations, Lynda Carter's performance as Wonder Woman was just the same as getting Christopher Reeve to play Superman"

—Alex Ross, Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman

Writers on Wonder Woman

“Not even girls want to be girls so long as our feminine archetype lacks force, strength, and power. Not wanting to be girls, they don't want to be tender, submissive, peace-loving as good women are. Women's strong qualities have become despised because of their weakness. The obvious remedy is to create a feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman.”

—William Moulton Marston

“Dear Princess Diana,

I just wanted to let you know how grateful I was that you allowed me to document your adventures, and it is with great sadness that I must announce my retirement from the Wonder Woman series.

I've learned a lot these past few years and I'd like to think to think I'm a better person for having followed your adventures and hope that I did your exploits justice.”

As so often happens in life, it's time to move on to start working on the next chapter in the book if life (a recurring image you'll notice in the final issue.) I leave you in the capable hands of William Messnar-Loebs, about whom you might want to ask your new friend Dr. Fate, and the talented Jill Thompson.

Well, that's it for me. I'm glad your current troubles are over and hope your future will prove less hazardous. In your line of work I know that seems unlikely, but there's no harm in hoping.

Take care, Princess Diana. And as they say on Themyscira: The Glory of Gaea be with you."

—George Pérez, ''Wonder Woman'' (Vol. 2), #62

"Of all books I took on, with Wonder Woman I am incredibly proud that after all these years … people are saying (of the Gal Gadot movie), “they captured your Wonder Woman.” And the director, Patty Jenkins, even acknowledged me as one of the influences."

—George Pérez, How George Perez Saved Wonder Woman From Becoming a ‘Raunchy Sex Object’

"If you need to stop an asteroid, you call Superman. If you need to solve a mystery, you call Batman. But if you need to end a war, you call Wonder Woman."

— Gail Simone

"I’ve long been of the belief—and this is from reading, as well as creating—that the “contradiction” of Wonder Woman as a warrior/pacifist doesn’t really hold up if you examine her actual history. Except for a few bumps in the road here and there, Diana was raised in a pretty idyllic paradise, sheltered from all manner of horror, and raised by an island of women who upheld love, peace, and strength through training as their greatest virtues (it was called Paradise Island for a reason). I think Hippolyta raised the Amazons’ perfect ambassador by rearing her in a world of unrestrained beauty, love, wisdom and (certainly pre-Crisis) intellectual curiosity. She doesn’t see the world as the other Amazons do—her upbringing, power and experience mark her as unique among them—and I think of her as feeling very differently about Man’s World than her sisters (the “300” version of Wonder Woman and the Amazons may be the most commercially viable version of them, but it’s mired more in modern tastes and trends than in an actual reading of the original texts, IMHO)."

—Phil Jimenez, Five Questions With: Phil Jimenez

"Wonder Woman has such an interesting cultural origin – she was designed by this Harvard-educated psychologist named William Moulton Marston as propaganda for his theories that the world would be a much better place if men just submitted utterly to women. Which is a fairly radical theory now, and yet became a mainstream cultural success during World War II."

—El Sandifer

"Diana is raised on Paradise Island, where her mother and her Amazon sisters have created a healthy and loving society. They worship the goddesses of Greek myth—in the early stories, Aphrodite, goddess of love, defined in opposition to Ares, the god of war; in later stories, a collection of Greek goddesses including Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Demeter, and Hestia. The goddesses grant Diana her amazing powers. (In some versions Hermes is involved, and in one that I can remember, Hercules; but usually it is one or more goddesses.) The Amazons are trained warriors, quite capable of fighting to protect their home and innocent people. But they prefer love to war, and when possible rehabilitate their enemies instead of killing them. (They have a whole island dedicated to it!) These are the people who, along with Hippolyta, taught Diana their ways.

None of this is an accident. William Moulton Marston, who created Wonder Woman, was, for all his personal idiosyncrasies, a feminist. (Ah, another overloaded word!) He believed in the value of women, a value not based on men. He wanted to depict an image of what women might accomplish if not subject to oppression, discrimination, and male supremacist assumptions. Wonder Woman was not simply a story of One Exceptional Woman who is as good as men—that’s a sexist stereotype exemplified in the early superhero teams (Justice Society of America, Justice League of America, Teen Titans, Fantastic Four, Avengers, X-Men) which, at their inception, each had several male members with varying personal characteristics, and one female. No, Wonder Woman was about more: the value of women and of female relationships, unimpeded by male authority. Even Etta Candy and the Holliday Girls, often seen as comic relief, were a formidable group of young women: brave, loyal, and willing to fight for the good.

This was a radical idea at the time, and was certainly not reflected in any other mainstream comic book. It was partially hidden behind some of the weirdness of Marston’s Wonder Woman stories, with their emphasis on dominance, submissions, being getting chained up, and the like, but it was central to his vision for the character.

And the idea is still important and meaningful today. Some people may insist that we actually do live in a post-feminist world, where men and women are judged on the same criteria and have equal opportunity in all things. But it’s not the case—not in the world, not in the U.S.A., and certainly not within the context of DC comics.

— Doc Bifrost, "Wonder Woman and the Paternal Narrative," themarysue.com

Active or ambitious women were not only rare but often evil. Wonder Woman flipped this paradigm by embodying the strength, assertiveness, and independence usually associated with bad girls and villains in a positive heroic light. The Golden Age Wonder Woman was a blatant rejection of the good girl/bad girl binary and even offered a critique of the good girl role.

— Tim Hanley, Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World's Most Famous Heroine

Even bullying was important to Wonder Woman, and in Sensation Comics #23 she stopped a gang who were picking on a young boy, showed the head bully the error of his ways and learned about his home situation, spoke to his father about his abusive tendencies, and then helped the father get a job in a wartime factory. She always took the time to get to the root of the problem.

— Tim Hanley, Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World's Most Famous Heroine

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