12 March: Wonder Woman

On this date in 1974, Wonder Woman, a TV Adventure starring Lynda Carter, debuted on ABC. 10 things you might not know about the Wonder Woman character:

1. Her first appearance was in All-Star Comics #8 on 21 October 1941. By the summer of 1942, she had her own comic book title.
2. Wonder Woman was created by William Moulton Marston, who was ahead of his time not only because he envisioned a female superhero in a male dominated world, but he was living in a polyamorous relationship with two women – his wife Elizabeth and another woman called Olive Byrne. He is said to have based his female superhero character on them.
3. Another interesting fact about Marston is that he was also an inventor. One of his inventions was a systolic-blood-pressure measuring apparatus. He believed that when a person is lying their Blood pressure rises. In 1917 he built an early version of a lie detector machine. He also believed women were more likely to be honest than men. Many believe it is no coincidence that one of Wonder Woman's tools is the Lasso of Truth, which renders anyone caught in it incapable of lying.
4. Also part of Wonder Woman's equipment are Silver bracelets created from the remains of Zeus's shield, which are unbreakable. Since she has been known to use them as weapons, they were long thought to be part of her power; but then one storyline had her remove them in order to fight a god, revealing that their purpose is actually to keep her powers in check, to protect her human opponents from her god-like powers.
5. Marston wanted his character to have the abilities of Superman, but to also be a pacifist who was merciful to her enemies, wishing to reform them rather than kill them. He originally called her Suprema, The Wonder Woman, but by the time she appeared in a comic, her name had been shortened to simply Wonder Woman.
6. She has never worn a skirt. While early depictions make her look as if she is wearing a flowing mini-skirt, she's actually wearing culottes.
7. Her true identity is Princess Diana of Themyscira. The original origin story was that her mother, Queen Hippolyta, made her out of clay, and she was brought to life by the Greek gods and blessed with powers including superhuman strength from Demeter and speed from Hermes. A recent re-boot of the character has changed that story, so that now she has a father in the conventional way – Zeus, King of the Gods, and that the previous story was a lie. Clearly she never used the Lasso of Truth on her relatives! When living incognito on Earth she uses the alias Diana Prince, an identity she borrowed from an army nurse who bore a striking resemblance to her.
8. She gave up her powers briefly in the 1960s, so she could stay on Earth with her love interest Steve Trevor rather than travel to another dimension with the rest of the Amazons. She opened a fashion boutique and lived as a normal woman, the only concession being that she'd wear a jumpsuit with a W on it. Wonder Woman regained her powers thanks to feminist icon Gloria Steinem, who was a lifelong fan. Steinem was horrified to learn that Wonder Woman had given up her powers and petitioned DC Comics for her to get them back. Steinem was enough of a fan, too, that she commissioned and paid for a book to be made up of the Wonder Woman stories – an early graphic novel.
9. Wonder Woman was the first female member of the Justice League America. However, the sexist climate of the time had her working, most of the time, as their secretary, rather than fighting supervillains.
10. Since she was created during the second world war, her early foes included Axis military forces as well as supervillains.

Who's That Girl?

Matt Webster lives in a tower block and attends a failing school. He dreams of being a spy like James Bond. Little does he know that he is being watched by someone who can make him into even more than that – a superhero.

His first solo mission is to attend a ball at the Decembrian Embassy and discover who is planning to steal a priceless diamond. While there, he meets the mysterious Lady Antonia du Cane, and is powerfully drawn to her. It soon becomes clear, however, that Lady du Cane is not what she seems. Matt’s quest to discover who she really is almost costs him his career.

A modern day Guy Fawkes gathers a coterie around him with the aim of blowing up Parliament with a nuclear bomb. To achieve this, they need money. Lots of it. Selling the Heart of Decembria Diamond will provide more than enough. All that stands in their way is the Freedom League – but the League is beset by internal disagreements. Can the heroes put their differences aside in time to save the day?

Prime Minister Richard Miller and his wife Fiona grieve for their daughter, Yasmin, who has been missing for three years, and is presumed to be dead. Viper agent Violet Parker could hold the key to what happened to Yasmin, but Violet is accused of giving away the organisation’s secrets. She is to be executed without trial. Will she take her knowledge of what happened to Yasmin with her to her grave?

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