Tuesday, July 19, 2011

My Review: Wonder Woman TV Pilot

So I finally saw the Wonder Woman pilot... Yeah, I saw this pilot. There is a lot I can say about this 'attempt', but I will keep it short and with pictures.
WW as Diana Prince
  •  Wonder Woman is doing a bit much. She's running a business (which is not defined) and acting as a vigilante in Los Angeles. She also quite mean; there's not compassion in her at all.
  • The 3 identities don't make sense in this pilot. She's only Diana to escape her responsibilities; which is weird, because in an earlier scene she realized that her duty is to protect and serve (kinda).
  • We learn the reason why she has a costume is to match the look of her action figure. Really? It makes her likeable to the public. 
  • Her lasso is used more as a whip, like Catwoman.
Her Company
  • The company deals more with her image. In fact in one scene, there was a meeting about her doll and how the doll's breast were too big.
  • The shareholders treated her more as a model than a superhero. I found that very disheartening. 
Her Press Conference
  •  Diana came off more like a Bruce Wayne or a Tony Stark (Iron Man). She was too cocky and not likable. It seemed that her business side dominated her hero side.
  • The Amazon decor looked cheap and purposely placed just to show she's a mythical character. 
Diana's villain Veronica Cale

  • Veronica Cale was more of a 'OC' or a Soap Opera villain than a real threat. She was almost a forgettable side character.
  • There was no real threat about Veronica. She just acted like a Real Housewife ready to throw wine at Wonder Woman.
  • One of the weirdest part of their first meeting was Diana threatening to kill Veronica. That's not Diana's way. In fact, that's not a hero's way to handle business.
  •  We do see the jet, but it's not invisible.
  • Her fighting skills were okay; I was hoping to see more of an Amazon battle tactic.
  • She does the classic leaping over tall objects. (just like the original TV show)
  • She also deflects bullets in a cute way. I thought this was good.

  • The big gut punch was watching her kill people. She crushed two goons with vaults and she threw a pipe at a guard, striking him in the throat (see above)
  • The Steve Trevor scene were worthless. They never really explored why they broke up and his acting was weak.
  • I didn't care for his character and of course, he would have moved on with another woman (engagement ring scene)
  • This scene weaken Diana, making her more like Ally Mc Beal.

I'm so lonely
  • At the end of day, she cries about being lonely. It's like she had no idea her life was hard. She a freaking Amazon for Hera's sake!
Over all, this was okay to bad pilot. Diana acted more like Batwoman or a Catwoman. There were not enough characteristics of the Wonder Woman many of us know. She was cold, mean and not likeable. However on the acting point, Adrianne Palicki did a great job with this script. I just couldn't feel for her. This person acted more like Orana (for the serious fans) or Artemis, not Princess Diana.

Also this story was not a good intro to Wonder Woman. This pilot was a later tale about her or alternative version (Elseworlds) of WW. I wished the writer thought about who Diana is and what makes her a hero. This pilot did not give us a good view of the Amazing Amazon. So yes, this was a FAIL and I understand why this pilot failed to make the NBC line up.

So, hopefully this will inspire other writers to do a better job. WW deserves better.

8 comments:

The M'hael said...

On the Dl... hook a brother up with a copy. :)~

Kyle Leach said...

Wow, good thing they tabled this. I can't imagine what it must have been like to sit through this V, especially for someone who loves her so much.

Prince Todd said...

Where you see it at????!!!!

Robyn said...

After reading your review I'm glad this crashed and burned before it took off. It would have been a travesty, just like when some no-name band tried to do a cover of Stairway To Heaven right after John Bonham choked on his vomit and died.

WilsonW said...

@Prince-Same here!!

Unknown said...

Great review. Now tell us how u got to see it.

GiorRoig said...

Great Review, But I Still Got To See It... How Did You Get To See It Or Where???

WilsonW said...

Your review was SPOT ON, I must say Vik.

Pros:

1.I did kind of enjoy her fight scene at the end. She was pretty brutal, which is kind of in line for an Amazon warrior, just not really for Diana.

2.I like how they made the illusion of her being taller than everybody else. Even the men. But her fake height didn't match her physique.

Cons:
1.The non-invisible jet seemed silly to me.
2.Why was everybody calling her "Di" like they were her best buddy?
3.Why was she such a cold,cruel bitch?? Yikes! She threatened to kill more than once and she wasn't kidding. She did murder around three people.
4.Why torture someone rather than use her "Lasso of Truth"? Sadistic much?
5. Why did she look like she was robbing the cradle since Steve Trevor looked pre-pubescent compared to her?
6. What else does her company do? That's a gigantic facility just to make and sell one brand of toy. Licensing Diana, think about it.
7. Does she have diplomatic immunity? Why was she breaking the law so casually and consistently. How can you talk about Justice in one sentence and then act as criminally as the people you are fighting the next?
8. Is she from Paradise Island? They never mentioned if her company name was just a name or had any actual ties to Paradise Island.
9. When the villain mentioned she was taking her own vitamins, I thought that was a hint she had abilities. Wrong.
10. Why make such a point of having all the "victims" of the vitamins be Black and make a point of saying they were from "the ghetto." Now white kids don't use steroids or something?
11. Why did I expect them to play, "It's Not Easy Being Green" every time she went back to her apartment and played with her cat.
12. Speaking of playing with her cat. Didn't Diana feel like she really needed to get some uhmmm...release from her tension. Sadly, Steve did not look like the kind of person to do that for her.

Just add these to everything Vik has said already and it's EASY to see why this didn't fly.

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Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.