The Hiketeia

Very good looking book with a great story. This is how Wonder Woman should always be written.

Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia is a bit of a rarity these days as it is not a collection of previously published comics but an original graphic novel. Written by Greg Rucka and penciled by J.G. Jones, this book was certainly created by A-list talent and features stars to match in Wonder Woman and Batman. The story features a fugitive from justice (and Batman) who seeks a form of sanctuary from Wonder Woman invoking a ritual known as the Hiketeia. The ritual offers Wonder Woman no decision to refuse, she has to accept as long as the supplicant obeys the strictures of the ritual. This inevitably brings Batman and Wonder Woman into conflict and sets up an interesting situation of the ethics and responsibilities of all the involved parties. I am not a big fan of Wonder Woman and am definitely not a fan of Greg Rucka's writing but this story is an exception. It's well paced and the characterizations are very well portrayed. Rucka manages to create a fairly unique situation for the characters that allows us to see how they react in a situation neither is really comfortable with. Jones is an excellent artist probably best known at the moment for the covers he painted for 52. All in all, there's a lot to like here and not much to criticize really. It's easy to recommend for anyone looking for a good story.

The best thing about this book, aside from the art, is its very simple premise. "What happens when ideologies clash?" Greg Rucka did a fantastic job of picking two DC characters that are very opinionated in their ideologies. And its just a matter of telling the right story to see which one of them will you believe in.

This trade surpassed my expectations. A modern story of a girl running from her past, running to Wonder Woman for aid, shrouding herself in Greek tradition, and binding Wonder Woman between a rock and a hard place (Batman). The artwork is grand, the story is fast-paced yet gripping, and the ending will break your heart. I don't read a lot of Wonder Woman books, but this tale is a masterpiece.

Well ... I just had to write a review and give it five stars, despite being tired and sleepy (almost midnight as I write this). Only two persons had reviewed this book, and one of them gave it only one star, grossly skewing the average rating and possibly affecting what unsuspecting potential buyers might think of this GREAT book. The Hiketeia is a dark and depressing story, very much in the vein of classic Greek tragedies. Wonder Woman grants sanctuary to a young woman, Danielle Wellys, and becomes bound to give Danielle protection without realising that Batman is after Danielle for having murdered several people who caused her younger sister's death. The story resonates with Aeschylus's Oresteia, with its theme of duty and vengeance and their consequences - Orestes was commanded by the Gods, through Apollo's oracle at Delphi, to avenge the murder of his father, Agamemnon, by killing the murderer, his mother Clytemnestra. He duly performed this horrendous duty, bringing the wrath of the Furies, ancient goddesses who hound murderers of blood kinsmen, upon his head in the bargain. Orestes was in a no-win situation - had he failed to kill his mother, the Furies' wrath would have also descended upon his head for failing to avenge the murder of his father. While the Oresteia ended on a happy note - Athena absolved Orestes of any misdeeds and placated the Furies by appealing to their egos - Greg Rucka goes one step further by giving The Hiketeia a bleak ending without any deus ex machina plot devices often used by the ancient Greeks. While the characterisation of the Furies as scheming witches plotting Wonder Woman's downfall is contrary to what the ancient Greeks themselves would have thought of them, I greatly enjoyed this story for being true to Wonder Woman's roots in Greek mythology. The colours used are muted to reflect the darkness of the story, but the art-work is gorgeous. Go beyond the S & M cover of Wonder Woman's heel on Batman's face and you will discover a modern Greek tragedy well worth reading and re-reading several times.