So you might have heard, but DC Comics has gone and given the character of Wonder Woman a new costume yet again, designed by current Wonder Woman ongoing series artist David Finch. This is not to be confused with the costume change she got in 2011 for DC’s New 52 reboot (which, to be fair, was pretty much her classic outfit, but with a change in colors) or the costume change she received the year prior to that, where DC decided that Diana needed a more “street”, urban vigilante look, and give her black pants and a leather jacket. There’s also the costume actress Adriane Palicki wore in the un-aired NBC Wonder Woman pilot…. but the less said about that one, the better.
DC seems ashamed of Wonder Woman’s classic look on some level, despite the fact that they still use the classic costume all the time when licensing the image of the character, on everything from t-shirts to cosmetics. After Finch revealed his new Wonder Woman costume, complete with giant knives coming out of her bracelets and big metal shoulder pads, fans and comics pros alike took to social media to give their two cents, or in the case of artist J. Scott Campbell, he went and designed his own updated look for Wonder Woman, that was little more in keeping with the classic elements of the character.
What is it about Wonder Woman that makes people constantly want to change her iconic look? There is the argument that the costume is just a bathing suit, but when you’re from a culture that doesn’t have our body shame (and you happen to be almost invulnerable to boot) why be covered from head to toe? And when it comes to women’s costumes in superhero comics, is Diana’s really that offensive? Where’s the movement to change Vampirella’s costume for instance? Â We asked comics pros and other industry professionals just how they felt about Wonder Woman’s new costume change. The answers might surprise you.