Who is Wonder Woman?

While I'm rabbiting on about Wonder Woman, I thought I'd give my two-bits concerning what the essence of the character is, and what her writers should keep in mind.

I won't bother with the backstory, as I think it's enough to say William Moulton Marston's version should never have been tampered with. The practicalities of how she established her secret identity as Diana Prince, and exactly what rank and role she plays in the services can happily be adapted to fit modern times - as can the reason why Steve Trevor was flying over Themyscira in the first place. But the rest of it should stay in place.

No, what I want to talk about involves two elements of her character that are often forgotten and left behind by writers:

Firstly, Wonder Woman is (and hear me out on this one) Sister Maria from The Sound of Music. Essentially, her character is a girl who was raised by nuns in an all-girl boarding school and saw herself becoming a nun as part of a natural progression. She was sheltered from the "real world" for most of her life, and thought she would spend the rest of her life living like the women who educated her. However, she's so full of life and energy and adventure that she gets sent out from the community of the convent to undertake a mission - believing the whole time that she will return to the convent when her mission is completed.

The whole of the "real world" is something of an awfully big adventure, but she has a job to do and she's going to do it to the best of her ability. She's young and idealistic and believes she can make a positive difference in the lives of those around her. But she's also completely out of her depth - she was not raised in this society, she has never done this job before, and she's not entirely sure where the boundaries are. As a result, she occasionally steps over them and finds herself at loggerheads with the people who do belong in this world.

And, then, she really doesn't know what to do about that man. She's never met anyone like him before and she's starting to notice that when he's around she's experiencing feelings she's never felt before (she doesn't know what to do about those, either). She does know that she shouldn't be having feelings like that about him - there are all sorts of reasons for keeping a professional distance. For example: she works for him, they belong to different worlds and she's expecting to go back to the convent soon...

Yes, there's also superpowers and fighting bad guys thrown into that, but essentially that's where she's at in terms of her foray into man's world.

Secondly, like Superman, Wonder Woman constantly pivots around a love-triangle involving two people. Steve Trevor is captivated by Wonder Woman; Diana Prince is in love with Steve Trevor. For reasons that can change as often as they need to be updated for the "modern reader", Steve Trevor doesn't know that Wonder Woman and Diana Prince are the same person, and she's not allowed to tell him. Neither of her identities is real - she's lying to him on both fronts as she tries to support two secret identities, and has no one to share her true self with. So he's chasing her while she pines after him. She must keep her distance and keep a good working relationship with the man, while at the same time struggling with feeling confused about the whole thing. Is she jealous of herself? Can she waste time on this when there is a world to save? It's a delicate balance that can't really be tipped one way or the other. Untenable? Yes. Yet it must continue, and she must endure - for she is here on a mission, and when that mission is over she will be returning to her convent/island.

So here we have it: a young woman, new to the world and new to love, trying to keep her distance from the man who may very well make her happy as she tries to figure out how this place works, complete her mission, save the world, and return home feeling like she's accomplished something worthwhile. Always wondering if maybe, just maybe, she could stay and make a life here. Always knowing she doesn't belong in this place, and her home is very far away. Trying to fit into the world and save it at the same time, while also trying to figure out her own heart. Not an easy challenge, when you think about it.

Hmm. I suddenly feel like watching The Sound of Music again.