Some Ways Wonder Woman Is Different

I saw Wonder Woman on opening night, and while pondering the many reasons I loved it, I got to thinking about differences between Diana and other superheroes.

Like Superman, she comes from a peaceful, scholarly world, but unlike Krypton, Themyscira has a warrior culture. Like Superman, she is pure of heart; unlike Superman, she does not draw a line at killing. And unlike Superman, who was rocketed to Earth as a baby, Diana grew to adulthood in her home world, and so she brings her learnedness with her when she comes to our world.

Like Daredevil and Batman, Diana trains insanely hard from childhood to be a fighter. Unlike them, she doesn't do it because she's been scarred or traumatized. She might be the most psychologically healthy superhero I can think of. She trains hard because she is a warrior at heart and rejects her mother's attempts to shelter her from that life.

Unlike Spider-Man, she doesn't need a "great responsibility" teaching moment. Her natural instinctive reaction is: something's wrong here, people are being harmed, and I have the strength to do something about it.

These differences are some of the reasons I found the movie refreshing. They don't mean one character is necessarily better or worse than another, although I will say the character that Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins have created strikes me as a better Superman than the current Superman.