Jab’s Builds! (Miss Piggy! The Swedish Chef! Sweetums! Gonzo!)

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
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catsi563
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by catsi563 »

think some of mine for her were her first appearance when she lands near Batman and promptly does this lightning fast deflection of hundreds of laser blasts many of which are reflected back at the invader ships firing them

others include the fight club episode where the ladies are all finally free and ready to take on roulette who throws a curveball at them by bringing out diana and the ladies are all like got a plan? Yeah Don't Die.

Also when Brainiac/Luthor is smacking the league around he turns and asks wheres Wonder Woman, Shes flying down from above and throws the Freaking javelin jet at him taking out half the upper floors of the building in the process.
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by JDRook »

I'm looking for more binging fodder and you guys seem to have a lot of love and expertise for the DCAU. Any recommendations on a viewing order and/or skippable list?
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by bsdigitalq »

catsi563 wrote: Thu Jun 27, 2019 1:29 amothers include the fight club episode where the ladies are all finally free and ready to take on roulette who throws a curveball at them by bringing out diana and the ladies are all like got a plan? Yeah Don't Die.
Oh man, that was a great fight. I think, out of all the various fights and battles featuring WW, this is the one that I felt showcased how much of a heavyweight she was in the show.

Another favorite bit was her fight with Aquaman in "The Terror Beyond," which was a good showing for both of them.
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by catsi563 »

JDRook wrote: Thu Jun 27, 2019 2:55 am I'm looking for more binging fodder and you guys seem to have a lot of love and expertise for the DCAU. Any recommendations on a viewing order and/or skippable list?
The generally accepted order is Batman TAS then Superman TAS then Justice league Static shock fits in between JL and JLU. Starcrossed the movie then JLU then batman beyond.

cant go wrong with any of those series.
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Hawk & Dove

Post by Jabroniville »

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HAWK (Hank Hall)
Created By:
Steve Ditko & Steve Skeates
First Appearance: Showcase #75 (June 1968)
Role: Gun-Crazy Conservative, Warmonger, Powerhouse
Voice Actor: Fred Savage
Finest Moment: Voiced by Kevin Arnold
PL 9 (123)
STRENGTH
8 STAMINA 8 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 9 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Acrobatics 2 (+6)
Athletics 3 (+11)
Deception 2 (+5)
Expertise (Gun-Crazy Conservative) 4 (+4)
Intimidation 6 (+9)
Perception 2 (+3)
Stealth 1 (+5)
Vehicles 2 (+4)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Benefit (League Member), Chokehold, Close Attack, Daze (Intimidation), Diehard, Extraordinary Effort, Fascinate (Intimidation), Fast Grab, Fearless, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Smash, Improvised Weapon, Last Stand, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 5, Seize Initiative, Startle, Takedown

Powers:
"Powerhouse"
Impervious Toughness 3 [3]
Leaping 1 (15 feet) [1]
Power Lifting 1 (12 tons) [1]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +9 (DC 19), Toughness +8, Fortitude +9, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation (Peace)
Relationship/Rivalry (Don Hall, aka "Dove")- Hawk & Dove are combative brothers. Don is a peace-loving liberal, whereas Hank is a pro-active, volatile conservative. They love each other dearly, but they bicker constantly.
Normal Identity (Hank Hall)- Without saying the word "Hawk" and transforming, Hank's stats are ST 2, STA 3, and AGI 2.

Total: Abilities: 70 / Skills: 22--11 / Advantages: 26 / Powers: 5 / Defenses: 11 (123)

-Hawk is a pretty decent front-line fighter, using super-strength. He's a PL 9 melee fighter unlike Don, but has far fewer Skills or Powers, instead being a Spider-Man-strong Powerhouse who's a bit weaker defensively. This makes him a pretty tough customer, though limited by his anger. Hawk & Dove are both pretty easy to stat Feat-wise, as they both practically EMBODY offensive vs. defensive tactics in combat. Hawk is expected to use All-Out Attack or Power Attack pretty much all the time.

DOVE (Don Hall)
Created By:
Steve Ditko & Steve Skeates
First Appearance: Showcase #75 (June 1968)
Role: Bleeding-Heart Liberal, Peacenik, Speedster
Voice Actor: Jason Hervey
Finest Moment: "Beat" The Annihilator
PL 9 (142)
STRENGTH
5 STAMINA 5 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Acrobatics 6 (+12)
Athletics 5 (+10)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 1 (+11)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Bleeding-Heart Liberal) 5 (+8)
Insight 5 (+8)
Perception 4 (+7)
Persuasion 5 (+8)
Stealth 2 (+8)
Treatment 4 (+7)

Advantages:
Benefit (League Member), Daze (Persuasion), Defensive Attack, Defensive Throw, Evasion, Fascinate (Persuasion), Fast Grab, Grab Finesse, Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Interpose, Move-By Action, Ranged Attack 4, Redirect, Second Chance (Persuasion Attempts), Set-Up, Teamwork

Powers:
"Super-Speed"
Quickness 4 [4]
Speed 7 (250 mph) [7]
Features 1: Quick Change to Dove in a Free Action [1]

Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Initiative +10

Defenses:
Dodge +13 (DC 23), Parry +13 (DC 23), Toughness +5, Fortitude +7, Will +7

Complications:
Motivation (Peace)
Relationship/Rivalry (Hank Hall, aka "Hawk")- Hawk & Dove are combative brothers. Don is a peace-loving liberal, whereas Hank is a pro-active, volatile conservative. They love each other dearly, but they bicker constantly.
Normal Identity (Don Hall)- Without saying the word "Dove" and transforming, Don's stats are ST 1, STA 2, and AGI 3.

Total: Abilities: 74 / Skills: 40--20 / Advantages: 22 / Powers: 12 / Defenses: 14 (142)

-Dove has a few more options that Hawk in combat, being quicker and having more ways of attacking (Trip, Finesse, Disarm, etc.). His total Defense Bonus is pretty great, as he was adept at avoiding attacks, making him PL 8 offensively, PL 9 defensively. Don's got quite a few Advantages overall, since he was a good finesse fighter who was really hard to hit.

-Hawk & Dove are notable to me primarily for being those weird characters that DC KEEPS FREAKING USING, even though they were never successful for more than a year or so. DC just ADORES the concept, even though the failed in STEVE DITKO's era, much less now. JLU featured the duo only once, as a bickering pair of brothers, kind of using their comics selves in an interesting way... as a "Spock & McCoy" to Wonder Woman, who was growing increasingly violent and angry in her missions. The bull-headed, aggressive Hawk thus reflected her harsh side, while Dove, who was more eager to talk his way out of situations, more what she was SUPPOSED to be doing. My roommate at the time didn't realize they were brothers, and assumed Hawk & Dove were actually a sneaky reference to a bickering gay couple. Maybe it's the powder-blue tights :).

About the Performers: In a brilliant bit of casting, the Hall Brothers were portrayed by none other than Fred Savage & Jason Hervey, better known as the Arnold Brothers from the fantastic, semi-nostalgic wistful series "The Wonder Years". Of course, Fred played the asshole this time around, while "Wayne" (the epitome of butt-headed, bullying older brothers) was the peaceful Dove. I dunno if the actors were busy or what, but Hawk & Dove never got another speaking role, instead just appearing in some background shots doing stuff.

-Savage was a popular child star in his prime ("The Wonder Years" is BELOVED by that generation of adults, as it looked fondly, yet realistically, on the bygone days of their youth), and even featured in "The Princess Bride" as the snotty, sick child being read to by his grandfather. His career went the way of most child stars, though without the requisite drug-fueled fall from grace, and instead his younger brother, Ben, became a one-hit-wonder star for his own show, "Boy Meets World".

-Hervey is most-known to me for being a long-time boyfriend of Missy Hyatte, a pro wrestling valet/Miss Fanservice type. He showed up on WCW programming occasionally, as Hyatte was considered THE sexpot of the business back in those days. Hervey was said to be "VERY appropriately cast" as the butt-headed older brother on "The Wonder Years", by the woman who played his mother on the show- apparently he was just as rambunctious and fight-y. His career pretty much burst after his show ended, and he went into some production work, including as a backstage guy at WCW, which he held until the company's death in 2001. He's since showed up in a lot of Reality Shows, and is still friends with his WCW boss, Eric Bischoff.
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by Woodclaw »

Using Hawk & Dove as foils for Wonder Woman was an absolutely brilliant move, since Diana is pretty much a character defined by her contradictory nature (which is one of the reasons she is so hard to write).

Personally, I really like Hawk & Dove as a concept, but I can see how hard they're to write in an even remotely decent way. For better or worse, we all tend to gravitate toward one end of the spectrum or the other and finding someone who can really write both well is a tall order of business. The JLU episode did a pretty good job of it and I really liked how, in the final scene, Hawk was portrayed as about to go all-out not because he was mad, but because he wanted to protect Dove.
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by HalloweenJack »

bsdigitalq wrote: Wed Jun 26, 2019 9:13 pm My favorite incarnation of Wondy. Absolute perfection. <3
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Evil Star

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

EVIL STAR (Real Name Unknown)
Created By:
Gardner Fox & Gil Kane
First Appearance: Green Lantern #37 (June 1965)
Role: Galactic Serial Killer, Background Villain
Voice Actor: George Newburn
Finest Moment: Got called “Evil Head-Guy” by The Flash, whose mind was stuck in Luthor’s body
PL 10 (126)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 1

Skills:
Deception 3 (+4)
Expertise (Science) 9 (+13)
Expertise (Intergalactic Criminal) 4 (+8)
Intimidation 3 (+4)
Technology 9 (+13)

Advantages:
Improved Critical (Blasts), Power Attack, Ranged Attack 6

Powers:
“The Star-Brand” (Flaws: Removable) [38]
Blast 10 (20)
Flight 8 (500 mph) (16)
Immunity 11 (Aging, Life Support) (11)
-- (47 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Blasts +10 (+10 Ranged Damage, DC 26)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +3, Fortitude +5, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Power)

Total: Abilities: 52 / Skills: 28--14 / Advantages: 8 / Powers: 38 / Defenses: 14 (126)

-Evil Star’s an old Green Lantern villain with a REALLY stupid name, which kind of explains why he doesn’t show up that much. He’s got GL-like powers in the comics, plus the ability to summon super-powered “Starlings”, but on JLU, he was just a forgettable background goon, there to deliver some exposition and get mocked by The Flash (whose mind was trapped in Lex Luthor’s body). The only powers he showcases were Blasts and Flight, so that’s all I’ll give him, plus some Life Support- the comics version appears in the DCA book, and is MUCH more powerful and more expensive. This guy’s just a PL 10 Flying Blaster/Glass Cannon who can’t take a punch.
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Vibe

Post by Jabroniville »

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VIBE (Paco Ramone)
Created By:
Gerry Conway & Chuck Patton
First Appearance: Justice League of America Annual #2 (Oct. 1984)
Role: D-League Hero, Blaster
Voice Actor: None
Finest Moment: Lifted a big chunk o'bridge off the ground.
PL 9 (96)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Acrobatics 4 (+7)
Athletics 4 (+6)
Deception 3 (+5)
Expertise (Street Criminal) 6 (+6)
Insight 2 (+3)
Perception 4 (+5)
Ranged Attack (Blasts) 3 (+9)
Stealth 1 (+4)
Vehicles 5 (+5)

Advantages:
Benefit (League Member), Improved Critical (Blasts), Ranged Attack 6

Powers:
"Vibration Powers"
"Vibratory Wave" Damage 9 (Extras: Area- 30ft. Line) (18) -- [21]
  • AE: "Move Via Waves" Move Object 10 (Flaws: Distracting) (10)
  • AE: "Earthquake" Blast 9 (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (Flaws: Limited to Grounded Targets) Linked to Affliction 9 (Dodge; Hindered/Prone) (Extras: Ranged, Area- 60ft. Burst +2) (Flaws: Limited Degree, Instant Recovery, Limited to Grounded Targets) (13.5)
  • AE: "Vibe Blasts" Blast 9 (18)
Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Vibratory Wave +9 Area (+9 Damage, DC 24)
Vibe Blast +9 (+9 Ranged Damage, DC 24)
Earthquake +9 Area (+9 Damage & Affliction, DC 24 & 19)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +9 (DC 19), Toughness +3, Fortitude +5, Will +5

Complications:
Motivation (Justice)
Reputation (Ex-Gang Member)

Total: Abilities: 38 / Skills: 32--16 / Advantages: 8 / Powers: 21 / Defenses: 13 (96)

-Vibe comes from that weird era of DC Comics where they decided that since all of the "classic" Justice Leaguers had successful books of their own, they didn't need to be on the League anymore, and so a team full of newly-created Jobbers would be best. This has actually happened more than once (the old "JSA" book would remove members the second they were popular enough for their own book, since they didn't need help selling- guys like Wildcat were lifers), but the "JL Detroit" era is particularly infamous for losers like Vibe & Gypsy. Curiously, the whole "Latino With Seismic Powers" thing was actually ripped-off wholesale by Louise Simonson a few years later, for X-Factorcharacter Rictor. It's actually pretty hilarious to think that this loser gimmick "Happy-Go-Lucky Guy" ended up getting his very own rip-off. Of course, Rictor actually proved reasonably-good as a character, whereas Vibe was chosen as the token Team Death, the first Leaguer ever killed in the line of duty. And he's STAYED DEAD, proving just how little anybody cared about him. He got brought back only in the Nu52 era, in an ill-fated attempt to push a Latino character again- it didn't take.

-I know jack squat about Vibe other than what Wikipedia says are "Seismic Powers", so I'll just throw PL 9 version of Rictor's powers onto him. Hee, I ripped off my own build for the guy who got ripped off to give Rictor his identity.
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Re: Vibe

Post by Woodclaw »

Jabroniville wrote: Thu Jun 27, 2019 8:57 pm -Vibe comes from that weird era of DC Comics where they decided that since all of the "classic" Justice Leaguers had successful books of their own, they didn't need to be on the League anymore, and so a team full of newly-created Jobbers would be best. This has actually happened more than once (the old "JSA" book would remove members the second they were popular enough for their own book, since they didn't need help selling- guys like Wildcat were lifers), but the "JL Detroit" era is particularly infamous for losers like Vibe & Gypsy. Curiously, the whole "Latino With Seismic Powers" thing was actually ripped-off wholesale by Louise Simonson a few years later, for X-Factorcharacter Rictor. It's actually pretty hilarious to think that this loser gimmick "Happy-Go-Lucky Guy" ended up getting his very own rip-off. Of course, Rictor actually proved reasonably-good as a character, whereas Vibe was chosen as the token Team Death, the first Leaguer ever killed in the line of duty. And he's STAYED DEAD, proving just how little anybody cared about him. He got brought back only in the Nu52 era, in an ill-fated attempt to push a Latino character again- it didn't take.
It's even more hilarious that he got picked as a supporting character for the Arrowverse Flash, upgrading his powers from "seismic vibrations" to "interdimensional vibrations", making him pivotal to the entire Season 2 and any crossover with Supergirl.
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The Dark Heart

Post by Jabroniville »

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THE DARK HEART
Created By:
Warren Ellis
Role: Mindless Abomination, Minion-Summoner, World-Devourer
Voice Actor: N/A
Finest Moment: Required the entire League just to hold it off.
PL 9 (207)
STRENGTH
-- STAMINA -- AGILITY --
FIGHTING -- DEXTERITY --
INTELLIGENCE -- AWARENESS -- PRESENCE --

Skills:
None

Advantages:
None

Powers:
"Mechanical Body"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Growth 17 (Str & Sta +17, +17 Mass, +8 Intimidation, -8 Dodge/Parry, +2 Speed, -17 Stealth) -- (120 feet) [34]
Protection 18 (Extras: Impervious 15) [33]
Regeneration 12 [12]
Summon 6 (Extras: Controlled, Active, 4096 Multiple Minions +24, Variable Type) [174]

Offense:
Unarmed --
Initiative --

Defenses:
Dodge -- (DC --), Parry -- (DC --), Toughness +18 (+8 Impervious), Fortitude --, Will --

Complications:
Motivation (Destroy All Creation)

Total: Abilities: -76 / Skills: 00--0 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 283 / Defenses: 0 (207)

---

Image

DRONE SPIDERS
PL 4 (62)
STRENGTH
0 STAMINA -- AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 2 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE -- AWARENESS -1 PRESENCE --

Skills:
Perception 4 (+3)

Advantages:
Close Attack 2, Fast Grab, Improved Hold, Teamwork

Powers:
"Mechanical Body"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
"Small Size" Shrinking 4 (Feats: Innate) (Extras: Permanent +0) [9]
(-1 Strength, +2 Defenses, +4 Stealth, -2 Intimidation)

Protection 4 [4]
Leaping 1 (15 feet) [1]
"Claw Legs" Damage 3 [3]
Movement 1 (Wall-Crawling) [2]
"Matter-Eating" Weaken Toughness 4 (Extras: Affects Objects) [8]

Summon Duplicate 5 (Extras: Active) (Flaws: Limited- Only if Sliced Cleanly) [10]

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Matter Eating +4 (+4 Weaken, DC 14)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +4 (DC 14), Parry +4 (DC 14), Toughness +4, Fortitude --, Will -1

Total: Abilities: -12 / Skills: 4--2 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 67 / Defenses: 0 (62)

ATTACK TIGERS
PL 8 (64)
STRENGTH
7 STAMINA -- AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE -- AWARENESS -1 PRESENCE --

Skills:
Perception 4 (+3)

Advantages:
Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Bite), Improved Pin, Teamwork

Powers:
"Mechanical Body"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]

Protection 7 [7]
Leaping 1 (15 feet) [1]
"Claws & Teeth" Strength-Damage +1 [1]
Movement 1 (Wall-Crawling) [2]
"Matter-Eating" Weaken Toughness 4 (Extras: Affects Objects) [8]

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Matter Eating +4 (+4 Weaken, DC 14)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +7, Fortitude --, Will -1

Total: Abilities: 4 / Skills: 4--2 / Advantages: 4 / Powers: 49 / Defenses: 5 (64)

-The Dark Heart was a pretty awesome JLU episode, being adapted from a Warren Ellis tale, and featuring The Atom helping out the League against a massive extraterrestrial threat- a nanotech-driven machine that endlessly produces a massive horde of unthinking mechanical weapons to eat matter and ultimately destroy whatever planet it lasts on. The Atom, using the snarky, self-righteous/self-deprecating acting style of John C. Reilly, has his finest moment here, giving the creature a "heart attack" by sneaking in through it's defenses and wrecking it's innards, after the ENTIRE LEAGUE failed to stop its forward momentum (merely holding it off).

-The Dark Heart is mainly showcased through its endless drones. By using their Matter-Eating power, the Heart builds more robots, sending an unending tide against the world. Not that high in PL- it's immobile and it's Minions are nowhere near a match for the JLU members one-on-one, or even ten-on-one, it's still among the greatest threats the team's ever faced.

Also:

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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by Shock »

Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jun 28, 2019 12:59 am
Also:

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The best day of the Atom's life
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by Ares »

I'll admit, I never really understood the issue some writers had with Wonder Woman being allegedly difficult to write. She's essentially DC's answer to someone like Thor, a character that blends the modern and the mythic, and faces off against threats from both the modern world and the realms of gods and monsters.

Maybe it's my background in martial arts, but the idea of someone who knows how to fight preaching peace isn't really that massive a contradiction either. Being skilled at fighting doesn't have to mean you like hurting people: it can simply mean you refuse to let someone else hurt anyone that doesn't deserve it, yourself included. One writer summed Diana's attitude up as being akin to a Shaolin Monk: They don't want to hurt you, and will give you a warning if you try to attack them. If you ignore that warning and continue to attack them, then they're going to break your arm and lecture you on your mistake.

I think the largest problem Diana has isn't her personality, but the Island of the Amazons and Amazonian Society as a whole. Coming from an island of immortal amazonian warriors is an essential part of her mythos, but who writers handle that part can be problematic for her character and storytelling in general.

Simply put, Paradise Island frequently gets used by writers as either The Ultimate Female Ideal to show how all of the evils in the world are the fault of men (and thus come off as misandrists) or it gets intentionally deconstructed to the point that the Amazons come off as straw feminists (see the Amazon rapists in the Nu-52). It requires a careful balancing act where Paradise Island is a unique culture due having thousands of years of isolation where they developed their own technology, society, philosophy and so on, with an equally unique location and populace. The island IS a paradise, but not necessarily because of the philosophy and lifestyle of the Amazons. It's a paradise because the island has zero population growth, the inhabitants don't age, don't get sick, and have all of the food they need, and the weather is perfect year round. Essentially, they don't have to share with anyone, they don't have to get along with anyone, they never face issues of overpopulation, etc. They also don't allow anyone on the island except in exceedingly rare circumstances.

Amazon society then is an example of people who get to live for several thousand years existing together, developing their own philosophy, technology, magic, etc. Amazon society would seem to take the best aspects of Sparta and Athens and blend them together, along with their own twists. Now, a lot of comics portray Amazons as people who talk about peace but are incredibly violent and ready to go to war at the drop of a hat. I'd go with the idea that Amazon's actually don't like WAR so much as they like COMPETITION. An island like this will get BORING after a few hundred years, so the Amazons compete against each other constantly. They enjoy fighting, but only in mock combat to hone their skills. They aren't a fan of warfare, seeing as a pointless waste of life, but they do enjoy testing themselves against each other in different fields. Making competition a big part of Amazon society allows them to have their philosophy of peace without coming off as hypocrites when it comes to war.

Which is not to say that Amazons AREN'T hypocrites, just that most of their philosophy works just fine. Their blindspot is naturally men and their idea that "Man's World" is a Hellish nightmare due to the evils of men. However, while that attitude isn't right, it is somewhat understandable. These are immortal women who, depending on their continuity, had varying degrees of legitimate issues with the male-dominated societies of the time. They don't age, they have a perfect place to live, and they've had thousands of years to re-tell stories and chat. Paradise Island is, simply put, an echo chamber with people reinforcing their own beliefs about how horrible men are by re-telling old stories that get embellished a bit more with age, and comparing their lives then to their lives now. They're basically like a group of wealthy older women in their 80s constantly gossiping with each other about how terrible things were at one point, only they've been doing this for centuries and all still look like athletic goddesses.

To me, Wonder Woman is not about coming into Man's World and showing the modern world how terrible they are and how they need to embrace Amazon virtues. She's more like someone from a tight knit community going to college for the first time and getting exposed to a larger world and new ideas, both good and bad. After a "Year One" phase where she does the "stranger in a strange land" but, Diana should be someone perfectly comfortable with the outside world, and have had time to form her own opinions. Yes, much of her Amazonian philosophy is admirable, but there is likewise just as many positive things about the modern world. Diana should be someone challenging both the modern world and Paradise Island to change.

It would actually eventually lead to the ideas put forth in this post back when Jab was doing Legion builds, with Paradise Island actually changing over time.

Whenever writing a character, it's important to identify key concepts. Diana, to me, is kind of like a cool aunt. The one who is responsible enough to take care of you, personable enough to know what you think is fun, playful enough to have said fun with you, and kind enough to make you feel welcome. She enjoys the challenge of a good fight, but doesn't revel in bloodshed or violence. When she fights, she fights either as part of a friendly competition, or in the defense of others. She is a teacher and a diplomat, someone who uses her words and actions to try and change things for the better.

Power-wise, I have to admit, over time I find myself preferring the idea of Diana not having flight as one of her powers, nor with her being Superman or just-under-Superman powerwise. I've mentioned before, but I'd rather her be someone who is more like Ben Grimm strong, but with Spider-Man agility, Quicksilver speed and Captain America's fighting skills. Between that and her gear, she'd easily be able to hold her own against someone like Superman. With Diana, the big selling point should be seeing what an A-List fighter could do with solid superhuman stats. Watching Diana fight should like watching Steve Rogers on steroids.

I'm also not really a fan of the more recent takes giving her a sword and shield. Either her bracelets make her shield redundant, or her shield makes her bracelets redundant, and frankly, the bracelets have been here longer. The sword actually makes her come off as even weaker, something she needs to compensate for her lack of power. I'd frankly keep her gear to her bracers, her lasso and the tiara as a remote control for her plane.

Overall tho, I thought this version of Wonder Woman was pretty solid, and one of the better takes on the character.
"My heart is as light as a child's, a feeling I'd nearly forgotten. And by helping those in need, I will be able to keep that feeling alive."
- Captain Marvel SHAZAM! : Power of Hope (2000)

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squirrelly-sama
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by squirrelly-sama »

I sort of like the Sword and Shield direction. The Bracelets always seemed weird to me and the Sword and Shield help her stand out from other powerhouses like Sups as well as serve as a visual reminder to reinforce the who "Warrior of Old" vibe she has. Because otherwise she's just sort of "Power Girl, but a milf with a bondage fetish".
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JDRook
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Re: Jab’s Builds! (Orion! Darkseid! V. Savage! The Shade! Wonder Woman!)

Post by JDRook »

Shock wrote: Fri Jun 28, 2019 2:25 am
Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jun 28, 2019 12:59 am
Also:

Image
The best day of the Atom's life
He did also see the most advanced nanotech of his career and was able to keep it from destroying the world through a combination of brilliance and carefully applied violence. But yeah, Wonder-Cleavage.

I really dig how the lead up is WW says to Atom "I'm going to need both hands" and just pops him in there, and Atom says . . . nothing because even if it weren't a kid show there's no possible response that can make that scene better.
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