Wonder Woman: 10 Facts About The Amazons You Need To Know | CBR – CBR – Comic Book Resources

Posted: February 22, 2021 at 2:22 pm

There have been many reinventions of the Amazons in their long history, but some have distinguished themselves in the grand scheme of things.

Interest in the lore of the DC Universe has expanded after the success ofthe DCEU's films, with Wonder Woman being the most successful one yet. The Amazons have garnered such fan interest that there is to be a spin-off film based entirely on this tribe.

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Its worth knowing more about the Amazons from the source material as the DCEU derives most ofits characters'backstory from there. There have been many retcons and reinventions of the Amazons in their long history, but some havedistinguished themselves in the grand scheme of things.

The first story featuring Wonder Woman in All Star Comics #8 established that the Amazons were from a place known as Paradise Island. Aphrodite had been the one to sculpt all the Amazon women out of clay and breathed life into them.

In this continuity, the last one to be sculpted was Diana, which made her the youngest one. At the time, the Amazons lived to serve Aphrodite and the Goddess was the one who granted them life, favor, and immortality.

The first story is the best comic for new readersbecauseit establishes both Wonder Woman and the Amazons. It depicted Steve Trevor landing in Paradise Island by accident and discovering the Amazons that inhabited the place.

After learning of the World War that was taking place in the human world, the Amazons engaged in a competition to decide who would accompany Steve back to his world and fight alongside him. This competition was much like the one shown in the intro of Wonder Woman 1984, and Diana ended up winning.

This would be an interesting storyline for the DCEU to adapt, as the Amazons origins still havent been depicted in that universe. All Star Comics #8 showed the history of Amazonia, once a great nation that Hercules decided to conquer.

While he lost Hippolyte, he seduced her to steal the magic girdle, which angered Aphrodite enough for her to claim the Amazons immortality. Although Hippolyte managed to reclaim the girdle and their immortality, Aphrodite banished the Amazons to Paradise Island as punishment for failing in the human world.

It remains to be seen if this tribe becomes one of the next villains DCEU's Wonder Woman will fight, as the Amazons of Themyscira were shown to have contentious relations with the Bana-Mighdall Amazons. Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #29-33 showed the origins of this tribe.

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Theyre a splinter group who were part of Antiopes tribe that never got the immortality of the Themyscira Amazons.Becauseof this, they were forced to accept the favor of Egyptian gods who granted them the Bana-Mighdall city that was surrounded by a powerful sandstorm to protect their land.

This is an origin story that the DCEU has so far ignored, as the idea of reincarnated souls becoming warriors might be too much of a stretch. In the Post-Crisis continuity of the DC Universe, the Amazons history was changed to depict them as having once been women who were killed by men.

Artemis was the one who brought them to life in this continuity, as she transformed them from their sculpted clay forms into strong bodies with eternal youth and trained them to be warriors much like the goddess that birthed them.

Its no wonder that Diana is the Wonder Woman as shes the strongest Amazon yet. In fact, being Wonder Woman isnt just a superhero title, as the moniker is bestowed upon the Amazon that has proven herself to be a champion and ambassador for Themyscira.

Dianas mother, Hippolyta, was Wonder Woman before her, having been the one to lead the Amazons to Paradise Island after freeing them from Hercules slavery. The Amazon who proves herself to usurp Dianas achievements will become Wonder Woman in her place.

Wonder Woman Vol. 3 #18 is a comic that DCEU fans will enjoy reading, as it depicts further information about the Amazons. The courting ritual of the women on the island was shown, which involved presenting a coconut from one Amazon to another, containing a necklace and a bracelet.

The one who initiates the courting needs to place the necklace around the neck of the Amazon shes pursuing along with wrapping the bracelet around the wrist. If the intended lover accepts this gift, the Amazons are considered to be united in a relationship.

The Amazons origins have gone through enough changes to eventually end up with the belief that there were five original goddesses who were responsible for their creation. The Feast of the Five is meant to be a celebration of this event and tribute to the goddesses.

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It is the holiest day for the Amazons, as it signifies their beginning as a tribe and acknowledges the legacy they have carved out for themselves. To this end, the Feast of the Five is seen as a day where they go all-out in celebration and prayer to the goddesses.

The Amazons can be hurt by powerful weapons but are inherently immortal and have a natural healing factor. However, they can still be killed or fatally wounded,but can be healed by using the Earths soul to renew their bodies, as seen in Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #30.

Diana was shown doing so in Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #120, where she prayed to Gaea to grant her this healing ability, explaining that its not something the Amazons can do all the time and the prayer can only be answered under special circumstances.

Initially, it appeared as if the Amazons only had similar appearances to Wonder Woman. However, Wonder Woman Secret Files and Origins went to extensive lengths in Amazonian history and showed that the tribe has every ethnicity in its ranks.

This makes Themyscira a multi-ethnic place, although one thats only inhabited by women. Every woman is considered a warrior and trained in the same manner in a number of skills.

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Saim Cheeda is an entertainment writer covering all of Film, TV, Gaming and Books. He's been a writer for The Gamer, Screen Rant and CBR since 2017, contributing 100+ articles for a variety of topics. Saim also covers entertainment articles for Fansided.Apart from freelance writing, Saim is a lifestyle blogger, co-owning the blog 3 States Apart.

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