Wonder Woman... Who is She?

We all know who Wonder Woman is. Clad in red, white in blue, she is a warrior, a princess, a hero, and an American feminist icon. 

She is all of the above, but here lies the real question: Who is she?

I bring this to mind, because I love Wonder Woman, and so did my grandma. With that in mind though, while we both enjoy the character, and know the name, we’re referring to what it seems to be two completely different personas.

My grandmother grew up with the first version of the Wonder Woman comics, but more specifically, the live-action adaption. Portrayed by Lynda Carter, she is self-righteous, and kind. Very different in comparison to the version I grew up with.

I grew up with the Wonder Woman in the animated series: Justice League. In this version she is very rash, brash, and extremely short-tempered. In fact, in all other adaptions of her that I’ve seen, she retains these exact traits

So with one character and two completely different personas, it begs to ask the question, who is Wonder Woman really? Like what changed her? Was it the screen writers choice? The producers? The age? Is it a promotion that’s trying to appeal to the audience? And the ‘audience’ would be... who exactly? Young girls, or boys? 

Her personalitly isn’t the only thing that changes either.

Her orgin varies depending on which ‘universe’ you read into. They story remains pretty much the same, with Diana, AKA Wonder Woman, was sculpted from clay by her mother, Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. And by the wishes of her mother, and the power of the gods, she was born.

How she left the island of Themyscira is where the story arc changes. One thing that remains the same is she joined a competition where the victor would leave and represent Themyscira. However, whether she entered as herself, or in disguise depends on the version. Which makes one wonder, what is it that writers obtained by changing this small detail?

Like many female icons in the media, she has her fair share of lovers as well. From Steve Trevor, the pilot who crash landed in her homeland of Themyscira and would eventually take her to America, to the Batman, to Superman even. Once again, this all depends on the version you pick up.

The last, most obvious change in her character, is her character design. Through the ages, her hair has lost it’s short curly style that is similar to Disney’s Snow White, and become longer, straighter, and more luscious like a Dove’s shampoo add. Her costume, originally a skirt, was then turned to shorts, that turned into basically a variation underwear, and now people are debating putting some actual pants on her. You can literally watch as she went from a character, to an icon, to a sex symbol, to... what now?

So by stopping to put the original Wonder Woman, next to the woman we see now, side by side, they’re two different people. She seems to go from a princess, to badass warrior. And so:

Who is she? Because if it was me, and people kept changing my personality and what I'm supposed to wear, I'd probably be having an identity crisis. Just saying...

~Story