In the New 52, we're seeing many changes. It's a time to explore new possibilities and new legends are forged. One new possibility is seeing Superman and Wonder Woman together. So far in the pages of JUSTICE LEAGUE, we've seen them make a connection as they both feel separated from others due to their powers and abilities. They've also shown that they make a great team in defeating the bad guys.
Next month DC is prepared to unleash a brand new series starring the two iconic heroes. Charles Soule will be writing while Tony Daniel will provide the art. We had the chance to speak with both of them to get an idea what exactly we can expect from the series and if it's just going to be about the two going on dates (spoiler: it's not just about dating).
Comic Vine: What will be the tone of the series?
Charles Soule: It's a great mix. It's not just one thing. I would say that it's really a mix of being really gigantic scale superhero action, which is appropriate when you have Superman and Wonder Woman playing on the same playing field. Beyond that, there are some really fantastic character moments, not just between the two of them but between their expanded casts, both respectively from their individual books. You also have the main characters in the book in a relationship with one another. So that enables us to play some deeper emotional beats that maybe not every other types would be able to access in the same way. When Superman and Wonder Woman, the icons, are together, it has sort of a spark, an electricity to it. That's just really really fun to write. There's something interesting on every single page, obviously with Tony's art on the book. There's a lot of ways we'll try to keep the readers interested it's a gigantic superhero punching or it is a really beautiful character moment between them.
Tony Daniel: I'd say it's a combination of badass meets sexy meets character drama. From the artist talking, that's what I'm envisioning in my head.
CV: The cover displays many of supporting characters and villains of both, is that something we can expect in the series?
TD: I drew that cover to basically show both worlds coming together, Superman's world and Wonder Woman's world. We may see some of those guys or we may not, during the course of our run. Those characters embody each of their worlds. They're not really making a new world together. These are two established icons bringing their deep rich histories together. That's what I wanted to try to get across on that very first piece of art. It was huge, larger than life and something that spans both worlds.
CV: What will be the balance between romance and action?
CS: Every issue is different. It's not a…I think you're focusing too much on it. The book is everything. In Empire Strikes Back, I use this comparison all the time, in that film you had a fantastic actor story, you had the great story with Luke learning from Yoda, you had the father/son stuff with Luke and Darth Vader (I guess that's a spoiler if no one's seen it) and you also happened to have a romance between Han and Leia. The movie would have probably still been great without that romance but adding the romance made it just a little bit better. As far as balance, there is no balance. We'll just play it as it makes sense in the story. You make a good story, that's all there is. There's no sort of percentage allocation to one or the other.
CV: Will we see much of the two in their civilian identities?
CS: When it makes sense. There are certainly scenes with Clark and Diana. There are also plenty of scenes with Superman and Wonder Woman. It's all about what makes sense in the story.
CV: Will this series be tied to the main series or have more of a separate feel focusing on the Superman and Wonder Woman and their adventures together?
CS: My feeling is that, well first of all, it's absolutely locked into the DC New 52. The things that happen in this series will have a dramatic and significant effect on the rest of the DCU. In terms of how those affects spreads out, it'll happen over time. We'll see things that start to resonate in other titles as they develop. But that's really true for any issue or any book in the DCU. Everything sort of affects everything else given enough time.
CV: Will we see more reaction from people like Amanda Waller and the government or Lois and Steve Trevor?
CS: There will be the entire sort of supporting cast of both titles that will be available for us to use. As far as which ones we'll use and when we'll use them, I think it'll be more fun to find out when reading the story, personally. They're all there. We're aware of all of them. We're using them as it makes sense.
CV: Will we see any follow up from events in Trinity War or build up to what we saw will eventually happen in FOREVER EVIL?
CS: Those stories are absolutely something were taking into account with our story. It sort of ties back to the answer I gave earlier, which is that the things that happen in SUPERMAN/WONDER WOMAN are tied into the larger DCU. As for how they tie in, that's going to be one of those things you'll have to wait and see when you read the book.
CV: Besides the two of you together, how will this series be different from other Superman or WW titles?
CS: Well obviously you have Superman and Wonder Woman together, which is not something we see often. We see the Justice League but Wonder Woman doesn't really pop up in the Superman titles and Superman doesn't really pop up in Wonder Woman's book. The idea that you can see them having adventures together is one of the things that absolutely makes it unique. There just isn't much else around like it.
As far as our work together, this is the largest scale superhero stuff I've ever done. I've never been able to work on Superman or Wonder Woman to this level. If you know my work from, say, SWAMP THING or RED LANTERNS, this is an entirely different type of storytelling for me. Which I'm having a really good time with. I think Tony can speak a little with the way he's approaching his art on this story a little bit differently than he might have done previously.
TD: Definitely. It's much bigger in scope and larger in scale. This is like drawing…gods, for the most part. And we do in issue #2. [laughs] The whole feel of the book is just so big and larger than life. I think that's what really great superhero comic books should read and look like.
CV: Tony, what are you most excited about in working on this title?
TD: I'm most excited about seeing the characters develop and grow as two individuals who are romantically involved in each other's lives. Watching what happens to them, as a fan of Superman and Wonder Woman, I care what happens with them. I care how everything is going to affect them and the people around them. It gives kind of a more real life scope to what is otherwise very fantasy-oriented. That's one of the things I look forward to the most. Aside from that, just drawing the world's mightiest heroes is inspiration enough for me to wake up everyday and try to do my best work.
SUPERMAN/WONDER WOMAN #1 is on sale October 9.
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