Spoilers below.
The Good
Putting my conflicted feelings regarding the massive changes made to Wonder Woman's identity and heritage in issue #7 of her ongoing series aside, this was a phenomenal issue. I can't even fake it. I literally had one of those "my mind has been blown," moments reading this issue. Needless to say, it's a little bit bittersweet -- but I'll get into that later. If you haven't yet read issue #7 of WONDER WOMAN then you probably should do so before reading this review. If you thought it was shocking when Azzarrello made Zeus Wonder Woman's father, then prepare to be even more shocked. Major changes are made not only to Wonder Woman's character, but Azzarello paints a dark portrait of Diana's "sisters" in this issue.
As a story, this comic is fantastic. Everything from the pacing and dialogue to Cliff Chiang's gorgeous pencils knock this issue completely out of the park. The story is really well written and it portrays Diana as this incredibly bold, courageous and compassionate character -- which she is. In fact, if there is one thing that has been consistent in Wonder Woman since the launch of the new 52 it's that Wonder Woman has maintained the attributes of her character she has always had. She continues to be compassionate, strong and courageous. However, everything around her is very, very different.
Azzarello has also been developing Diana's supporting cast which is definitely interesting. The characters really play well off of one another because they are so different. They certainly have an interesting dynamic.
This isn't a bad issue. As much as I am uneasy about what happened in this book, I can't deny that this is a good story because it is.
The Bad
My complaints are somewhat personal because Azzarello made such drastic changes to Wonder Woman's history and the identity of the Amazons. Essentially, he has changed them from being a group of compassionate warrior women, to women who are conniving, deceptive and man-hating who (essentially) seduce men to become pregnant and then kill them when they are no longer of any use. The worst of it though is what they do if any of them gives birth to a young boy. The girls are idolized while the boys are cast aside.
These changes will be difficult for any Wonder Woman fan to swallow, and will leave many wondering whether Azzarello simply didn't have it in him to write a compelling story without having to dramatically alter so much of Diana's (and the Amazon's) history and identity. Having said that, I can't say it doesn't make for an interesting story. Because it is a good story, as much as it bothers me to admit. I was at the edge of my seat at every turn, even if I had a difficult time reading it because I did not agree with the changes.
The Verdict
This is by no means a bad issue. There are a lot of changes made to cannon, (which left me uneasy) but it is a good, solid, well written, beautifully illustrated story. In addition, thechanges made to the Amazon's aren't really that far out. Infanticide and infant abandonment is said to have been commonplace in Ancient Greece, and practiced by Greek city-states like Sparta, for example. If Azzarello used the Spartans as an example for his story (a city-state built on the warrior mentality) does that make sense? Do the changes made to the Amazons make them more closely line up with some ancient hellenistic traditions and practices? Something to think about.