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To be fair, this news has been out there for months and months, but USA TOday made it official: following the end of the Brian Azzarello/Cliff Chiang run on Wonder Woman, the team of writer Meredith Finch and artist David Finch are taking over the book starting with #36 in November. Mr Finch is of course well known for his Marvel/DC work, most of it with the slick, attractive female superheroes that we’re used to; Mrs Finch has written some books for Zenescope previously.

With their dark, often gruesome run, Azzarello and Chiang created a singular vision for the Azmazon princess, surely one of the definitive runs on the book. It’s a tough act to follow, let alone with a new writer whose every move will be scrutinized in the run up to the Wonder Woman movie with Gal Godot slated for 2017. Are these two Tumblr ready?

“I love the idea that it’s a woman writing a woman because we’re trying to appeal to more female readers now,” says David.

Adds Meredith: “it makes sense if you’re going to try to attract that female market that you appeal to them on every level — your writing demographic reflects the demographic of your readership.”


and

“That’s one aspect of being a female writer I can bring to her. Women tend to react in a different way, and I can bring some of that reactionary (thinking), going from your heart sometimes more than from your head,” she says.


I wish these kids the best. Just remember: what would Clint Desmpsey do?

UPDATE: Oh NOW I SEE why social media has been up in arms ALREADY about this.

David: And for my part, I’m excited to be drawing Meredith’s story and to be drawing such an icon. That’s something — since I’ve been at DC, it’s been an incredible privilege to be able to draw characters like Batman, and to the limited degree I’ve had, to draw Superman, and now to get into Wonder Woman. I think she’s a beautiful, strong character. Really, from where I come from, and we’ve talked about this a lot, we want to make sure it’s a book that treats her as a human being first and foremost, but is also respectful of the fact that she represents something more. We want her to be a strong — I don’t want to say feminist, but a strong character. Beautiful, but strong.


Okay you know feminism is such a dirty word these days, you can see why you’d avoid making the caracter who was on the first issues of MS a feminist. But there’s also this:

Have the two of you collaborated on a creative project together, either in comics or outside of it?

David: No–

Meredith: He says no, but the fact of the matter is, yes! [Laughs] He did that “Wolverine” #900 that he co-plotted with C.B. Cebulski, and of course we talked about it, and I also talk through ideas with him, and we have conversations about how to do this or on that–

David: I think it’s been a bit of a — we actually came up with a creator-owned project years ago that one day it would be great to do if we actually found the time to do. When I did “Batman: The Dark Knight,” for the most part, I wanted to do something a little darker, and that’s not really where DC was coming from. I wanted it to be my own. I probably ignored advice that would have been helpful! [Laughter] I feel like I went from trying to take a lead role with a lot of that stuff to realizing, you know what, I’m an artist. I feel pretty comfortable doing that, and I’m really not a writer; it’s not my strong suit. I have a really hard time keeping plot details oriented in my head because I’m so visual. I’m happy to leave the writing to somebody that is a little smarter than I am!


I’m not going to dig into anyone’s couple dynamics but….I think this is an outtake from Best in Show.

Anyway, I think it’s VERY safe to say that the Finch team is merely a stopgap until a new creative steps in for the JL movie pre-launch and WW’s first appearance in Henry and Ben: where’s my cowl, dude?

9 COMMENTS

  1. hiring a guy who got his name during bad-girl era Wildstorm and a lady who started out working for the bad-girl throwback publisher Zenoscope for Wonder Woman seems …imprudent, given the direction of the gender conversation in comics.

  2. This is sad news. To be fair, he responded via twitter:

    I wasn’t saying Wonder Woman is not for being equal, and therefore a feminist. I just want her to be a human being, fallible and real.
    — David Finch (@dfinchartist) July 1, 2014

    I certainly apologize to anyone who can see how it could be interpreted that way, but it couldn’t be further from my heart.
    — David Finch (@dfinchartist) July 1, 2014

  3. More and more frequently, I tell myself “Just wait to read the actual thing before you judge it, Ed.” I get so wrapped up in the pre-pub drama and often don’t give creators a chance to create. But I’m trying harder. Good luck to David and Meredith!

  4. Finch’s Twitter clarifications are perhaps even more awkward. Apparently feminists can be neither fallible or real, never mind qualify as human beings.

  5. I agree, I just saw that and figured it’s fair to see his response to the outcry.

    His pinups for Diana say it all for me. He doesn’t ‘get’ the character.

  6. Apparently this is how DC finds new writers for one of its most enduring characters. I look forward to seeing Greg Capullo’s chiropractor taking over writing duties on Green Arrow.

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