Wonder Woman w/o Powers Pt. 19: Wonder Woman #193

Diana comforts a troubled Mrs. Petrucci. Her son Tony has disappeared with his service pistol.

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Three years ago, her daughter, Tony’s sister, Angela, was poisoned at a party by some “sick clown of a practical joker.”

Diana starts asking questions about Tony, first with Eddie, a friend of his who was also at the party, then with the neighborhood residents…

It turns out that Runty Sneed paid this gang to “lay some muscle” on Diana to discourage her from snooping. However, when she stumbles upon Sneed’s dead body, she pretends he gave her some vital information before he died.

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Sure enough, the ruse causes an assassin to strike…

Diana is able to note the license number and calls “an old and influential friend on the police force.” He tells her the license belongs to… Eddie! When Diana arrives at his address, she’s a moment too late as Tony has chased Eddie to the top of a construction site.

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Diana intervenes, but struggles to restrain Tony.

No, Tony – not this way! Let the law have him –

When Tony thanks Diana for saving him, he wonders if they’re fighting a losing battle. She replies,

Win or lose, Tony – we are going to continue fighting it –

Thoughts

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I enjoyed this one-off story, although I identified the villain immediately. Diana acknowledges an issue that a hero without powers would face: the need to continue training. After she throws her first punch, she massages her aching hand and says, “Got to start practicing again.”

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Last time, I mentioned I prefer the stories grounded in reality over the ones. It was apparently a question for the editors at the time. In a response to a letter from Frank Rizzo, “Editor” responded:

--there is one question I’d like to ask other readers of WW – would you like her appearing in more adventures of the sword and sorcery type or do you prefer less fantasy and more stories about the problems of today – in other words do you prefer it sort of how it is – or would you rather have pure escapism?

I think by now you know how I would have voted. By the time we’re done with this run, we should be able to tell if I would have been in the majority or in the minority.

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Title: Wonder Woman

Issue #: 193

Cover Date: March/April 1971

On Sale Date: Jan. 5, 1971

Writer: Mike Sekowsky

Penciller: Mike Sekowsky

Inker: Dick Giordano

Editor: Mike Sekowsky